Why is America so Rich?

ECONOMIC gloom and doom aside, America remains the world's richest large country. It's generally estimated to have a per capita GDP level around $45,000, while the richest European nations manage only a $40,000 or so per capita GDP (setting aside low population, oil-rich states like Norway). Wealth underlies America's sense of itself as a special country, and it's also cited as evidence that America is better than other economies on a range of variables, from economic freedom to optimism to business savvy to work ethic.

But why exactly is America so rich? Karl Smith ventures an explanation:

I am going to go pretty conventional on this one and say a combination of three big factors

1. The Common Law
2. Massive Immigration
3. The Great Scientific Exodus during WWII

You’ll notice that four of the top five countries in the Human Development Index have the Common Law and the top, Norway, is a awash in oil. Without the petro-kronors they probably wouldn’t be so hot.
You’ll also notice that 3 of the top 4, again with Norway the odd man out, are immigrant nations. The founder effect here should be clear.
The bonus from the great exodus is definitely waning. Most of our hey-day German and Jewish scientists are dying off, but its still given us a boost that lingers to this day. There is no fundamental reason why the US should be the center of the scientific world but for a time it was the only place in the world safe for many scientists.

It's a difficult question to tackle because there's so very much to it. America jumped to a huge productivity lead early last century by developing a resource- and capital-intense, high-throughput style of manufacturing producing mass market goods. The fractious, class-riven European continent struggled to copy this technology, and while adoption of these methods eventually led to a period of rapid catch-up growth, the process of catch-up was never quite completed. And so that's one gap to explore.

There's also the question of what exactly one is comparing. What if we take similar European and American metropolitan areas and adjust for human capital and hours worked? On that basis, the difference between America and northern Europe looks relatively small. One might then focus on the ways in which America's more integrated domestic market leads to a lower level of within-continent inequality, even though national inequality levels in Europe compare favourably with America's.

The size of the market may be more important than we imagine. As Mr Smith notes, four of the top five HDI countries share the Common Law. They also speak English. In a world in which national and cultural barriers still bite, America's wealth could be chalked up to the fact that it's a uniquely large and uniform nation. Common rules, culture, language, and so on facilitate high levels of trade and mobility. National and cultural barriers within Europe, by contrast, work to limit the extent to which the economic potential of the continent can be reached.

Mr Smith also gets at something important in discussing immigration and talent. The economic geography of the world is lumpy, and talent likes to clump together into centres of innovation. Through fortune and foresight, America managed to develop world-leading centres of talent in places like Silicon Valley, Boston, and New York. Relatively open immigration rules and the promise of a safe harbour for war refugees, including persecuted Jews, helped build these knowledge centres. When one combines that innovative capacity with a system that makes it relatively easy to develop ideas and relatively lucrative to exploit them economically, the potential is there for rapid and sustained growth.

America does seem to be special in important ways, but it's not always clear what those ways are. A liberal economic order and geographically mobile population are important, but so is the level of education, the promise of social mobility, and the openness of America's borders. It's worth keeping all of that in mind as the country's leaders think about the ways economic policy should change in the wake of the Great Recession.(economist.com)

Why is America so Rich?

Investment friendly milieu

Non Residents Nepalis officials said that Nepal lacked an investment -friendly environment to attract foreign investments to country. They blamed that the political instability coupled with professional insecurity had discouraged potential investors. Devman Hirachan, president of NRN Association, said that once there was peace and security for the investors and political stability in the country, there is huge potential of attracting foreign investment to the country. He said that more than 25 per cent of GDP was received from remittance. He blamed that the government failed to utilise the amount in right place. The remittance has failed to generate employment opportunities in the country.

Investment friendly milieu

Japan discontinuing SAARC Aid

Japan, one of the major donors for the SAARC since 1993, has decided to suspend its aid activities provided through SAARC-Japan Special Fund.

