Tuesday, June 22, 2010

Should you protect your loans and credit cards with PPI?
Reno Charlton | Published 10/15/2007 | Credit | Unrated

Should you protect your loans and credit cards with PPI?

PPI, or Payment Protection Insurance, is a type of protective insurance cover that is offered with different types of finance, such as credit cards, store cards, and loans. This cover is designed to cover repayments on your loan or card for a specified period of time in the event that you are unable to work and make repayments for a certain period due to sickness, accident, or redundancy.
This type of insurance can prove invaluable to borrowers, offering peace of mind and financial protection in the event that you cannot keep up with your loan and credit card repayments. Nobody knows what fate has in store, and losing your job or finding yourself unable to work for a while due to sickness or an accident can leave you financially crippled, which can make keeping up with loan and credit card repayments impossible. Of course, if you do start missing your repayments you face damaging your credit as well as more severe action such as court proceedings � not to mention the added stress and worry at an already difficult time.
When you take out PPI your repayments will be covered for a set period, which will be specified in your policy, if you cannot work and make your repayments through redundancy, sickness, or an accident. This means that you won�t have to worry about how you are going to make repayments on your debts � instead, you can focus on getting yourself back on your feet, or getting another job, whilst your insurance cover takes care of your repayments.
However, there are some things that you should remember about payment protection insurance cover. This includes:
- PPI is not suited to everyone that takes out finance � for example, if you are self employed there is little point taking out a policy that protect you against redundancy because you will never be able to benefit from it
- PPI is not compulsory, although some lenders may make it sound as though it is. It is an optional form of cover, and you should never feel forced to take it out if you do not wish to do so.
- You do not have to take PPI from your lender. You can shop around, as the cost of cover can vary widely from one provider to another. Therefore, if your lender is offering a policy that seems quite pricey but you don�t want to be without this cover make sure you compare different policies before you make a decision.
________________________________________
Reno Charlton, award-winning writer, shares her financial expertise as a contributing columnist for Credit Card Comparison - Compare Credit Cards and Personal Loan Comparison - Compare Loans.

Thursday, June 10, 2010

Thursday, June 3, 2010

Tuesday, May 18, 2010

Hiring a Financial Advisor

by: Jay Moncliff

When hiring a financial advisor you don’t want to simply hire someone who looks like they know what they are doing, but rather a financial advisor that knows what they are doing and has proof. You will need to ask your potential financial advisor several questions in order to get a real feel of whether this financial advisor is skilled or has no clue how to advise you on money matters. You will be able to find a financial advisor who is going to really help you with your finances by simply asking the following questions.

First of all, you want to ask the potential financial advisor what kind of education he/she has. This is important because a quality financial planner will have educating supporting this field of work, as well as credentials, continuing education certificates and the like. You will also want to ask what kind of experience the individual has as a financial advisor and how long the individual has been working as a financial advisor. This information will enlighten you as to the type of financial planner you are considering hiring.

Another question that should be offered to the potential financial advisor is how they receive payment. Does this particular financial advisor charge an hourly rate, work only on commission, or have some other fee schedule? You will need to know up front how the financial planner plans on billing you before you agree to let them advise you on your finances.

Asking the financial advisor for referrals, especially past clients, is a great way to know if the financial advisor is for real and has been successful with other clients. If the financial advisor does not have any referrals, you might be skeptical about this particular financial advisor.
Finally, ask the financial advisor to give you an outline of what will be covered and how he/she can help you reach your financial goals. An experienced financial advisor will be able to tell you several topics he/she will want to cover with you.
How Can I Start a Small Business?

by: Kaye Z. Marks


These days, home based businesses are thriving. Owe it to the growing complexity of big companies, most people now favor the simple and direct services of a home based business. Starting a home-based business is not as complicated as you think it is. You just have to follow certain steps to be able to establish one that actually makes money. The following covers the most important points that you will need to consider as you try your hand in home based business.

1. Create a plan – Most people who venture into home business think that they do not need a plan. They surmise that all they need to have is a good product and people will start buying. I hate to disappoint them but building a home business is not like building a field of dreams – even if you build it, people might not come at all. It is therefore important to have a plan even if it might be the only one who will ever read it. This document serves as your Bible. It should lay out how you want to achieve your goal and the strategies that you are willing to undertake.

2. Establish your identity – The identity that your business will have depends entirely on the amount of resources that you are willing to infuse. If you can manage it on your own, you can have it all for yourself as in a sole proprietorship. However, if you need to have a partner or partners, then you can run like a partnership or a corporation. Doing it alone or with partners have its own advantages and disadvantages. You have to carefully study this aspect because this can make or break businesses.

3. Accomplish all legal documents РIt is important that you have all the permits and licenses to operate your business. Do not be blas̩ about this. Some home businesses leave this until after they get in legal problems. Focus on these things up front before even attempting to operate your business.

4. Acquire your equipment – Based on your plan, get the equipment you need. If you are into baking, you can now start looking for your oven, mixer, trays, etc. If you are in the poster printing business, you can look at printers, computers, software programs, etc.

5. Develop your marketing strategy – To sell, people must find out about you. You can do this by using marketing collaterals. You can try the traditional way like poster printing, flyers, brochures or you can explore the power of websites. The most important thing for you to do is to treat your business as if you are going to the office. You have to stick to a routine, a schedule if you like. Yes, you can doze of an hour or more after a late night. However, are you going to do this if you are employed in an office setting? Bottom line is to be professional about how you conduct your business at home even if your office is the room beside your bedroom

Monday, May 17, 2010

Foreign Currency Trading, What The Hype Is All About

When you're thinking about getting involved within the Foreign exchange robotic you should know you are sending money to be invested with different countries. That is finished to prop up the investments of individuals involved in sure forms of hedge funds, and in the markets overseas. The foreign exchange market may have your cash invested in one market someday, and the next day your money is invested in one other country. The day by day modifications are decided by your dealer or monetary institution. When reading your statements and studying extra about your account, you will find that every sort of forex has three letters that will signify that currency.

