Pinoy Entrepreneurs

The financial world is now going through some turbulent times.
The global economic crisis has affected markets and economies worldwide and has rendered the financial markets unstable. The crisis has deepened recently due to negative investor sentiment. In these critical conditions most investors are pulling their money out of the falling stock markets and looking for available alternatives for investment.

Many investors have found safe-haven in the Forex market.
Unlike other financial assets, the Forex market allows investors to benefit from all market directions. Whether a currency is going up or down, the Forex market presents endless trends and trading opportunities. As currencies always trade in pairs; when one weakens the other strengthens. While stocks have been crashing investors have fled to the Dollar causing it to rally, while causing its counterparts, such as the Euro, to drop in value.

Volatility in the markets can often present excellent trading opportunities.
Since the start of the current economic crisis volatility has increased by magnitude levels on all the financial markets. Despite what most people think, traders on the Forex market can benefit from the sharp movements by trading quick swing trades. The sharper the movement, the more Forex traders stand to profit.

Trade with the correct tools to minimize your risk.
Stop loss orders allows you to pre-determine the amount you are willing to risk on each trade, while allowing your profits to rise. By using our unique trading system, one that has been custom built to accommodate risk/reward portfolio management, you can fully control your positions even during volatile hours.
For example, on a $100 investment a trader can control his/her positions, by risking a pre-determined amount. This allows traders protect their account from sharp unpredictable market movements, while allowing them to take advantage of the market’s volatility.

Despite our excellent advantages allowing traders to monitor and control their trading portfolio, new traders are often hesitant to start trading Forex because they perceive it as a complicated thing. Due to our revolutionized trading platform, new traders can easily adjust to the world of currency trading. With a simple and visual interface, eToro is designed to welcome novices allowing them to master currency trading in no time at all.

Source: eToro

It’s hard to argue with the health benefits of a diet rich in vegetables and fruits: Lower blood pressure; reduced risk of heart di-sease, stroke, and pro-bably some cancers; lower risk of eye and digestive problems; and a mellowing effect on blood sugar that can help keep appetite in check.
Most people should aim for at least nine servings (at least 4½ cups) of vegetables and fruits a day and po-tatoes don’t count.

Go for a variety of kinds and colors of produce, to give your body the mix of nutrients it needs. Take dark leafy greens, cooked tomatoes and anything that’s a rich yellow, orange, or red color.

1. Keep fruit out where you can see it. That way you’ll be more likely to eat it. Keep it out on the counter or in front of the fridge.

2. Get some every meal, every day. Try filling half your plate with vegetables at each meal. Serving up salads, stir fry, or other vegetable-rich fare makes it easier to reach this goal. Bonus points if you can get some fruits and vegetables at snack time, too.

3. Explore the produce aisle and choose some-thing new. Variety is the key to a healthy diet. Get out of a rut and try some new fruits and vegetables.

4. Bag the potatoes. Choose other vegetables that are packed with more nutrients and more slowly digested carbs. Read the “Carbohydrates” section of The Nutrition Source to learn how to add good carbs to your diet.

5. Make it a meal. Try some new recipes where vegetables take center stage, such as asparagus with warm tarragon-pecan vinaigrette, or spicy broc-coli with red pepper.

Source: JournalOnline

THE National Bureau of Investigation has officially ruled the death of the wife of ABS-CBN broadcaster Ted Failon a suicide saying she was suffering from grave depression  when she ended her life last April 15.

In a press conference, NBI Director Nestor Mantaring announced that Trinidad “Trina” Arteche-Etong indeed committed suicide as the bureau’s probe established.

Contrary to speculations that there was foul play, Mantaring said Etong opted to end her life by her own volition and nobody aided, forced, or induced her to commit such act.

“The NBI, supported by all its findings and investigative leads, has now established and concludes that no other person was present, or was with Trina inside the bathroom the moment the trigger was pulled and that the victim has the capability, motive and means of doing such act,” Mantaring said.

Etong was found with a bullet wound in the head inside their house at 27 Gen. Aquino St. Tierra Pura Homes, Tandang Sora, Quezon City. She was brought to the New Era General Hospital where she finally expired.

The NBI focused its probe on testimonial and even circumstancial evidence.
Investigators also relied on the findings of the NBI-neuro psychiatric section that found Etong suffering from major depressive disorder.

“We have limited time so no NBI autopsy was conducted on Trina  because she was scheduled to be cremated at the time. Ted Failon said two autopsies have been conducted — one by PNP and the other independent — so he told us he felt that we have to respect Trina,” Mantaring said.

Source: JournalOnline

MANILA, Philippines – The local franchise industry is gearing up to expand and extend its local and foreign market reach even in the face of the global crisis.

Many members of the Philippine Franchise Association (PFA) are preparing for Franchise 2009, the 17th Philippine International Franchise Conference and Expo (PIFCE) in Manila this year, strongly optimistic about attracting established enterprises and new entrepreneurs to join this ever-thriving consumer-oriented industry.

PFA chair Bing S. Limjoco said the industry’s optimism was based on franchising’s consistent success in both good and hard times, having ably surmounted the 1997 Asian financial crisis and the other dark years when the economy suffered negative growth.

