Global Agenda articles from June 2008

Global Agenda archives from June 2008

Buying stories; Market.view; What keeps growth investors going.
June 1, 2008... What keeps growth investors going IT IS a gross simplification, but investors tend to fall into one of two schools: value or growth. The former wants bargains--stocks that are out of favour because the company has been performing badly. The...

No more pyrotechnics; Green.view; Taming the rock-concert industry's excesses.
June 2, 2008... Taming the rock-concert industry's excesses AS ANY country-music fan knows, Willie Nelson, America's favourite outlaw-troubadour, can't wait to get on the road again. Although he often sings about whiskey, since 2004 his tireless touring...

Cute, cuddly, edible; Green.view; Defending Canada's seal hunters.
June 2, 2008... Defending Canada's seal hunters SUSTAINABILITY--whether in reference to farming, logging, fisheries, medicinal plants or crocodile skins--is all the rage these days. But people seem less likely to cheer sustainability when it comes to...

Can America keep its innovative edge? Business.view; Yes--if it ignores the techno-nationalists.(Company overview)
June 3, 2008... Yes--if it ignores the techno-nationalists WHEN trading in the Standard & Poor's (S&P) 500 stock index opened on June 2nd, Bear Stearns was not among the stocks that comprise it. To add insult to the injury caused by its subprime...

Can America keep its innovative edge? Business.view; Yes--if it ignores the techno-nationalists.(Company overview)
June 4, 2008... Yes--if it ignores the techno-nationalists WHEN trading in the Standard & Poor's (S&P) 500 stock index opened on June 2nd, Bear Stearns was not among the stocks that comprise it. To add insult to the injury caused by its subprime...

Soothe, seethe; Asia.view; China placates foes abroad, nationalists at home.
June 4, 2008... China placates foes abroad, nationalists at home WHEN nationalism rears its head in China, the country's neighbours tremble. They have been trembling especially hard this year. In the wake of unrest in Tibet in March, a virulently...

South Africa's economy; Why South Africa's economy is slowing; Why South Africa's economy is slowing.
June 4, 2008... Power cuts and lower consumer demand will mean less growth South African growth is already being affected by electricity shortages and a slowdown in consumer demand. The annual figure may fall below 4% for the first time in five years. ...

The Latvian puzzle; Europe.view; Strong institutions and weak politics make a rum mixture.
June 5, 2008... Strong institutions and weak politics make a rum mixture LOOK just at the politics, and it is easy to be concerned about Latvia. Under the previous prime minister, Aigars Kalvitis, the government seemed particularly set on cosying up to...

Downsizing yet again; Tech.view; Savour the last of the great hybrid SUVs.
June 6, 2008... Savour the last of the great hybrid SUVs DETROIT is finally getting the message. General Motors announced this week that it will close four truck plants and seek a buyer for its Hummer division. American carmakers are at last moving from...

Upbeat in Syria; Syria's president, Bashar Assad, has reasons to feel cheerful; Syria's president, Bashar Assad, has reasons to feel cheerful.
June 6, 2008... Why President Bashar Assad is feeling cock-a-hoop Syria's president, Bashar al-Assad, is reaping substantial benefits, both economic and political, from the Lebanese political deal agreed in Doha last month, for which he has modestly...

Bondsky Prospekt; Art.view; The Russians come to London.
June 7, 2008... The Russians come to London THEY are known as RRs--Rich Russians--and everybody wants one. As the credit crunch has spread from banks and hedge funds to the property market and the high street, the major auction houses are anxious to...

Bear bottom; Market.view; Is this the right time to buy?
June 8, 2008... Is this the right time to buy? WE ARE nearly halfway through the year and stockmarket investors are still searching for some positive returns. The FTSE All World index is down around 5% in dollar terms and of the major markets only Japan is...

Losing the anti-drug fight? How violence in Mexico threatens confidence in the president; Violence in Mexico threatens confidence in the president.
June 9, 2008... An upsurge in killings in Mexico threatens confidence in the president A recent surge in drug-related killings threatens to undermine public confidence in the leadership of Mexico's president, Felipe Calderon, and in his offensive against...

An embarrassment of riches; The staggering rise in China's foreign reserves; The staggering rise in China's foreign reserves.
June 10, 2008... China's foreign reserves are growing at a staggering rate Despite China's efforts to bring down its huge foreign-exchange reserves, they have hit another record high of US$1.76trn at the end of April. News reports say China is now...

Detroit on the Hudson; Business.view; A rough week in the financial-services rust belt.
June 10, 2008... A rough week in the financial-services rust belt HAD IT just been announced that next July we would collide with Mars, the conversation could hardly have been gloomier at a particularly swell New York party for financial types last weekend....