For example, the United States dollars is USD, the Japanese yen is JPY, and the British pound sterling will learn as GBP. You will also find that for each transaction in your account itemizing you will notice info that appears like this: JPYzzz/GBPzzz. Which means that you took your Japanese yen money and invested it into something within the British pound market. You'll find many transactions from one foreign money to another you probably have cash that is scattered via out the Forex robotic . Forex robot buying and selling by funding administration firms are the companies you possibly can belief along with your money. You wish to find a firm that has been dealing with automated foreign exchange softwaresince the early seventies, and never someone simply new on the block so that you get probably the most to your hard-earned money. It can be crucial that you just watch out for companies which are popping up online, and often occasions from international international locations which might be stating they can get you involved in the Foreign exchange robotic and trading. Learn the effective print, and know whom you're dealing with for the best possible protection. In case you are fascinated about buying and selling on the forex market, you will discover limits for investing are totally different from firm to company. Usually times you will be taught that you just need a minimum of $250 or $500 whereas different firms will want $a thousand or $10,000. The corporate you're dealing with will set limits in how much it's essential to open an account with their company. The scams which might be online will inform you, that you just only want a $1 or $5 to open an account, however you need to study extra about that company and where they are doing enterprise before investing any cash, this is in your own protection whereas dealing in automated forex softwareand markets online.

By: John Andrews

Friday, May 14, 2010

The 8 C's Of Small Business Management

by: Simon Kenny


It’s an unfortunate fact of commercial life that the world of business does not have a unifying theory of everything. Each situation is different and poses different challenges and opportunities for everyone engaged in the business world. Were there to be a template that all small businesses could use then life would be fantastically easy and the rewards bountiful for all. However the economics of the marketplace and human factors dictate that this is an impossible scenario and that those business people that “play the game well” will have heightened success when compared to those that do not. The purpose of this article is to outline eight basic principles that can be used in every small business during the current economic climate to maximise the chances of current and future commercial success. Each of these principles is discussed in depth in other articles; the key to reading this article is to provide small business owners with a checklist and a brief explanation of why each principle is important. The list is by no means exhaustive but it is this writer’s view that these 8 are fundamental building blocks for success. I hope you find value in “the 8 C’s of small business management” (1) Costs. One of the problems of boom times is that it breeds inefficiencies since unnecessary costs are left unattended as the company focuses on grabbing “the low hanging fruit” that these good times provide. Who wants to spend days looking at the” leaky pipe” when there are so many opportunities of bounty? In leaner economic periods the easy revenue dries up, but the pipe of inefficiency continues to leak. Thus it is key that all small business take a long look at all of their cash outputs and trim where necessary. This is often a painful decision, but it is essential for the future wellbeing of the company. This has to be the base point for all small businesses during hard times. Ask questions like; do I need the company car that I current drive? Am I wasting money on coffees? Do I over-order stationary? These are small details and we haven’t even discussed the big cost drivers yet, but consider Ryanair who famously cut costs by asking employees to stop using company electricity to charge their mobile phones! Excess fat can be found everywhere and in a world where cash is king, costs have to be trimmed (often to allow the money freed up to be spend elsewhere as investment in the business) (2) Customers Do you know who your customers are and more importantly do you understand them? Loyal customers are the commodity that everyone is scrambling for at the moment. It is imperative that every small business has a heightened knowledge of their base. Whether you are someone that has long or short buying cycle it is incredibly important that you are viewing your customers as assets to be nurtured and developed rather than simply transactional. There is so much data that can be mined from knowing your customers and you don’t necessarily need sophisticated CRM systems to have a rudimentary yet effective customer data base. Customer relationships can allow you to understand and predict, it allows you to foster emotional ties that are key to the customer lifecycle. If customers are the lifeblood of every business then how you interact with your customers before, during and after the transaction is the oxygen that helps keep the business alive. Your staff, if you have any, are also a key for communication strategy. How much input are you getting from them about what customers are talking about? Do you have a mechanism so that information can be passed upwards? Charles Dunstone of the Carphone Warehouse group famously said that if you’re looking after the customer and looking after the people who look after the customer you should be all right. (3) Competition Business is often a zero sum game. If you aren’t winning someone else is. That someone else is your competition. It constantly amazes me that so many businesses (a) don’t know who their competition is and (b) don’t know what their competition is up to. In a world of easy access to information it’s a sin not to be constantly looking at your competitors activities. Your competitors are looking at your business so you must be looking at theirs and be constantly thinking about what you must do to get an edge. If customers are not buying from you, where are they buying from and why? This basic thought has to be at the centre of all strategic decisions that you make. In my business of training the market is ultra competitive so when I am not successful with a pitch I need to understand why. Sometimes I can do nothing about it at the moment, but at worst its valuable information that I can use the next time I am selling. Henry Ford said “Competition is the keen cutting edge of business”, Walt Disney remarked that he “couldn’t operate without competition”. These were men that knew their markets and knew the importance of competitor analysis in order to get better. (4) Communication It’s a sad fact of business that if you wait for business to come to you then invariably you will struggle. In the age of mass communication all businesses have to be communicating what they are doing. Don’t wait for the phone to ring, pick it up and call someone. The internet has now provided a relatively cheap medium for all businesses to communicate with the world. Marketing doesn’t have to be hugely expensive, a wise man one said that “advertising is what you do when you can’t go and see all your potential customers yourself”. It’s rare that a product or service sells itself. If people don’t know you exist how can they buy from you? Go back to the costs principle. If you save £500 a year on trimming expensive coffees (or something similar) that’s £500 that you can spend communicating a message, that done right will produce a return on investment for the business. Always be communicating. Even a weekly blog will give you presence and is a cheap but effective communication with your customers. Do you have all your customers email details? Are you talking to them? Do you optimise every touchpoint that you have with your customers? (5) Cleverness If the definition of insanity is doing the same thing day in and day out hoping for different results then a large proportion of businesses are trading insanely. If you have struggled for the past 12 months and are doing nothing differently then what’s the end result going to be? Use people to brainstorm new ideas. Try new things. Do things that you don’t like doing to get you out of a comfort zone and change the game. It’s incredible the numbers of new avenues that are open to business when they tweak what they are doing and adopt new ideas. For example Don Pepper and Martha Rogers revolutionised business thinking by suggesting that profits could be maximised by selling more things to fewer people. Is that your business? Maybe you want the mass markets as your target? Regardless of what you want to do, you still need to be thinking business in a focused manner with a goal of emerging with clever tactics that will allow you to grow. Scattergun approaches do not work. You must be clever with what you do and run with it. (6) Closing If you are not selling you are not trading. Selling is the cornerstone of every business, without it your product or service is just another commodity. Selling brings your offerings to life. It’s a simple fact that those than can sell do better than those that can’t. Selling is a fluid dynamic ongoing process. Every interaction you have outside your company should be about the sale. You don’t have to be hard selling all the time but you must be aware that you are at some stage of the sale process constantly. Always Be Closing, never were truer words written. A lot of small business owners don’t like selling, it’s not the reason they got into business. Some people see selling as a dirty word and view it as beneath them. These businesses will fail unless they have are lucky enough to have something that sells itself. Read any business book, the giants of business all knew the importance of selling and were willing from the start to get their hands dirty. Without the sales there can be none of the trimmings of happiness or success that most business owners aspire to. (7) Concentration Business has to have a focus. Business people have to understand that business is simple but that it’s not easy. By this I mean that production of wealth is not overly complicated but it’s something that need time effort and concentration. Hard work i.e. concentrating on your business is essential. If something sounds like easy money it’s probably not, it just means that the person making that money makes it look easy by investing huge amounts of their concentration and focus to it. We all must train ourselves to do better, to be more efficient with our outputs. This requires focus and concentration and it’s often a long process. Malcolm Gladwells theory in his book Outliers is an example of this. To be fantastic requires huge time and effort. The only place success comes before work is in the dictionary. (8) Calibre You must be good at what you do. The offering that you make to the marketplace has to be of sufficient calibre so as to be more desirable to customers than your competitors. This means that small business cannot be all things to all people and has to have a focus. For example it’s almost impossible to compete on all of marketing’s 5 P’S. Selling a blue chip product and competing on price is both difficult and dangerous, if you are a low cost- low margin offering, then aside from price it’s difficult to compete on the other 4. The point here is that it is essential to understand that business leaders find a way of bringing something to market and then tweak it until it’s as close to perfect as they can get it. How often have we read of people who are always scrambling for new ideas that sound great but are in fact taking them away from their core offering? “Big think” is great fun and it’s often the “sexy” side of business however a core fundamental is that big think is useless unless the minute details are managed. The distinctly unsexy side of business is often the implementation and management of ideas, it is this attention to detail that determines the calibre of your offering and will define your success. There we have it. Eight fundamentals for all small businesses. I firmly believe that there are no small businesses that cannot successfully adopt all of the above. This is not a magic formula for successes. Unlike too many business books out there I do not advance a claim that success is a just “an add water and stir” process. Reading about business is great and understanding business an ongoing necessity. However success comes only from another C word, competent. The above 8 tips are essential for all businesses but they will not remotely guarantee success without being competently applied to your business. Simon Kenny is a sales and leadership director with Skills4Sales
Bad Credit Unemployed Loan: get cash when you are running short of money

