December 2002 Economic Digest - Importing and Exporting

December 2002 Edition

McFACTS

According to the London Observer, there are more than 30,000 McDonalds restaurants in 121 countries with, on average, 4.2 new ones opening each day. Worldwide, one in 200 people visit Mcdonalds daily. The company is the largest toy distributor in the world. One in three of all cattle in the U.S. bred for meat is destined for use by McDonalds. However, McDonalds have just announced they will shortly close about 175 restaurants worldwide.

NEWS

A 2000 poll found that more than one third of Americans under 30 now get their news primarily from late-night comedians and that 79 per cent of this age group (and half of the adult population generally) say they sometimes or regularly get political information from comedy programmes or non-traditional outlets such as MTV.

COMPENSATION

A new draft law passed by the European Parliament will require airlines to pay heavy compensation to customers unable to travel because of overbooking, cancellation or delay. The law calls for compensation of up to $750.00 for delayed or stranded air passengers. Also, catering and accommodation must be provided where necessary. Bigger carriers, which already have compensation schemes, have welcomed the news.

DROUGHT

The summer drought in many parts of the continent is now hitting consumers as they face substantial price hikes for bread and other baked goods because flour and other ingredients are more expensive. Prices of these baked products--and packaged flour-- are rising as much as 10 per cent. Other wheat-based items, such as cereal and pet foods, may follow suit before too long.

PLANES

Boeing Co. expects China to buy 1,912 new aircraft during the next 20 years. The aircraft purchases in the 2001-2020 period will be worth a total of US$165-billion. Boeing now has 392 jets in service in China giving it a 65-per cent share of the country's 605-passenger airliner fleet. China's domestic air travel market is growing at a rate of 7.6 per cent annually.

ANIMALS

The European Union is set to ban animal testing in cosmetics and will stop imports that do so. Companies use animals for tests on skin corrosion and absorbtion, eye irritancy and whether there is a lethal dose of the cosmetic. Animals used in research include rabbits, cats, hamsters, mice and monkeys. The deal must be ratified by the 15 nations that make up the EU and the law is slated to go into effect in 2009.

FASHION

The Mount Fuji Spinning Co. of Japan has been working on a range of garments--including knee-length sports pants, two types of girdle and men's boxer shorts--that make people thinner. Each WonderSlim garment is impregnated with a mixture of seaweed and caffeine, which is massaged into the skin by movements of the wearer. After 30 days of wear, half the people in a test said they had lost a few millimetres.

TRIVIA

The microwave was invented after a researcher walked by a radar tube and a chocolate bar melted in his pocket. The first microwave was as large and heavy as a refrigerator.

COMPARISONS

Recently, two information-technology firms on opposite sides of the world announced quarterly results. One large Texas-based computer sciences giant announced that sales were down by three per cent, new business down more than 50 per cent and job cuts for 5,000 employees. But for an equivalent Indian software firm the opposite was true. Revenues were up 35 per cent, profits increased 12 per cent and new hires hit nearly 2,000.

TRADE

China and the countries of South-East Asia, which agreed last year to give their economies a lift by removing tariffs on commerce, have moved closer to their goal by adopting a framework for conducting trade negotiations. Under the agreement, duties on China's trade with Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Brunei and the Philippines will fall to zero by 2010. The China-ASEAN free-trade area, which will combine 1.7 billion people, will be the biggest in the world by size of its population. Its combined gross domestic product stands at $3.56 trillion.

CREDIBILITY

An international consumers organization is warning Web users about the credibility of some Internet sites. Consumers International, a federation of 250 organizations around the world, has released a study of more than 450 Web sites. Researchers examined health, financial and price-comparison sites and found misleading, inaccurate and incomplete information. The organization reports that the results of the study are alarming as the majority of consumers using the Web are relying on it for credible information they can trust.

FOR RENT

Cow Placard Co. of Switzerland paints logos and slogans on the sides of animals, transforming them into living billboards. One of the first branded cows featured the logo of a Swiss clothing company. Cost per cow: About $375. Animal rights groups are not amused.

GIZMOS

A new device is being used to cram even more ads into TV hit programs. Called a Time Machine, the device strips out about 3 per cent of the video frames from a show shortening its length. The station fills the extra time with advertising, padding its bottom line. The devices appear to be legal but might contravene network agreements that prevent affiliates from altering programmes. Unlike US broadcasters, Canadian stations face limits on how much advertising they can run.

BUGLES

In the face of a serious shortage of military buglers to play at funerals, the Pentagon is to test a British inventor's electronic version, which can be played by non-musicians. There are fewer than 500 buglers in the U.S. military and the number of military funerals has risen to some 100,000 a year. Honour guards now attend thousands of funerals equipped with a portable stereo and a CD recording of a bugle which the Pentagon feels lacks the "dignified visual" of a real bugler.

WIND

The Canadian province which is leading the fight against the Kyoto will soon be home to the country's largest wind farm. The plan is to build a wind farm in southern Alberta with 114 wind turbines which is expected to produce enough electricity to power 32,500 homes. The project will cost C$100-million and should be fully operational by the end of 2003.

SCREENS

Two British companies have joined forces to become a world leader in the technology of glowing plastics. By 2005, this should yield the first roll-up computer screens and TVs. Hopes for this technology are high because polymers that emit light do not require a backlight used in the current generation of flat screen liquid crystal displays (LCDs). It makes them energy efficient and much thinner--so thin that they can be folded.

SOAP

According to a new study, anti-bacterial soap does not work. A team followed 238 housewives in New York City. Half of them got anti-microbial soap for daily hand washing, the other half was given plain soap. The soap was not labelled. Researchers discovered that both groups had fewer germs on their hands after washing, but there was no difference between the two groups.

WINE

The market for Washington State wine is being expanded in British Columbia. B.C., which has its own winemaking industry in the Okanagan region, is opening its borders to wines from eight more Washington wineries, bringing to 32 the total that may sell in B.C. Washington has about 210 wineries and ranks as the second-largest wine producer in the U.S., making about 42 million litres a year. California, the number one producer, makes about two billion litres a year.

BORDERS

In a distant frontier of commerce, just across the Russian border in Southern Siberia, China's World Trade Organization agreement is being put to the test. Suifenhe is an obscure spot on the global trade map. It is mainly a transit point for small-time traders where Russians import Chinese made clothes and electrical appliances and the Chinese import Russian food and timber. Now, the U.S. and Canadian governments have expressed concern about cheap Russian exports slipping into China, squeezing their companies out of a lucrative market and possibly violating WTO rules.

DRILLS

The tell-tale noise of a DIY enthusiast at work, the whine of the electric drill, may soon be a thing of the past. A silent, steady and dust-free way to drill holes in walls has been found. It could also replace the dentists drill one day. The drill's key component comes from a domestic microwave oven and it works by focusing microwave radiation at a spot just beneath the surface of any hard material. As the temperature increases, the surrounding material's ability to absorb radiation increases, starting a runaway reaction so that a molten hotspot evolves. The drill tip is pushed into the softened material to form a hole.

GREAT LAKES

Scientists who study the Great Lakes ecosystem are concerned about the growing concentration of pharmaceuticals in the water. Tests of water samples taken near sewage-treatment plants in 14 different cities as well as in open water at various points along the Great Lakes found traces of a number of drugs. The flow of pharmaceuticals such as painkillers and birth-control pills into the water is becoming of increasing concern.

LABELS

The Grocery Manufacturers of America have endorsed The U.S. Department of Agriculture's national organic programme as a way to provide consumers with accurate labelling information about organic foods and ingredients. The new standards provide food manufacturers with four labelling options: 100 per cent organic, 95-100 per cent organic, at least 70 per cent organic or that contain only specific organic ingredients.

