Global Agenda articles from June 2005

Global Agenda archives from June 2005

From here to eternity.(bonds)
June 1, 2005... In pushing ultra-long bonds, governments are looking after their own interests more than those of pensioners SOME years ago, Buttonwood was going through an old trunk and came across a letter from her great uncle. With it were enclosed some...

Airbus and Boeing trade blows.
June 1, 2005... A dispute between America and Europe over subsidies paid to Airbus and Boeing has been referred to the World Trade Organisation. The row threatens to drive a wedge between the world's two biggest trade blocks at a time when their concerted...

Death sentence commuted--too late.
June 1, 2005... The conviction of Arthur Andersen over its handling of Enron's books has been overturned. This will relieve some who worried that the government was getting over-eager--and sloppy--in its prosecutions. But it won't help the now-destroyed...

Chirac makes a risky choice.
June 2, 2005... After French voters' decisive rejection of the proposed European Union constitution, President Jacques Chirac is seeking to assuage popular anger by appointing a new prime minister. But his choice of Dominique de Villepin, an unelected...

The World Bank's controversial new captain; Wolfowitz takes the helm at the World Bank; A clear destination, but the maps are poor and the crew is prone to mutiny.
June 2, 2005... Paul Wolfowitz has begun his tenure as the World Bank's tenth president. Will he show more dedication to the policy aims of the Bush administration or the cause of poverty reduction? ANALYSTS in Washington are still enjoying a lively...

Cleaning up in Zimbabwe; Crackdown in Zimbabwe; A wave of arrests and evictions as Mugabe presses home his advantage.(crackdown )
June 3, 2005... President Robert Mugabe has had tens of thousands of urban Zimbabweans arrested and hundreds of thousands more evicted from their shanty homes. Is it a crackdown on illegal traders, as the government claims, or an act of vindictiveness against...

Can this union be saved? Europe's awkward single currency; As the dream of political union fades, can monetary union be saved?
June 3, 2005... The French and Dutch referendums have dashed hopes of political union in Europe. As criticism of the euro grows louder, there are fears that monetary union, too, might be in peril VARIOUS countries have been called "the sick man of Europe"...

Can this union be saved? Europe's awkward single currency; As the dream of political union fades, can monetary union be saved?
June 6, 2005... The French and Dutch referendums have dashed hopes of political union in Europe. As criticism of the euro grows louder, there are fears that monetary union, too, might be in peril VARIOUS countries have been called "the sick man of Europe"...

Taking care of its core.
June 6, 2005... Apple is set to announce that it will switch its computers from microprocessors supplied by IBM and Motorola to those made by Intel, the world's biggest chipmaker. Emboldened by the success of its iPod music player, this is Apple's latest move...

Cleaning up in Zimbabwe; Crackdown in Zimbabwe; A wave of arrests and evictions as Mugabe presses home his advantage.(Robert Mugabe)
June 7, 2005... President Robert Mugabe has had tens of thousands of urban Zimbabweans arrested and hundreds of thousands more evicted from their shanty homes. Is it a crackdown on illegal traders, as the government claims, or an act of vindictiveness against...

Taking care of its core.(Apple Computer Inc.)
June 7, 2005... Apple has announced that it will switch its computers from microprocessors supplied by IBM and Freescale to those made by Intel, the world's biggest chipmaker. Emboldened by the success of its iPod music player, this is Apple's latest move in...

Union-bash or bust?(downsizing of employees in General Motors Corp.)
June 8, 2005... General Motors has announced that it will lay off 25,000 workers in its home market, in an effort to arrest its decline. This will help, but GM may need to pick a more serious fight with its unionised workers if it is to survive as a...

Bankers scratch their heads--and worry; The Buttonwood column: banks and bond yields; Attack of the inverted curve.
June 8, 2005... An inverted yield curve may be approaching in America. Do we care? Banks do IT'S official: Alan Greenspan, chairman of the Federal Reserve, is still puzzled by the stubborn refusal of American bond yields to rise in sympathy with the Fed's...

