BizAims

(The following is an edited and expanded version of an interview with George Soros, Chairman, Soros Fund Management, by Judy Woodruff on Bloomberg TV on April 4.)

Judy Woodruff: You write in your new book, The New Paradigm for Financial Markets, that "we are in the midst of a financial crisis the likes of which we haven't seen since the Great Depression." Was this crisis avoidable?

George Soros: I think it was, but it would have required recognition that the system, as it currently operates, is built on false premises. Unfortunately, we have an idea of market fundamentalism, which is now the dominant ideology, holding that markets are self-correcting; and this is false because it's generally the intervention of the authorities that saves the markets when they get into trouble. Since 1980, we have had about five or six crises: the international banking crisis in 1982, the bankruptcy of Continental Illinois in 1984, and the failure of Long-Term Capital Management in 1998, to name only three.

All world stock markets are raging. The US economic recession has been a severe blow to the world. Financial analysts say that the USA is the main reason behind all financial problems in the world. Many of them say that it is only the beginning of the crisis.

However, other specialists simply laugh at those who panic. They believe that there is no recession in the US and there cannot be any. Nevertheless, they see a positive side about the present panic: best shares in the world are now available at very low prices, which is an extremely low occasion.

Successful U.S. investor Jack Miller feels certain about it. He receives great profits from fluctuating markets and recalls US post-war history of the USA.

Carmaker BMW has seen profits fall sharply and says it cannot provide a forecast for 2008 and beyond because of the uncertain economic climate.

The German firm said net profit fell 63% for the three months to September to 298m euros ($375.5m; £236.5m).

During the quarter, sales dropped 9% to 12.6bn euros, from 14bn euros in the same three month period a year earlier.

Carmakers worldwide have been hard hit with consumers cutting their spending amid the global economic slowdown.

When California voters go to the polls Tuesday, they won't just choose a new president, they'll also decide the fate of two measures that would substantially alter the most populous state's energy policy.

Two ballot initiatives before voters - Propositions 7 and 10 - are aimed at curbing greenhouse-gas emissions by forcing faster development of renewable power and providing a boost for the market in vehicles fueled by natural gas. Both proposals have big-money backers and face opposition by environmentalists, who view the initiatives as flawed. The success or failure of the proposals in a state that often serves as first mover on energy and environmental initiatives could color the nationwide energy-policy debate.

On October 14, Apple looks forward to announce the launch of its new gadget, which is expected to become the leading gear in the field of computers. Despite the fact that the economy currently faces serious problems, with Dell looking forward to sell off some of its factories, the on-line public is all-ears to hear the latest announcement of the company that brought us the iPhone and MacBook.

There are rumors circling around Apple, saying that the company has erected a secret high-tech factory in the United States where robots with lasers and water jets will work on the creation of notebook computers out of aluminum blocks. On Thursday, the company's representatives told the press that an announcement was to be made the following week at Apple's Cupertino campus, California.

It is worth mentioning that small web-research company, ComScore, represents the de facto authority of online audiences. In winter of 2007, the company faced strong criticism from analysts who blamed it for the fact that it reported Google's loss of 1/3^rd of its market value.

According to a report that ComScore issued, the domestic paid clicks of number one search engine, meaning how many times people clicked on an ad, had flattened. The first reaction of the analysts was wildness. They all went berserk saying something like "The ad business of Google is tanking". This may not have been entirely true.

The company announced that it has increased its profit by 30 percent and analysts came to a conclusion that Google's business was not really tanking after all.

Even today small companies strive to achieve a great success, taking advantages of continuously developing information technology. Below there are eight small companies that apply new technologies and earn great profit, while having only a few staff members.

ElevateHome

This company was founded by Edgar Blazona, who previously worked as a furniture designer for a company called Pottery Barn. Currently his firm creates furniture for children and the 35-year old Edgar is its chief executive.

Finally, after rumors that for several moths were mentioned in the media, the world's No. 3 seller for total PCs and No. 2 for notebooks, Acer, is going to introduce on the market its first low-cost mini notebook PC. The presentation will take place at the Computex trade show, which will be held in Taipei on June 3, 2008.

The new notebook is called Acer Aspire One. The device features an Intel Atom processor along with Linpus Linux Lite, with the company's personal user interface. Among other peculiarities of the notebook it's worth mentioning: 8GB solid-state drive, 512MB RAM, 802.11 b/g WiFi, 8.9-inch screen and 3-hour battery.