WATER

Russians are up in arms over a plan to sell water from the world's largest freshwater lake, Lake Baikal. The lake fills a crevice that runs 1,600 meters in depth and more than 600 kilometres long. It contains more volume of fresh water than the Canadian Great Lakes combined. With more than 2,500 species of plants and animals in its waters and along its shores it is as diverse a place as can be found in Siberia. The lake is around 25 million years old. Free-market enthusiasts want to build a pipeline, several thousand kilometres long, to the parched lands of China.

SALES

More Canadians work at selling than any other job. According to the last available census figures, 554,000 men and women work in retail sales. Secretaries were the second-most common job, with 317,000, but if you add the first, third and fourth most-popular jobs--retail trade managers, and cashiers, then retail truly dominates, employing 1.1 million in Canada. The least-common job recorded was meteorological technicians with 910 counted.

SCORES

A soccer team in Madagascar lost by a record 149 goals to nil. To protest against allegedly biased refereeing, they kicked shot after shot into their own net.

Thank you for reading the A & A Economic News Digest. For more information visit our website www.aacb.com or contact A & A Contract Customs Brokers Ltd. at strehler@aacb.com.

Past issues of the A&A Economic News Digest can be found at http://www.aacb.com/publications/ed/index.asp

November 2002 Economic Digest - Importing and Exporting

November 2002 Edition

EUROPE

The European Commission has given the go-ahead to admit 10 new states to the European Union. They include: Poland, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovakia, Slovenia, Latvia, Estonia, Cyprus and Malta. Turkey was declined yet again, because of its human rights record. These countries will join in early 2004 adding 73 million citizens from poor countries in a gamble that could overload the EU. The final decision will be made by EU prime ministers in December. The EU will become the world's biggest trading group creating fresh export and investment opportunities for companies outside Europe.

ENERGY

Buildings in food related industries in Canada, such as grocery stores, bakeries and restaurants, were on average the biggest energy users in the commercial and institutional sector in 2000, according to first ever data from a survey that provides information on the consumption of electricity, natural gas and heating oil. Public assembly buildings such as galleries, community centres and concert halls had the lowest levels of energy intensity, less than one fifth the level of food retail stores. About 64 per cent of sampled commercial and institutional buildings used natural gas as the main source of energy for heating.

ENERGY

Buildings in food related industries in Canada, such as grocery stores, bakeries and restaurants, were on average the biggest energy users in the commercial and institutional sector in 2000, according to first ever data from a survey that provides information on the consumption of electricity, natural gas and heating oil. Public assembly buildings such as galleries, community centres and concert halls had the lowest levels of energy intensity, less than one fifth the level of food retail stores. About 64 per cent of sampled commercial and institutional buildings used natural gas as the main source of energy for heating.

PLANES

Boeing is planning to build the world's largest aircraft for military use. The Pelican will have a wingspan of more than 500 feet (a 747's wingspan is 195 feet), and a wing area of one acre. Designed to carry 14,000 tons of cargo more than 10,000 miles, the Pelican will be designed to fly 50 feet above the ocean, using the buoyant aerodynamic effect of flying close to the water to provide its maximum economic range.

BUSES

In a test program, commuters in London who are tired of long waits at bus stops can now be informed by mobile phone text messages exactly when the next service is arriving at their nearest stop. Passengers send a message with a six-letter reference found on their bus stop, and within 10 seconds will receive a reply giving the exact time a bus will arrive. The system is using an American military satellite to track every bus on the route.

FUEL

Police in Wales found six vehicles in one day using cooking oil as an alternative fuel. Drivers use the cooking oil as a fuel substitute to make their vehicles go further for less money. Customs officers can impound vehicles if owners are not prepared to pay a $1200 fine. All cars travelling on public roads are required to pay tax on the fuel they use. Supermarkets in the area have seen a rise in the amount of cooking oil sold.

CHINA

Many manufacturing companies moved into China expecting to sell to a billion Chinese. But for many, China has become the place to make products then ship them elsewhere. China has become the world's factory floor, its manufacturing prowess pushing down prices on a growing range of industrial, consumer, and even agricultural products that it sells around the world. U.S imports from China are now consistently outstripping those from Japan. China's hi-tech exports to the U.S. are growing faster than any other export, up 47 per cent in the first seven months of this year over the previous year.

RESTAURANTS

The Italian government has announced plans to certify Italian restaurants around the world, ensuring genuine Italian menus served by Italians. Counterfeit Italian restaurants are thought to make profits of US$27-million a year. A pilot scheme will be launched next year in Belgium.

SHOPPING

Canadian on-line shoppers spent $2-billion in the first half of 2002, and they would have spent more if shipping costs had been lower and websites better designed. For every purchase completed on-line, another one was not completed because of various concerns.

GREEN

Irish stores have cut back their use of plastic bags by 90 per cent since a tax on the bags was introduced six months ago. Faced with paying 10 cents per bag, shoppers are opting to bring their own reusable bags instead. Already a billion fewer bags are in circulation compared to last year.

EGGS

Producers in England have announced that eggs will soon be sold in round boxes of seven. They hope the revamp of traditional boxes of six eggs will encourage consumers to have an egg each day of the week. Eggs are increasing in popularity in Britain. Ten billion were eaten last year, 73 million more than the year before. The reason why eggs have traditionally been sold in multiples of six is unknown.

CARDS

For the first time ever, more American consumers are using debit cards to purchase goods rather than credit cards, according to a Visa survey. During the first six months of the year, there were 3.04 billion Visa debit card transactions compared to 2.96 billion credit card transactions. Whether or not a store accepts debit cards has become important to consumers selecting a supermarket.

FESTIVALS

In 2001, 326 films were shown at the Toronto film Festival. 88 were shown at the Cannes film festival. 3,317 journalists were registered at the Cannes film festival. 750 were registered at the Toronto festival.

TASTE

The government of Newfoundland is experimenting with commercial fishing for jellyfish in the hope it will create much-needed jobs. Jellyfish are known for their umbrella-like shape and stinging tentacles. In many Asian cultures, the fish is considered a delicacy. The government has been tracking jellyfish which sometimes are so plentiful, they form a thick blanket just under the ocean's surface. After catching the jellyfish, they are processed much like cod, kept in salt and then dried.

TRENDS

The Los Angeles Times reports that sales of athletic shoes costing more than US$150 plunged more than 40 per cent in the first six months of 2002. Some companies that make and sell hot youth brands say customers are no longer willing to shell out $85 for a pair of shoes for skateboarding. After a decade of shoes laden with lights, flaps, air bags and shock absorbers, many consumers now want sneakers that look downright old-fashioned.

TOOTHPASTE

A new toothpaste made from crab shell could reduce trips to the dentists by fighting infection in the mouth. The paste contains tiny polymer particles each enclosing a speck of bacteria-killing agent. Because they are sticky, the particles lodge in areas of the teeth and gums vulnerable to infection. The polymer is derived from chitosan, the main component of crab shells.

WATER

Health Canada is asking for public input concerning new regulations for bottled water. The current rules are 30 years old. Canadians bought an average of 27.7 litres of bottled water in 2001, with 850 million litres of bottled water produced in the country. There are no provisions concerning how bottled water is collected, bottled and sold.

LETTUCE

Prepackaged bagged salads have become a staple for many Canadians. Market research shows that bagged salad was among the fastest growing grocery products in 2000, the most recent year for which statistics are available. That year, sales jumped 22 per cent to more than C$123-million.

HOTELS

U.S. hotel development is at its lowest level in eight years because of a lack of financing brought on by a drop in occupancy and room rates. The U.S. hotel industry is having its slowest recovery in 30 years after last year's recession and terrorist attacks prompted companies to cut travel budgets.

MAIL

The Royal Mail has admitted that an estimated 500,000 letters or parcels are lost or delayed every week in Britain. Thousands of letters are delivered to the wrong house by mistake, research shows. Thousands more go astray because they are badly addressed. Overall, 82 million letters are handled each day. Deutsche Post of Germany has just been awarded a one year contract to deliver bulk mail in Britain.