Japan discontinuing SAARC Aid

Richest Chinese Women

More than half of the 20 richest self-made women in the world are Chinese. The three richest women on the planet are Chinese, led by paper-recycling queen Zhang Yin, who has a personal fortune of 5.6 billion dollars. Of the 20 richest self-made female billionaires, 11 are Chinese, with wealth averaging 2.6 billion dollars-compared to ninth-placed Oprah Winfrey's 2.3 billion dollars.

Richest Chinese Women

Poverty falls in Nepal ?

According to National Planning Commission, the proportion of people in Nepal below the poverty line has declined to 25.4 per cent by 2010, down from 42 per cent in 1990. In order to achieve its Millennium Development Goal, Nepal needs to reduce the poverty rate to 21 per cent by 2015.

However, the poverty rates are different in urban and rural sectors. A report of Central Bureau of Statistics in 2009 showed the poverty incidence in rural areas is 28.5 per cent but the rate is only 7.6 per cent in urban areas. There is no any improvement in this gap and this is widening. The condition of mountain region-poverty is worse as compared to hilly and terai regions. The data of 2009 show the poverty in mountains region is 31.9, 28.6 in hilly and it is only 21.8 in terai region.

Similarly, Nepal has also succeeded in reducing the proportion of people with less than daily income of $ 1.

Poverty falls in Nepal ?

ADB Signs Trade Financing Agreements with Eight Nepali Banks

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) today signed trade financing agreements with eight banks in Nepal. The agreements are aimed at promoting international trade in the landlocked South Asian nation and helping Nepali banks forge alliances with banks overseas.

ADB signed the agreements in the Nepali capital with Bank of Kathmandu Ltd., Everest Bank Ltd., Himalayan Bank Ltd., Kumari Bank Ltd., Nabil Bank Ltd., Nepal SBI Bank Ltd., Nepal Industrial & Commercial Bank Ltd., and Nepal Investment Bank Ltd. They are ADB's first such agreements with Nepali banks.

"Boosting trade is critical to helping Nepal overcome the current global crisis that has hurt exports and may slow the growth in remittances this year and in 2010. In the longer run, increased trade should also lead to crucial job creation and reduced poverty," said Barry Hitchcock, ADB's Country Director for Nepal.

The agreements are part of ADB's Trade Finance Facilitation Program (TFFP). The program, expanded to $1 billion in March, provides guarantees and loans of up to three years to support trade transactions in its developing member countries.

Exporters and importers in the less-developed parts of Asia have struggled for some time to obtain trade finance because of broad risk aversion but this became even more difficult following the onset of the global economic crisis as large international banks refrained from offering such financing in favor of building up their capital base.

Trade is widely acknowledged as a key tool for economic growth and poverty reduction but the TFFP also helps support the banking sector in ADB's developing member countries.

"We are very pleased to extend the reach of the program to Nepali banks which should benefit from increased partnerships with international banks," said Philip Erquiaga, Director General of ADB's Private Sector Operations Department, which oversees the TFFP. "Such relationships can result in expanded trade finance links and facilitate knowledge and technology transfer."(adb.org)

ADB Signs Trade Financing Agreements with Eight Nepali Banks

Emerging East Asian Bond Markets Resilient, But Risks Loom, Says ADB Report

SINGAPORE - Strong economic growth and improved financial systems along with limited exposure to U.S. subprime mortgages have helped curb spillover effects of global credit woes on emerging East Asian economies, but risks loom, says a new report issued by Asian Development Bank (ADB).

Even though there are no signs of widespread problems in emerging East Asia, downside risks to regional economic and financial market trends remain and wider ramifications cannot be ruled out in the future, the November edition of Asia Bond Monitor (ABM) says.

“Prolonged global financial market volatility, a rise in risk aversion along with re-pricing of credit risk could lead to a reversal of capital flows into the region,” says Jong-Wha Lee, Head of ADB’s Office of Regional Economic Integration.

The current global credit market turbulence is the first test of innovative financial instruments that have been used to distribute risks in globally interconnected markets and where reverberations can spread at an alarming speed.

