Quite frankly, one involved in business would have to be living in a cave in the middle of nowhere to not be aware of Europe’s . There are numerous theories for how to solve this problem ranging from and to thousands of different and the fabled . Sadly, none of these theoretically viable plans have come to fruition. However, Greece has an idea that is rather unusual but could possibly solve their own debt problems (by far the worse in the EU): unpaid World War II reparations.
globalEDGE Blog - Page 213
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The changing global climate has become increasingly more difficult to ignore due to climbing air and water temperatures, rising sea levels, and melting of polar snow and ice. Recent reports have stated that the area of ice in the arctic has never been smaller, which has recently caught the attention of Asian economists. The opening of the Arctic north promises new trade routes, untapped reserves of oil, and an abundance of minerals to discover.
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After releasing its high IPO on March 18th, 2012, Facebook has fallen over 50% and does not seem to be headed in the right direction anytime soon. The costly mistake in the first day of trade of a computer malfunction placed millions of dollars in the wrong location, and there was no recovery after that. With social on the rise worldwide, it was believed that this would be a hot stock early on. The overly-optimistic buyers were waiting for an early 50%-60% increase, and little did they know it was about to be a failure. Was the IPO too high, or is Facebook just losing its popularity it once had?
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While most news headlines involving revolve around drug cartels, illegal immigration, and law enforcement, Trade between the and Mexico has been surging recently, including a 17 percent increase to a record level of $461 billion (USD) in 2011. Mexico is currently competing with for the title of America's second-largest trading partner following , and the became the top investment destination for the this year. Mexico's middle class, which is quickly growing to be the country's majority, has been responsible for much of the trade with the U.S. since they are buying record levels of American goods.
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In September 2011, India lifted a four-year ban that was responsible for limiting the exportation of wheat and rice. Because of this ruling, exported over 10 million tons of grain and soymeal in the first half of 2012, a figure that is nearly double what it was in the first half of 2011. The current drought in , , and has significantly limited wheat production in these countries, yet world wheat prices have remained relatively stable due to India’s timely increase in the exportation of this commodity.
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While the rest of the world scrambles to overcome the current global recession, the has been The island country has benefited greatly from increases in government efficiency, as well as a crack down on political corruption. The gross domestic product of the Philippines has grown 6.4 percent in the first quarter, which surpasses the performances of all other neighboring economies except , and its currency, the peso, has reached record heights in the past four years when compared to the dollar. As a sign of the country's unprecedented economic progression, the Philippines has pledged $1 billion (USD) of its $70 billion in reserves to the International Monetary Fund to aid the , which is the same fund that rescued the country in the 1980s.
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Alternative currencies have been around throughout history, mostly in times of economic crisis or during times of war. The situation throughout the is no different at the current moment. Countries including , and all have alternative currencies in some form, floating around in their economy. More people are because they are used locally and allow people to trade services for goods or services for services. The currency is calculated in terms of hours, allowing someone who, say, taught piano lessons, to buy a haircut with the hours she accrued teaching the piano lessons.
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This week the released the 2012-2013 edition of the Global Competitiveness Report. The report measures the business operating environment and competitiveness of over worldwide. It also acts as a benchmarking tool for the public and private sectors by identifying the many advantages and obstacles economies face on their way to national growth. As the balance of economic activity shifts away from advanced economies toward emerging markets, many countries are trying to push their economies forward despite the increasingly complex global landscape. This shows interesting results as some countries were able to accomplish this feat more so than others.
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Over a year after the , the . On March 11, 2011 an earthquake off the Eastern coast of triggered a tsunami that killed nearly 20,000 people, devastated many towns along the Eastern coast, and severely damaged the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear reactors. The damage to the reactors led to a significant release of radioactive chemicals, and a mass evacuation of the surrounding area was conducted. Now, Japan is intent on cutting back and possibly even eliminating nuclear power productions, and the economic repercussions of such a transition are coming to fruition.
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For a country that has a deep and prosperous mining heritage, was shocked by the latest report from its Resources Minister Martin Ferguson: The statement came following announcement that there has been a 35% dip in profits and postponed plans to expand the nation's Olympic Dam mine. There have also been considerable concerns in the country that the weak global economy might also decrease the demand for coal, metal ores, and other commodities. For foreign investors and alike, a slowdown in the prosperous mining sector will surely leave a noticeable dent in Australia's economic growth.