TV

For the first time, cable television distributors lost costumers in urban Canada as direct-to-home satellite and wireless television distributers continue to gobble up the market. Cable TV's subscriber base slipped 1.4 per cent to 7.9 million subscribers as of August 2001. In contrast, new wireless operators reported growth of 66 per cent with customers climbing to 1.6 million from 970,000 in 2000.

AGING

A major British study has found that advertisers are wasting hundreds of millions of pounds every year by targeting a growing "grey" market, when many people hardly change their spending habits at all once they start to approach middle age.

FARMS

In 1930 there were roughly 575,000 farms on the Great Plains of the United States. The number has dropped steadily over the years until in 1997 there were only 231,000 farms. But the number of farms over 1,000 acres has increased from 45,000 in 1930 to more than 77,000 in 1997. Between 1930 and 1990, the rural population has dropped from more than four million to around 2.6 million.

FURNITURE

Despite booming house sales in the U.S., the domestic furniture industry is not enjoying a similar boom. Furniture imports to the U.S. have jumped 71 per cent since 1999 and now comprise between 40 and 50 per cent of all sales. For wood and metal furniture--mainly tables, bedroom furniture, chairs and cabinets--imports have grown even faster. They now amount to 80 per cent of sales compared to 20 per cent a decade ago. However, U.S. makers of upholstered furniture have retained a strong edge.

FURNITURE

Despite booming house sales in the U.S., the domestic furniture industry is not enjoying a similar boom. Furniture imports to the U.S. have jumped 71 per cent since 1999 and now comprise between 40 and 50 per cent of all sales. For wood and metal furniture--mainly tables, bedroom furniture, chairs and cabinets--imports have grown even faster. They now amount to 80 per cent of sales compared to 20 per cent a decade ago. However, U.S. makers of upholstered furniture have retained a strong edge.

ACCESS

Only a small percentage of the Chinese population have access to computers and the Internet but the absolute numbers are still huge. China added 12 million new Internet users in the first half of this year for a total of 45 million. The official Chinese newspaper China Daily, has said that viruses have infected 80 per cent of China's computers, highlighting the vulnerability of one of the world's biggest PC and Internet markets.

BARCODES

Retailers are pouring millions of dollars into readying their scanners for changes being called for by 2005. The reason is the lowly barcode which is found on everything from chewing gum to chairs and identifies products as they move through check-out scanners. Starting January 2005, global commerce groups are recommending that retailers' scanners be able to read up to 14 digit bar codes in a bid to bring universal standards to databases. In North America, goods carry a 12-digit Universal Product Code, elsewhere barcodes generally have 13-digits (though 14 digits appear on shipping containers.

ALLERGIES

Scientists have discovered that the new European Euros release 320 times more nickel than is allowed under European Union rules controlling the amounts of nickel used in jewellery and other items. A study claims that skin contact with one- and two euro coins can cause allergic reactions, including eczema.

Thank you for reading the A & A Economic News Digest. For more information visit our website www.aacb.com or contact A & A Contract Customs Brokers Ltd. at strehler@aacb.com.

Past issues of the A&A Economic News Digest can be found at http://www.aacb.com/publications/ed/index.asp

October 2002 Economic Digest - Importing and Exporting

October 2002 Edition

ACCESS

 
As part of the negotiations under the General Agreement on Services (GATS), Canada has submitted initial requests for market access in services to more than 40 WTO members, none of which is a least developed country. The requests seek openings in 12 sectors of key interest to Canada including: computer and related services, telecommunication services and R&D services, financial, tourism and transport services.

PLASTIC

Mexico is going to change its 20 peso bill, worth about US$2.00, from paper to a form of plastic. Besides being difficult to counterfeit, the plastic bills last up to four times longer than paper, although they cost 50 per cent more to produce. There are 130 million 20 peso bills in circulation. Mexico chose the 20 peso note to start because it gets the most use in Mexico. Australia began using plastic money in 1988. Some 20 countries, including New Zealand, Brazil, Thailand and Northern Ireland, have followed its lead.

AWAY

Work absenteeism rates in Canada rose significantly in 2001, according to data from the Labour Force Survey. An estimated 700,000 full time employees, or about 7.0 per cent of the total, were absent from work for all or part of any given week because of personal reasons, such as illness or disability, or personal or family responsibilities, excluding maternity leave. This was up considerably from 6.3 per cent in 2000, and 5.5 per cent in 1997.

UNITED NATIONS

After nearly two hundred years of neutrality, Switzerland has become the 190th member of the United Nations. The role of Switzerland is considered crucial on issues of development, international law and human rights. In a recent Swiss referendum, 55 per cent voted in favour of U.N. membership. Switzerland was already an active member of specialized UN agencies such as the International Labour Organization and the World Health Organization.

PORTS

Russia's largest oil companies have agreed to study the feasibility of constructing a big new port at the northern city of Murmansk. If built, it could eventually deliver enough oil to cover five per cent of current U.S. consumption. A new export terminal in Murmansk, and a 1,500-kilometre pipeline running up to it, would cost about US$1.5 billion and could be ready by 2005.

AFFILIATES

Foreign affiliates of Canadian companies had total sales abroad of just over $300 billion in 1999, and employed about 772,000 people. Service providers accounted for about 40 per cent of both sales and employment. About two thirds of total sales were in the United States. Four industrial sectors accounted for 63 per cent of reported sales for service providers in 1999: information and cultural activities; finance; insurance; and transportation and warehousing.

MEMORY

Researchers have created a computer memory chip using new molecular technology that takes miniaturization further than ever before. Scientists have created a 64-bit memory unit that fits inside a square micron--a micron is one millionth of a meter. Some thousands of these memory units could fit on the end of a single strand of hair. Its capacity is too low to be useful yet but it is a key advance in what is called nanotechnology, manipulating molecules and atoms.

PERFORMING

Canadian performing arts companies' revenues declined 1.7 per cent in 2000 to C$894.4 million. Salaries and wages accounted for just over one third of the industry's total expenses. The spectator sports industry, which includes professional and semi professional sports clubs and teams, continued to report losses in 2000. The amusement and recreation services industry generated revenues of C$5.0 billion in 2000. This includes the ski industry which saw its profit margin fall to 10.4 per cent in 2000. This was the result of a 14.9 per cent rise in expenses that far exceeded the industry's 1.5 per cent increase in revenues.

ALLERGIES

Six to eight per cent of children and one to two percent of adults suffer from food allergies, mostly from soybeans, milk, eggs, peanuts, nuts, fish and wheat. U.S. Agriculture Department scientists are now developing a new type of soybean that could prevent allergic reactions. The new genetically altered soybean could mean that soy-sensitive consumers will be able to eat cereals, baby formula, snack foods, and other foods that contain soybeans.

TREES

A fungus that has devastated California's mighty oak trees is branching out to affect Douglas firs and redwood trees. The majestic Douglas fir dominates the Pacific Northwest and is the backbone of the multi-billion dollar forestry industry on the West Coast. California redwoods can reach heights of over 100 metres and live to be 2,000 years old. Redwoods are also valued for their timber and their bark is sold for landscaping.

HELP

For clumsy people incapable of doing-it-themselves, scientists have created the ultimate furniture kit. It talks you through the assembly process making it impossible, supposedly, to assemble it wrongly. The wardrobe has sensors that allow it to talk the customer through the job, transmitting instructions, tips and warnings to a computer screen.

DRIVE THROUGH

KFC, the fried chicken giant that introduced U.S.-style fast food to China, has opened the country's first drive-through in Beijing. Encouraged by China's rising middle-class, and the swelling ranks of car owners, KFC plans to open drive-throughs in three other Chinese cities. In Beijing, 12 per cent of the population now own automobiles.