While the impact on emerging East Asian economies and markets has so far been limited, a sharper slowdown in global growth and tighter credit policies could damp both household and corporate spending, reduce new issuances and delay those already in the pipeline, adds Mr. Lee.

ABM highlights the need for improved transparency in credit markets through better valuation and accounting of off-balance sheet instruments, strengthening of risk management and enhancing the enabling environment for local currency bond markets. It recommends stronger regional cooperation in monitoring and regulating financial markets and in developing financial institutions’ risk management techniques.

Continued policy reforms and liberalization of bond markets in emerging East Asia has led to several sovereign credit rating upgrades, a move that augurs well for more rapid expansion of the region’s bond markets, which are growing faster than gross domestic product in most markets.

ABM says the value of local currency bond markets in emerging East Asia rose 9.9% in the first half of 2007 from US$2.7 trillion outstanding at end-2006 and is up 17.2% from June 2006.

Foreign exchange gains lifted the dollar value of bonds in most economies. Government local currency bond markets grew 10% in the first half of the year, partly because central banks issued more debt to absorb excess liquidity derived from the region’s large capital inflows.

After outpacing government bond market growth for the previous 18 months, corporate bond markets in emerging East Asia grew at a slower pace in the first half of 2007 partly due to the rising cost of short-term finance.

Yield curves generally steepened in 2007, reversing a two-year trend, as short-term rates fell while long-term rates rose as inflationary pressures emerged in many markets. The report warns that although inflationary pressures remain manageable in most economies, any further overheating could pose a significant upside risk and push bond yields lower.

Despite turbulence in global credit markets, the ABF Pan Asian bond index gained 5.4% in the nine months to September 2007, compared with full-year returns of 13.64% in 2006.

ABM examines local currency bond developments in Emerging East Asia, defined as the Association of Southeast Asian Nations member countries, plus the People’s Republic of China, Hong Kong and the Republic of Korea.(adb.org)

Emerging East Asian Bond Markets Resilient, But Risks Loom, Says ADB Report

The Value of Money-Teach children

"Reading, writing, arithmetic" -- too bad that list doesn't include personal finance. Most kids learn the basics of money and making change in grammar school, but probably won't learn how to manage money unless they choose finance as a career path. That means it is up to all of us to see that our children reach adulthood prepared to face life's fiscal challenges.

Earlier Is Better
The benefits of teaching your children about money early on are both immediate and long term. In the short term, they may develop strong saving habits, learn how to make smart purchases, begin to understand the true meaning of "investment," and perhaps even learn why they can't immediately get everything they want. In the long term, you can help them avoid accumulating debt. And by teaching the value of saving for the future, you can help them plan for financial security.

The benefits of teaching your children about money early on are both immediate and long term. In the short term, they may develop strong saving habits, learn how to make smart purchases, begin to understand the true meaning of "investment," and perhaps even learn why they can't immediately get everything they want. In the long term, you can help them avoid accumulating debt. And by teaching the value of saving for the future, you can help them plan for financial security.

As you think about how, what, and when to teach your children, consider letting them direct you by using their natural inquisitiveness. (But remember, it's never too late to start teaching -- even adults can be taught the basics of personal finance.)

Where Does Money Come From?
An ideal time to begin teaching your children about the basics of money is when they first begin to notice it. In a child's world, money comes from Mom and Dad's pockets. And when Mom and Dad are tapped, a machine magically spouts dollars after merely pushing a few buttons. It's natural for them to assume that money is readily available whenever it's needed.

When they can't understand why you can't meet their every demand -- and you're about to use a standby response such as, "Money doesn't grow on trees" -- remember that a more constructive explanation may serve both of you better.

Even very young children can begin to understand the concept of earning money. Explain to your children that money is earned by working, and that you can only spend what you earn. To help them understand what it's like to get paid on a schedule, begin paying an allowance. Then help them set goals for how they spend and save their allowance. It's important, however, to make sure that you stick to the payment schedule; otherwise the lesson may be lost.

