Iran Blames U.S. For Diplomatic Kidnapping

By Jerry Garner

Iran accused the United States on Tuesday, of coordinating the abduction of an Iranian Diplomat conducting business in Iraq. U.S. Officials have denied any direct or indirect involvement in the kidnapping, as tensions between the two nations continue to escalate.

Shortly after sunset on Sunday, a car transporting Jalal Sharafi, second secretary to the Iranian Embassy in Iraq, was travelling through the streets of a Shiite neighborhood. Sharafi had just left a branch of the state-owned Iranian bank in the Karradah district, when his car was blocked by gunmen wearing Iraqi army uniforms.

Sharafi was forced into one of two vehicles that began to speed away from the scene. Suspicious of what was happening, Iraqi police opened fire on the vehicles, disabling one of them. Sharafi was not in the vehicle that was stopped, but four gunmen found inside were arrested and interrogated.

The following day, uniformed Iraqis appeared at the police station, presented proper identification badges, and demanded custody of the four gunmen for transfer to another detention facility, an official stated.

The authorities complied with the seemingly legitimate order, and the gunmen disappeared. Neither the Interior Ministry nor the Defense Ministry, who collectively control the Iraqi Security Forces, had any information as to what happened to the gunmen when they left the police station.

The Iranian Government and some Shiite lawmakers in Iraq believe that Sharafi was detained as part of an intelligence gathering operation carried out by the Iraqi Special Operations Command, under the direct supervision of U.S. Forces.

"They acted under U.S. supervision," Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Mohammed Ali Hosseini said in a statement released in Tehran. Al Hosseini described the incident as a "terrorist attack."

"Based on reliable information, certain agents behind the terrorist act have been arrested. They acted under U.S. supervision," Hosseini said. "The Islamic Republic of Iran considers it a responsibility of U.S. forces in Iraq to protect members of the diplomatic community, including Iranian diplomats, and will hold them responsible for obtaining the release of the abducted Iranian diplomat."

At the same time, the Bush administration has accused Iran of fueling sectarian violence in Iraq by providing Shiite extremists with weapons and explosives that are being used to attack both U.S. Forces and Sunni Arab targets. U.S. Forces have been holding five Iranians in custody for the past month following a raid carried out in the Northern city of Irbil, and accuses the Iranian Government of plans to attack Americans in the region.

An official at the Iranian Embassy in Baghdad states that Shafari’s abduction is just the latest case of heavy handedness under the orders of U.S. officials. "They should release our colleague as soon as possible," he said angrily.

The United States remains firm in it’s position that neither U.S. Forces, or Iraqi troops under their command, had any involvement with the abduction.

"In all of our research we have found no unit within Multi-National Force-Iraq or that we are associated with that has conducted any operation that remotely resembles this," said U.S. military spokesman Lt. Col. Christopher Garver. "We're continuing to research based on the seriousness of this. However, at this time, there is no evidence that any MNF-I unit participated in this event."

Although the United States has received the blame for the kidnapping, there is little or no evidence to support the allegation, and there are many alternatives to consider. Kidnappings are common in Baghdad, where merchants and high ranking local officials are often kidnapped by criminals who wish to command a large ransom for their release. Other suspects include rogue elements of the Iraqi Security Forces, or even Sunni insurgents.

Iran officials, however, refuse to consider the possibility that Shafari’s kidnapping was anything less than an attempt by Washington to exert control over Tehran.

"This is not the first time such a thing has happened," the Iranian Embassy official said of Sharafi's alleged abduction. "Normally, the United States is responsible."

American officials remain firm that there is no involvement from their forces. "We don't really know a whole lot about it at this point," White House spokesman Tony Snow said. "We know that the Iraqi government is investigating."

At this time, details are incomplete at best according to Iraqi Foreign Minister, Hoshyar Zebari. "We are working very hard and the Prime Minister is working very hard to get to the bottom of this," Zebari said. "This is unacceptable. It's our responsibility to protect diplomats in this country."

The one thing that is absolutely certain in all of this is that an already tense situation has been further intensified by the abduction of Jalal Sharafi.

Related News Links:

Iraqi government embarrassed by the seizure of Iranian diplomat

Iran blames U.S. for kidnapping of its diplomat in Iraq

U.S. orchestrated seizure of Baghdad envoy, Iran alleges

Demand Weakens For U.S. Business Loans

By Jerry Garner

A Government report released on Monday provided a bleak outlook for 2007 in reference to most types of loans, including citing a weakening demand for small business loans and other commercial development loans. The report, released by the U.S. Federal Reserve, also hinted that credit quality is likely to suffer for both businesses and consumers.