WASTE

British industry fears that a fresh set of ultra-green recycling rules approved by Euro-MPs will cost firms an extra billion pounds and encourage illegal dumping of waste in the countryside. The latest directive covers every form of packaging from chocolate boxes to yogurt pots, ceramic containers and plastic bags. Britain is obliged to raise the level of recycling from the current level of 48 per cent to 65 per cent by 2006. It is predicted that these rules will affect 14,000 British firms.

MILK

Eager to win back youngsters who have abandoned milk for soft drinks, the U.S. dairy industry has rolled out nearly 300 new products in the past three years. Packaged in single-serving bottles, brightly coloured and flavoured, many are finding favour with adolescents and with those concerned about children's calcium intake.

TAGS

Radio frequency identification tags, otherwise known as smart tags, will be in place on some five billion packages, crates and shipping containers within a few years. Currently in place on only a million or so items in pilot tests, RFID tags can hold a great deal of information about a single item, from what's in it to when it was produced to where it is at a given time. Packaged goods manufacturers estimate widespread use of the tags hinges on getting the price down to five cents or less.

BREAD

In Britain, loaves of bread are going on sale that cost over $23.00. Weighing four pounds each, the hand-kneaded Poilane sourdough loaves are more than twice the size of ordinary loaves. They are baked in an oak-burning oven in a six-hour process.

HOURS

Chipping away at the legacy of its Socialist predecessor, the new centre-right government of France is planning to ease rules governing France's 35- hour workweek. Current regulations restrict employees on the 35-hour week to 130 hours of overtime a year.

TIME

One second: a healthy person's heartbeat lasts this long, the Earth travels 30 kilometres around the Sun and the Sun zips 274 kilometres on its way through the galaxy. One minute: the time it takes for an average person to speak 150 words or read 250 words. One century: the anticipated lifespan of a compact disc, baby boomers have a one-in-26 chance of surviving this long.

SUBSIDIES

The World Bank reports that industrialized countries spend $350 billion a year on agricultural subsidies, seven times their budgets on aid and roughly equal to the total GNP for all of sub-Saharan Africa. Tariffs on meat, fruit and vegetables often exceed 100 per cent in the developed world. The Bank argues that ending agricultural subsidies is one of the most effective things that rich countries could do to help the poor.

SURGERY

Plastic surgery, once limited to the middle aged, is now in great demand among people in the U.S. over 65. The number of cosmetic surgeries for U.S. senior citizens jumped from 121,000 in 1997 to 425,000 last year.

TRENDS

After blanketing every conceivable surface with logos and brand names, the advertising industry has come up with its most infantile marketing idea yet, ads on baby carriages. A Danish company is offering free baby buggies to parents--but there's a catch; The carriages are emblazoned with ads for a bank, TV station or other corporate sponsor. Hundreds of Danish parents are lining up for the chance to turn their newborns into rolling, gurgling billboards. Advertisers pay $750 to put their name on a carriage for up to 2 1\2 years.

MEXICO

For years, Mexico slumbered while Hollywood scoured the rest of the world, particularly Canada, for inexpensive places to shoot, seeking low-cost labour and government handouts. After watching U.S. studios spend an estimated US$10-billion a year filming abroad, Mexico is getting some of the business. So far Mexico has landed everything from $100,000 commercials to $135 million blockbusters. As many as 395 foreign film, TV and video projects were registered in Mexico last year, compared to 58 in 1995.

GECKOS

The gecko's climbing ability has inspired engineers to make a new dry adhesive which works under water and in outer space. The lizard can race up a polished glass wall and support their entire weight with a single toe. Scientists have now unlocked their sticky molecular secrets and opened the door for engineers to make synthetic gecko adhesive.

DRUGS

Counterfeit drugs range from 5 to 7 per cent of medicines worldwide and may be as high as 25 per cent in Latin America and 60 per cent in Africa.

ONLINE

The US Commerce Department reports that sales at US online retailers grew by 3.7 per cent in the second quarter of 2002 to $10.24-billion. However, online retailing still makes up only a tiny fraction of overall retail sales. The figures are based on a survey of 11,000 retailers but does not include common online services like airline and concert tickets.

TRIVIA

Lithuania has launched a novel program to deal with a shortage of traffic police. It has cut new ones out of cardboard and propped them up on the side of streets to scare motorists into slowing down. About 300 of the cardboard police have been placed at road crossings near 90 schools. Lithuania registers among the highest road fatality rates in Europe.

Thank you for reading the A & A Economic News Digest. For more information visit our website www.aacb.com or contact A & A Contract Customs Brokers Ltd. at strehler@aacb.com.

Past issues of the A&A Economic News Digest can be found at http://www.aacb.com/publications/ed/index.asp

September 2002 Economic Digest - Importing and Exporting

September 2002 Edition

 WIND

The University of Washington has designed a spacecraft with a sail propelled by solar winds and has been given a grant by the NASA to develop the idea. The size of the sail's span, as envisioned is 20 miles. The distance that the sail could help a spacecraft to travel would be 50 miles per second or 180,000 miles an hour.

ANDES

Canada and members of the Andean community (Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela) are holding preliminary talks on a proposed free trade agreement. The Andean countries are important commercial partners for Canada. Bilateral trade in 2001 reached C$3.6 billion with Canadian exports totalling C$1.5 billion. Canadian investment in the Andean countries is estimated to be C$11 billion.

WEEDS

Scientists have confirmed what farmers have suspected for years, that genes introduced into plants can migrate to nearby weeds and possibly make them stronger and more resistant to chemicals. Experiments in three U.S. states have shown that sunflowers modified with an artificial gene designed to help ward off pests can spread that ability to wild sunflowers.

SERVICES

Canada has posted its third consecutive increase in the overall trade deficit in international services in 2001. The trade deficit -the difference between services that Canada exports and its payments to foreign suppliers- increased to C$8.4 billion from C$7.4 billion in 2000. Overall exports in services declined 0.9 per cent to C$56.6 billion, the first downturn since 1982. At the same time, payments rose 0.7 per cent to C$65-billion. Trade in services covers transactions in travel, transportation, a range of business and professional services referred to as commercial services, and government services to Canada's trading partners.

BIRTHS

Canadians are pushing the age boundaries upward when starting their families, according to new data on births. In 1983, women in their 30s and older accounted for only 14 per cent of live births to first time mothers. By 1999, this proportion had more than doubled to 32 per cent. The story was similar for the fathers of babies born to first time mothers. In 1983, men in their 30s and older fathered 32 per cent of the babies of first time mothers. By 1999, that had risen to 51 per cent.

ORDERS

Canadians more than doubled their purchases of goods and services on line from home in 2000, according to the second annual snapshot of household electronic commerce activity from a Statscan survey. From January to December 2000, an estimated 1.5 million households placed 9.1 million orders over the Internet, spending an estimated C$1.1 billion. This compares with spending of about C$417 million for 3.3 million orders placed by an estimated 806,000 households during the previous survey period from December 1998 to November 1999. Despite the substantial increase in household e commerce, the value of orders placed over the Internet constituted a fraction of the C$591 billion in total personal expenditure in Canada in 2000.

COOLING

Summer in Japan is always hot and in Tokyo, almost unbearable. There is little greenery and concrete reflects heat while air conditioning units blast hot air out into the street. Now, a plan is being considered to cool Tokyo by pumping seawater around the city through underground pipes. The proposal, costing an estimated US$500-million, would take cold water from Tokyo bay, pump it under the centre of the city while heated water is pumped back into the sea.

CARP

A Canada-U.S. commission on shared waterways is calling on both countries to help avert a serious threat to boundary waters posed by Asian Carp. The fish were imported into the Southern U.S. in the late 1970s because they eat unwanted algae and snails in ponds. They have escaped into the Mississippi watershed and are moving north. Experts say they have the potential to seriously damage or destroy the Great Lakes ecosystem.

ICE CREAM

Canadian scientists have discovered that adding wheat proteins to ice cream improves it by giving it a smoother, creamier texture and a longer shelf life. This is achieved by adding protein extracted from winter wheat, a crop planted in the fall which has the ability to survive over the winter. This research may have applications for other frozen foods.

