Worldcrunch
SANTIAGO – The number, $7.9 billion, brings a smile to faces. That number corresponds to the amount of exports from Brazil to China in the first trimester of this year. The joy is reduced a little when you learn that 80 percent of that number comes from only three exports: soy, iron ore and petroleum. […]
PARIS – Is there a way that the countries of southern Europe can avoid sinking further into debt at unsustainable interest rates, without resorting to euro bonds, which Germany refuses to consider? Former IMF director Dominique Strauss-Kahn has an idea that he presented this past weekend at the YES (Yalta European Strategy) Forum which was […]
BERLIN – She was an icon of glamour and beauty. But Marilyn Monroe also knew how to appreciate the timeless value of compressed carbon. When she sang “Diamonds are a Girl’s Best Friend,” she was offering a not-so-subtle investor tip to bank on the precious stones. These days, with the euro crisis, investors are increasingly […]
LES ECHOS (France), FINANCIAL TIMES, TELEGRAPH (UK), WALL STREET JOURNAL (USA), REUTERS Worldcrunch Europe’s two largest defense companies have until October 10 to decide whether to pursue a merger that would create the world’s largest defense conglomerate, with annual revenue of 78 billion euros and more than 225,000 employees worldwide. According to the French business […]
-Analysis- SÃO PAULO – Under Dilma Rousseff’s government, Brazil is now slated to grow at a slower rate than previously forecast. What has happened? Simply put: the current economic model has stopped working, says Samuel Pessôa, researcher at the Brazilian Institute of Economics at the prestigious FGV university. His widely debated article, (which predates the […]
NEW DELHI – As Texan oil companies move in, Rajasthan’s cows are starting to feel the pressure. The oil companies have started buying up the cows’ favorite food: guar, a long, green bean grown in the desert regions of India. Guar, which means “cow food” in Hindi, was also used in the food industry as […]
RAVENSBURG – Otto Oberländer calls out a friendly “Hello!” as he enters the production hall where a dozen men work at a long table putting garden sprinklers together. The men, who all wear blue boiler suits, give a friendly acknowledgement of the boss’s greeting and then get back to work. The fact that the door […]
It is a variant of the classic East-West confrontation. And in the conflict pitting Samsung against Apple, the Asian technology giant versus the American one, you ain’t seen nothing yet. Apple won the first round when a Californian court sentenced Samsung to pay more than $1 billion of compensatory damages for infringing patents. But the […]
BORDEAUX – The sale of the Château de Gevrey-Chambertin at the end of August has revived the specter of France’s vineyards being transferred en masse into the hands of Chinese billionaires. However, in the Bordeaux region itself, these new investors seem to be rather well received by professionals in the field. Until August 22 of […]
-Analysis- MOSCOW – The Russia Arctic Coast is one of the dirtiest places on earth. According to the most conservative estimates, the shores of the Arctic Ocean are littered with 4 million tons of industrial and construction waste, part of which is toxic. More than 20,000 pieces of electronics are strewn across the Russian Arctic […]
BERLIN – Even the ever competent European Central Bank (ECB) President Mario Draghi stumbled when he was asked how he was dealing with the fact that the Germans had reservations about his latest moves. That’s because the journalist at last week’s press conference didn’t address him as “President Draghi,” but as “Herr Weidmann.” Of course, […]
WELKOM – It’s a small open-air factory, impossible to spot from the road. You have to go into Thabong, the township in Welkom, three hours south of Johannesburg, to discover it in an old mining town in the G-Hostel, where a dozen workers are clustered, busy transforming rocks into gold. Behind the apparent disorder hides […]
BRASILIA – There’s a strange section on Walmart Brazil’s website, strange at least for a retailer. It’s not the usual invitation to apply for a job, “Work with us,” but an invitation to make real estate deals with the huge multinational company. “If you own land or a building where it would be possible to […]
