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With people finally returning to North Africa and increasing destination trips to Eastern Europe, grew four percent in the first half of the year. Over 705 million tourists traveled abroad in this period, and if accomplished it will be the first time that over one billion people have traveled internationally. Areas such as Central and Eastern Europe, Southeast Asia and Central America had the highest growth in tourism. had a large increase after the social problems were solved, and Japan also did after the nuclear contamination concerns were solved. Interestingly enough, countries such as , , and had increases on a smaller scale, but saw the income from tourism increase by over twenty-five percent.

While tourism to the culturally prominent cities of Casablanca and Rabat is increasing, ’s aggregate economy is slowing.  Recently, the to rally support as the European-dependent economy falters in the wake of the global crisis.  Morocco has strong relations with the Arabian Gulf nations stemming from centuries old historical, religious, even and linguistic ties, while Rabat and Casablanca (and other major cities) have been largely influenced by Europe, particularly and .

International trade is a very important aspect of the world’s economy in the business climate of today. Less than one percent of all United States businesses export and according to research, the main reason for not exporting is the lack of confidence in selecting the best market for U.S. products. To help solve this issue, the has published a book titled Free Trade Agreements: 20 Ways to Grow Your Business .

One of the major events affecting the world right now is the tropical cyclone in North America known as Hurricane Sandy. Hurricane Sandy was the largest ever Atlantic hurricane by diameter and affected many parts of the Caribbean and Mid-Atlantic including the countries of Jamaica, Haiti, , the Bahamas and the United States. Early estimates vary significantly, but most suggest total economic damages attributable to the storm to be , which would make Sandy one of the most destructive hurricanes on record. As of the publication of this post, over 150 fatalities have been confirmed as a result of the storm. The majority of damage from the disaster occurred on the east coast, where Hurricane Sandy made landfall in New Jersey and New York City. The impact on the economy from this disaster can be enormous, as natural disasters have been proven to drop GDP and economic growth significantly. The impacts due to this devastation in the will have a profound impact on international business.

Globalization can be seen in every crack and crevasse of the earth now that we can communicate globally at unprecedented speed. To be a thriving, growing business, most would argue that once you are well established in your domestic nation, the next logical plan is to take your business internationally.

There are many studies that point to the idea of globalization and how many cultures are mashing together into one as the world becomes more technologically advanced. While technology plays a large part in this, do younger generations have an impact on narrowing the cultural differences between two nations?

Just as products and companies have brand images associated with them, also have built perceptions in the minds of people around the world. A country’s “brand name” can be based on a variety of and its overall perception in the minds of businesses definitely has an impact on its success. If a country’s brand perception is favorable, that can translate into foreign investments alongside commercial and economic development. Businesses are also more likely to conduct operations in a country with a positive brand image. To help us identify the top country brands in today’s globalized economy, . The results are very interesting and the country at the top of the list might just surprise you.

When the financial crisis hit the world in the fall of 2008 most sectors of the economy came crashing down with it. International trade was no different, and by some measures the decline was more pronounced. When world GDP began to contract and hit its bottom in 2009, One would expect a certain amount of withdrawal when a crisis of this magnitude hit but with such a huge drop off the question arises what other factors could have played in? The answer is not as simple as it may seem.

Falling interest rates worldwide and a more stable Africa have together created a .  Globally, central banks are driving down interest rates and because of this; investors seeking higher yields are investing their money elsewhere.  Countries like , , , , and have begun issuing global bonds and investors around the world are quickly buying up these debt securities.  Many African countries are finally reaching the point of political and economic stability that is necessary to attract foreign investment.

As many of you news readers may know, China and Japan have been involved in a over a small chain of islands in the . They can’t agree on a name—Japan calls them the Senkaku Islands and China calls them the Dioyu Islands, but both countries view those islands as part of their territory. They are technically controlled by Japan now due to war treaties, but China has had claims on them in the past so both countries have a case to make for ownership. However, as the islands do not really have much of significance on them, they are viewed as an important symbol of dominance in the often tumultuous relationship between China and Japan. While war or other extreme actions have not been taken yet, the dispute has impacted businesses in the area which could easily impact the world’s economy.

Economic turmoil in Europe has many concerned for the future of the Eurozone and the stability of its individual members. In need of some reform, leaders congregated to enact a single banking supervisor for the union. The leaders agreed that the , and this bank has intervention power over all 6,000 Eurozone banks. The plan is to have the banking union functional by the first of January so the Eurozone’s rescue fund, the , can begin with a bang at the start of the New Year. The Stability Mechanism is essentially a firewall system for the EU, and it focuses on dealing solely with bailout applications, leaving transfer and monitoring to other European stabilizing facilities. The initial concerns of the banking union and the European Central Bank will be to rescue failing banks, and then deal with the pending debt crisis. But of course, European leaders are facing opposition in regard to the new banking union decision.