Children and Allowances
Experts differ on whether or not allowances should be tied to household chores. Although many people say children will learn more about personal responsibility if they are NOT paid for pitching in around the home, others feel it teaches them valuable lessons about working and earning. You might consider paying your children for chores outside of daily duties, such as helping to garden or wash the family car.

Make Saving Interesting
You hear it every time you walk by a toy store: "I want...Buy me this... !" Again, pause and take a moment before responding. This situation presents a great opportunity to teach another important lesson about personal finance: savings and interest. Explain that people often save their money for items they want to buy.
A simple savings lesson involves using a piggy bank, shoe box, or empty peanut butter jar. Make the lesson fun by having your children decorate the "bank," while explaining to them how you also use a real bank to save your money. Encourage your children to save a portion of their allowance for a special goal. As they save money, you might reward them with a small additional amount, just like a bank pays interest. At the end of each month, calculate how much they have saved and then chip in a certain percentage as interest.

Last, to further encourage the learning process, you might consider plotting a visual chart of their savings (include the goal) so they can easily see their savings grow. Remember to keep it as simple as possible, geared toward each child's level of understanding.

Banking and Investing
Once your children have been saving enough to accumulate $10 or $20, take them to the bank to open their first savings account. Most community banks will allow children to open first accounts with low minimum deposits. Some even have accounts especially marketed to kids to make the learning process fun. Make sure that your children receive a passbook so they can see the progress of their savings efforts, as well as the interest that accrues.

Once your children have mastered banking with an institution, you can begin to teach them about investing. When your children want something that they can't quite afford, discuss the value of saving versus borrowing. If you do extend credit, use a written IOU, establish a repayment schedule, and charge interest. By doing this, you establish the framework for teaching your children that bonds and certificates of deposit are IOUs representing loans from investors to institutions.

Compounding
As your children get older and perhaps take on part-time jobs to earn more money, their savings will likely amass at a quicker rate. Now is the time to review the lesson of compounding, or the ability of earnings to build upon themselves. Explain how compounding can be more dramatic over time; the longer money is left alone, the greater the effect. This can lead into a discussion about investing and how certain investments can have a greater ability to compound over time.

Giving a gift of stocks of well-established or kid-oriented companies can be ideal ways to teach your children about investing. Most children would love to think of themselves as owners of Ben & Jerry's, Disney, or Toys "R" Us. Some companies even have shareholder meetings directed to children.

Mutual funds may be good vehicles as well. Like banks, some fund companies have specific programs to teach children about investing. Often such funds have low initial investments, as well as marketing materials designed to make the investing process fun.

A Little Learning Can Pay Off
Teaching your children about our complex financial system may seem daunting, but you can help put your child on the right track by encouraging smart habits now.
Is it worth your time and effort to help your children learn about money? As Benjamin Franklin once said, "An investment in knowledge always pays the best interest." Answering your children's questions honestly and in terms they'll understand can help them begin life on sound financial footing.

Summary
• The benefits of teaching your children about money can be both short and long term. Let your children help you determine how to teach them. Use their questions to develop lessons.
• Explain to children that money is earned. Consider paying them for helping with certain chores.
• Use a piggy bank to help teach about savings and interest. Set a savings goal to encourage your children to save some of their allowance. Calculate how much is saved each month and chip in a certain percentage as interest.
• Take your children to the bank to open a savings account requiring a lower minimum deposit.
• If you extend credit, issue an IOU, set a repayment schedule, and charge interest.
• Review compounding, or the ability of interest to build upon itself.
• Once your children begin earning their own money through part-time jobs, introduce them to investments such as stocks and mutual funds.
Checklist
• If they're old enough, help your children set up a plan to save for their own goals (such as a new video game) and other accounts for family goals (such as paying for college).
• Agree on an amount of their savings that you'll "match."
• Schedule time to talk about how investing works and how it may enable people to reach their financial goals faster.
• Talk to your children about good shopping habits. Perhaps you can ask them to clip coupons and let them keep some of the savings.

