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We like to think that when we deposit a dollar at the bank, it goes into a big vault and we can pull out that same dollar at any time. But that¿s not how the U.S. banking system works. Banks take that money and invest it to make money themselves, so cash gets spread around. This, naturally, leads to a big risk: What happens if those investments go sour? Well, you¿d be out of luck. You can¿t get your dollar back.
The Federal Reserve doesn¿t like that scenario, so it prohibits banks from putting all the cash it has on deposit on the line. In fact, the Fed forces banks to keep a portion of their assets at the Federal Reserve itself, to make sure that some of your assets won¿t get squandered if the bank¿s bets go south. These are called ¿reserves,¿ (hence, Federal Reserve. Got it? Good), and usually amount to 10% of the total cash kept in checking accounts.
These reserves are never exactly 10%, and banks like to keep a little extra in reserve ¿ not, as you might think, to make you more comfortable that they¿re in good financial shape, but rather so they can take that excess and lend it to other banks and make money off it. (They¿re banks, they can¿t help themselves.) The rate at which they make these loans is called the Federal Funds rate, which is set by the Federal Reserve¿s Federal Open Market Committee.
When you hear people chattering about how the Fed cut or hiked interest rates, this is what they¿re talking about: the interest rate banks can charge for lending money from their reserves. This begs the question: If these are essentially loans between banks, why is the Fed Funds rate so important for the rest of the economy?
Well, simply put, because loans make the financial world go round. Bank A lends Bank B $10,000 at a Fed Funds rate of 5%. Bank B then lends out $10,000 to a small business at 7%. The small business then takes that money and expands the business and hires new workers. Now someone is employed, Bank B has made interest off the loan, and Bank A is the richer for making it all happen. It¿s perhaps overly simplistic, but you get the idea. When you want the economy to thrive, you make lending cheaper.
Of course, sometimes you don¿t want the economy to thrive. In fact, you might want it to cool down, mostly to avoid money flooding the system and causing inflation. In that case, the Fed raises interest rates, making it difficult to lend or borrow.
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Thursday, July 10, 2008
Up-and-Coming Athletes Go for the Gold in San Francisco
Comtex
SAN FRANCISCO, July 10, 2008 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ ----The spirit of athletic competition that will sweep the world in August is coming to San Francisco in July. On Friday, July 11, the 42nd International Children's Games kicks off with the Opening Ceremony at Kezar Stadium in Golden Gate Park. The International Children's Games, this year held in San Francisco, brings together more than 1,200 youth athletes (between the ages of 12-15 years old) from 84 cities in 42 countries, and representing all six inhabitable continents. The goal of the games, which are endorsed by the International Olympic Committee, is to promote peace and friendship through sports.
"We are honored to host such a talented and diverse group of athletes," said G. Bradford Solso, chairman of the organizing committee for the International Children's Games in San Francisco. "As the world revs up for this summer's Olympics, the International Children's Games will be a great way to spark the athlete inside each one of us."
The Opening Ceremony begins at 6:30 p.m. on Friday, July 11, at Kezar Stadium in Golden Gate Park. In addition to the traditional processional of teams and presentation of flags, attendees will be treated to Ballet Folklorio, Flying Lion dancers, Iron Monkey and Renegade B-Boyin, Tacoma King Africa drummers, and the Whelan Irish dancers. The Ceremony will conclude with a finale performance by the Sun Kings. Dignitaries in attendance will include Mayor Gavin Newsom, Assemblywoman Fiona Ma and numerous mayors and Consul Generals from the participating cities and countries.
Competitions in each of the eight sports -- basketball, soccer, volleyball, tennis, track & field, golf, table tennis and swimming -- will take place throughout the day, beginning Friday, July 11, and continuing on Saturday, July 12; Sunday, July 13; and concluding on Monday, July 14. The International Children's Games Festival Village, athletic competitions and participant events will take place in multiple venues throughout San Francisco, including Golden Gate Park, Kezar Stadium, University of San Francisco (USF) and San Francisco State University (SFSU). The closing ceremonies to the Games will take place on Monday, July 14, from 5:30-6:30 p.m. at Koret Center on the campus of the University of San Francisco.
All events are open to the public. Schedules and ticket information can be found on the Web at http://www.sficg2008.com. Mobile phone users may sign up to receive updates about schedules and match results by sending a text message to code 95294 with the keyword "KIDS" in the body of the text message.
There are 90 youth athletes from the Bay Area who make up Team San Francisco at this year's games. Cities from around the globe that are represented at the games include:
Abidjan Graz Macau Ravne na Koroskem Alkmaar Halifax Manama Reykjavik Athens Halmstad Maribor Rochester Bangkok Hamilton Marin San Francisco Beijing Ho Chi Minh Marion San Jose Brantford Hong Kong Medias San Mateo Bratislava Innsbruck Mislinja Sentilj Brescia Jerusalem Monaco Seoul Cebu City Joure Montego Bay Shanghai Celje Kaohsiung Montreux Sialkot Chesterfield Kaunas Murska Sobota Singapore Cleveland Kecskemet Nairobi Slovenj Gradec Contra Costa Kempten New Delhi Sopron Cork Kitchener New York Sparta Coventry Kumasi Nuuk Taipei City Daegu Lahore Oakland Tralee Darmstadt Lake Macquarie Patras Ulaanbaatar Eisenstadt Lanarkshire Plock Uzhgorod Florence Lausanne Podolsk Vadodara Freiberg Los Gatos Port of Spain Velenje Gelting Luxemourg Raanana Vevey
The 42nd International Children's Games are supported by Ashwood Management Partners, Adobe Systems, Clear Channel, Comerica Bank, the Koret Foundation, the Lisa & Douglas Goldman Fund, Grey San Francisco, Heller Ehrman, the Hellman Family Foundation, Manning Selvege & Lee, NBC11, Olympic Club Foundation, Safeway, the San Francisco Bay Club, the San Jose Earthquakes, the Taube Foundation for Jewish Life and Culture, Waterfront Container and many individuals, corporation and volunteers who have made donations of cash or goods and services.
About the International Children's Games
Endorsed by the International Olympic Committee, the International Children's Games is a premier global, youth athletic event that combines sports and educational programs, cultural exchange opportunities and economic development. The Games serve as a vehicle to promote alliances, friendships and common understanding among children around the world and have done so since 1968. Thirty-one different cities on four continents have hosted previous Games.
SOURCE International Children's Games
http://www.sficg2008.com
Copyright (C) 2008 PR Newswire. All rights reserved
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