Spending money is easy – and saving it? Not so simple.

And the reason for that one way equation is that the odds are firmly stacked against you when you are out on the front-line of shopping. Stores and malls have had decades in perfecting their strategies to part you from your dollar – so its hardly surprising that they can fly out of your wallet so readily.

The way out of this dilemma, which is especially important in these days of tightened finances, is to turn the tables. Become the warrior in the retail conflict –  understand the enemys motives and learn tactics to put you on the winning side. And rule one of any conflict is to know your enemy.

No, not the guy behind the till – but the retail organization that backs him up. The techniques of persuasive retailing revolve around convincing you that you need the products on display.

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Britain has become nation of online shoppers, with more of us going on the internet to do our shopping than any other European country.

A report from communications regulator Ofcom has found that the boom in online shopping has been driven by the growing popularity of smartphones.

Figures released by Ofcom show that ownership of smartphones almost doubled between February 2010 and August 2011. Of all mobile phone users in the UK, 46% now own a smartphone.

This helped push up online sales. Eight out of ten internet users said they had ordered goods or services online during 2010.

As well as this, nine out of ten internet users said they had visited a retail site this year – more than any other European country.

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Retirement. The 800-pound gorilla in the personal finance room. You can’t talk about personal finance without talking about retirement. And you can’t talk about retirement without talking about how much you are saving for it.

I was reading on Bruce Bucks when this note caught my eye: according to personal finance expert Liz Weston’s financial rules of thumb, you should:

Save 10% for BASICS, 15% for COMFORT, 20% to ESCAPE. This rule of thumb works pretty well if you start to save for retirement by your early 30s. Saving at least 10% of your income ensures you won’t be eating pet food. Fifteen percent should get you a more comfortable living, while 20% gives you a shot at an early retirement (and yes, you get to count employer contributions as part of your percentage).

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We are all familiar with the offer. Just as we are about to pay for our purchase, the cashier asks, “Would you like to save ten percent on your purchases today by applying for our store’s credit card?” The deal can be very tempting, as everyone wants to save money. Nevertheless, a checkout register isn’t really the best time and place to make credit decisions.

Thus, while there may be some benefits to store credit cards, it is typically not a good idea to apply for one.

Typically, stores will offer customers an immediate discount on purchases if they are instantly approved for a credit card. These discounts can range from as little as five percent to about ten percent tops. This, along with future savings offers, is really the primary tool used to hook shoppers.

On, for example, a $1,500 department store purchase, signing up to get a 10% discount can actually be worthwhile, as saving $150 is a solid incentive.

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The International Monetary Fund approved a number of changes to streamline its emergency lending process and help alleviate the international debt crisis.That includes fewer restrictions, which would allow the IMF to provide liquidity, not just in times of dire need, but also “during periods of heightened economic or market stress.”

The IMF said the reforms would “bolster the flexibility and scope of the fund’s lending toolkit to provide liquidity and emergency assistance more effectively.”The IMF’s credit line system, for example, could be used more broadly, such as providing short-term loans or insurance “to address the needs of crisis bystanders during times of heightened regional or global stress and break the chains of contagion.”Some of the key elements include changes to the precautionary and liquidity line, which require a country to have a solid track record of implementing sound economic policies to qualify.That credit line can now be used as a “liquidity window” that would allow borrowers to pay off short-term loans over six months. Read more…

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