Agreeing on Africa, up to a point; Helping Africa; Into Africa.
June 8, 2005... George Bush and Tony Blair have agreed that America will funnel more money towards Africa. But the British leader failed to secure Mr Bush's support for doubling aid flows to the poverty-stricken continent, and hopes for widespread debt relief...

Cleaning up in Zimbabwe; Crackdown in Zimbabwe; A wave of arrests and evictions as Mugabe presses home his advantage.
June 9, 2005... President Robert Mugabe has had tens of thousands of urban Zimbabweans arrested and hundreds of thousands more evicted from their shanty homes. Is it a crackdown on illegal traders, as the government claims, or an act of vindictiveness against...

Agreeing on Africa, up to a point; Helping Africa; Into Africa.
June 9, 2005... George Bush and Tony Blair have agreed that America will funnel more money towards Africa. But the British leader failed to secure Mr Bush's support for doubling aid flows to the poverty-stricken continent, and the outlook for broad-based debt...

The 100-day man; France's new government; De Villepin puts jobs at the top of his agenda.
June 9, 2005... Fast action on jobs is the top priority for Dominique de Villepin's government BACK to work! That was the message from Dominique de Villepin, France's new prime minister, to a discontented electorate this week--and to his own team. In his...

Agreeing on Africa, up to a point; Helping Africa; Into Africa.
June 10, 2005... George Bush and Tony Blair have agreed that America will funnel more money towards Africa. But the British leader failed to secure Mr Bush's support for doubling aid flows to the poverty-stricken continent, and the outlook for broad-based debt...

An echo of a boom?
June 10, 2005... Dotcom shares are booming again, with Google leading the way. Is this stellar performance justified? Or should investors worry that another correction is on the way? REMEMBER etoys.com? What about Webvan.com? Do Boxman.com or Boo.com ring...

Agreeing on Africa, up to a point; Helping Africa; Into Africa.(foreign policy of George Bush and Tony Blair)
June 11, 2005... George Bush and Tony Blair have agreed that America will funnel more money towards Africa, and the G8 has reached a deal on broad-based debt relief. But if rich countries are really serious about poverty reduction, they should also curb...

Agreeing on Africa, up to a point; Helping Africa; Into Africa.(foreign policy of Tony Blair and George Bush)
June 13, 2005... George Bush and Tony Blair have agreed that America will funnel more money towards Africa, and the G8 has reached a deal on broad-based debt relief. But if rich countries are really serious about poverty reduction, they should also curb...

An echo of a boom?(securities of information technology services industry)
June 13, 2005... Dotcom shares are booming again, with Google leading the way. Is this stellar performance justified? Or should investors worry that another correction is on the way? REMEMBER etoys.com? What about Webvan.com? Do Boxman.com or Boo.com ring...

A big, and rare, European bank merger.
June 13, 2005... Does the [euro]15 billion bid by Italy's UniCredit for Germany's HVB mean that the long-awaited wave of consolidations among European banks has begun? If so, bank customers would benefit. But such cross-border mergers still face daunting...

The end of Purcell's troubled reign; Purcell to quit Morgan Stanley; The end of a troubled reign.
June 13, 2005... Philip Purcell, the embattled chief executive of Morgan Stanley, is to quit following a blistering campaign against him by former executives of the big investment bank. His downfall may presage the unravelling of Morgan Stanley's merger with...

Agreeing on Africa, up to a point; Helping Africa; A deal on debt relief, but plenty of questions left unanswered.
June 14, 2005... George Bush and Tony Blair have agreed that America will funnel more money towards Africa, and the G8 has reached a deal on broad-based debt relief. But if rich countries are really serious about poverty reduction, they should also curb...

An echo of a boom?(dotcom companies, finance)
June 14, 2005... Dotcom shares are booming again, with Google leading the way. Is this stellar performance justified? Or should investors worry that another correction is on the way? REMEMBER etoys.com? What about Webvan.com? Do Boxman.com or Boo.com ring...

A big, and rare, European bank merger.
June 14, 2005... Does the [euro]15 billion bid by Italy's UniCredit for Germany's HVB mean that the long-awaited wave of consolidations among European banks has begun? If so, bank customers would benefit. But such cross-border mergers still face daunting...

