US Finance World

The Retail Motor Industry Federation forecasts higher wholesale prices will be passed on at the pumps very soon.

A motoring industry body is warning that the cost of diesel is set to rocket in the next few weeks due to high wholesale costs.

The Retail Motor Industry Federation (RMI) has been monitoring the wholesale price of both diesel and petrol over the Christmas and New Year period. It says that diesel increased by 4.5p per litre and unleaded petrol by up to 5p per litre.

The RMI says this could push the cost of diesel at the pumps over last May’s record high of 143p per litre and possibly as high as 145p per litre.

It says that the Christmas break meant that retailers haven’t had time to factor in the increases at the pump yet but they are likely to from this weekend.

The RMI says prices are rising due to growing tensions between Iran and the West, a freeze in production at four refineries and companies holding low stock due to cash flow problems.

The average price of petrol had fallen to its lowest level for nine months by mid-December, according to the AA. But

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As she works to get a handle on pricing, Susan Parker, a member of our business group, weighs the competing interests of art and commerce. On the one hand, Ms. Parker, who owns the dressmaker Bari Jay, is thrilled with her creative designer and credits her with much of the company’s turnaround. The designer, Kristine Eikenbary, takes her inspiration from higher-end fashion. “Her designs are gorgeous,” said Ms. Parker.

But they are also expensive, thanks to more complicated elements that add fabric and labor costs. For example, a plain dress might require three yards of fabric, while a shirred or pleated one could take five or six — plus the added work required to create these features. On top of that, as a result of increased costs for raw materials, labor, and shipping, it’s getting more expensive to manufacture the dresses in China.

Hiring Ms. Eikenbary three years ago was a coup for Ms. Parker’s fa

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If you read the news, there has been a renewed push by regulators to bring white-collar crime and white-collar criminals to justice. But, if we look behind the head-lines, is justice ever rendered? There is at least two ways to look at this issue.

The first is monetary fines for violators should theoretically act as a deterrent to all participants in the financial industry. Set the fine high enough and it should send a chill against illegal behavior. Theres two problems with this approach. In 2010,  Goldman Sachs agreed to pay the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) a $550 million fine in connection with Goldman Sachs misleading the public about subprime mortgage products. The amount sounds staggering but, as many commentators noted, this amount was equivalent to 4 days revenue to Goldman Sachs.  A $550 million fine may sound great on main street but it is merely the cost of doing business on Wall Street.

The much larger problem with levying large fines is actually collecting these fines. I

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If youre like me, youve probably got some last minute wrap up to do for the holidays and then you can rest (for a minute or two). We are pretty lucky to live in a time when we have technology at our finger tips. I dont know if you have a small business owner on your holiday list, but I thought Id share some my favorite tools you may want to consider gifting or treat yourself!

Roboform This is my favorite password manager. With everything requiring a password these days, who has the brain capacity to remember even one password much less 100? With Roboform you dont have to. Its like having a brain extension. You can get it here.

Carbonite We all talk about needing a back up to our computers (our business lifeline!), but do you do it? Ive been really lucky not to have ever had a real problem, but I know plenty of small business owners who have lost a ton of time, effort, and customer data due to a computer problem.

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Your cost of living went up about 0.2% in September, says the government. Meanwhile your U.S. stocks went down about 8%. Ouch.

Your cost of living went up 0.3% in August. The stock market lost you about 6%. Ouch, again.

Your cost of living went up 0.1% in July. U.S. stocks? They lost another 2%.

Okay, three months isn’t much to go on. But let’s look at the slightly longer term.

So far this year the stock market has lost about 3.5%, even when you include dividends. That’s not too bad, right?

At the same time the consumer price index has risen 3.5%. So in real terms the stock market has cost you about 7%. A diversified basket of U.S. stocks — I’ve used the ultra-low cost Vanguard Total Stock Market Index (VTSMX) fund as a proxy — will buy you 7% fewer goods and services than it would have done at Christmas.

Economists may talk about the threat of “deflation,” or falling prices, but steady, persistent inflation remains the reality for most people.

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