by: Jonesh Taylor



Unemployed people having bad credit history suffer a lot because of their bad credit history. People with bad credit history always find a person who can believe them get ready to lend them money. Their search can end on internet, on internet you can found loan lending companies providing Bad Credit Unemployed Loan. Rates and Repayment of Bad Credit Unemployed Loan, the interest rate for Bad Credit Unemployed Loan varies from 8.4% APR to 17.9% APR, depending upon the credit rating, type of loan and duration of repayment. But 11.4% APR is kept fixed for the first 5 years. In the case of Bad Credit Unemployed Loan a fee, up to 10% can be charged keeping in view the credit history of the borrower. As Bad Credit Unemployed Loan consists of no enquiries for past, they consist of no hassle and no unnecessary paper work. Bad Credit Unemployed Loan is easy to use and easy to repay. To apply for Bad Credit Unemployed Loan, you are to fill up a simple online form with some information like your name, address, phone number, current account number etc. with these personal information you are to give the details of loan like amount which you are going to apply and duration for which you want to use loan etc. To be eligible for Bad Credit Unemployed Loan you are to be more than 18 year of age. Bad Credit Unemployed Loan is available in two forms- secured and unsecured. For Secured Bad Credit Unemployed Loan you are to place anything as collateral and for Unsecured Bad Credit Unemployed Loan you do not have to place anything as collateral. Unsecured Bad Credit Unemployed Loan is helpful for the borrowers who have nothing to place as collateral. Before applying for any of the Bad Credit Unemployed Loan one should make it sure that you will be able to pay Bad Credit Unemployed Loan back in time or not. If you are not able to pay Bad Credit Unemployed Loan in time the amount keep increasing and then it becomes very much difficult to pay Bad Credit Unemployed Loan back and you may get trapped into debt trap. All the terms and conditions for Bad Credit Unemployed Loan for everybody are same whether he is a good credit history holder or bad credit history holder. Before applying for Bad Credit Unemployed Loan, one must make it sure that he will be repaying the money in time; otherwise he will have to pay late fees with the repayment amount. Keeping in mind that the borrower is unemployed, loan lending companies provide easy repayment installments in order to make repayment easy for the borrower. Borrower must search well before applying for Bad Credit Unemployed Loan, so that he can find a loan lending company providing Bad Credit Unemployed Loan at competitive rates. After that borrower must know all the ins and outs of the loan lending company so that he will not be cheated by the loan lending company in the name of Bad Credit Unemployed Loan. If you are also one of those unemployed persons who need money, you can apply for Bad Credit Unemployed Loan.
Hidden Profits in Probate Investing