The Value of Money-Teach children

Teach Your Children the Value of Money

"Reading, writing, arithmetic" -- too bad that list doesn't include personal finance. Most kids learn the basics of money and making change in grammar school, but probably won't learn how to manage money unless they choose finance as a career path. That means it is up to all of us to see that our children reach adulthood prepared to face life's fiscal challenges.

Earlier Is Better
The benefits of teaching your children about money early on are both immediate and long term. In the short term, they may develop strong saving habits, learn how to make smart purchases, begin to understand the true meaning of "investment," and perhaps even learn why they can't immediately get everything they want. In the long term, you can help them avoid accumulating debt. And by teaching the value of saving for the future, you can help them plan for financial security.
The benefits of teaching your children about money early on are both immediate and long term. In the short term, they may develop strong saving habits, learn how to make smart purchases, begin to understand the true meaning of "investment," and perhaps even learn why they can't immediately get everything they want. In the long term, you can help them avoid accumulating debt. And by teaching the value of saving for the future, you can help them plan for financial security.
As you think about how, what, and when to teach your children, consider letting them direct you by using their natural inquisitiveness. (But remember, it's never too late to start teaching -- even adults can be taught the basics of personal finance.)
Where Does Money Come From?
An ideal time to begin teaching your children about the basics of money is when they first begin to notice it. In a child's world, money comes from Mom and Dad's pockets. And when Mom and Dad are tapped, a machine magically spouts dollars after merely pushing a few buttons. It's natural for them to assume that money is readily available whenever it's needed.
When they can't understand why you can't meet their every demand -- and you're about to use a standby response such as, "Money doesn't grow on trees" -- remember that a more constructive explanation may serve both of you better.
Even very young children can begin to understand the concept of earning money. Explain to your children that money is earned by working, and that you can only spend what you earn. To help them understand what it's like to get paid on a schedule, begin paying an allowance. Then help them set goals for how they spend and save their allowance. It's important, however, to make sure that you stick to the payment schedule; otherwise the lesson may be lost.
Children and Allowances
Experts differ on whether or not allowances should be tied to household chores. Although many people say children will learn more about personal responsibility if they are NOT paid for pitching in around the home, others feel it teaches them valuable lessons about working and earning. You might consider paying your children for chores outside of daily duties, such as helping to garden or wash the family car.

Make Saving Interesting
You hear it every time you walk by a toy store: "I want...Buy me this... !" Again, pause and take a moment before responding. This situation presents a great opportunity to teach another important lesson about personal finance: savings and interest. Explain that people often save their money for items they want to buy.
A simple savings lesson involves using a piggy bank, shoe box, or empty peanut butter jar. Make the lesson fun by having your children decorate the "bank," while explaining to them how you also use a real bank to save your money. Encourage your children to save a portion of their allowance for a special goal. As they save money, you might reward them with a small additional amount, just like a bank pays interest. At the end of each month, calculate how much they have saved and then chip in a certain percentage as interest.
Last, to further encourage the learning process, you might consider plotting a visual chart of their savings (include the goal) so they can easily see their savings grow. Remember to keep it as simple as possible, geared toward each child's level of understanding.

Banking and Investing
Once your children have been saving enough to accumulate $10 or $20, take them to the bank to open their first savings account. Most community banks will allow children to open first accounts with low minimum deposits. Some even have accounts especially marketed to kids to make the learning process fun. Make sure that your children receive a passbook so they can see the progress of their savings efforts, as well as the interest that accrues.
Once your children have mastered banking with an institution, you can begin to teach them about investing. When your children want something that they can't quite afford, discuss the value of saving versus borrowing. If you do extend credit, use a written IOU, establish a repayment schedule, and charge interest. By doing this, you establish the framework for teaching your children that bonds and certificates of deposit are IOUs representing loans from investors to institutions.

