Mediaboss Marketing

SYDNEY: Westpac Banking Corp, Australia's third-largest lender, said yesterday it will send 126 roles offshore, as job cuts and offshoring ramps up with the nation's lenders slashing costs to protect profits amid slower loan growth.

Westpac's move to offshore roles comes on top of its announcement last month that 560 jobs would be cut. Smaller rival Australia and New Zealand Banking Group has announced that it would cut approximately 1,000 jobs in 2012.

Analysts predict that the Australia banking sector could see as many as 10,000 jobs lost over the new few years, or over seven per cent of the Australian financial sector workforce, as banks rein in costs.

Brian Johnson, a CLSA banking analyst, said that just as Westpac has done, many of the jobs that are cut will actually be moved offshore to reduce costs.

"Some of these workers have been in these jobs for years," said Leon Carter, secretary Finance Sector Union said in a statement.

"They have the skills to do the work, they've been loyal employees, and the only reason they are losing their jobs is because our most profitable bank thinks it can now get the job done more cheaply offshore," he added Australia's top banks, including National Australia Bank , Commonwealth Bank of Australia and ANZ, are among the country's largest employers with close to 40,000 employees each on their rolls.

While job cuts in the global banking industry are common in turbulent market conditions, Australian banks are coming off more than a decade of almost uninterrupted growth that saw them adding staff, growing assets and boosting profits several-fold. Reuters

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Westpac to move more jobs offshore

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NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- Investors took a big step back Tuesday, but stocks have had a pretty strong year so far, so the retreat isn't ringing any alarm bells.

"You're still seeing echoes of the risk-on-risk-off trade," Jonathan Lewis, chief investment officer at Samson Capital Advisors. "But I would offer that all investors are doing is restructuring and rebalancing portfolios."

Since the start of the year, stocks have slowly and steadily made their way toward their highest levels since 2008, helped along by the U.S. economy's steady improvement.

While March has not been a good month so far, the Dow is still up 4.4% for the year. The S&P 500 has gained nearly 7% and the Nasdaq is up 11.7% year to date.

Stocks were pressured Tuesday by weaker economic data out of Europe and rising yields on euro-area government bonds, said Lewis.

The Dow Jones industrial average (INDU) fell 207 points, or 1.6%, to end at 12,759. That marks the worst day for the index since Dec. 8, when it fell 1.63%. Today also marks the first time the Dow has suffered a triple-digit loss in 45 days.

Financial stocks were among the hardest hit, with Bank of America (BAC, Fortune 500) and JPMorgan Chase (JPM, Fortune 500) both down about 3%. The only Dow component showing a modest gain was Intel (INTC, Fortune 500).

The S&P 500 (SPX) fell 21 points, or 1.5%, to 1,343. The Nasdaq (COMP) sank 40 points, or 1.4%, to 2,910. Both indexes suffered the worst one-day performance so far this year.

Meanwhile, investors are wary of political tension between Iran and Israel, which has driven oil and gas prices sharply higher, said Mark Martiak, senior wealth strategist at Premier Financial Advisors.

Originally posted here:
Stocks: Worst day of 2012

By msnbc.com news services

U.S. stocks are set to fall Tuesday on renewed concerns that Greece and private bondholders would not meet a Thursday deadline to complete a debt swap, potentially opening the way for a messy default.

Greek creditors have until Thursday night to accept a bond swap in which they would lose almost three-quarters of the value of their bonds. A deal is needed for a 130 billion euros bailout that would put the country on more stable footing.

Concerns over the parlous state of Greece's finances come a day after China cut its growth forecast and data showed the European Union is unlikely to avoid a recession.

"With the fresh uncertainties coming into play about Greece and after effects of the Chinese slowdown, investors are taking defensive posture," said Andre Bakhos, director of market analytics at Lek Securities in New York.

Banks and materials shares, sensitive to flare-ups in Europe's debt crisis, fell in early trading, including Bank of America and aluminum producer Alcoa.

European shares hit a 1-week low. The FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares was down 1.4 percent. Hong Kong shares suffered their biggest slump in nearly three months as the Hang Seng index lost 2.2 percent.

Yahoo Inc's new chief executive was preparing a significant restructuring of the Internet media company, including thousands of layoffs, according to a technology blog.