by: Duncan Wierman



When you think of profitable real estate investment have you ever thought of probate real estate? Many investors do not. Probate real estate is like a hidden market segment because it is not one of those segments on the forefront of the industry. It is often misunderstood and most people in real estate feel it is best left alone. The reality of probate real estate is that it is an amazing segment to get into. It offers some excellent profitability and it is really pretty easy to get started in. Probate real estate is a great market segment because of many reasons. Here are six reasons why you should consider getting into probate real estate and tapping into the hidden profits that await you. Reason #1: Sellers are ready to sell. No matter what other market segment you have been working in, you will not find sellers more ready to go than in probate. These sellers are people who have been given property and often it is property that they do not want. With probate real estate, the heirs often want to sell and get the money instead of having to be responsible for the property. This means that you get sellers who are ready to get the property sold without a lot of hassle or wasted time. Reason #2: Almost unlimited opportunity. One thing in life is 100% certain and that is death. People will die and they will leave behind the property they own. This means every day there will be new opportunities coming on the market for you to grab up. Reason #3: Hardly any competition. As mentioned, many people stay away from probate for one reason or another. What this means for the investor is that there is not much competition. You pretty much have an open market. You won't be racing to grab up real estate like you would with other market segments. Reason #4: Many possibilities to discover. There is something about probate real estate that makes it quite unique and even more interesting than any other real estate out there. Probate real estate is usually sold As Is. This often means the property includes items left behind. There is the potential to find all types of valuable things inside a property you have acquired through probate. The things you find could easily help you launch a second income source to add some additional money to business. Reason #5: Major growth potential. Probate is a market segment that has great potential for huge growth. The number of senior citizens in this country is growing and that means at some point the market will just be flooded with new probate real estate. It is predicted by insiders that the market will start growing and continue to expand through the next 20 years. Reason #6: It's easy to get started. Finding probate real estate is simple. You do not need any tricks and you certainly do not need complex systems. It is as simple as going to the source. You can either follow local obituaries and do research through public records of real estate left behind by deceased individuals or you can make it even easier and just market to local probate attorneys. The best thing is you never have to change your approach with probate. You can do the same thing over and over and keep reaping the rewards. These 6 reasons for getting into probate real estate really make this market segment stand out. Too often people dismiss probate because it is a legal process and they think they will have to get tied up in all that legal stuff. The truth is that it is not like that at all. When you start investing in probate you will find that you will work mainly with the heirs. You will not often need to get the court involved. Most probate real estate can easily exchange hands without court interference as long as all heirs agree and the court does not have any liens or other issues with the sale of the property. Probate real estate is something worth considering. If you really want your business to take off and to star investing in good properties at great prices then this is the perfect choice. All it takes is making that choice to get into probate and you are on your way to discovering all that it has to offer you.
Mortgage Protection Payment Insurance - Important Things to Keep in Mind

by: Jack Russale

Mortgage protection payment insurance has become a matter of concern among the people of UK, as they are worried about job security. Not only job security, but sickness, injury, unemployment and death are some of the repulsive event comes in our life. Such are the problems that can come into play to hamper a person from having the funds to make their monthly mortgage payment. In such condition, mortgage protection payment insurance can be you ultimate help. When the main employed person in the family is affected, the family is still supposed to make payments without any delay. Here are some advices according to their situations: 1. Mortgage Protection Insurance during Unemployment Due to economic crisis across the world, many homeowners are finding a way to insure mortgage protection. For such people, unemployment mortgage insurance is presented for new homeowners and for those who are willing to refinance. This insurance offered at competitive rates, great amount and affordable repayment terms. 2. Know How Much You Need It is important to calculate the amount that you need to pay during the joblessness such as £1,000 per month for four months or £1,500 per month for three months. The specific payment Insurance sum would be paid while the borrower looked for a new employment. So, for an applicant it is important to determine his requirements. 3. Select Mortgage Protection Insurance to Your Requirements Many insurance companies offer competitive rates with a wide variety of choose for Mortgage Protection Insurance based on the reason for the need which includes illness and injury, as well as the condition of unemployment, the amount of the mortgage, and the term of the cover. 4. Mortgage Protection Insurance as Life Insurance It deals with the sudden death of the homeowner. Here, like a life insurance deal, the company is liable to pay the entire mortgage in a lump sum after the death of the applicant.

Thursday, April 22, 2010

Monday, April 19, 2010

Forward Market

Salah satu tehnik hedging (lindung nilai) yang sering digunakan pada pasar uang adalah tehnik forward market (pasar forward). Yakni membeli mata uang sekarang untuk di delivery dimasa yang akan datang. Hal ini dilakukan untuk menghindari dan meminimalisir terjadinya fluktuasi mata uang dimasa yang akan datang saat trnsaksi tersebut jatuh tempo.

Contoh, Sebuah perusahaan Amerika membeli tekstil dari Inggris dengan harga £ 1,000,000.- yang jatuh tempo dalam waktu 90 hari. Importir tersebut mengambil posisi “SHORT” pound. Harga pound saat ini adalah US$ 1.71, maka si importer dapat menjaga pembayaran yang harus dia lakukan dengan membeli 90 hari forward contract yang harganya pada saat ini adalah £ 1 = US$ 1.72.-.

Menurut forward contract dalam 90 hari bank akan memberi importer £ 1 juta dan importer akan memberi bank US$ 1.71 juta. Jadi £ 1 juta = US$ 1.72 juta. Dalam istilah tehnisnya importer tersebut melakukan offsetting short position dalam pound dengan going long pada forward market.