Compounding
As your children get older and perhaps take on part-time jobs to earn more money, their savings will likely amass at a quicker rate. Now is the time to review the lesson of compounding, or the ability of earnings to build upon themselves. Explain how compounding can be more dramatic over time; the longer money is left alone, the greater the effect. This can lead into a discussion about investing and how certain investments can have a greater ability to compound over time.
Giving a gift of stocks of well-established or kid-oriented companies can be ideal ways to teach your children about investing. Most children would love to think of themselves as owners of Ben & Jerry's, Disney, or Toys "R" Us. Some companies even have shareholder meetings directed to children.
Mutual funds may be good vehicles as well. Like banks, some fund companies have specific programs to teach children about investing. Often such funds have low initial investments, as well as marketing materials designed to make the investing process fun.

A Little Learning Can Pay Off
Teaching your children about our complex financial system may seem daunting, but you can help put your child on the right track by encouraging smart habits now.
Is it worth your time and effort to help your children learn about money? As Benjamin Franklin once said, "An investment in knowledge always pays the best interest." Answering your children's questions honestly and in terms they'll understand can help them begin life on sound financial footing.

Summary
• The benefits of teaching your children about money can be both short and long term. Let your children help you determine how to teach them. Use their questions to develop lessons.
• Explain to children that money is earned. Consider paying them for helping with certain chores.
• Use a piggy bank to help teach about savings and interest. Set a savings goal to encourage your children to save some of their allowance. Calculate how much is saved each month and chip in a certain percentage as interest.
• Take your children to the bank to open a savings account requiring a lower minimum deposit.
• If you extend credit, issue an IOU, set a repayment schedule, and charge interest.
• Review compounding, or the ability of interest to build upon itself.
• Once your children begin earning their own money through part-time jobs, introduce them to investments such as stocks and mutual funds.
Checklist
• If they're old enough, help your children set up a plan to save for their own goals (such as a new video game) and other accounts for family goals (such as paying for college).
• Agree on an amount of their savings that you'll "match."
• Schedule time to talk about how investing works and how it may enable people to reach their financial goals faster.
• Talk to your children about good shopping habits. Perhaps you can ask them to clip coupons and let them keep some of the savings.

Teach Your Children the Value of Money

MAKE THE POOR HAPPY

If we can measure what makes poor people happy, then we can improve pro-poor policies. That’s the view of the director of the Oxford University’s the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Institute (OPHI, which rejects the idea that income is the most significant contributor to human wellbeing. Instead attention is being turned to yardsticks that seem to have little to do with economists’ traditional concerns about productions and consumption of goods and services.

Money is not the simple antidote to poverty says OPHI’s director Sabina Alkire. “We asked poor people to rank what was important to them, and income never came first,” she said. “Religion, relationships and inner peace came up as far more important that you might have imagined given standard development literature.”


The institution is working on the development of a new set of human development indicators-measuring things like empowerment, inclusion, respect and safety. They say that the ways in which these indicators are measured need to be just as robust as conventional economic indicators, because this is the only way to get them factored in the economic policies and evaluate whether the policies are working. They will be arguing for the new indicators to become a global standard for measuring economic development.

“We are trying to add questions about dimensions of life that matter to poor people that we have not asked about before.” Said Dr Alkire.

MAKE THE POOR HAPPY

COLOURING THE BLCAK AND WHITE HINDI MOVIES

The coloured version of 60s era black and white Bollywood classic Mughal-e-Azam grossed over Rs 16 crore when it was released in 2004. The film not only recovered the estimated Rs 5 crore that went into digitally colouring it, but also returned a tidy profit.

There is planning to release a coloured version of its 1957 hit Naya Daur soon.

Hyderabad based Goldstone media which is digitally restoring and colouring 1960s hits Satya Harishchandra, Hum Dono soon. Hum Dono, a Dev Ananda-Sadhana starrer, will be out by December this year and Satya Harischandra by November this year.

