In The News

Sustainability or Greenwashing?

João Paulo Cândia Veiga May 28, 2013
The candeia tree of Brazil is an excellent source of an ingredient valued for its anti-inflammatory effect and used in cosmetics for sensitive skin. “Brazil is the sole world producer of natural Bisabolol, and until 2010, when Symrise bought more than 70 percent of local production, controlled the market and defined the global price of the asset,” explains João Paulo Cândia Veiga, a professor of...

The Promise of Africa

Ian Shapiro May 23, 2013
Energetic and talented leaders, intent on contributing to Africa’s rise, gathered for the World Economic Forum on Africa 2013 in early May. The WEF is an independent international organization committed to engaging business, political, academic and other leaders of society to shape global, regional and industry agendas. Africa has its share of failed or near failing states, but others are...

Can Global Supply Chains Be Accountable?

Jerry Davis May 16, 2013
A factory collapse in Bangladesh that killed more than 1,100 workers may be a wakeup call for apparel manufacturers, retailers and consumers. More than 90 percent of US apparel is made outside the country, and the unending quest for low prices and profits encourages crowded factories with brutal work conditions. Corporate leaders orchestrating long supply chains can shrug and claim ignorance...

Lopsided Chinese-US Relations

Edward Gresser May 9, 2013
Chinese-US relations come to the public’s attention mainly through official actions, yet linkages are conducted at two levels, observes Edward Gresser, executive director of Progressive Economy, a research program of GlobalWorks Foundation in Washington, DC. While relations among the nations’ leaders are competitive and tense, exchanges among students, business managers, tourists are amenable and...

China Property Developers Seek US Growth

Pan Kwan Yuk May 8, 2013
Chinese property developers are taking a lead from wealthy Chinese investors and state-owned Chinese banks by investing in US properties. Xinyuan Real Estate is planning a condominium development in a trendy Brooklyn neighborhood. “With Beijing redoubling its efforts to rein in housing prices – most recently unveiling plans for a tougher real estate capital gains tax in March – the pressure is...

Japanese Consortium Set for Turkish Nuclear Power Deal

Daniel Dombey, Jonathan Soble, Hugh Carnegy May 6, 2013
Ample energy is necessary for strong economic growth, and Turkey is moving ahead on a deal to construct a second nuclear power plant in cooperation with Japan and France. It’s the first overseas project for Japan since the Fukushima disaster in 2011 and the second nuclear plant for Turkey. Russia is constructing Turkey’s first nuclear power plant and is absorbing all risk to establish itself as a...

China's Imperial New Consumers

May 2, 2013
The world’s most populous nation has 1.3 billion consumers and plenty of purchasing power – enough to buy one seventh of the world’s total products by 2015, reports the Asia Sentinel. Foreign investors should be aware of trends in the Chinese market, as identified by a study from the Samsung Economic Research Institute. Hundreds of millions of young Chinese have migrated from rural to urban...