I ndia’s central bank hiked cash reserve requirements for lenders but left key interest rates unchanged Friday as it tries to contain inflation without undermining an economic recovery. The three quarters of a percentage point increase in the reserve requirement for banks to 5.75 per cent was more than expected. It will be carried out in two steps

W elcome to the Globe and Mail Personal Finance Reader. I’m Rob Carrick, personal finance columnist at The Globe, and each week I compile a list of articles, blog postings and websites that represent the best of what the online world has to offer on money-related subjects. A hot investing product called the exchange-traded fund is the focus of this week’s edition of the Personal Finance Reader.

N orbord Inc. NBD-T says cost cutting and production curtailments resulted in a smaller fourth-quarter loss last year for the Toronto-based wood panel maker. The loss in the final three months of 2009 was $11-million (U.S.), 63 per cent below the $30-million loss reported in the fourth quarter of 2008.

Ben Bernanke survived a Senate battle, bruised. The question is whether the Federal Reserve was scarred, too. The anti-bailout anger that eroded Bernanke’s support in the Senate on Thursday produced the most “no” votes ever on the confirmation of a Fed chairman.

Small businesses are always seeking ways to improve their cash flow. Today’s tight credit market is still lingering, so it is difficult for a new small business to get a loan. The trouble is that most start-ups do not qualify

Credit repair companies would like you to believe that there is no way that you could repair your credit on your own. The good news is that this is not actually the case. Repairing your credit is something that anyone can do

Buying Preferred Stock, Common Stock, and Warrants Jan 28, 2010 Brenna Coleman Understanding the different types of equity investment instruments available will help an investor realize all possible options for stock investing. The equity market is a risk-filled, volatile arena. It has yielded huge earnings for both lucky and wise equity investors, and has helped to sustain businesses.