Lehman Brothers is swinging the ax. Lehman shares fell after CNBC reported the big investment bank will cut 5% of its workforce, or about 1,400 jobs. The news comes as Lehman prepares to report first-quarter results next Tuesday. Wall Street has been bracing for a round of bad news next week from banks including Lehman, Goldman Sachs (GS) and Bear Stearns (BSC), amid a sharp slowdown in dealmaking and a fearful turn in the credit markets. At Lehman, analysts expect first-quarter earnings to fall by more than half, to 91 cents a share from $1.96 a year ago. A particular area of concern at Lehman is the bank’s big commercial real estate loan book, which is expected to see a big writedown as property values decline. With revenue under pressure, Lehman is responding by cutting costs, in a painful process that will no doubt be repeated many times over on Wall Street in the next few months.  I think we should all be prepared for a lot more cost cutting measures in the next few months.

China’s biggest bank said Sunday it has received approval to buy a 20 percent stake in South Africa’s biggest lender, the latest big-ticket overseas expansion by Chinese investors.  The deal between state-owned Industrial & Commercial Bank of China Ltd. and Standard Bank Group Ltd. is one of China’s biggest foreign corporate acquisitions to date.

The statement did not provide financial details of the deal, which was announced last year, but the official Xinhua News Agency said it was worth $5.46 billion.  Most analysts will be watching this one closely.

A global market meltdown and a decelerating economy could shake the steel nerves of the European Central Bank, analysts said Tuesday, as more observers are predicting it will cut borrowing costs as soon as the second quarter of this year.

The ECB has kept its benchmark interest rate on hold at 4 percent since last June _ before August’s credit crisis froze bank lending and threatened to stall major economies.

Its refusal to cut rates _ and encourage reluctant banks to give credit to each other, to companies and to homebuyers _ stood in stark contrast to the U.S. Federal Reserve which in a surprise move Tuesday reduced its rate for the fourth time since last September.

The Fed slashed its benchmark refinancing rate to 3.5 percent from 4.25 percent as stock markets dropped sharply Monday on investor skepticism that the U.S. government’s multibillion-dollar (-euro) tax relief plan could save the U.S. from a possible slide into recession.

But, until recently, ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet has talked instead about raising rates as the 15 nations that share the euro saw inflation spiral in the last two months to match an all-time high.

Trump Entertainment Resorts Chief Financial Officer Dale Black Resigns Effective Dec. 14.  Casino operator Trump Entertainment Resorts Inc. said Monday Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Dale R. Black has resigned to accept a similar position at another gaming company. Black’s resignation will become effective on or about Dec. 14, the company said in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Trump Entertainment plans to identify potential succession candidates, but did not say when. Trump Entertainment shares dropped 25 cents, or 4.8 percent, to close at $4.92 after hitting a new low of $4.83 earlier in the session. Shares continued to fall in aftermarket activity, tumbling 82 cents, or 16.7 percent, to $4.10.  It will be interesting to see who takes his place.

I was surfing the web today and came across some interesting news about the billions of dollars being saved each year by folks doing offshore banking. Around 20 years ago I was dating a lovely girl and her brother was quite successful and one the things that helped keep him that way was offshore banking. He helped blaze the trail for it by writing a book on the subject, back then it was mostly big business doing it but now it is quite common for many small and medium sized businesses to take advantage of offshore company formation and reap the financial benefits.

So I have been putting this off for quite a while now but I can’t any longer. Deciding to buy life insurance is the easy part because everyone, especially those with families must have it. But actually starting the process is a bit intimidating. To make it easier I stated off by doing an online search and reading as many life insurance articles as possible, that way I would know all the ins-and-outs before I make my decision. The next step was to find a good way to compare life insurance policies and that really helped me make that important final decision. If you are like me you may not be too excited about the prospect of dying but don’t put off choosing a life insurance plan anymore. Make sure that your loved ones are taken care of, it is your responsibility.

If you are a business owner, doctor, lawyer or offer any type of service where information is important to your customers then you should seriously think about how purchasing some attractive brochure displays. It will make your look more professional and there is a much better chance someone will actually take the information brochures.

One type of business that immediately comes to mind it when it involves real estate displays, using great looking displays can really effect your bottom line.

If you are like me then ‘gas’ has been at the fore-front of your mind for many months. I have an old car, 11 years old and it is a V-8. It seems to have an endless thirst for gasoline and from experience I can tell you that the best gas credit cards are ones with no annual fees.

When it comes time to compare gas credit cards, do an online search and find a site that makes it simple to see which is the best choice for you.