Untung rugi dari long/short forward position ini tergantung kepada perbedaan antara harga kontrak forward dengan harga spot pada saat kontrak jatuh tempo. Jika harga spot setelah 90 hari – saat kontrak jatuh tempo – adalah US$ 1.75, maka biaya yang harus ditanggung oleh importer adalah US$ 1.75 juta. Dengan demikian forward contract untung sebesar US$ 30,000.- yakni £ 1,000,000 x (US$ 1.75 – US$ 1.72) = US$ 30,000.-. Sebaliknya jika harga pada saat jatuh tempo adalah US$ 1.70 maka importer untung sebesar £ 1,000,000 x (US$ 1.72 – US$ 1.70) = US$ 20,000.-.

Tetapi karena si importer sudah membeli forward contract dengan harga £ 1 = US$ 1.72 maka apapun yang terjadi ketika saat jatuh tempo 90 hari kemudian maka tidak akan berpengaruh, baik kepada importer maupun kepada bank. Karena yang dibayar adalah tetap pada level £ 1 = US$ 1.72.-. Dengan demikian “kerugian” importer tidak lebih dari US$ 0.01 yakni sebesar premi forward contract yang dia bayarkan. Dengan kata lain si importer telah mematok harga mata uang (exchange rate) saat 90 hari dari transaksi adalah sebesar US$ 1.72.-.
Beberapa contoh transaksi di pasar uang adalah berikut ini:

1. Pada bulan Maret, PT. MNC memperkirakan kurs spot pounsterling untuk bulan September adalah sebagai berikut:

US$ 1.30 /GBP dengan probabilitas 0.15;
US$ 1.35 /GBP dengan probabilitas 0.20;
US$ 1.40 /GBP dengan probabilitas 0.25;
US$ 1.45 /GBP dengan probabilitas 0.20;
US$ 1.50 /GBP dengan probabilitas 0.20;

Pertanyaannya: a). Berapa kurs yang diharapkan (expected value) pada bulan September.
b). Jika kurs forward untuk 6 bulan adalah US$ 1.40/GBP, apakah perusahaan itu akan menjual piutang pound nya secara forward?.

c). Faktor-faktor apa saja yang mempengaruhi keputusan MNC untuk melakukan transaksi forward?.

Jawab:

a). Kurs yang diharapkan adalah (0.15 x 1.30) + (0.20 x 1.35) + (0.25 x 1.40) + (0.20 x 1.45) + (0.20 x 1.50) = US$ 1.405 /GBP.

b). Bila kurs forward untuk 6 bulan adalah 1.40 maka perusahaan itu sebaiknya tidak menjual GBP secara forward karena nilai pound yang diharpakan pada saat jatuh tempo nanti akan lebih tinggi yakni sebesar US$ 1.405/GBP.

c). Faktor-faktor yang mempengaruhi keputusan MNC untuk melakukan transaksi forward adalah berikut ini:

1. Sikap manajemen terhadap resiko (investor behaviour). Bila manajemen adalah seorang risk averster, maka ia akan menghindari kemungkinan rugi karena melemahnya pound dengan menjual forward.

2. Bila perusahaan banyak mempunyai kewajiban dalam pound, maka secara alamiah perusahaan telah terhindar dari melemahnta pound. Pound yang diterimanya dari piutang akan digunakan untuk membayar utang sehingga menguat dan melemahnya pound tidak akan menimbulkan untung atau rugi. Menghindari resiko dengan cara ini disebut dengan exposure netting.

3. Tersedianya alternative lain, yaitu meminjam pound kemudian dikonversikan menjadi dollar untuk didepositokan sampai piutang nya jatuh tempo. Cara ini lebih murah dari pada dengan cara forward. Karena dalam keseimbangan (parity) kedua cara ini mengakibatkan biaya yang sama, namun suatu ketika bisa saja terjadi kedua cara ini biayanya berbeda. Perbedaan pengenaan pajak atas laba/rugi karena kenaikan kurs dan karena pendapatan/biaya bunga, mungkin juga mengakibatkan kedua cara ini berbeda biayanya.

Soal 2.

Seorang importer AS mengimpor barang seharga GBP 8,000,000 yang harus dibayar dalam waktu 90 hari kedepan.

a. Jika kurs forward 90 hari adalah US$ 1.4201/GBP dan importer melakukan hedge, berapa harga barang tersebut ?.

b. Jika ia tidak melakukan hedge dan kurs spot yang diharapakan (expected value) Dallam 90 hari adalah US$ 1.4050 berapa harga barang tersebut ?.

Jawab:
a. Jika importer melakukan hedge maka harga barang tersebut menjadi pasti yakni 8.000,000 x 1.4201 = US$ 11,360,800.-

b. Bila ia tidak melakukan hedge maka harga barang tersebut menjadi tidak pasti. Expected value atau harga yang paling mungkin dari barang tersebut adalah: 8.000.000 x 1.4050 = US$ 11.240.000.-.

Soal 3.

Seorang forex trader dar sebuah bank memperkirakan kurs franc Francis pada tiga bulan yang akan datang sebagai berikut:
US$ 0.11 dengan probabilitas 0.25;
US$ 0.13 dengan probabilitas 0.50;
US$ 0.15 dengan probabilitas 0.25;
Sementara diketahui kurs forward 3 bulan adalah US$ 0.12.

a. Jika ia hanya memperhatikan expected value atau nilai kurs yang paling mungkin terjadi, apakah trader itu akan membeli atau menjual FFR secara forward?. Jika ia sampai berapa banyak ?.

b. Dakam kenyataannyaapa yang akan membatasi trader itu untuk melakukan spekulasi sampai jumlah tak terbatas ?.

c. Misalkan trader itu merasa bahwa telah terjadi perubahan kemungkinan kurs menjadi:
US$ 0.09 dengan probabilitas 0.33;
US$ 0.13 dengan probabilitas 0.33;
US$ 0.17 dengan probabilitas 0.33;
Sedangkan kurs forward tetap sebesar US$ 0.12. Apakah perubahan ini mengubah tindakan trader itu ?.