In the face of the European debt and financial crisis, Hamburg-based economist Dirk Meyer has a “third way”: a system of parallel currencies. A professor at the Helmut Schmidt University of the armed forces, Meyer is convinced that in its present form the euro zone is simply not sustainable in the long term. He used […]
LES ECHOS (France), DIE WELT, DER SPIEGEL (Germany), IL SOLE 24 ORE (Italy) BLOOMBERG (US), BBC NEWS (UK) Worldcrunch FRANKFURT – Aiming to squelch speculation of an impending demise of the euro, European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said policymakers have agreed to an unlimited bond-purchase program to regain control of interest rates in the […]
LA PAZ – Nationalization is in the air — and on the ground — in Bolivia. On May 1, the country’s armed forces were sent to the offices of TDE, a Spanish company that manages three-quarters of Bolivia’s electricity network, to “take control of management and administration.” On June 20, the Colquiri pewter mine, held […]
LE TEMPS (Switzerland), DER SPIEGEL (Germany) Worldcrunch As Greece remains under the watchful eye of Angela Merkel and the IMF to make sure it imposes strict austerity measures, there is one governmental budget that has largely escaped cuts: the defense department. Alexandre Trauvers, writing in Le Temps, reported that Greece’s defense budget amounts to around […]
Do you want to see The Avengers? Or a French movie? Or a one man show? And you don’t have a penny in your pocket? There is a solution to your problem: YouTube.com. This isn’t a shady alleyway where you risk being mugged at nightfall. YouTube is a respectable company. Over 800 million users watch […]
TIMES OF INDIA (India), DIE WELT (Germany), NY TIMES (US), REUTERS (UK), POLSKIE RADIO (Poland) Worldcrunch From using Norwegian mass murderers to sell clothes to an unnerving number of examples of Nazi references at Indian stores, shock tactics in marketing seem to be reaching a new low. Here are the worst five recent examples: 1. […]
RTL, L’EXPRESS (France), LA STAMPA (Italy) PARIS – The scraggly hitchhiker with his thumb out on the road has given way to the plugged-in free (or almost free) rider with both thumbs on his smart phone. And it is Europe that’s leading the way in finding efficient new ways of hitting the road on the […]
-Analysis- PARIS – Whether or not they pose a real threat to the traditional book publishing industry, e-books are indisputably the talk of the town. Still, few in the sector are able to fathom the full extent of the ongoing digital transformation, which is both far-reaching, yet still largely invisible. From booksellers to printers, everybody […]
SAO PAULO – While the U.S is suffering the worst drought in decades; Brazil is expecting a record-breaking grain harvest this year. But is the country’s infrastructure up to the task? Good prices for raw materials means Brazilians will be planting more soybeans and hiking their investments on technology, which will contribute to an unprecedented […]
BERLIN – After the initial euphoria, it’s back to earth for Germans. The decision to exit nuclear power was initially quite popular, but today many are having second thoughts. Their main issue with the decision is its resulting cost, which is paid for by households and small businesses but has spared big industrial consumers. When […]
EGYPT INDEPENDENT, AL-AHRAM (Egypt), AL JAZEERA (Qatar), BBC NEWS (UK) Worldcrunch Egypt’s Salafi Nour Party has slammed the government’s negotiations with the International Monetary Fund about a $4.8 billion rescue package, stating any potential loan that the government receives would be against sharia law. Younis Makhyoun, a member of the ultra-conservative Islamist party said: “Borrowing […]
BILD (Germany), CHANNEL 4 NEWS(UK), ATHENS NEWS (Greece) Worldcrunch Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras is meeting with eurogroup leader Jean-Claude Juncker in Athens on Wednesday, after asking “more time for cuts” in an interview with German publication Bild. Mr. Samaras rejected the possibility of an exit from the euro zone and a return to the […]
Deutsche Bank may have done business to the tune of billions with Iran and other countries, violating U.S. sanctions. Sanctions were imposed on Iran by the international community because of its nuclear weapons program. British bank Standard Chartered, which is said to have violated Iran sanctions, now faces payment of a $340 million settlement after […]
