"China’s Exports Rise 46%" (NYT)

"China announced Wednesday that its exports climbed 46 percent in February from a year earlier. Economists said the data signaled a rebound in consumer demand from the United States and other Western markets after the financial crisis last year.

It was the third consecutive month of increases in Chinese exports and the fastest growth in three years. Orders from the United States, the European Union and Japan accounted for almost half the growth, following a pickup in demand from emerging markets in the previous two months.

Chinese imports also rose 45 percent over the previous year, led by crude oil as factories stepped up production..."

"Subway Architecture" (Design Boom)

"london’s underground became the first subway system in the world when it began operation in 1863.
since then, underground subways have been built in almost every major city of the world. from new york
and paris to hong kong and dubai, subways are an essential part of public transportation in cities.
within these systems, architecture plays a big role in defining the environment of the subway. here is
a collection of some of the most architecturally interesting subway stations..."

Kiva!! (microloans)

Made my third Kiva loan today to a woman in the Philippines who has requested a loan so that she can expand the stock in her general store. The first loan I made was for $25. The 2 previous loans were repaid in full, so each new loan I make is paid from the previous loan....an easy cycle to participant in with a relatively minor financial commitment!!

"See Where Stuff Comes From with SourceMap" (Treehugger)

"You have certainly heard that buying local is "greener". You have probably also heard counter-arguments: a product made more efficiently but shipped some distance may beat out a local product. But all that talk is merely theoretical if you don't know where your stuff comes from anyhow. And in the new global economy, the "made in" tag on a product does not tell half the story. What is the discerning consumer to do?

Imagine a future in which pointing a PDA at a product bar code returns an instant readout of product source and environmental footprint to inform the buyer's decision. This future could be reality with SourceMap. Designed as a "collective tool for transparency and sustainability," SourceMap aims to be the Wiki of visualizing supply chains.

SourceMap is a project of Media Labs, a division of MIT. Developers have adapted the Google Earth geotagging capabilities to the purpose of charting the components that go into products. After two years in develpment, the site is live in beta, and a SourceMap pilot project is underway in Scotland, where businesses can input data on sourcing and supply to share with customers. SourceMap hopes to show that a marketing and social networking advantage justifies the effort of businesses to create transparent reports..."

"IBM opens a Linux innovation center in Kazakhstan" (VentureBeat)

"IBM keeps pushing into emerging markets in an effort to encourage startups and technology adoption around the world. Today, it is announcing it has opened a Linux innovation center in Kazakhstan, the nation made famous by Sacha Baron Cohen’s comedy movie, Borat.

IBM is betting that places like Kazakhstan will eventually see growth as vendors spread their wares around the globe and local businesses move onto the Internet. Linux is a perfect fit as far as encouraging low-cost technology in these areas. The center will be in Astana, Kazakhstan, the capital of the country.

The center’s mission is to drive the development and adoption of open standards and open source technologies in business and government organizations in Kazakhstan, the central Asian nation that spans territory larger than Western Europe. IBM recently launched a similar effort in Africa. Big Blue also has innovation centers in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam; Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; Sao Paulo, Brazil; Bangalore, India; Moscow and other locations, such as the Cape Town, South Africa center, which opened last week.

Part of the continuing goal is to bridge the “digital divide” and fuel future economic growth. Inna Kuznetsova, vice president of systems software, marketing and sales enablement at IBM, says the center will support regional software vendors and IBM business partners as they localize their applications. It will develop prototypes of e-government services and work on e-learning solutions as well."

Micro Financing / KIVA Loan repaid today!

I loaned $25 through KIVA last August and the loan has been repaid in full today and ready to be re-loaned out! So it took about 8 months total. The amount is repaid without interest. Honestly I don't remember exactly what she was using the money for, but it was loaned to Christine Kiwanuka's Group in Uganda for retail. The rate of default is very low for KIVA loans and I'm happy to see the full amount was returned so it can now be loaned out to someone else. Watch out Citibank!

"Survey Signals Dubai Housing Boom Has Ended" (WSJ)

Even Dubai is on the real estate roller coaster:

"This city's six-year property boom appears finally to be over, with asking prices for some homes here falling as much as 19% in October from the previous month, according to a closely followed survey.

Home prices were climbing sharply as recently as the first half of this year. But over the summer and fall, tightened local lending collided with the global financial crisis to choke off easy credit. That scared away buyers, especially local and international property speculators who have helped fan years of price increases..."

"Russian, Plus American Tourist Return from Space" (Associated Press)

"Richard Garriott, a 47-year-old computer games designer who created the Ultima game series, paid US$30 million for trip to the International Space Station. When he lifted off Oct. 12, he became the first American to follow his father into space..."

Looking for a good way to spend $25? (and get it returned to you!)

$1,550.00		Loan Request
$1,000.00		Raised so far
$550.00		still needed

"Christine Kiwanuka is the leader of a group of five women. She is 48 years old and is married with six children. Her eldest child is 20 years old and her youngest is 8 years old. All of her children are in school. Christine lives in a semi-urban slum on the outskirts of Kampala that is prone to flooding during the rainy season.

Christine plans on using this loan to increase her stock by purchasing wholesale and to install piped water in her home. Christine will then be able to sell more products, including water, and increase her profits. With the profits, Christine will continue to pay school fees. She hopes to eventually be able to afford to buy a motorcycle to rent out and to purchase a refrigerator to sell cold drinks..."

"Kiva: We Let You Loan to the Working Poor"

Make small loans to people in need around the world, get paid back, and do it all over again!!

"Kiva's mission is to connect people through lending for the sake of alleviating poverty. Kiva is the world's first person-to-person micro-lending website, empowering individuals to lend directly to unique entrepreneurs in the developing world..."