El Paso Corp delayed a shareholder vote on the pipeline company's roughly $23 billion acquisition by rival Kinder Morgan Inc to allow investors to consider a judge's ruling that criticized some of the deal's participants.

General Motors Co will pay $423 million for a 7 percent stake in French automaker Peugeot SA as part of an alliance designed to save the companies at least $2 billion.

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Stocks set to fall on Greece, economy fears

MILFORD -- A man awaiting a liver transplant was nearly scammed out of $3,300 on Tuesday, when he attempted to rent a Walnut Beach house through an ad on Craigslist.

Joseph Tomasso said he responded to the ad, which had interior photos and the standard information contained in a real estate listing, but he became suspicious when he got an email, purportedly from the owner who claimed to be on a "mission trip to West Africa.''

"The language, it just didn't sound like an American person. And this person, `Amy Matthews,' was really concerned about the safety of the gas stove, but they are real common here and they are safe. Maybe not where she is from,'' Tomasso said.

There is a twist to this scam, he said -- a local person who arranges to meet at the property and pressures the potential renter to hand over a deposit check. "What this person does is put up photos of houses and apartments for rent that they find on a real estate site, but they have nothing to do with it. If you meet them they tell you that the owner has the keys but you know what the inside looks like and there are a lot of people interested,'' said Tomasso, a former emergency medical technician.

The ad offered to rent the house for $1,100 per month, but asked for the first and last month's rent and a security deposit. The house that Tomasso and his family were interested in is actually for rent -- for $1,500 per month.

Cathy Vincelette, a real estate agent with Ditchkus Realty in Devon has the listing and she said she was shocked when Tomasso called her. "Right away I called the (Federal Trade Commission) and the police. That's my listing."

Claudia Farrell, spokeswoman for the FTC, said her agency regulates the Internet, but that web-based scams are typically handled by local law enforcement.

"I have heard of this scam; it seems to happen in New Haven a lot. They'll drive you by an apartment and say `if you want it, you'd better write a check right away,'' Vincelette said. "If it's an in-demand location you might feel pressure. But would you really send money to South Africa for an apartment in Milford?''

Tomasso said the owner of the West Haven condo that he currently rents wants to sell it and he currently has a month-to-month lease. "I need something stable, for at least two years, while I recover from my surgery. This one even allowed dogs. My son was looking forward to that.

"But I'm on a fixed income due to illness and if I lost that money it would have really devastated us,'' he said.

Originally posted here:
Real estate scam surfaces in Milford

EMERYVILLE, Calif. - March 6, 2012 - ZipRealty, Inc. (NASDAQ: ZIPR - News), the nationally-ranked real estate brokerage powered by proprietary technology and effective online marketing,today announced financial results for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2011. The complete report is available on the company`s website at http://www.ziprealty.comand at the end of this document.

Conference Call Details A conference call to discuss fourth quarter financial results will be webcast live on Tuesday, March 6, 2012 at 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time on the investor relations section of ZipRealty`s website,www.ziprealty.com. Listeners may also access the call by dialing 800-510-9834, passcode: 42659675. A replay of the call will also be available through March 13, 2012 at 888-286-8010, passcode: 88029066.

About ZipRealty, Inc. ZipRealty is a leading national provider of proprietary technology and online marketing capabilities in the residential real estate brokerage industry. For home buyers and sellers who increasingly demand control, choice and seamless, customized service, the Company offers Internet-enabled, state-of-the-art technology and access to information that real estate professionals can combine with their own local knowledge and personal expertise to offer an exceptional start-to-finish experience to their clients. For real estate professionals who seek more productive ways to conduct business in our fiercely competitive industry, the Company provides technology and online marketing tools to enhance their online sales channel, including the attraction, incubation and service of their clients. The Company`s technology and online marketing products serve its full-service, owned-and-operated residential real estate brokerage business in 21 markets nationwide, as well as its Powered by Zip network of leading third-party local brokerages in six markets. For more information on ZipRealty, visitwww.ziprealty.comor call 1-800-CALL-ZIP.

Click here to see the 4Q 2011 Earnings Release:

The owner of this announcement warrants that: (i) the releases contained herein are protected by copyright and other applicable laws; and (ii) they are solely responsible for the content, accuracy and originality of the information contained therein.

Source: ZipRealty via Thomson Reuters ONE HUG#1591855

Originally posted here:
ZipRealty Announces Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2011 Results