The end of Purcell's troubled reign; Purcell to quit Morgan Stanley; The end of a troubled reign.(Philip Purcell)
June 14, 2005... Philip Purcell, the embattled chief executive of Morgan Stanley, is to quit following a blistering campaign against him by former executives of the investment bank. His downfall may presage the unravelling of Morgan Stanley's merger with Dean...

An odd time to be rising.
June 14, 2005... Europe's share prices are rising smartly even though Europe itself seems to be falling apart DOES it strike anyone else as odd that European shares are jumping ahead these days? The future of the euro, perhaps even of Europe, looks more...

Mbeki cleans up.(Thabo Mbeki)
June 14, 2005... South Africa's President Thabo Mbeki has sacked his deputy and presumed successor, Jacob Zuma, who is implicated in a big bribery case. Mr Mbeki's decision is the strongest sign yet that Africa's leading nation seems serious about fighting...

A big, and rare, European bank merger.
June 15, 2005... Does the [euro]15 billion bid by Italy's UniCredit for Germany's HVB mean that the long-awaited wave of consolidations among European banks has begun? If so, bank customers would benefit. But such cross-border mergers still face daunting...

An odd time to be rising.
June 15, 2005... Europe's share prices are rising smartly even though Europe itself seems to be falling apart DOES it strike anyone else as odd that European shares are jumping ahead these days? The future of the euro, perhaps even of Europe, looks more...

Mbeki cleans up.(Thabo Mbeki )
June 15, 2005... South Africa's President Thabo Mbeki has sacked his deputy and presumed successor, Jacob Zuma, who is implicated in a big bribery case. Mr Mbeki's decision is the strongest sign yet that Africa's leading nation seems serious about fighting...

Europe's painful summit.
June 15, 2005... At a summit this week, leaders will trade blows over the European Union's comatose constitution and its budget. It is a pity that they will barely find time to discuss the long-term challenges of economic reform and enlargement THE...

OPEC's symbolic move; OPEC raises production quotas; A symbolic move that will do little to cool oil prices.(Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries)
June 15, 2005... OPEC has agreed to raise its oil-production quotas, but the increase is largely symbolic. With supplies tight, and new production and refining capacity slow to come online, prices are likely to stay high in the short term. But consumers aren't...

Europe's painful summit.
June 16, 2005... At a summit in Brussels on Thursday and Friday, leaders will trade blows over the European Union's comatose constitution and its budget. It is a pity that they will barely find time to discuss the long-term challenges of economic reform and...

OPEC's symbolic move; OPEC raises production quotas; A symbolic move that will do little to cool oil prices.
June 16, 2005... OPEC has agreed to raise its oil-production quotas, but the increase is largely symbolic. With supplies tight, and new production and refining capacity slow to come online, prices are likely to stay high in the short term. But consumers aren't...

A lively contest--but will it matter?
June 16, 2005... Mostafa Moin, a leading reformist, is putting up a strong challenge to Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, the conservative front-runner in Iran's presidential election. But whoever wins, it is unclear if Friday's vote will change the way the Islamic...

Europe's painful summit.
June 17, 2005... At a summit in Brussels, leaders have agreed to put the European Union's proposed constitution on hold, but a deal on the EU's budget looks unlikely. Nor is much progress expected on the long-term challenges of economic reform and enlargement...

OPEC's symbolic move; OPEC raises production quotas; A symbolic move that will do little to cool oil prices.
June 17, 2005... OPEC has agreed to raise its oil-production quotas, but the increase is largely symbolic. With supplies tight, and new production and refining capacity slow to come online, prices are likely to stay high in the short term. But consumers aren't...

A lively contest--but will it matter?
June 17, 2005... Mostafa Moin, a leading reformist, is putting up a strong challenge to Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, the conservative front-runner in Iran's presidential election. But whoever wins, it is unclear if Friday's vote will change the way the Islamic...