WORDS

Japan has a long tradition of adapting words from foreign languages, but many imported words transcribe badly into Japanese because Japanese has a limited range of sounds. The government has now convened a panel of experts to devise native words to replace imported English terms which many Japanese find incomprehensible and unpronounceable.

TRENDS

Consumer groups say the VCR could be obsolete in three years based on current sales of DVD players which have grown faster than any other consumer electronic product in history.Sales of DVD home theatre systems in the US ballooned 230 per cent in 2001 over 2000. And sales are up 987 per cent so far in 2002. By contrast, VCR sales have dropped 40 per cent in the same period. Sales trends are similar in Canada.

DEVELOPMENT

In the 1960s, Asia's income per head was less than that of Africa. Now, Asia's per capita GDP is double that of Africa. Asia, which has 3.3 billion people, half the world's population, is also home to a disproportionate share of its poor. But Asia's poverty rate is falling; from 65 per cent in 1960 to 17 per cent in 2000. In fact mortality is down from 141 per 1,000 live births in 1960 to 48 in 2000 and life expectancy is up from 41 years to 67 over the same period.

VANILLA

Tropical storms in 2000 and 2001 badly damaged Madagascar's valuable vanilla production. With the current political turmoil in the country, the industry's problems are worsening.The best-quality vanilla pods can fetch thousands of dollars a kilo, but more typically sells for around US$200 a kilo, five times the level before storms ravaged crops and stocks. As prices have risen, manufacturers have turned to cheaper vanilla flavours that are produced artificially.

TECHNOLOGY

An intelligent wine glass that calls over the waiter when it needs refilling could soon be revolutionising restaurants and bars. Each glass is tagged by a microchip linked to a thin radio-frequency coil inside its base. The glass acts like a capacitor, with the drink serving as an insulator and the sides and base as conducting plates. When the level in the glass drops, a message containing the glass's unique identification code is sent to the waiter or to a display behind the bar.

QUOTAS

The total value of the milk quota in Canada is now about C$20-billion. This means the cost to buy the quota controlled by the average farm is worth just over C$1-million. There are about 1.14 million cows in the country meaning the value of quota per cow is about C$17,500, about seven times more than the cow would cost at auction.

ONIONS

Britain has introduced a new variety of onion that does not make the eyes water or leave a lingering odour on the breath. The Supasweet onion is sweeter and milder, has a crunchy texture and can even be eaten like an apple. The launch comes after Britain bred and tested hundred of types of onions before coming up with the Supasweet. The onion has been bred to thrive in that country's climate. Britain currently imports 20 per cent of the 100,000 tonnes of onions eaten each year.

INDIA

This country hopes to double trade with Latin America to around US$4-billion within the next three years from a mere US$1.7-billion at present. Recently a meeting was held with foreign ministers from Chile, Columbia and Costa Rica wherein the two sides agreed to enhance cooperation in the information technology sector.

DISPOSABLE

A company is to begin selling no-frills disposable and recyclable cells phones across the United States. The two-way phones are plastic and the size of a deck of playing cards. Users talk and listen to callers via a microphone and ear piece connected by a thin wire. It is planned to sell the phones for US$40 for sixty minutes of talk time. The company plans eventually to expand into other countries.

CHOCOLATE

According to a recent report, an estimated 50,000 children are used as slave labourers on cocoa farms in West Africa. The Confectionary Manufacturers Association of Canada is doing all it can to stop cocoa farmers using child labour. Save the Children operates a transit centre on the border between Mali and the Ivory Coast where some of the children who escape cocoa farms end up. Children are purchased for 40 or 50 dollars by farmers who use them for 12 to 14 hours a day of back-breaking work.

INVESTMENT

Total capital spending in Canada on plant, equipment and housing should surpass C$200-billion in 2002, up sharply from earlier estimates of C$194-billion. This represents a 3 per cent increase from 2001. Housing investment alone is expected to rise 12 per cent to C$48-billion. Capital expenditure by municipalities should reach C$10.7-billion up 26 per cent from 2001.

WEATHER

Warmer winters in Britain will mean 20,000 fewer deaths and cut hospital admissions by two million days as global climate change warms the country. However, summers will become more deadly as a rise in average temperatures will bring more cases of skin cancer, heat stroke and food poisoning.

LABELS

A Washington food industry group is mounting a major campaign to block Oregon from requiring labels on genetically engineered foods. The state will include a measure on its November ballot that would require labelling of all modified food and food additives sold in stores and restaurants.

VACATIONS

Despite growing pressure from government advisory groups and mental health experts, Japanese workers nowadays take just 49.5 per cent of their 18-day annual holiday allowance. This is down from the 61 per cent of vacation days taken in 1980. In contrast, workers in France and Germany take every minute of the six weeks they are allocated. Americans take three-quarters, on average, of their 17 days off.

ROOM WITH A VIEW

A former public toilet with a beautiful view of the beach is the latest example of England's overheated real estate market. The 140-square-foot former men's and woman's washroom overlooks the coast in Dorset. The single story building, now in private hands, has planning permission to be converted into a small chalet with a 10-foot strip of land for a patio. Bids on the property so far have reached US$46,000.

TRIVIA

Hopscotch began in ancient Britain during the early Roman Empire. The original hopscotch courts were over 100-feet long. Roman soldiers ran the course in full armour and field packs and it was thought that Hopscotch would improve their footwork.

Thank you for reading the A & A Economic News Digest. For more information visit our website www.aacb.com or contact A & A Contract Customs Brokers Ltd. at strehler@aacb.com.

Past issues of the A&A Economic News Digest can be found at http://www.aacb.com/publications/ed/index.asp

August 2002 Economic Digest - Importing and Exporting

August 2002 Edition

COFFEE

 
Officials in Colombia say that coffee producers are facing a crisis that will affect 25 million families worldwide. In 1997, consumers around the world spent US$30-billion on coffee, of which producers received US$12-billion, or 40 per cent. This year, consumers will spend a predicted US$60-billion, but coffee growers will only receive US$5.5-billion, slightly less than 10 per cent. Earlier in the year, Colombian coffee prices were at their lowest in 100 years.

ENERGY

Britain's first cowpat-fired power station will begin producing electricity within a month. The plant will use 146,000 tonnes of liquid slurry a year. As well as generating an estimated 1.4 megawatts, the plant will provide hot water to heat local public buildings. Twenty-seven farmers have signed up to supply 450 tonnes of liquid slurry a day. It will be heated to encourage gas-producing bacteria and the residue returned to farmers as concentrated organic fertilizer. It is hoped to establish 100 such plants across Britain.

NAKED

Animal rights campaigners are angered by a new breed of "naked" chicken created by scientists searching for tastier, healthier poultry. Despite it's bizarre appearance, the red skinned broiler could become a supermarket success because it is designed to grow faster, and contain less fat than normal chickens. It will also be cheaper to produce since its lack of feathers means there is no reason to pluck it before it hits the shelves.

LABOUR

The economic rebound could create a shortage of skilled labour in Ontario's information technology (IT) sector this year. A recent study suggests that as many as 38,000 new IT jobs will be added in 2002. Of those, as many as 9,900 could go unfilled because of a shortage of qualified workers.

PIRATES

Attacks by pirates surged worldwide in the first three months of 2002, with Africa rivalling Southeast Asia for the first time as a high-risk region. Indonesian waters remained the world's most pirate-infested, with 22 of 87 attacks reported in this period. But African countries had 32 attacks. Guinea, the Ivory Coast, Nigeria, Somalia, Tanzania and the Red Sea were the worst-hit areas. The global figure was up 28 per cent from the 68 actual and attempted attacks in the same period last year.