SANTIAGO – In 2009, the European Union agreed to gradually prohibit classic incandescent light bulbs, finishing the process in September 2012. The idea is to replace them with energy efficient light bulbs and kick start sales of green products. At the same time, Argentina was much more radical – at the beginning of 2011 the […]
WTA (United States), SPORT.RBC.RU (Russia) Worldcrunch Top Russian tennis player Maria Sharapova has launched her own brand of candy called Sugarpova. Famed Fifth Avenue retailer Henri Bendel held the New York City launch on Monday, the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) reports. Sugarpova’s 12 kinds of sweets will be sold worldwide by IT’SUGAR candy stores, and […]
Over 150 years ago the Gold Rush began in California. It made some people very rich, but most people who were a part of it were only enriched by the experience. Today, the state is making people dream again – but this time it’s silicon, not gold, that’s making them see big. The half-metal is […]
Big oil companies don’t think much of Iraq’s threats. They are lining up for oil prospection in Kurdistan, despite Baghdad’s ban on signing contracts with Kurdish authorities. Last week, Total announced it was purchasing 35% of two blocks located in Iraqi Kurdistan, while the Russian oil giant Gazprom Neft bought stakes in two blocks that […]
AL JAZEERA (Qatar) Worldcrunch MOSCOW – Vladimir Putin, the newly re-elected president of Russia, presents himself as a humble, down to earth man of average means. But rumors about his wealth, and the secrecy surrounding it, have been circulating for years, as far back as his time as deputy mayor of St. Petersburg in the […]
CHINA TIMES (Taiwan) Worldcrunch SHENZHEN – The secret to economic growth? Unmarried women left free to shop, according to one prominent Chinese economist. Jin Yanshi, who has since become the target of outrage and contempt from colleagues and others, recently laid out his theory that “cities where there are more leftover and divorced women should […]
If the Olympics are showing the British all dressed up for public viewing, other activities going on now show the ever pragmatic UK approach to business.
BLOOMBERG, BUSINESS INSIDER (USA), LA TRIBUNE (France), BBC NEWS (UK) Worldcrunch FRANKFURT – The European Central Bank (ECB) is holding a meeting today in Frankfurt (Germany) to make a crucial decision on the euro’s future reports French financial newspaper La Tribune. Investors are looking for the European Central Bank President to make good on his […]
BBC NEWS (UK), ASSOCIATED PRESS (USA) Worldcrunch Inspectors from the European Union, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund arrived in Athens on Friday to meet with Greek authorities, who hope to convince their international creditors that Athens should receive the final installment of 31.5 billion euros in bailout money. Greece is facing […]
In less than a decade, Slovakia has gone from bottom of the class to best in show, with a 2.5% growth in 2012. Will it be able to keep up the miracle, or will it turn out to be just a mirage?
EL MUNDO, EL PAIS (Spain) Worldcrunch The Spanish stock market started this week at the level registered in April 2003, with a new risk rate record of 643 points, the highest since the creation of the euro, El Mundo reports. According to El Pais, investors have been once again ruthless with the Spanish stock values. […]
Essay: Europe and the West are considered the “developed” world, while countries such as China are said to be “developing.” But such mentalities don’t really match the respective realities of wealth, in all its
TWITTER, GUARDIAN (UK) Worldcrunch LONDON – Former Barclays boss, Bob Diamond, is the financial industry’s new bad guy extraordinaire as public anger mounts against chief banking executives in the Libor scandal. The news Tuesday that he had voluntarily given up his bonus of £20 million ($31 million) was supposed to quiet the outcry, as Diamond […]
REUTERS, EL PAIS (Spain) Worldcrunch Euro zone ministers struggled to reassure financial markets on Tuesday that an aid package for Spain they outlined overnight will help stabilize the currency bloc, Reuters reports. The Spanish daily El Pais called the decisions taken overnight by the euro zone partners in Brussels “a soft intervention in the economy,” […]