European electronics maker Royal Philips Electronics has posted an unexpected third-quarter profit due to the fact that the company’s operating earnings in its consumer unit almost doubled. Considering the dire straits that the technology industry has been through since the onset of the witehring recession, Philips’ performance has come as something of a surprise to many analysts.
The company’s third-quarter net income rose to $256 million, marking a rise of almost 300 percent from the same period last year’s figures. Philips’ performance completely smashes analyst expectations, with analysts expecting a net income loss of 44.7 million euros, or about $66 million. Sales, …read more

Nike’s fiscal first-quarter profit has increased slightly, mostly on the back of cost cutting efforts that were undertaken by the sportswear giant earlier this year. However, Nike’s profits have managed to exceed analyst expectations and the company expects cost cutting efforts to dominate the results for the near future.
 
After Nike made the results public, its shares rose 4.3 percent to $62.68 in after-hours trading on Tuesday, marking a dramatic comeback from its three-year-low of $38.24 in March. Nike reported earnings of $513 million, or $1.04 per share, this quarter, which is up from its earnings of $510.5 million, or $1.03 …read more

In order to save $500 million in costs next year, the U.S. Postal Service will offer buyouts to 30,000 of its workers, according to the agency itself. According to a news release, the USPS plans to negotiate with two employee unions and work out a deal that would allow the USPS to give financial incentives to certain employees so that they retire or resign early.
 
The American Postal Workers Union and the National Postal Mail Handlers Union have both settled on the agreement for this one-time offer, while employees represented by the National Association of Letter Carriers and the National Rural …read more

Despite a decrease in revenue, Kraft Foods has managed to post an 11 percent rise in profits for its fiscal second quarter. This result surpassed analyst expectations and has led Kraft Foods to enhance its outlook for the rest of the fiscal year, banking on a recent restructuring effort and the improvement of its products.
According to company CEO Irene Rosenfeld, Kraft’s higher-priced products are still managing to lure shoppers, but that Kraft will now focus on increasing volume and product variety rather than prices. She also credited the company’s three-year turnaround plan with its surprisingly strong performance this quarter.
As part …read more

Although RadioShack has managed to post results that beat analyst expectations in the second quarter, its shares have fallen 8 percent. Investors are worried that RadioShack’s second quarter results only came after vigorous cost-cutting measures and that the electronics company will not be able to maintain profitability once it runs out of costs to cut.
 
Analysts have also wondered whether or not RadioShack actually went too far in its cost-cutting measures, hurting the company’s chances of gaining ground as other competitors continue to bow out. RadioShack ended up cutting 11 percent of its costs mainly through limiting the amount of money …read more

A spokesperson for AOL has revealed that the internet company could soon be facing a slew of job cuts after a review of the company’s finances. The news came at a companywide meeting from AOL’s CEO Tim Armstrong, who warned employees to be prepared for the worst pending AOL’s financial evaluation. 
 
Armstrong’s comments point to problems within the company, essentially underlining the AOL’s needs to cut costs as the economic crisis continues to take its toll on businesses around the world. The company’s spokesperson did not reveal exactly how many jobs were in danger.
 
AOL is a subsidiary of Time Warner Inc. …read more

In today’s economy, more so than ever, budgeting is an essential process. By creating a personal budget, you will be forced you to take a look at your spending habits.
By tracking your expenditures, you can then make informed decisions to meet your personal financial goals, whether they are getting out of debt, saving for retirement, or just planning a vacation.
Don’t Use Cash
No, I don’t mean you should max out your credit cards, but rather use a debit card for purchases. This will allow you to better track where you are spending on day to day items. Oftentimes, people don’t realize …read more

If your household’s lifestyle pushes you to keep spending income several months into the future (i.e., live beyond your means and rely heavily on credit cards), it is time to take stock of your expenses.
List down all your expenses. Be absolutely honest and categorize them into:
(a) necessary
(b) can be spent if there’s money left after paying for necessary expenses
(c) luxury
(d) keeping up with the Joneses.
Obviously, the best move is to stop spending at Category (a).
image from Microsoft Clipart