Reuters – World stocks fell on Friday, extending an overnight slide, with renewed pressure on Spanish bonds reflecting fears the euro zone’s debt crisis was spiraling out of control.

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Here’s a simple tool that banks don’t want you to know about. Learn how to take control of your money. Learn how money really works.

AP – The battle for control of Libya and weaker than expected Chinese economic data weighed on markets Thursday while a debt rating downgrade of Spain hit the euro, a day ahead of a crucial meeting of EU leaders.

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AFP – The United States should not try to stockpile precious elements for new energy technologies, experts said Friday after China announced plans to tighten control of its rare earths industry.

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The Internet is an advanced and handy tool in modern society. Gone are the days that its use limited to learning and socializing. But now, a growing trend for doing business, banking and investing has emerged through online networks. In fact, one of the fastest growing markets online is stock trading.

However, if you have grown accustomed to the traditional methods of the stock exchange, then having quite a few hesitations with buying and selling stocks online is understandable and quite normal

But what you should know is that online trading can be very efficient and beneficial to you as an investor. With much perks on factors such as time, control, and cost, you can surely get used to how easy the hi-tech process can be. Here are the most evident advantages of online stock trading:

Faster Transactions

As what every investor and broker should know, time is a very essential element in trading stocks. The effect of whether or not you would be able to make profit or experience loss in your transaction will greatly depend on the time it takes to execute the trade.

In the traditional set-up, you have to call your broker and ask him to buy or sell the stock. Then this would then be followed by a process wherein your broker will negotiate with the trader for the price of the stock. Then, you would have to wait for your broker to call you for the price before you can make a decision on whether you should buy or sell. And then if you do decide to buy or sell the stock, your broker would have to make another call to order through the trader.

However, when you do transactions online, all it takes to be able to buy or sell stocks would be a single click of the mouse. Through this, a quicker exchange can be made, which may also ensure faster earnings.

Closer Control

Since trading is done through the Internet, you can watch over your stocks more closely. After all, you can always log in on your account anytime and view how your shares are fairing in the market anytime you want. This empowers you to be aware of the performance of your investment instead of having to wait for reports in the mail that may not come as often as you would like.

Through online exchange, you can also be free to make your own decisions to buy or sell stocks instead of relying on whether or not your broker will agree to execute a certain trade you might be interested in. In a way, you are empowered to trust your own intuition and take your own risks with your investments.

Lower Fees & Commissions

Another very good benefit of online stock trading is the lower stockbroker commissions and that you will have to pay as compared to the traditional method. If you trade in a sufficiently large volume of stocks, it can even be possible for you to be able to negotiate your broker’s fees. Thus, you can save a lot of money and even earn more.

Although keeping up with the times and going hi-tech may seem quite intimidating at first, especially if you are used to more traditional methods, moving forward can always become a much more practical and reliable step for you to take in the long run.

With the many benefits that online stock trading can give you, buying or selling your stocks through the Internet can certainly be a great way to participate in the stock market. Not only are things made easier and more convenient for you, you can even save so much time and money, as well as gain more control on your investments.

If you are finding yourself short of money come the end of the month, the chances are, your budget has something to do with it.

You may be spending too much money on your food shopping, or you may simply not be keeping track of your money in general.

Whatever the problem, creating a budget could help you save money. What’s more, creating a budget can be a great way to make sure you remain in control of your finances and stay out of debt.

First of all, how do you create a budget?

Creating a budget is quite simple, and it shouldn’t really take you too long to get the basic details down.

To create your own budget, you should start by writing down all the money you earn or receive in a month, followed by all the money you spend in a month (on your essential costs – such as mortgage/rent payments, utility bills, food, etc.).

When you have these two totals, you should subtract your expenditure from your income. This will leave you with what’s known as your disposable income. Your disposable income is basically the money you have each month to spend on unsecured debt repayments and – if there’s money left over – to spend on non-essential items or invest in a savings account.

What you have now is a budget that reflects your spending habits and gives you a clear overview of your financial situation.

How can doing this save you money?

Budgeting can help you save money each month. Once you have worked out your budget and written everything down, you should take a look at what you’ve got.

Look at your disposable income, and have a think about what you’re actually spending this money on each month. If you don’t have debts, are you saving any of it? Could you cut back on your spending and start saving more? If you do have debts, are you using all of it to make payments to your debts? Or could you be using some more? Overpaying your debts could help you clear them faster, which means you’d be paying less interest in total.

By asking yourself simple questions such as these, you can establish whether you are using your disposable income in the best way possible. If you notice that you are simply spending it on things you don’t need, cut back on these and save yourself money!

Having a credit card is very convenient since carrying a lot of cash becomes unnecessary and you might even have a hard time leaving your credit card at home. But with its advantages comes also its disadvantages. Since you can always buy things without carrying cash around, you are always tempted to buy something that you come across. If you have excellent control on your finances then good for you. If you have a hard time managing your credit card, then these pointers can help you.

Get organized

First thing’s first, obtain your credit card records to have a better idea of your spendings. Be sure to double check the records for errors and ensure its accuracy. A good example would be to find out if you have outstanding debts that should not be there as well as the accuracy of the listing of your former and present address.

Evaluate your credit card

Go over your recent credit card records and look at the interest rates. Some credit card companies have promos wherein they offer lower interest rates for a period of time and this promo may already be over yet you have no idea and are already paying at a higher interest rate. Also take note of the membership fee which they charge annually since some have very high membership fees. Consider canceling this if you are not using it frequently.

Pay on time

It is important to pay your bills on time since it can have a negative effect on your credit record or rating. You will also be able to avoid getting charged because of not paying on time. Try asking the credit card company to remove the overdue charge if you have forgotten to pay it on time for the first time.

Manage your debts

If you see that you have more debt than what is comfortable, think ahead and plan out how you will repay it or at least reduce your debt. Devise a way to pay more than what is required of you so that you will have a reduced payment schedule. Prioritize the card that has the highest interest rate. Do not bring your credit card always when you go around since temptations abound.

Don’t bite more than you can chew

As the saying “don’t bite more than you can chew” goes, do not spend more than you can afford. True, a beautiful gold bracelet may be enjoyable to wear but its price tag may mean paying a lot for the next months. If you are bent to save money when using your credit card, unnecessary items like jewelry and the like should be at the bottom of your considerations.