Jawab.

a. Expected value dari kurs spot 3 bulan yang akan datang adalah:
(0.11 x 0.25) + (0.13 x 0.50) x (0.15 x 0.25) = US$ 0.13
Ini adalah kurs yang paling mungkin terjadi, menurut trader itu. Karena kurs forward hanya US$ 0.12 maka ia akan membeli DM sebanyak-banyaknya secara forward. Secara teoritis trader itu bisa melakukan transaksi sampai jumlah tak terhngga, karena ia tidak perlu menyediakan dollar sekarang untuk membeli DM, karena transaksinya adalah forward 3 bulan.

b. Dalam kenyataannya trader tersebut tidak bisa melakukan pembelian secara tidak terbatas. Bank tempatnya bkeerja biasanya mempunyai batas maskimum seorang tradernay boleh berspeklasi. Pemerintah dimana bank itu berada adakalanya juga membatasi besarnmya poisisi yang terbuka terhadap resiko perubahan kurs.

c. Expected value: (0.009 x 0.33) + (0.13 x 0.33) + (0.17 x 0.33) = US$ 0.13 jadi tidak ada perubahan. Trader itu tetap yakin bahwa yang paling mungkinterjadi adalah kurs sebebsar US$ 0.13. Tapi sekrang kisaranya menjadi lebih lebar yakni antara 0.09 sampai 0.17. (Tadinya kurs diperkirakan hanya berkisar antara 0.11 sampai 0.15). Ini berarti kemungkinannya menjadi lebih kecil untuk kurs akan tepat sebesar 0.13. Manusia normal tidak menyukai resiko, sehingga meningkatnya resiko akan menurunkan minat trader itu untuk berspekulasi.


FORWARD MARKET PARTICIPANT

Ada beberapa institusi yang terlibat dalam pasar forward:

1. ARBITRAGEURS:

adalah institusi atau seseorang yang mencari keuntungan dari mengambil keuntungan dari perbedaan tingkat suku bunga antar berbagai Negara. Mereka menggunakan forward contract untuk menghilangkan atau meminimalisir nilai tukar yang ada dalam proses transfer dana dari suatu Negara ke Negara yang lain.

2. TRADERS:

adalah institusi bisnis atau perorangan yang menggunakan forward contract untuk menghilangkan atau menutup resiko yang akan muncul ketika melakukan transaksi import maupun eksport dari suatu Negara ke Negara lain yang menggunakan mata uang yang berbeda.

3. HEDGERS:

adalah seseorang atau entity bisnis yang melakukan hedging (lindung nilai) denga melakukan forward contract untuk menutupi resiko akibat flukstuasi nilai tukar terhadap asset maupun liability – yang tercermin dalam balance sheets -- yang mereka miliki sebelum itu jatuh tempo.

4. SPECULATORS:

adalah institusi bisnis ataupun perorangan yang secara aktif terlibat dalam eksposure dalam resiko mata uang dengan jalan membeli atau menjual mata uang secara forward untuk mendapatkan keuntungan dari fluksutasi mata uang tersebut. Tetapi tingkat partisipasi mereka tidak tergantung kepada traksksi bisnis dalam suatu mata uang melainkan berdasarkan besar nya forward dan kespektasi mereka untuk harga spot suatu mata uang dimasa yang akan datang.

Wednesday, April 14, 2010

NILAI TUKAR MATA UANG (Exchange Rate)

Nilai tukar (exchange rate) adalah nilai (value) tukar uang suatu Negara dibandingkan terhadap mata uang Negara lain. Biasanya nilai mata uang Amerika Serikat – US Dollar yang selalu dijadikan acuan mengingat stabilitas ekonomi Amerika yang relative baik dibandingkan dengan Negara lain serta besarnya ekonomi Negara tersebut.

Beberapa istilah tehnis yang terkait dengan mata uang ini antara lain adalah:

Devaluasi (devaluation) yakni terjadinya penurunan nilai mata uang suatu Negara terhadap nilai mata uang Negara lain.

Revaluasi (revaluation) yakni terjadinya kenaikan nilai mata uang suatu Negara terhadap nilai mata uang Negara lain; Khusus untuk Devaluasi dan Revaluasi -- penurunan dan kenaikan -- ini disebabkan oleh adanya intervensi (campur tangan) pemerintah;

Appresiasi (appreciation) yakni terjadinya kenaikan nilai mata uang suatu Negara terhadap nilai mata uang Negara lain.

Depresiasi (depreciation) yakni terjadinya penurunan nilai mata uang suatu Negara terhadap nilai mata uang Negara lain.

Apresiasi dan Depresiasi ini terjadi karena ada nya mekanisme pasar yang bekerja yang kemudian mempengaruhi besarnya permintaan dan penawaran akan mata uang suatu negara. Jadi tidak ada campur tangan pemerintah. Namun demikian permintaan dan penawaran mata uang suatu Negara ini tidak terlepas dari permintaan dan penawaran barang, jasa serta asset-asset Negara tersebut.

Ada tidaknya campur tangan pemerintah tidak terlepas dari system nilai tukar yang dianut oleh suatu Negara. Pada dasarnya ada 4 sistem nilai tukar yang ada didunia ini dan dianut oleh semua Negara didunia.

1. Free Float Exchange Rate System (system nilai tukar mengambang bebas).

Dengan system nilai tukar ini, nilai tukar mata uang suatu Negara ssepenuhnya tergantung kepada mekanisme pasar yakni besar kecilnya permintaan (demand) dan penawaran (supply) terhadap mata uang tersebut. Pemerintah sama sekali tidak melakukan campur tangan (intervensi) jika terjadi suatu penurunan maupun kenaikan atas mata uang tersebut. Tentu saja besar kecilnya permintaan dan penawaran terhadap mata uang tersebut dipengaruhi oleh berbagai factor baik factor ekonomi maupun politik.