Detroit on the Hudson; Business.view; A rough week in the financial-services rust belt.
June 11, 2008... A rough week in the financial-services rust belt HAD IT just been announced that next July we would collide with Mars, the conversation could hardly have been gloomier at a particularly swell New York party for financial types last weekend....

The Manchurian candidate; Asia.view; The ideological convergence of Australia and Japan.
June 11, 2008... The ideological convergence of Australia and Japan WHEN Australia's Labor Party trounced the centre-right government of John Howard late last year, Japanese commentators struck a note of concern. Just a few months earlier, Mr Howard had...

A credibility test; A row between Hungary's government and its central bank; A row between Hungary's government and its central bank.
June 11, 2008... Inflation provokes a row between Hungary's government and its central bank Hungary's central bank is rebuffing government suggestions to revise the 3% medium-term inflation target. Ministers argue that the target, which is due for review...

The Walesa question; Europe.view; Truth and memory conflict in post-communist Poland.
June 12, 2008... Truth and memory conflict in post-communist Poland DID the most famous living Pole, Lech Walesa, collaborate with the communist secret police? Over the past 15 years, he has vehemently denied it. The informant "Bolek" who features in the...

Japanese politics; Will Japan's political landscape alter? Will Japan's political landscape alter.
June 12, 2008... Is a reshaping of the political landscape coming? If Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) is in trouble--it has suffered a host of indignities since losing the upper-house election last summer, most recently a censure motion...

Ripe for picking; Tech.view; Apple's iPhone becomes more tool than toy.
June 13, 2008... Apple's iPhone becomes more tool than toy EARLIER this week, Apple revealed a new version of its iconic iPhone, showing it can take a brilliant but flawed innovation and turn it into a seriously useful product. By doubling the speed,...

El Salvador's economy; Efforts to tame inflation in El Salvador may fail; Efforts to tame inflation in El Salvador may fail.
June 13, 2008... Efforts to tame inflation may not work Rising world food and oil prices have continued to place upward pressure on the consumer price index (CPI). According to El Salvador's Direccion General de Estadistica y Censos (the official...

Time for reflection; Art.view; A hiccup in the Russian-art market.
June 14, 2008... A hiccup in the Russian-art market THE auction houses were trying their best to put on a jolly face. But three solid days of sales of Russian Modernist and 19th-century painting, as well as sculpture and jewellery, showed unequivocally that...

A riddle answered; Market.view; How inflation affects bond and equity yields.
June 15, 2008... How inflation affects bond and equity yields WHAT are the implications of rising bond yields for equity markets? Answering this question requires grappling with one of the most fundamental debates in modern finance. One approach sees...

Why does Berkeley have so many Priuses? Green.view; The geography of green consumerism.
June 16, 2008... The geography of green consumerism BUYING green is all the rage: barely a day passes without the rollout of a new "environmentally responsible" product. This week it's the waterless car-wash, an energy saving computer monitor and a...

Trigger-happy boards; Business.view; When in doubt, fire the boss.
June 17, 2008... When in doubt, fire the boss SO MARTIN SULLIVAN (pictured below) is the latest boss of a financial firm to become a casualty of the credit crunch. An emergency board meeting over the weekend ended with his resignation as chief executive of...

Poland aims low; Poland's government wants to reduce its deficit; Poland's government wants to reduce its deficit.
June 17, 2008... The government wants to reduce its deficit The Polish government has set an ambitiously low deficit target for the 2009 state budget, of just Zl 18.2bn (US$8.2bn or around 1.3% of GDP on the government's assumptions). It suggests Prime...

Yudhoyono's courage and cowardice; Asia.view; Indonesia's leader displays a bit of both.
June 18, 2008... Indonesia's leader displays a bit of both INDONESIA'S president, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, is said to have suffered sleepless nights recently. This is not surprising: Mr Yudhoyono, a habitually cautious man, has had a couple of tough...

Money in the bank; Latin America's banks are attracting more investment; Latin America's banks are attracting more investment.
June 18, 2008... Latin America's banks are attracting more investment Global financial markets may still be jittery, but Latin America's banking industry is set to attract increased levels of investment. Indeed, a large majority of global banking executives...

Lithuania split by the atom; Europe.view; Energy security in the Baltics is getting worse.
June 19, 2008... Energy security in the Baltics is getting worse IT was a mistake to start with, compounded by procrastination. The consequences for the security of one of Europe's most vulnerable corners are potentially appalling. As part of the deal...

Lunacy at large; Tech.view; What makes a solstice moon look so huge?
June 20, 2008... What makes a solstice moon look so huge? ANYONE under clear night skies on June 18th must have been impressed by the spectacular moonrise. With a full moon coming just two days before summer starts in the northern hemisphere, conditions...