The Fed study was based on a survey of 57 domestic banks, and 22 foreign banks with U.S. branch offices. One of the banks included in the study is Ashwaubenon-based Associated Bank.

"It's a tight credit cycle right now," stated Gordy King, Executive Vice President and Chief Credit Officer for Associated Bank. "There is a general slowdown in lot and lot development loans," King continued.

In reference to the outlook for credit quality in 2007, the Fed said, “Considerable net percentages of both foreign and domestic institutions reportedly expect credit quality on loans to businesses and households to deteriorate somewhat in 2007.”

The Fed continued to comment that the percentage of banks expecting a deterioration in credit quality had increased from the numbers quoted in the 2006 survey.

Of those surveyed, 45% expect to see a decline in the quality of loans to business clients, whether it is for real estate or other business loans. A total of 35% of the domestic banks expect to see a decline in the quality of consumer loans, including credit card debt.

U.S. banks also indicated that demand for mortgage loans continued to weaken over the past three months. At least 15% of U.S. banks have tightened credit criteria for residential mortgages as a result of the weaker demand. This is the largest percentage of banks to tighten credit terms for these types of loans since the early 1990s.

However, the Fed loan study may not be an entirely accurate representation of what to expect for 2007. The economic figures for the fourth quarter show that the U.S. economy grew by 3.4 percent during that period. This exceeded analysts predictions, and a continued trend could lead to larger demand for various types of bank loans.

Related Links

Demand Weakens For Most Loans

Banks say U.S. demand for most loan types is weakening, Fed survey shows

Insurance Company Dumps Florida Insurance Policies

Earlier this week, Florida Governor Charlie Crist signed an emergency rule to freeze insurance rates and enact a moratorium on nonrenewals for 90 days and prevents cancellations through the end of the hurricane season, Nov. 30. The move was designed to lock in insurance rates until after Hurricane season has passed, but it seems to have backfired. Insurance companies are now looking away from Florida, and more than 38,000 residents will have their policies cancelled.

The move came following a special session for the Florida Legislature that was called on January 16-22. The session included an expansion of the State’s catastrophe fund, which would provide insurance company’s cheaper reinsurance than they could obtain through ordinary channels. The provision made the process cheaper for insurance agencies, provided that they pass those savings on to their customers. The measure should have been a boon to insurance companies, but when combined with the emergency rule implemented by the Governor, it has caused several insurance brokers to take a step back to re-evaluate whether or not they want to offer insurance to Florida residents.

"The irony here is prior to the legislative session, we were actually opening up a matrix to allow more new business," said Don Matz, President of Tower Hill Insurance Group. "We were being very bullish, but now we are taking a step back and reassessing our strategy."

Matz’s company announced on Friday that they would cease writing new insurance policies for 16 Florida counties, including Hillsborough, Pinellas and Pasco. The company firmly states that they are not ‘pulling out’ of the State, but it is clear that they are firmly restricting their insurance business in Florida.

The largest shake up has come from the Hartford Financial Services Group. In a move that appears to be leading towards a complete evacuation of the Florida insurance market, Hartford announced that they will be canceling more than 38,000 insurance policies in Florida. This accounts for more than 1/3 of the company’s personal and corporate insurance accounts in Florida. Hartford customers who are having their insurance policies cancelled will receive notice by mail over the next 18-30 months.

The 80,000 participants in the company’s special insurance agreement with AARP will not be affected by the company’s decision to reduce it’s Florida property insurance exposure, said Joe Loparco, a spokesman at The Hartford's Connecticut headquarters.

"The Legislature is going to reconvene in March, and they're probably going to debate this issue further," said Ramani Ayer, chairman, president and chief executive of The Hartford.

Florida State law does not require insurance companies to inform regulators of their intention to cease writing new policies, said Jonathon Kees, a communications assistant with the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation. However, there is little doubt that there is an insurance crisis under way in the state, and it has left many policy holders wondering if their insurance policy will be cancelled in coming months, and if so, if there will be any insurance companies left to get new insurance policies with.

Related News:

Hartford Financial will drop 38,000 Florida property policies

Insurers Re-Evaluating In Face Of Reform Law

Online Banking Reaches New Highs

It has been an interesting week in online banking, as internet banks around the world released a series of banking advancements, extended services and record setting interest rates to make using the internet for banking applications easier and more profitable for anyone who wishes to open a checking or savings account.

The most recent of the new online banking advancements has been modifications to the internet banking software used by Bank of America. BoA’s new internet banking system allows their online banking customers to have access to new tools that assist with automatically tracking expenses, setting and managing budgets, and monitoring the performance of all financial instruments in real time. These tools are all free of charge, and available through the “My Portfolio” section of Bank of America’s web banking web site.