2. Managed Float Exchange Rate System (system nilai tukar mengambang terkendali) atau Dirty Float.

Sistem nilai tukar ini adalah system nilai tukar mata uang suatu Negara yang memberikan sedikit keleluasaan kepada mata uang tersebut untuk mengambang tapi hanya samapai pada suatu tngkat tertentu yang diinginkan oleh pemerintah. Baik depresiasi maupun appresiasi mata uang tersebut. Dengan demikian system ini bisa dikatakan adalah perpanduan antara fixed exchange rate system dan free float exchange rate system. Mata uang diizinkan mengambang tapi hanya dalam batas-batas tertentu. Karena setelah melewati batas-batas yang ditetapkan oleh pemerintah maka pemerintah akan melakukan intervensi.

3. Target Zone Arrangement, yakni system nialai tukar mata uang yang ditetapkan oleh beberapa Negara tapi dalam zona-zona ekonomi tertentu.

4. Fixed Exchange Rate System (system nilai tukar tetap).

Dengan system ini nilai tukar matauang suatu Negara terhadap mata uang Negara lain sudah ditetapkan nilainya. Jadi tidak bisa lagi berubah-ubah kecuali pemerintah menghendaki adanya perubahan. Sistem ini sangat bertolak belakang dengan free float exchange rate system karena intervensi pemerintah sangat dominant.

Tehnik Menghitung Appresiasi (Depresiasi):

IDR/US$ (baru) – IDR/US$ (lama) x 100%
------------------------------------
IDR/US$ (lama)

Atau:

Pt – Pt-1 x 100%.
---------
Pt-1

Dimana:

Pt adalah nilai tukar terkahir mata uang terhadap mata uang lainnya;
Pt-1 adalah nilai tukar awal mata uang terhadap mata uang lainnya;


Pasar Valuta Asing (Valas) atau foreign Exchange Market


Organisasi pasar valuta asing:

1. Spot Market (Pasar Spot),

yakni suatu mata uang diperdagngkan untuk diserahkan secepatnya, biasanya dalam 2 hari kerja setelah transaksi dilakukan.

2. Forwar market (pasar forward),

yakni suatu kontrak yang dibuat untuk membeli atau menjual suatu mata uang untuk diantarkan pada masa yang akan datang.


SPOT QUOTATION

Quotation adalah permintaan harga suatu mata uang terhadap mata uang lainnya.

Misalkan seorang manager keuangan disebuah perusahaan minyak menelpo sebuah bank untuk menanyakan kurs US$ 1 terhadap IDR (Indonesia Rupiah), itu namanya manajer keuangan tersebut minta quotation.

Ada dua bentuk spot quotation.

Pertama adalah American Terms yakni quotation suatu mata uang terhadap dollar Amerika. Misalkan, SFr 1 = US$ 0.7018; atau Rp. 10,000 = US$. 1.-. Kedua adalah European Terms, yakni nilai mata uang dollar Amerika terhadap mata uang lainnya. Misal, US$ 1 = Rp. 10.000.- atau US$ 1 = SFr 1.4250 dan seterus nya.

Disamping tehnik diatas adalagi dua cara lain, yakni, pertama Direct quotation yakni permintaan harga (kurs valuta asing) yang dilakukan oleh penduduk suatu Negara dimanan dia berada terhadap kurs mata uang negara lain. Misalkan, seorang warga Indonesia yang tinggal di Jakarta minta quote terhadap dollar Amerika. Rp. 10,000 = US$ 1.- Atau seorang warga Jerman yang tinggal di Berlin minta harga untuk pound sterling.

Kedua Indirect Quotation (permintaan harga secara tidak langsung) yakni permintaan harga yang dilakukan oleh penduduk suatu Negara terhadap nilai tukar 2 mata uang yang berbeda selain mata uang dinegara mana mereka berdomisili. Conton, seorang warga Indonesia yang tinggal di Surbaya minta quotation 1 pount sterling terhadap dollar Amreika. £ 1 = US$ 1.4420.-

TRANSACTION COST (BIAYA TRANSAKSI)

Biaya transaksi untuk suatu pembelian dan penjualan valuta asing adalah selesih antara bid (harga beli) dengan ask (harga jual). Selisih ini disebut Spread yakni selisih harga beli dan harga jual suatu mata uang. Dengan demikian:

SPREAD = ASK (HARGA JUAL) - BID (HARGA BELI)

Untuk menghitung berapa besar persentase spread ini biasa nya dipakai formula berikut ini:

% Spread = Ask price – Bid price x 100%
---------------------
Ask price

Untuk melihat mana harga beli (bid) dan mana harga jual (ask) dapat dilihat pada contoh berikut ini:

Misalkan pada tanggal 26 Juni 2009 kurs US$ 1 = Rp. 10.000 – 10.500.-.
Maka angka Rp. 10.000 adalah angka harga beli (bid) yang berarti suatu bank atau money changer akan membeli dari kita pada harga Rp. 10.000 untu US$ 1.- dan angka Rp. 10.500 adalah harga jual (ask) yang berarti dia akan menjual kepada kita pada harga Rp. 10.500 untuk setiap US$ 1.-.

Dengan memakai rumus diatas maka persentase spread nya adalah:

% Spread = Rp. 10.500 – Rp. 10.000 x 100% = 0.05 x 100 = 5%
--------------------------
Rp. 10.000

Berarti spread mata uang rupiah pada perdagangan tanggal 26 Juni 2009 adalah 5%. Selisih inilah yang diambil oleh broker pasar uang atau money changer sebagai pendapatan mereka. Namun jika terjadi suatu keadaan dimana fluktuasi mata uang yang diperdagangkan relative besar maka pihak broker dan money changer akan membuat spread yang juga lebih besar lagi.

Tuesday, April 13, 2010

Pasar Uang

Dalam ilmu ekonomi dikenal dua type pasar.

