| Asian travel agents are ‘shaken, not stirred’ as travel 2.0 comes ...
Throwing a fortune at the online market is no guarantee of success," says Don Birch. "Some companies are after a niche, online customer and need to aggressively invest in Travel 2.0. But for most agents in Asia the reality of their business will be in both the real and virtual worlds." Abacus has staked its claim in the new Travel 2.0 landscape. Abacus WebConnect enables individual travel agencies to connect their website to Abacus’ database of travel fares and information. This is a lowbarrier way for an agency to establish an accurate and authoritative presence on the Internet. Mobile technology is utilised with Abacus VirtuallyThere, a personalised journey tracking system that allows an agent to update a client, even when he or she is on-the-go. Covering the bases Agents who currently have a competitive business with no internet presence may feel they are able to maintain this position for some time.
New credit scores cut users' benefits
Credit bureaus are expected to adopt a new version of the widely used FICO credit score this year that will no longer benefit so-called "authorized users" on another person's credit card account. It's common for parents to add a child as an authorized user on their credit card to boost the child's credit score. That benefit will no longer exist under a new scoring model by Fair Isaac Corp., the company that developed the FICO score. You can still be an authorized user, but Fair Isaac will no longer factor authorized-user accounts into its credit-scoring formulas. The move is in response to the controversial practice of "piggybacking" in which some Web sites allow consumers with poor credit scores to hitch onto someone else's good credit record. These companies say they can boost your credit score by having you added as an authorized user on the credit cards of strangers with stellar credit, for a fee.
Universities face crunch in funding
Michigan public universities, already stretched thin after losing a huge monthly payment from the state this summer, may be on the brink of missing another if the government shuts down on Monday. Without the money from their overdue August payment and from their regular October check, the universities' leaders say they may have to turn to students or loans to tide themselves over. "The critical issue in the short term is whether or not we will see that August payment," said Cheryl Roland, spokeswoman for Western Michigan University. "And if it starts to look like the October payment was in jeopardy, too, it's just hard to comprehend how that could be managed." .
Tips for filing as head of household
Baltimoresun.com's tax-advice column features three experts from the Hunt Valley accounting firm SC&H Group answering questions about preparing your return every Monday until April 16. To be included in the following weeks, please use the form at the right side of this page to submit your questions.
Virginia, Baltimore: Does one have to have a dependent child or parent in order to claim head of household? What if you have a dependent relative -- say a son or daughter over the minimum age for dependent child who has less than $3,300 in income and lives in your home?
SC&H Group: In order to qualify as head of household (HOH), the taxpayer must (1) not be married at the end of the year, (2) have paid more than half the cost of keeping up his or her home, (3) provide the principal residence for more than half the year for either the taxpayer's qualifying child or the taxpayer's qualifying relative and (4) be a U.S.
Oil prices rise on cold weather reports
NEW YORK — Oil prices climbed Monday as forecasts for blustery weather nationwide raised expectations that demand for energy will surge in the coming days. Rising political tensions in the Middle East contributed to the advance, apparently outweighing worries that a weakending U.S. economy could curb oil demand. After opening lower, light, sweet crude for February delivery rose $1.14 to $93.83 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. In London, Brent crude gained $1.66 to $92.73 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange. "The main thrust to the upside is pretty clearly weather driven," said Citigroup Global Markets energy analyst Tim Evans. "That has the natural gas market extending last week's gains and making heating oil the leader on the upside of the petroleum complex." Heating oil futures added more than 5 cents to $2.5866 a gallon, while natural gas futures gained 12.5 cents to $8.335 per 1,000 cubic feet.
|