SHOPPING

An ACNielson study says that US consumers are shopping less frequently in traditional grocery stores while increasing their trips to supercentres and dollar stores. These are showing gains both in percentage of households who shop in those channels and in the number of trips consumers take to them each year.

BIOENGINEERING

A new study says that U.S. farmers are getting major benefits, both actual and potential, from bioengineered crops. In 2001, the eight modified plants that have been adopted by U.S. farmers--the most biotech receptive farmers in the world--increased production by 1.8 billion kilograms, saved US$1.2 billion in production costs and decreased pesticide use by about 21 million kilograms.

INTERNET

A recent Statistics Canada report says that almost a quarter million Canadian homes have dropped off the Internet. A little more than 232,000 Canadian households that had used Internet regularly, said they no longer did so. The most common reason given for dropping out of the on-line community was that people found they had "no need" for the Internet, a factor cited by 30 per cent of respondents. The results may also indicate lack of time for on-line activity or difficulty finding what they were searching for.

CRUSTS

In what is being billed as a time-saver for parents too busy to slice the crusts off their children's sandwiches, a U.S. food retailer has launched a line of crustless bread. The innovation is the latest in a string of food-marketing ploys designed to appease the fussy palates of children who obviously hold considerable sway over their parents' purchasing decisions. In past months the market has welcomed such kid-friendly products as sliced peanut butter, blue-coloured french fries and squeezable ketchup in purple, green, pink and orange.

CRIME

A new British study claims that feeding young prisoners cabbages, carrots and other fresh vegetables can help reduce the number of offenses they commit by more than a quarter. By adding vitamins, minerals and other nutritional elements, their anti-social behaviour was remarkably reduced. Researchers believe the findings might help prevent crime.

SCANNING

Canada's top retail groups are banding together to ensure that consumers are compensated when they catch an error at checkout price scanners. The groups are to unveil a code of conduct putting the onus on retailers to give shoppers money back if mistakes are made by scanners. A federal study of 83 stores across Canada, showed that some retailers were overcharging customers ten per cent of the time.

SINKING

A team of British experts has been called in to try and save Venice suffering increasing inundation from flooding. A controversial plan to build a Thames barrier-type structure with 79 gates, each weighing 300 tonnes, has been approved. Once built, the barrier will be raised when a high tide threatens to engulf the city. Last year, St. Mark's Square flooded more than 90 times. The population of the old city has halved to 70,000 in the last 50 years and the numbers continue to fall.

CHINA

A report by the World Trade Organization indicates that China has, for the first time, overtaken Canada to become the world's fourth largest trading economy after the European Union, the U.S. and Japan. China's exports reached US$266 billion in 2001, up 7 per cent from the previous year, while its imports rose 8 per cent year-on-year to reach US$244 billion.

WARMING

Over the last 50 years, a glacier on Everest has retreated three miles up the mountain due to global warming. A United Nations team has reported that the impact of rising temperatures was everywhere to be seen. The landscape bears the scars of sudden glacial retreat while glacial lakes are swollen by melted ice. The team reported that more than 40 Himalayan glacial lakes are dangerously close to bursting, threatening the lives of thousands of people.

BRITAIN

British cheese has suddenly become a fashionable delicacy for the Japanese and contributed to a ten per cent increase in British exports to Japan last year. Japan now features in the top ten list of buyers of British produce. It spent over half a billion Canadian dollars last year, 20 per cent of that on cheese. The total value of British food sold abroad was over C$17 billion.

AUTOS

Industry experts are forecasting that auto makers in North America will come out with 250 new or redesigned vehicles by 2007, a staggering number that represents almost a complete overhaul of everything they sell now. They will offer 100 new models and more than 150 redesigned vehicles resulting from the competitive pressure of the industry.

GROWING

It looks like a North Atlantic salmon but grows seven times faster and it's much more attractive to the opposite sex than a normal salmon. It's a transgenic fish, the first genetically engineered animal under review for the U.S. food supply. Embedded in every cell of its body are genes from the Chinook salmon that make it grow more quickly.

GRASS

The Public Utilities Commission in San Francisco has hired a herd of 400 goats to eat dense brush and weeds from the slopes of its rights-of-way. The animals are rented from Goats-R-Us and consume about an acre a day.

RADIO

Radio is making a comeback in Canada after several difficult years in the late 1980s and most of the 1990s, thanks mainly to FM broadcasting. The industry's profits represented 16.3 per cent of revenues in 2001, up from 13.6 per cent in 1998. The FM segment is one of the most profitable in broadcasting. The profit margin of FM stations has surpassed 25 per cent for the past three years, while AM stations have incurred losses. In 2001, 64 per cent of FM stations realized a profit, compared with only 41 per cent of AM stations.

FRUSTRATION

A Nova Scotia inventor claims to have the answer to what he believes to be one of life's greatest frustrations--waiting in a coffee shop lineup. He has been awarded a provisional patent on an automated coffee-refill system, in which customers are issued reusable mugs with personalized barcodes detailing their favourite type of coffee. A computer scans the barcode and tells the machine what sort of coffee to pour.

SUPPORT

The Canadian Agriculture Minister has announced that Canada will spend $175-million over the next six years to increase export markets for agricultural products. This will approximately double the amount the federal government normally spends to support Canadian agricultural products. The announcement was made the day after the World Trade Organization ruled that Canada's subsidies for some dairy products violate international trade rules.

GAINS

Because of the slumping economy and sagging stock markets, millionaires and billionaires had a hard time making money last year. Millionaires in North America, including about 165,000 in Canada, saw their total assets grow a mere 1.7 per cent last year to US$7.6-trillion. By contrast, the value of millionaires' assets jumped 18 per cent between 1999 and 2000.

TASTE

With little left in the ocean to catch, the fishing industry in Gloucester, Mass., has found a new commodity to market; the slime eel, which feeds off dead and dying fish. Fisheries are now selling seven million pounds a year of the pinkish-grey eels to South Korea. The South Koreans say the eels taste like clams.

TRENDS

A hard hat for building workers that allows employers to see what they are doing is now on trial on British construction sites. The "hatcam" is fitted with a camera and radio transmitter.

PRESCRIPTIONS

New data shows that Canadians spend an average of $500 each on drugs annually. All told, Canadians spent an estimated $15.5 billion on prescriptions and over-the-counter medications last year. In 1985, Canadians spent $3.8 billion on drugs. They now spend more than four times as much.

MISSING

The Bank of England has suspended issuing its new five-pound note after tests unveiled an apparent printing fault that allows the serial number to be rubbed of in some cases. 10 million of the new notes have been distributed. About 200 million of the old five-pound notes are in circulation.

TRIVIA

There are 21 amusement parks in Canada. They have an annual attendance of 12.6 million and revenues of C$336 million.

Thank you for reading the A & A Economic News Digest. For more information visit our website www.aacb.com or contact A & A Contract Customs Brokers Ltd. at strehler@aacb.com.

Past issues of the A&A Economic News Digest can be found at http://www.aacb.com/publications/ed/index.asp

July 2002 Economic Digest - Importing and Exporting

July 2002 Edition

ANNIVERSARY

With this issue of the Economic Digest, we complete ten years of publication. Originally designed as a hard copy to be read with a cup of coffee and passed on, the majority of copies are now distributed electronically. We have published 120 editions, with 2,400 separate items and 210,000 words proving that almost anything has an economic impact to someone, somewhere. As the world of economics has moved along, so has A&A Contract Customs Brokers. Ten years ago, we were a mid-sized western customs broker with a staff of around 50 in five locations in the Lower Mainland of British Columbia concentrating on brokerage. Now, we have a staff of 120 and branches in Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, Washington State and Pennsylvania. We have also added freight forwarding and warehousing to the services we offer clients. It will be interesting to see what the next ten years will bring.

ECONOMIES

If the Pacific NorthWest Economic Region were a nation, it would rank 11th among the world's leading industrial economies, with a combined population of more than 18 million and an annual gross regional product of over US$350 billion.