Europe's identity crisis deepens; The European Union; Europe's identity crisis deepens as the Brussels summit ends in acrimony.
June 18, 2005... The European Union summit has broken up with a deal on the constitution that means different things to different leaders, and no agreement on the EU's budget at all. Even the summit's Europhilic chairman, Jean-Claude Juncker, admitted that...

Iran's choice: pragmatist or hardliner? Iran's closely fought presidential election; The pragmatist versus the hardliner.
June 18, 2005... Defying expectations, Iran's conservative but pragmatic former president, Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani--who has called for improved relations with America--is to face a religious hardliner, not a reformist, in the second round of the country's...

Mbeki cleans up, Zuma faces charges.
June 20, 2005... South African prosecutors are to bring corruption charges against Jacob Zuma, who was sacked as deputy president last week by Thabo Mbeki. The moves against Mr Zuma are the strongest signs yet that Africa's leading nation is serious about...

OPEC's symbolic move; OPEC raises production quotas; A symbolic move that will do little to cool oil prices.(Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries)
June 20, 2005... In confirmation that OPEC's raising of its production quotas last week was largely symbolic, oil prices have raced towards $60 a barrel. With supplies tight, and new production and refining capacity slow to come online, prices are likely to...

Mixing oil, gas and politics; Russian energy; The government tightens its grip, this time on Gazprom.(OAO Gazprom)
June 20, 2005... The Russian government is tightening its grip on the country's lucrative oil and gas industry. After wresting Yukos from its former owners, it has struck a deal to take control of Gazprom, Russia's gas monopoly. Sibneft, another big independent...

Mixing oil, gas and politics; Russian energy; The government tightens its grip, this time on Gazprom.
June 21, 2005... The Russian government is tightening its grip on the country's lucrative oil and gas industry. After wresting a key Yukos subsidiary from its former owners, it has struck a deal to take control of Gazprom, Russia's gas monopoly. Sibneft,...

S&L redux; The Buttonwood column: pension funds; Another savings-and-loan fiasco in the making?(Savings and loan)
June 21, 2005... Who should be responsible for honouring the promises that companies make to their workers? BUTTONWOOD is not exactly counting the grey hairs yet. But in the unlikely event that her children ever finish their hugely expensive education, it...

Sowing more than they reap.(agricultural industry)
June 21, 2005... A new report from the OECD indicates that progress on reducing agricultural subsidies in the rich world has been glacial. Unless governments get tough with their powerful farming lobbies and cut their supports, farm subsidies could stymie...

Farm support's deep roots; Agricultural support in rich countries; Deeply rooted subsidies that threaten progress on trade liberalisation.(Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development)
June 21, 2005... A new report from the OECD indicates that progress on reducing agricultural subsidies in the rich world has been glacial. Unless governments get tough with their powerful farming lobbies and cut their supports, farm subsidies could stymie...

Farm support's deep roots; Farm subsidies; Deep roots that threaten progress on trade liberalisation.(Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development)
June 22, 2005... A new report from the OECD indicates that progress on reducing agricultural subsidies in the rich world has been glacial. Unless governments get tough with their powerful farming lobbies and cut their supports, farm subsidies could stymie...

Unusually united as the bombings continue.(European Union Summit )
June 22, 2005... America and the European Union have hosted a summit in Brussels on the future of Iraq. Discussions of security, politics and the economy come at a time of intense daily violence across the country. But the Iraqi delegation found the other...

Iran's choice: pragmatist or hardliner? Iran's closely fought presidential election; The pragmatist versus the hardliner.
June 23, 2005... Defying expectations, Iran's conservative but pragmatic former president, Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani--who has called for improved relations with America--is to face a religious hardliner, not a reformist, in the second round of the country's...

Unusually united as the bombings continue; Pacifying Iraq; America and Europe united, Iraq divided and bloodstained.
June 23, 2005... America and the European Union have hosted a summit in Brussels on the future of Iraq. Discussions of security, politics and the economy come at a time of intense daily violence across the country. But the Iraqi delegation found the other...

The way of the dragon.(China National Offshore Oil Corporation )
June 23, 2005... The state-controlled China National Offshore Oil Corporation has bid $18.5 billion for Unocal, an American energy company, in the latest sign that China is looking overseas for natural resources and brands. Controversially, acquisitive Chinese...

