In The News

Low Costs, Plentiful Talent Make China a Global Magnet for R&D

Kathy Chen March 14, 2006
The number of foreign-invested R&D centers in China has more than tripled since 2002. Analysts once downplayed China’s potential in the R&D area for purposes other than studying the Chinese market because of weak patent protection. Yet more corporations, including Proctor & Gamble, Microsoft and Motorola, are taking the risk and developing basic research and new products in China. A...

Anxious America – Part II

Susan Froetschel March 14, 2006
Every action has an equal and opposite reaction. In the second part of this series, Susan Froetschel examines how closing of the door, out of US security concerns, only encourages research and development efforts overseas. The US is building barriers to science within its borders – with security restrictions and limits for professional visas, combined with decreased federal R&D funding as a...

Seize Golden Opportunity of Rapid Globalization

Dave Young March 8, 2006
Current debates on China focus on its growing economic strength as a threat to the West. But China, moving from a rural to an urban economy, can also offer opportunity for the West. Over the next five years China will build more than 300 new cities, requiring expertise on infrastructure, financing and environmental protection. With China’s growing influence, the author says, world financial...

The Wild Web of China: Sex and Drugs, Not Reform

David Barboza March 8, 2006
While China’s internet censors block access to sensitive political subject matter, a booming online industry trades in sex, drugs, and just about anything else legal or illegal that turns a profit. Wall Street analysts predict that China, with its rapid internet growth, could lead in online commerce by 2010. Meanwhile, the Chinese pay en masse for online entertainment, with both criminals and...

US Reviewing Second Dubai Firm

Jonathan Weisman March 7, 2006
The Bush administration has reversed direction by notifying the US Congress about sales with national security implications. That comes after public outrage greeted a proposal that would transfer operations of six US ports to a Dubai company. Now the government says it will investigate two deals in particular: Dubai International Capital's $1.2 billion acquisition of London-based Doncasters...

German Firms and the Wild West of Globalization

March 7, 2006
Today, any company’s survival depends on its ability to follow the twists and turns of the global economy. Presiding over the game are investors, analysts and fund managers who demand profits. Success can be a Darwinian proposition, with corporate legacy no longer a priority – and three German firms provide case studies on strategies for adapting to rapid globalization and overseas competition...

Is Globalization a Blessing or a Burden on Women?

Rezina Sultana March 6, 2006
Women, accounting for half of the world’s population and two-thirds of the world’s work hours, consistently have fewer resources and less representation at decision-making levels. Some industries, particularly in male-dominated societies, take advantage of eased movement of capital and reduced state controls on trade and investment to reduce wages for the poor, especially women. An example is...