"The combination of My Portfolio and these new money management tools gives consumers a comprehensive picture of their income and expenses at one convenient site," says Sanjay Gupta, e-commerce executive for Charlotte-based BofA (NYSE: BAC). "This is a simple and easy way for consumers to get more control over their finances without manually transferring or downloading information to financial management software programs."

Meanwhile, Landmark Bank has added a deeper level of internet security to their online banking security platform. The new security system, branded ICON, allows users to select a graphic icon, to write a brief phrase, and to choose three challenge questions. This information can then be transmitted back and forth between the online bank and the customer as an additional method for each to verify the other’s identity.

"Our new security features will provide customers confidence when they login to our online banking system that they are accessing a legitimate bank site and not an imposter," said Patrick L. Alexander, Landmark National Bank President and CEO. "As more and more customers choose to use our online banking services, providing a more secure site is of the utmost importance."

But when it comes to the bottom line, it is the online banking system provided by HSBC that will catch the eye of most customers. The online bank of HSBC’s Malta branch is offering some of the highest interest rates available at any internet bank in the world. As part of a promotion to advertise their new Online Banking Current Account, customers who open an internet bank account will receive an interest rate of 2.5% until August 31, 2007, and an interest rate of 1.5% after this date. That is better than most mutual funds are paying.

New customers can apply online by visiting the bank’s website hsbc.com.mt while existing HSBC customers can upgrade their current or savings account through the same site.

From new features, to new security methods, to record setting interest rates, customers of online banks have plenty of reasons to be happy this week, and plenty of options when searching for a new internet bank that meets their needs.

Was Apple iPhone Worth The Hype?

It's been over 2 years since Jobs deciples first began to await the release of the iPhone, and by the time the product is released in June it will be over 3 years of waiting. What makes iPhone worth the wait and worth the hype? The answers depend on who you ask, and some of them may surprise you.

At the MacWorld Expo, Steve Jobs officially announced the launch of the iPhone, slated for June 2007, with an anticipated world-wide sales of 10,000,000 units by the end of the year. What was surprising to most Apple enthusiasts wasn't the news of the product release, so much as the name iPhone, following earlier reports that the name was owned by a third party who would not deal with Apple.

But what's in a name anyway? Well, quite a lot if you were to ask Phil Schiller, Apple's Director of World Wide Marketing. Schiller is smart enough to know that the brand begins with the name and how it syncs up to other brands in the family. The second step in the process is to generate a lot of media hype, which Schiller has done extraordinarily well. But does the hype really live up to the product?

To begin with, the phone isn't even complete and isn't expected to be complete for another 6 months, putting the total development time for the product at over 3 years. With a 3 year wait for a mobile phone, one would expect it to have the most revolutionary features available, particularly when the developers are the creative minds behind the Mac and iPod. But is this really the case with the iPhone? Actually, initial assessments are that it leaves a bit to be desired.

David Pogue, one of the few people to use an iPhone hands on, openly admits that typing is incredibly difficult to accomplish on the touch screen provided, and admits that Blackberry users will most likely prefer to stay with their current systems. While the web browsing is said to be great on the 3.5 inch screen, Pogue stated that the speed was incredibly slow, and remarked that he couldn't help but wonder how much slower it will be when users are connecting to the net over Cingular's notoriously slow Edge network.

But aside from it's shortcomings, you have to consider what the iPhone offers that other phone's do not. If you listen to Apple marketing, the iPhone brings a world of new features to the users that were never before capable on any mobile phone. However, I have found this to be entirely untrue. In fact, there is not one single feature performed by the $500 iPhone that can not be done on my $60 Nokia, other than seeing the same internet on a larger screen.

The iPhone browses the internet, as does 90% of other mobile phones on the market. It also acts as a digital camera, as do 80% of competing phones. Oh, but the iPhone will play iTunes. Sorry, but I've been playing both MP3, Video and FM Radio on my phone for over two years, so you'll forgive me if iTunes doesn't excite me. But wait, the Apple marketers say, our phone has an actual computer operating system so that you can edit word processing or spreadsheets. Well, not that I care to use my phone for hammering out excel formulas, but I've had Windows operating system on my phone for quite some time. So what does iPhone offer me that I don't already have? The short answer - nothing, except for perhaps a larger price tag.

So the real question is, was iPhone worth all the media hype? Well, the answer depends on who you ask.

If you ask a hard core Apple fanatik, then yes, by all means it was worth the hype, as is anything Steve Jobs will ever release, no matter how uninspired. Probably those that like to jump onto trends for the latest expensive gadgets will also fall into this category, although most of them will never use more than half the features.

If you ask a savvy consumer who wants to get his (/her) money's worth from a product, then the answer will most likely be no, what's the point behind this overpriced phone.