SPENDING

Canadian households spent an average of $55,830 in 2000 on everything from shelter to travel, allocating more to vehicle purchases and energy costs than in previous years. On average, households spent about 4 per cent more in 2000, a year of strong economic growth. Personal taxes accounted for an estimated 22 per cent of the household budget, shelter costs claimed about 19 per cent, and food, 11 per cent. These proportions were virtually unchanged from 1999. Transportation took up 14 per cent of the household budget, continuing the slight increase seen in 1999.

PORK

One of the most significant increases shown by the recent Canadian agricultural census was a 26 per cent jump in hog numbers since 1996, while the number of farms reporting hogs fell by nearly 27 per cent. International demand, particularly from the U.S. and Japan as well as new markets such as Mexico, was partly responsible for the increase. A number of tariff reductions, combined with the relatively low Canadian dollar and plentiful supplies of feed grain, have made Canadian pork increasingly attractive to international markets.

LAWN

Though not yet ready commercially, genetically altered grass is being developed which will inch up more slowly than regular grass so it requires less cutting and watering.

FUNDS

British Columbia is about to get C$12 million in federal money to organize and innovate business in the province. C$5.4 million will go to developing a single identification number for firms to deal with a range of federal and provincial government departments. This is considered a key to cutting through a lot of regulatory red tape to get access to services quickly. Another C$5.6 million will be put into an innovation investment program to help diversify B.C.'s economy.

FRUIT

Grapes, a relatively small commodity in terms of area farmed, have made a large impact since the industry was transformed by the Canada United States FTA in 1988. Since 1996, grape area has increased 41 per cent, the largest relative increase in area of the top five fruits grown in Canada.

TRIVIA

The London Observer reports that the Arctic ice cover is shrinking by an area the size of the Netherlands every year.

FEES

The costs of legal work by private firms for the Canadian government have increased on average 15 per cent per year over the past three years. Last year, the fees were a record C$63 million. The largest fee was C$10.9 million to a U.S. law firm mostly to act on its behalf in the battle over softwood lumber. Most of the increases are for legal work on international trade disputes for the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade. That ministry paid out C$13.7 million for legal representation, more than triple the C$4 million the previous year.

WASTE

As consumers acquire new models, old cellphones are making their way into incinerators and landfills. According to a new study, toxicants from the devices, such as lead and arsenic, become airborne or leach into the soil and groundwater. By 2005, as many as 130 million still-functioning cellphones could be heading for the garbage, representing 65,000 tons of hazardous waste each year.

FLOATING

Dangerous marine organisms are hitching rides across the world's oceans on an ever expanding flotilla of trash. Barnacles, worms, mollusca and other organisms previously limited to logs or ships or coconuts now have more travel opportunities than ever. Plastic has proved especially attractive because it is easy to grip, it doesn't rot and it moves more slowly than a ship.

CHECKOUT

Units of self-checkout equipment to retail grocery stores in the U.S. increased 142 per cent in 2001. This market should crack $1-billion in annual sales by 2003. Now that consumers are accepting it, twenty-five per cent of U.S. grocery retailers have self-checkout equipment installed.

FILMS

A recent study confirms that business is booming in Hollywood North. The amount of money spent to produce films in the U.S. dropped 17 per cent from 1998 to 2001. Meanwhile, the amount spent on production in Canada grew by 144 per cent. About US$750 million was spent last year in Canada to produce 29 films with budgets from $10- million to $50-million. In 1998, US$309-million was spent in Canada to produce 15 films in the same range.

SHEEP

Australian scientists have developed a hands-free way to harvest sheep. Instead of shearing sheep with instruments, farmers inject the animals with a naturally-occurring protein that causes a break in the wool. Farmers attach a net to their sheep and about a week later, they have a net full of fleece, and nearly-bald sheep. This has already been used on a quarter of a million Australian sheep. The Australian wool export industry is worth US$2.3-billion a year.

MAGAZINES

Reader's Digest is still the most widely read English-language magazine in Canada with eight million readers. Canadian Geographic is the nearest competitor with around five million readers. A recent study indicates that the readership of business magazines has dropped across the board.

WASTE

An ocean advocacy group describes the growing cruise industry as a floating environmental menace, with luxury ships free to dump millions of gallons of untreated waste and toxic chemicals into the oceans. The industry generates more than 400 million pounds of waste annually. Some larger cruise ships produce 37,000 gallons of oily bilge daily, 30,000 gallons of sewage, 255,000 gallons of wastewater from showers and sinks and 15 gallons of toxic chemicals from dry cleaning and photo processing.

TAMPERING

The USDA has prepared six pages of food safety guidelines telling plants how they should manage their security, production, workers, transportation and storage. The department is urging U.S. meat, poultry and egg plants to seal shipments and take other steps to protect the food supply from deliberate contamination.

MEXICO

This year, Mexico holds the rotating presidency of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation trade group (APEC) and hopes to become a bridge for trade between Asia and the west. The free trade agreements Mexico has signed with 32 countries, make it the common element linking the leading markets in Europe and North America. The APEC region is the world's most dynamic and fastest growing and is home to half the world's total trade and production.

DEATHS

The International Labour Organization (ILO), reports that two million workers die each year because of accidents and illness in the workplace where they are exposed to hazards including chemicals, stress and passive smoking. The annual toll includes 12,000 children according to the report.

GREAT LAKES

Delegates to a National Marine Conference have been urged to explore new concepts of transportation to boost traffic on the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway system. Several proposals have been advanced which would also help relieve road congestion and protect the North American environment. These include the development of trans-Lake or inter-Lake roll-on-roll-off and ferry systems. In Europe and Japan such truck/trailer ferry systems are common and economically sound.

EXPANSION

The Wall Street Journal reports that the McDonald's Corp is exploring how to use its restaurant locations to sell items other than food. The company is about two years away from any sort of launch, but will be trying several experiments. There is little space to display merchandise or to store inventory. Clothes are probably out because of the odours from the food but some speculate that items such as stamps, videos and even watches are being considered.

FISHING

The headquarters of the European Union has announced plans for a radical overhaul of Europe's fishing industry. It calls for cuts of up to 60 per cent of its fishing fleets despite tough opposition from member nations. The plan would result in the withdrawal of some 8,600 boats from Europe's main fishing areas. New rules also propose changes in the shape and size of nets to prevent landings of small fish.

CASINOS

Israel has approved specially fitted planes that will give gamblers a four-hour flight. By leaving Israeli airspace, the planes will get around Israel's gambling ban. The service will start in 2003 and will be run by an airline from Iceland with three flights a day. The project is expected to generate about US$50-million a year in revenue for Israel.

READING

English research shows that newspapers have taken over from the novel as the most popular form of reading matter. On average, people devote 17 minutes a day to the press, compared with only 11 minutes reading fiction. Magazines follow closely attracting on average five minutes' reading time each day. Two minutes are spent on reference books. The study shows that people spend six hours a week reading compared with 23.5 hours a week watching television.

ORGANIC

A U.S. consumer group claims that nearly a quarter of organic fruits and vegetables contain pesticides. Organic crops are a small percentage of the North American market, less than five per cent, but the industry is growing rapidly. Sales of organic food are expected to grow by 20 to 30 per cent this year.

CUSTARD

A recent science festival was told that spraying ironing starch over a bowl of custard dramatically improves its flavour and texture. Also, non-perfumed starches makes sauces and purees richer without adding calories.

Thank you for reading the A & A Economic News Digest. For more information visit our website www.aacb.com or contact A & A Contract Customs Brokers Ltd. at strehler@aacb.com.