Pertama, PRODUCT MARKET (pasar untuk barang produksi dan jasa). Termasuk kedalam kategori ini adalah pabrik-pabrik yang menghasilkan barang serta jasa-jasa yang disediakan oleh industri jasa.

Kedua, adalah FACTOR MARKET yakni pasar untuk factor-faktor produksi, seperti buruh (labor), modal (capital), tanah (land) dan mesin-mesin (machines).

Financial market (pasar keuangan) termasuk kedalam kategori kedua yakni factor market. Pasar keuangan secara garis besar dapat dibagi kedalam dua kategori.

Pertama, MONEY MARKET (pasar uang) dan kedua CAPITAL MARKET (pasar modal).

Per definisi pasar keuangan adalah pasar dimana asset-asset keuangan diperdagangkan. Sementara pasar dimana asset-asset keuangan diperdagangkan untuk settlement lebih cepat disebut dengan pasar SPOT (spot market) atau sering juga disebut CASH MARKET (pasar kontan).

ASSETS per definisi adalah suatu bentuk kepemilikan yang mempunyai nilai untuk diperdagangkan atau ditukarkan.

Asset terbagi kedalam dua kategori:

1). TANGIBLE ASSET yakni asset-asset yang bisa dilihat dan dirasakan seperti tanah, gedung dan mesin-mesin.

2). INTANGIBLE ASSET yakni asset-asset yang tidak berbentuk secara fisik. Seperti merek, brand, hak paten juga polis asuransi termasuk kedalam kategori ini.

Fungsi Asset-asset Keuangan:

1. Mentransfer dana dari mereka yang memiliki dana lebih (surplus) untuk diinvestasikan kepada mereka yang membutuhkan dana tersebut dan kemudian di investasikan pada asset-asset tangible;

2. Mentransfer dana sedemikian rupa sebagai upaya untuk meredistribusi resiko-resoko yang tidak bisa dihindari yang terkait dengan arus kas (cash flow) yang diperoleh dari tanggibel asset diantara mereka yang peminjam dan penyedia dana;

Fungsi dari Asset Keuangan

1. Interaksi antara pembeli dan penjual pada pasar keuangan dalam menentukan harga asset-asset yang diperdagangkan. Proses ini disebut Price discovery Process;

2. Menyediakan mekanisme untuk investor untuk menjaul asset-asset keuangannya. Karennya dikatakan bahwa pasar keuangan menawarkan liquiditas;

3. Untuk mengurangi biaya trasaksi yang biasanya terdiri dari Serach Cost seperti biaya iklan, biaya implicit, serta waktu yang idhabiskan untuk mencari counterparty; biaya lain adalah biaya informasi.


Klasifikasi Pasar Keuangan

Pasar keuangan dapat diklasifikasikan kedalam 5 bentuk:

1. Klasifikasi berdasarkan bentuk klaim nya:
• Pasar Utang (Debt Market);
• Pasar Equitas (Equity Market);

2. Klasifikasi berdasarkan jatuh tempo klaim nya:
• Pasar uang (money market), yakni jatuh tempo kliam kurang dari 1 tahun;
• Pasar Modal (capital market), yakni jatuh tempo klaim lebih dari 1 tahun;

3. Klasifikasi berdasarkan “musim” klaim nya:
• Pasar pertama (primiary market);
• Pasar kedua (secondary market);

4. Klasifikasi berdasarkan delivery nya:
• Cash atau spot market;
Derivative market;

5. Klasifikasi berdasarkan struktur organisasi nya:
Auction Market;
• OTC (Over the counter market)
• Intermediated market;


Globalisasi Pasar Keuangan

Globalisasi adalah terintegrasinya pasar keuangan dunia kedalam pasar keuangan international. Beberapa faktor yang memicu terjadinya integrasi pasar keuangan dunia adalah:

Pertama, deregulasi dan liberalisasi pasar dan aktifitas para participant pasar pada pusat-pusat keuangan diseluruh dunia;

Kedua, Ada dan tersedianya tehnologi tingkat tinggi untuk memonitor pasar dunia, mengeksekusi order serta menganalisis semua peluang-peluang yang ada dan yang mungkin timbul;

Ketiga, Semakin terinstitusionasisanya pasa keuangan dunia;


Klasifikasi Pasar Keuangan Dunia

Secara garis besar ada dua klasifikasi pasaar keuangan dunia:

Internal Market (pasar internal) atau disebut juga national market (pasar nasional) yang terdiri dari pasar domestic (domestic market) dan pasar asing (foreign market).

Ada beberapa pasar asing yang terkenal yakni, yankee market – pasar asing di Amerika Serikat, Samurai market – pasar asing di Jepang, bulldog market – pasar asingdi Inggris, rembrand market – pasar asing di Belanda, matador market – pasar asing di Spanyol.

Kedua adalah External Market (pasar eksternal) atau disebut juga International market atau offshore market atau disebut juga Euro Market).

Paling tidak ada dua karakteristik dari international market:

Pertama pada saat securities dikeluarkan / dijual maka sekuritas itu ditawarkan pada waktu yang bersamaan kepada seluruh investor di seluruh dunia;

Kedua, sekuritas tersebut dikeluarkan diluar dilebih dari satu jurisdiksi suatu Negara. Paling tidak di dua Negara yang berbeda.


Fungsi Financial Intermediaries

1. Menyediakan intermediasi yang jatuh tempo;
2. Mengurangi resiko melalui diversifikasi;
3. Mengurangi biaya kontrak dan proses informasi;
4. Menyediakan mekanisme pembayaran;

Ada 3 kategori financial intermediaries:

1. Institusi deposito (depository institution);
2. Institusi tabungan yang bersifat kontrak (contractual savings institutions);
3. Investment intermediaries;

Thursday, March 18, 2010

Pentingnya Pasar Uang (Money Market)

Pentingnya pasar uang (money market) pada era globalisasi sekarang ini.