Boom to bust; China's property bubble is about to burst; China's property bubble is about to burst.
June 20, 2008... China's property bubble is about to burst The sizzle is off China's property markets, and that's potentially bad news for the country's social stability. In the past two years China's property market has enjoyed a spectacular rise,...

Read it, don't weep; Market.view; That survey might not say what you think it says.
June 22, 2008... That survey might not say what you think it says HOW seriously should we take surveys of investor sentiment? On June 18th, Merrill Lynch revealed its latest monthly poll of fund managers around the world, which found that investors had...

The next blue chip; Art.view; Finding the future in Futurism.
June 23, 2008... Finding the future in Futurism THE 400% rise in oil prices over the past five years has resulted in the world's biggest transfer of wealth for over a generation, creating a swathe of new billionaires in countries that stretch from Ukraine...

Time to cut the knot; Green.view; Security and greenness are two separate goals.
June 23, 2008... Security and greenness are two separate goals WHEN the Democrats took control of Congress in 2006, they declared that increasing America's energy security and tackling climate change would be among their main priorities. The two goals were...

Labour row; A row over migrants in Bahrain; A row over migrants in Bahrain.
June 23, 2008... A move to expel thousands of Bangladeshi workers from Bahrain Moves by the Ministry of the Interior to expel thousands of Bangladeshi workers are being resisted by the business community, with the presumed backing of a powerful economic...

Poland and the euro; Why Poland is treating adoption of the euro with caution; Why Poland is treating adoption of the euro with caution.
June 24, 2008... Poland's cautious approach towards adoption of the euro Poland could begin its final preparations for euro adoption in 2009, by entering the exchange-rate mechanism (ERM2), according to the finance minister. Already Poland is well on the...

Beyond brain drain; Business.view; Human capital increasingly votes with its feet.(Survey)
June 24, 2008... Human capital increasingly votes with its feet THERE has been much wailing and gnashing of teeth lately, especially in America, about the harm globalisation causes to workers, who are increasingly worried that their hard-learned skills will...

Unwanted money; Asia.view; A quiet battle over who can invest in Australia.
June 25, 2008... A quiet battle over who can invest in Australia FOR the record, Australia is open for investment. Its government repeats this line again and again, underscoring it with the observation that a huge percentage of Australia's mining industry...

Preparing to float; Ukraine moves towards a free exchange rate; Ukraine moves towards a free exchange rate.
June 25, 2008... Ukraine moves towards a free exchange rate Exchange-rate moves by Ukraine's central bank in the past month signal that the country is moving towards a floating exchange rate that unifies the official and interbank rates--and so helps to...

Not quiet on the eastern front; Europe.view; How to lose friends and alienate people.
June 26, 2008... How to lose friends and alienate people HAD it been cooked up in the Kremlin's department of fiendishly clever geopolitical plots it could hardly be more damaging. First, America arm-twists some of its most loyal European allies to do...

Mongolia votes; Mongolia prepares for a general election; Mongolia prepares for a general election.
June 26, 2008... Mongolia is poised for a general election Mongolia is gearing up for parliamentary elections on June 29th. Recent polls suggest that the contest is too close to predict, although some analysts argue that the ruling Mongolian People's...

Driving under the influence; Tech.view; Why mobile phones and motoring don't mix.
June 27, 2008... Why mobile phones and motoring don't mix A DECADE ago, when mobile phones were the size of bricks, you could buy a nifty microphone and loudspeaker gizmo that you clipped onto the handset and stuffed into a car's cup-holder, plugging the...

Bashing business; Slovakia's strong economy may be hurt by anti-business policies; Slovakia's strong economy may be hurt by anti-business policies.
June 27, 2008... Slovakia's strong economy may be hurt by anti-business policies Slovakia continues to enjoy stellar economic growth, but local businesses are increasingly unhappy at the anti-enterprise policies of Prime Minister Robert Fico's populist...

Still falling; Market.view; The Dow has not yet hit bottom.
June 30, 2008... The Dow has not yet hit bottom THE sharp fall of the Dow Jones Industrial Average on June 26th took the American benchmark to a new low for the year (see chart) and signalled definitively that the collapse of Bear Stearns was not, after...

New Zealand's economy; Rising inflation and fears of a recession in New Zealand; Rising inflation and fears of a recession in New Zealand.
June 30, 2008... Rising inflation and fears of a recession New Zealand's economy contracted in the first quarter of 2008, raising fears of a recession and adding to the general atmosphere of gloom caused by a cooling housing market, high interest rates and...