Dr M Khalid's global village blog

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http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303772904577336230132805276.html CareerCast.com ranked 200 jobs from best to worst based on five criteria: physical demands, work environment, income, stress and hiring outlook. To compile its list, the firm primarily used data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and other government agencies. From a software engineer to a lumberjack, see the complete list, and search for your job.

http://www.careercast.com/jobs-rated/10-best-jobs-2012

Economists are rightly starting to warn that the  United States  faces a worrisome "fiscal cliff" at year's end. The blunt spending cuts mandated by the 2011 compromise on the debt ceiling — and the failure of the "supercommittee" that followed — along with across-the-board tax increases would derail the US recovery and undermine the well-being of the global economy. We should be avoiding the edge of this cliff — and politicians should not believe that they have until the end of this year to act. The sequestration mandated by the Budget Control Act of 2011 and the reversal of the Bush-era and payroll tax cuts would essentially mean withdrawing from the economy some 4 percent of the national income in one blunt go — and this doesn't factor in possible knock-on effects. The importance of this issue cannot be overstated. A fiscal contraction of this magnitude and composition would stop dead in its tracks the economy's nascent healing and job creatio...

In the next few years, millions of savers are in for a surprise that could cost them tens of thousands of dollars now—or hundreds of thousands later. The reason: Universal-life insurance policies bought years ago when interest rates were high will face cancellation if policyholders don't pay more. View Interactive Douglas Jones If interest rates stay low, many policyholders will face the unhappy choice of kicking in more money, accepting a lower death benefit or walking away, possibly sacrificing years of premiums they already paid. Many people are "sitting on a ticking time bomb," says Kenneth Himmler, president of Integrated Asset Management, an advisory firm in Los Angeles. About 70% of the new clients whose insurance coverage he reviews are facing higher out-of-pocket costs because policies aren't generating enough interest income to pay costs, he says. From  http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324595904578121484233279270.ht...

FRANKFURT—The euro-zone economy contracted in the third quarter, offering little hope for the worsening global environment as rising unemployment and fiscal austerity across much of Europe undermine the region's fortunes. The euro zone hasn't grown for four straight quarters and the latest decline in gross domestic product was the second straight. Economists often define recession as two straight quarterly GDP contractions. Europe's debt crisis, which has pushed unemployment higher and forced governments to enact tax increases and spending cuts, is largely to blame for the malaise. Germany and France, the euro-zone's two largest economies, posted modest growth in the quarter. From  http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324556304578120201009443598.html?mod=WSJ_business_EuropeNewsBucket

TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's economy shrank in the September quarter for the first time since last year, adding to signs that slowing global growth and tensions with China are nudging the world's third-largest economy into recession. The 0.9 percent fall in GDP was in line with expectations, although a decline in capital expenditure was much steeper than forecast. Sony Corp and Panasonic Corp have slashed spending plans to cope with massive losses as they struggle with competitive markets and a strong yen. The fall in GDP translated into an annualized rate of decline of 3.5 percent, government data showed on Monday. While U.S. growth showed a modest pick up in the third quarter, Japan and the euro zone economies are shrinking. "The GDP data confirms that the economy has fallen into a recession," said Tatsushi Shikano, senior economist at Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Securities in Tokyo. "It is set for a second straight quarter of contraction in the current qu...