Typically, it costs anywhere from Rs 24-56 lakh to buy the rights to these old movies.

COLOURING THE BLCAK AND WHITE HINDI MOVIES

PETRO PRICE COMPARED

Individual oil companies charge different rates in the USA. So for New York, Los Angeles and Houston, average price is taken. Figures are price of regular unleaded petrol per litre. Here all the prices are given in Nepalese currency.

Amsterdam: 134.41

London: 129.15

Paris: 117.50

Hongkong: 111.98

Bangalore: 80.99

Hyderabad: 78.11

Mumbai: 77.45

Chennai: 75.97

Kolkata: 75.04

Tokyo: 74.36

New Delhi: 70.16

Nepal: 67.00

New York City: 53.60

Los Angeles: 51.04

Houston: 45.93

Johannesburg: 41.70

Riyadh: 8.51

Caracas: 3.40

PETRO PRICE COMPARED

INCOME GAP WIDENING IN CHINA

Last year, the average Chinese city dweller earned 3.28 times as much as his fellow citizen in the countryside, up from 3.21 times in 2004.

INCOME GAP WIDENING IN CHINA

Five Golden Rules of Investing

Don’t trade: stock traders are constantly on their toes. If you can’t do that, don’t trade.

Thinking long-term: it is an age-old investment rule, but it still carries a ring of truth: stocks outperform all assets classes over the long-term.

Diversity: a crisis can destroy any market in the short term. Therefore, diversify across assets.

Invest regularly: a castle was not built in a day. Likewise, fortunes are made over the long term.

Set goals: a regular savings habit can make it easier to achieve life’s target.
(businesstoday.com)

Five Golden Rules of Investing

Rastriya Banijya Bank provides ATM facilities

RBB has started ATM facility for the first time using VISA Electron Debit Card from September 3, 2007 from Teku Branch. Minister for Finance, Dr Ram Sharan Mahat inaugurated the service.

Rastriya Banijya Bank provides ATM facilities

Nepal's Economic Growth

The Tenth Five Year Plan has target of 6.2 per cent economic growth but according to Nepal Rastra Bank released annual economic report on September 7, 2007, average economic growth rate remained at 1.4 per cent during the plan. The reasons of this slow growth are the escalation of conflict, lower growth of private sector development, deterioration of security situation, low level of capital expenditure etc.Due to foreign jobs, remittance inflows increased 2.5 per cent in 2006/07.The Tenth Five Year Plan has ended in mid July this year.

Nepal's Economic Growth

Citizens Bank International, Nepal

CBI, Nepal started its operations from April 19, 2007, becoming the 20th commercial bank in the country. Finance Minister, Dr Ram Sharan Mahat inaugurated the bank. Itd paid-up capital is NRs 560 million and authorised capital is NRs 2 billion. The Chief Executive Officer of the bank is Rajan Singh Bhandari, former employee of Nepal Rastra Bank.

Citizens Bank International, Nepal

NIC Bank joined GTFP

Nepal Industrial & Commercial Bank has become the first Nepali bank to join the International Finance Corporation Global Trade Finance Programme. The GTFP supports trade with emerging markets from around the world and services between developing countries. Now IFC will confirm the NIC Bank's international letters of credit and guarantees. Sashin Joshi, CEO of NIC Bank and Per Kjellerhaug, Country Manager of IFC for Nepal signed the agreement.

NIC Bank joined GTFP

POOR WELCOMES YOU IN USA

US Census Bureau recently (August 2007) showed that more than one in ten Americans live in poverty! Around 12.8 million children under the age of 18, or around one-third of the poor, existed in 2006 on incomes below the threshold used by the census bureau to determine who lives in poverty. Children without health insurance are increased by 700,000 in 2006. Three times more black people, 24.3%, lived in poverty than the 8.2% of white people who did. Houseof Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi said the report showed the American dream is getting further out of reach for millions.

POOR WELCOMES YOU IN USA