- •Text bank
- •Slowing down? not these trends
- •Japan tops growth forecasts
- •U.S. And euope hint at economic cooling
- •Growth in china slows as controls take hold
- •Unit II
- •Eu trade gap with asia stirs currency debate
- •Digital dragon
- •Record china trade surplus
- •U.S. Trade gap narrows as oil costs decline
- •The International Herald Tribune, November 10-th, 2006
- •Yen falls against dollar on u.S. Trade data
- •Japan’s trade surplus drops sharply Latest data spur concern that economy may slump further
- •Europe scolds china on trade and currency
- •Unit III
- •U.S. Says chinese tax isn’t enough
- •Wider market access for former eu colonies
- •China raises stakes in eu shoes battle
- •U.S. Paper mill at heart of tariff threat against china
- •Beijing fires back at u.S. Complaints
- •Unit IV
- •Honda takes lead with exports from guangzhou
- •Vw plans to increase chinese car parts exports
- •How danone’s china venture turned sour
- •Domestic car sales veering into the slow lane
- •Toyota looks to expand in america
- •Expanding abroad – and growing at home
- •Tech: slow at home, growing abroad
- •Chrysler to share more parts with mercedes
- •Arcelor mittal looks at brazilian expansion
- •Gm growing in india, reshaping in europe
- •Ge takes a new line in the business of outsourcing
- •German companies look abroad for gains
- •Electrolux to shift plants abroad
- •Unit VI
- •Troubled carriers face some stiff competition
- •Ready for a cargo surge
- •China trade to enrich ports in u.S. East, too
- •Here winners are fast rather than large
- •A renaissance for railroads
- •Western retailers shift their supply chain tasks to china
- •Unit VII
- •Soaring prices boost recycling of computers
- •Asian nations shift policies to offset rising energy prices
- •Rising cost of gas raises fears of gouging
Expanding abroad – and growing at home
Foreign investment by U.S. businesses and investors is on track to be the second highest on record. Meanwhile manufacturing employment fell for a ninth straight year. Based on those trends, it would be easy to conclude that Corporate America is engaging in widespread outsourcing with potentially detrimental effects on the U.S. economy. But more detailed figures from America’s big companies paint a different picture: about 88% of sales among foreign subsidiaries of U.S. multinationals are made outside the U.S.
In 2004 output of nonfinancial U.S multinationals accounted for 22.7% of nonfinancial gross domestic product, virtually unchanged from 1994. And while manufacturing’s share of the U.S. workforce and economic output have fallen, the government data show the rate of decline among multinational and non-multinational is very close.
The results do not imply a large-scale movement of operations abroad by U.S. business. Rather, companies want to expand their global presence, and this larger scale of operations requires more workers at home to manage the business. That means greater demand for high-skill jobs in areas such as business services, where hiring is strong.
With global growth expected to hold up quite well this year, U.S. multinationals are likely to keep up with their foreign expansion plans and invest heavily abroad.
Business Week, February 12th, 2007
№ 23
Tech: slow at home, growing abroad
The strongest US companies may be the ones with the biggest footprint abroad
Any hope that the surprisingly strong financial results from IBM signaled the technology firms’ rebound was quickly dashed. One key factor in how these companies perform will be geography. While tech spending in US is expected to slow down with the economy, spending abroad remains relatively healthy. As a result, the tech companies with the most presence in overseas markets stand a better chance than those more dependent on US consumers.
Large bellwethers with international presence will probably perform better in this type of business environment. IBM is among the most diversified abroad, with just 39% of its revenues coming from inside the country. Other companies that get less than half their revenues from home include HP and Oracle, according to financial filings. In contrast, AT&T and Yahoo! pull in the majority of their sales from US.
Of course, geography isn't necessarily destiny. Strong products generate sales even in a soft economy. Google and Apple get more than half of their revenues from US, and both are expected to see strong growth in the year ahead. Still, for most of the tech companies dependent on customers at home, the future looks full of challenges as US economy is clearly heading down the drain.
Businessweek, 2009
№ 24
Chrysler to share more parts with mercedes
Chrysler and Mercedes-Benz will share more parts and systems under a plan devised by DaimlerChrysler, their parent, to sharpen Detroit-based Chrysler’s competitive edge.
DaimlerChrysler is expected to unveil plan to integrate further its two carmaking units.
The degree of cooperation between the upmarket German brand and more mass-market US unit has been a subject of heated debate since Daimler-Benz acquired Chrysler in 1998.
The closer transatlantic links are part of a plan, known as Project X, designed to cut Chrysler’s costs by $1,000 a vehicle. The plan is also likely to include North American plant closures. Chrysler had set a target of trimming more than 10,000 blue-collar jobs from its 80,000 workforce and would close a Delaware assembly plant and Detroit engine factory.
DaimlerChrysler aims to improve efficiency by sharing and simplifying components and reducing time spent on engineering, among other initiatives.
Chrysler’s share of the U.S. car and truck market slipped to 12.9% last year from 13.6% in 2005, in spite of 10 new models and generous customer incentives.
A Chrysler restructuring plan is scheduled to be announced on February 14 in conjunction with fourth-quarter results for its parent.
The Financial Times, February 6th, 2007
№ 25