The unending war against the Taliban.
June 23, 2005... Afghan troops have launched a big assault on Taliban insurgents, who they fear are regrouping to attack September's parliamentary elections. Almost four years after the American-led invasion, Afghanistan still looks far from pacified. European...

A blue-chip investment? Online gambling; Big business, but blue-chip too?(PartyGaming)
June 24, 2005... Online poker has fast become a huge business, and PartyGaming, the leading poker website, is about to float its shares in London, in an offering that values the company at more than $9 billion. But online gambling is controversial--indeed, it...

The way of the dragon; China's acquisitive companies; CNOOC's bid for Unocal suggests the shape of things to come.(China National Offshore Oil Corporation)
June 25, 2005... The state-controlled China National Offshore Oil Corporation has bid $18.5 billion for Unocal, an American energy company, in the latest sign that China is looking overseas for natural resources and brands. Controversially, acquisitive Chinese...

Victory for a religious hardliner in Iran; Iran's presidential election; Victory for a religious hardliner.
June 25, 2005... In Iran's presidential election, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, a hardline religious conservative, has beaten Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, a pragmatic ex-president who had painted himself as a cautious reformer. Whether Mr Ahmadinejad won by fair means or...

Victory for a religious hardliner in Iran; Iran's presidential election; Victory for a religious hardliner.
June 26, 2005... In Iran's presidential election, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, a hardline religious conservative, has beaten Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, a pragmatic ex-president who had painted himself as a cautious reformer. Whether Mr Ahmadinejad won by fair means or...

A blue-chip investment? Online gambling; Big business, but blue-chip too?
June 27, 2005... Online poker has fast become a huge business, allowing PartyGaming, the leading poker website, to float its shares in an offering that values the company at nearly $9 billion. But online gambling is controversial--indeed, it is illegal in its...

Victory for a religious hardliner in Iran; Iran's presidential election; Victory for a religious hardliner.
June 27, 2005... In Iran's presidential election, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, a hardline religious conservative, has beaten Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, a pragmatic ex-president who had painted himself as a cautious reformer. Whether Mr Ahmadinejad won by fair means or...

Online pirates forced to walk the plank.
June 27, 2005... America's Supreme Court has ruled that makers of peer-to-peer file-swapping technology can be held responsible for the copyright infringement that their products allow. This may stop much of the free downloading of music and film over the...

Wrong way round; Foreign direct investment; Flowing towards developing countries while other forms of capital go the other way.
June 27, 2005... Foreign direct investment is beginning to flow in the right direction: out of slow-growing wealthy countries and into emerging markets. But overall, capital is still moving from the developing world to the developed--and, in the process,...

Online pirates forced to walk the plank.
June 28, 2005... America's Supreme Court has ruled that makers of peer-to-peer file-swapping technology can be held responsible for the copyright infringement that their products allow. This may stop much of the free downloading of music and film over the...

China syndrome.
June 29, 2005... This time the price of oil is refusing to subside gracefully. If there really is a new paradigm out there, the Chinese are ahead of the pack in realising it IT FEELS disturbingly like one of those computer games that Buttonwood is fighting...

A bad day for the prosecution; HealthSouth's former boss acquitted; Un-Scrushable.
June 29, 2005... The jury trying Richard Scrushy in connection with financial fraud has found the former HealthSouth boss not guilty. The verdict surprised many observers but can be explained by both the quality of the evidence against him and the way in which...

A bad day for the prosecution; HealthSouth's former boss acquitted; Un-Scrushable.
June 30, 2005... The jury trying Richard Scrushy in connection with financial fraud has found the former HealthSouth boss not guilty. The verdict surprised many observers but can be explained by both the quality of the evidence against him and the way in which...

Bank of America's big buy; Credit cards; Bank of America goes shopping for credit cards.
June 30, 2005... America's second-biggest bank is spending $35 billion to acquire MBNA, the country's leading stand-alone credit-card provider. Why are banks keen to buy into a business that has seen growth slow and may soon be hurt by a deteriorating credit...