In The News

China's Growth Creates a Boom for Cargo Ships

Keith Bradsher August 28, 2003
The world's cargo ships are heavily laden and busily transporting goods around the globe, but largely to or from China. Two years ago, many of these ships could be found lying idle in their home ports. Now, thanks to China's rapidly expanding economy, shipping lines are enjoying one of their most profitable booms ever. China is not only importing huge quantities of raw materials from...

Shell Workers Protest Planned Job Cuts

Mike Oduniyi August 28, 2003
Employees of Shell Petroleum's base in Nigeria are protesting the proposed centralization of the oil company's global operations. Under a new proposal called "Exploration and Production Globalization," Shell says it hopes to increase the efficiency of its operations. "The Group continues to explore best practices in its drive to evolve a more overall efficient...

To Tackle Global Terrorism, Target the Local Roots

Janadas Deyan August 27, 2003
Bombs are going off around the world – in Mumbai, Jakarta, Jerusalem, and Baghdad – yet the stock markets are rising and the US has declared that it is winning the war on terrorism. According to this commentary in The Straits Times, the reason for this paradox is that none of these attacks compare with September 11. Washington, the author notes, is primarily interested in preventing a...

Oh for Babies to Boost the Economy

Eddie Lee August 26, 2003
Are large families passé? In most developed and rapidly developing countries this increasingly seems to be the case. Across Europe, fertility rates have dropped well below replacement level – so low in fact that Germany will have to import half a million immigrants a year to keep the working-age population stable. A similar phenomenon is occurring in Singapore where the government is resorting...

Ecologists Fear Disaster as Oil Rush Takes Grip in Quake Zone

Nick Paton Walsh August 25, 2003
The Russian island of Sakhalin will soon be home to the largest energy project in the world, and there is fear, possibly the largest disaster. The oil rich island borders Japan and lies directly on top of an active seismic fault line, a fact that has environmentalists up in arms. They fear that the underground pipelines will not be able to withstand the island's frequent earthquakes and...

Ecologists Fear Disaster as Oil Rush Takes Grip in Quake Zone

Nick Paton Walsh August 25, 2003
The Russian island of Sakhalin will soon be home to the largest energy project in the world, and there is fear, possibly the largest disaster. The oil rich island borders Japan and lies directly on top of an active seismic fault line, a fact that has environmentalists up in arms. They fear that the underground pipelines will not be able to withstand the island's frequent earthquakes and...

Ecologists Fear Disaster as Oil Rush Takes Grip in Quake Zone

Nick Paton Walsh August 25, 2003
The Russian island of Sakhalin will soon be home to the largest energy project in the world, and there is fear, possibly the largest disaster. The oil rich island borders Japan and lies directly on top of an active seismic fault line, a fact that has environmentalists up in arms. They fear that the underground pipelines will not be able to withstand the island's frequent earthquakes and...