Limjoco also ruled out any enormous future decline in domestic consumption that could cripple the industry, citing the continued deployment of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs), the steady inflow of their dollar remittances, the stable property market, and the sustained boom in tourism and back office outsourcing (BPO) businesses.

“Even the returning OFWs and retiring migrant Filipinos can remain lucratively productive through our franchised businesses,” Limjoco said.

“Franchising does well in good times and even better in challenging times. There are many retirees, retrenched workers, who are looking for investment or business opportunities. Those who bought a franchise in 1997 are now regulars in the golf course,” she added.

“Most importantly, we have a young consumption-oriented population unlike the mature and ageing markets of the highly-industrialized countries hardest hit by the crisis,” Limjoco further pointed out.

“And with our young and large population whose zillions of needs are fully matched by the products and services of the highly-creative members of the PFA, market demand will remain up and the economy can post decent growth of probably not less than three percent,” Limjoco predicted.

She said the industry would continue to come out with innovative but market-tested business concepts, churning out exciting and irresistible products to stimulate consumption, hastening the velocity of money in changing hands to benefit more people, promoting entrepreneurship to create jobs, and widening the domestic capital base to expand the national economy.

All these novel business concepts and well-established homegrown enterprises and foreign brands will be showcased at the PFA’s Franchise Expo 2009 slated at the SMX Convention on July 3 to 5.

Organized by PFA, Franchise 2009 is co-presented by PLDT Business Solutions and Seaoil, sponsored by the Generics Pharmacy, PLDT SME Nation, Quali Plus Int’l, Max’s Restaurant, Manels, 7-Eleven, Goldilocks, Mister Donut, PR Gaz Haus, Francorp, Montanara, Jollibee, Red Ribbon, Subway, HBC, Blue Water Day Spa, BPI Family Savings Bank, Coca Cola, Selecta, Pepsi, the Philippine Star, Manila Bulletin, Panay News, Business World, Philstar.com, Entrepreneur Magazine, Wave 89.1, Ayala Malls, Araneta Center, Shangri-La Plaza, Robinsons Malls, AM Cleofe Prints, Asian Productivity Organization and the Development Academy of the Philippines, and supported by the Asia Pacific Franchise Confederation and the World Franchise Council.

The expo has been consistently successful in attracting both exhibitors and visitors, posting last year an 18 percent increase over 2007, with 244 companies occupying 295 booths spanning about a hectare of exhibit space.

The expo showcases the best business opportunities from the franchise industry, ranging from established and successful brands to new and promising concepts in food, retail and services at various levels of investment requirements.

Source: PhilStar

The benefits of accepting credit cards almost always outweigh the risks, and the chances of this are greatly improved if you do your homework before opening a merchant account. In this article Ill talk about the importance of accepting credit cards, what to expect as you compare merchant accounts and how to keep your merchant account in good standing once you begin processing.

Convincing a business owner that they need to start accepting credit cards isnt as tough as it once was and its getting easier every day. Credit and debit cards are a staple in consumers wallets and the trend isnt showing signs of letting up any time soon. For merchants, the ability to accept credit cards often translates to larger average tickets and greater gross monthly sales volumes. Of course, along with the greater sales volume comes the expense of processing credit card transactions. Fortunately, profit from increased sales typically far outweighs processing costs.Here are a few helpful points that you should know before beginning your search for a merchant account.

Merchant account fees are not standardized
Merchant account Rates and fees vary widely from one provider to the next. Aside from the amount of fees charged, some accounts will have entire categories of fees that others wont. As you being to research your options, look at every account as an individual.

Credit card processing rates and fees are not written in stone
Haggling is the name of the game when it comes to negotiating the best merchant account rates and fees. Consider the rates and fees of an initial merchant account quote as a starting point from which you can start to reducing costs.

There are a lot of providers competing for your business
Dont begin and end your search at your local bank or even with the providers in your town. There are thousands of merchant service providers all competing for your business. Use this competition to your advantage to get the best rates possible. Consider using a web site like CardFellow.com to get quotes from multiple providers from a national market.

Once you begin contacting merchant service providers, you should expect to encounter some pretty good sales people that may employ high-pressure sales tactics. The key is to remain methodical in your search process and look at the facts surrounding an account, not the salespersons interpretation of them.

The best and truly knowledgeable salespeople will use the rates and fees of their merchant account quote to help portray the benefits of their offer. Theyll take the time to learn about your business, present calculations and estimations of processing expenses using an effective rate, and theyll take the time to answer your questions in a consultative manner. These are the salespeople to look for, but not necessarily the ones to expect.

Once you decide upon a merchant account provider and start accepting credit cards, your education about credit card processing has just begun. Dont look at the task as complete, but as just beginning. The bankcard industry is always changing and new regulations that affect you are commonly brought to legislative attention. The phrase knowledge is power translates to merchants in the bankcard industry as knowledge is money. The more you know about credit card processing, the more you will be able to save yourself in processing expenses.

Once you begin processing credit cards, frequent reliable and unbiased sources on the subject to keep yourself up to date about the industry and ways you can optimize your merchant account to lower costs. The best sources of merchant account information are the ones that arent trying selling you processing services.

Source: SEO-Specialist-Online