Past issues of the A&A Economic News Digest can be found at http://www.aacb.com/publications/ed/index.asp

June 2002 Economic Digest - Importing and Exporting

June 2002 Edition

WATER

 
The volume of bottled water sold in the U.S. swelled to more than 5.4 billion gallons in 2001. This is an increase of 10.6 per cent over 2000. Wholesale dollars increased even more dramatically, advancing by 11.5 per cent to nearly US$6.5 billion in 2001. One year earlier, sales grew by 9.3 per cent, down from 13.9 per cent in 1999. In 1991, the U.S. absorbed the equivalent of 9.3 gallons for each resident. By 2001, per capita water consumption approached 20 gallons.

INFORMATION

A fraud expert wanted to find out just how long it takes for stolen credit card details to find their way around the world. He posted fake credit card data online and put links to the information in a few Internet chat rooms. Within 15 minutes, 74 people in 31 countries seeking credit card information had viewed the page. After one weekend, more than 1,600 potential thieves from 71 countries had viewed the page

MARKETS

The European Union is planning to open trade talks with its former colonies later this year. The aim of the negotiations, with 76 African, Caribbean and Pacific nations, is to bring the existing US$12.7 billion aid-and-trade pact in line with world trade rules. The European countries have for years allowed preferential trade terms for their former colonies. About 40 ACP countries are among the world's poorest and are expected to keep some barriers to protect their fledgling industries from global competition.

TEXTILES

China, the world's largest textile exporter, is aiming to become one of the strongest players in the industry. One group is planning to invest US$117 million in Thailand to build four factories. These will consist of a cotton yarn mill, a spinning mill, a household textile plant and a citric acid unit. Most of the output will be exported. Up to now, China's textile industry lagged behind those in Italy and France, leaders in production technology.

SPACE

U.S. businesses vacated 26.4 million square feet of office space in the first quarter. This so-called negative absorbtion, coupled with 13.5 million square feet of new development, pushed the national vacancy rate up to 14.7 per cent from 13.6 per cent at the end of 2001. The current vacancy rate is the highest since the end of 1994.

JAMMING

A priest in Spain has installed a jamming device in his church to counter the beeps, tunes and digital noise emitted by today's omnipresent cell phones. The device transmits a low-powered radio signal that severs communications between cellular handsets and cellular based systems. Commercial jamming systems are illegal in the U.S., Canada and Britain.

CHIPS

A fall in demand for semiconductors in the past year has left idle 30 per cent of Taiwan's silicon wafer-making capacity, representing about US$10 billion in investment. Meanwhile, China's market for chips is predicted to be worth around US$15 billion this year, growing to $41 billion by 2005. About 95 per cent of this demand has to be met with imports. Officials in Beijing are almost begging Taiwanese semiconductor manufacturers to set up in China.

MUSIC

Global sales of recorded music fell five per cent to US$33.7 billion in 2001 because of a sluggish world economy and increased consumer piracy. CD sales fell by four per cent to 2.4 billion units while sales of singles fell by 16 per cent. Sales in North America, the largest market, fell by 4.7 per cent to US$14 billion. Europe declined by 0.8 per cent while sales in Japan, the second-largest national market fell by 9.4 per cent. Two markets that bucked the downward trend were the U.K. and France.

VEHICLES

A total of 18.1 million road motor vehicles were registered in Canada in 2001. Of this total, 17.1 million, or 94%, were passenger cars and light vehicles such as pickup trucks and minivans. The remainder consisted of 74,000 buses, 318,300 motorcycles and mopeds, and almost 654,500 truck tractors and trucks (weighing at least 4,500 kilograms). In addition to these road motor vehicles, 4.0 million trailers and 1.3 million off road, construction and farm vehicles were also registered.

EDUCATION

Garbage trucks in the south Taiwan city of Tainan will soon broadcast English lessons from loudspeakers to educate citizens as they haul away the rubbish. The English-speaking trucks are scheduled to hit the streets later this year. Currently, Taiwan's garbage trucks call people out to the curb with their rubbish by playing classical music.

SENIORS

According to Statistics Canada, one out of every 13 seniors aged 65 and over was still at work according to the 1996 Census, a ratio that is likely to increase as the 9.8 million baby boomers in Canada get closer to retirement age. An estimated 255,200 seniors aged 65 and over were employed in 1996, and an additional 15,700 reported being unemployed, for a total labour force of 271,000. The majority (68 per cent) of people employed in this age group were men, even though they accounted for only 43 per cent of the population aged 65 and over.

CALIFORNIA

If California was an independent country, it would have the world's fifth-biggest economy, with a gross state product in 2000 of $1.3 trillion. Last year, 140 million tonnes were loaded on and off ships at Long Beach-Los Angeles, the largest port in the U.S., and a further 20 million tonnes at Oakland.

GLASS

Canadian greenhouse expansion has become a success story, and a full 18 square kilometres in Canada, most of it in southwestern Ontario, is now under some sort of cover. This is more than double the area in 1991. Since 1996, B.C.'s hothouse industry put another 1.7 million square metres of land under glass, enough to cover 210 football fields. This has been driven by demand for B.C. tomatoes, bell peppers and cucumbers.

FRUIT

Grapes, a relatively small commodity in terms of area, have made a large impact since the industry was transformed by the Canada United States FTA in 1988. Since 1996, grape area has increased 41 per cent, the largest relative increase in area of the top five fruits grown in Canada.

TREES

China is embarking on a US$10 billion, 10-year program to plant 170,000 square miles of trees, an area roughly the size of California. This is needed after decades of logging that has left large swatches of the country looking like a desert wasteland. Only a few per cent of the country's original forests still stand. One problem facing the government is finding enough trees even though China has a thriving tree-farming industry.

EXPORTERS

The top merchandise exporters in 2001 were, in US dollars: the United States, $725 billion; Germany, $560 billion; Japan, $400 billion; France, $300 billion and Britain, $275 billion. Canada was seventh, behind China with $260 billion.

BUMPS

The British government is to introduce new speed restrictions in poor neighbourhoods after research showed that children living there were five times more likely to be hit by a car than those in affluent areas. Drivers will be forced to slow down by road bumps, chicanes and other forms of speed reduction. Research also showed that introducing and enforcing a 20mph zone reduced the child casualty rate by 70 per cent.

ART

More than 60 major works of art worth over US$1.5 billion have been destroyed in Europe. The paintings were cut into pieces and then put through a sink disposal unit along with potato peelings. They were trashed by the mother of a major art thief who was angry that her son had been arrested.

CARROTS

Experts believe that Dutch breeders developed the orange carrot in the 16th century using a yellow mutant seed. As long ago as 2000BC, temple drawings in Egypt show carrots to be purple. In Roman times, they were purple or white. By the 10th century, purple carrots were grown in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iran. Purple, white and yellow carrots were imported to southern Europe in the 14th century. Dutch breeders have recently studied the health qualities of purple carrots and believe they give extra protection against various forms of cancer and heart disease.

RAIL

Work has begun on a rail link between Alice Springs and Darwin in Australia's Northern Territory. The US$700 million project will establish an important new transport corridor serving both domestic and international markets. This project has been in the planning stage for more than a century. It will create a link between Asia and the southern markets of Australia. Each train will be 1.6 kilometres long and carry 250 double-stacked containers. Australia does about US$200 billion in trade with Asia annually

BORDERS

The economies of Alberta and B.C. are drifting further away from Saskatchewan and Manitoba, and forging stronger links with the U.S. Pacific Northwest. The Canada West Foundation released a study recently on how the four western provinces as a whole have fewer economic ties with Central and Atlantic Canada than in the past. Whether it's oil, lumber, natural gas, wheat, beef or hogs, the West's top customers are in the U.S.

SPENDING

According to CPG Online, consumer packaged goods (CPG) companies, which are among the world's leading advertisers in terms of both budgets and marketing expertise, account for a remarkably small portion of overall internet advertising. CPG companies spent US$12.4 billion across all measured media in 2000 and $11.9 billion in 2001. However, it is estimated that CPG companies spent just US$134 million on online advertising in 2000.

GOLD

In the first quarter of this year gold imports to Japan rose almost six-fold over a year earlier to some 41,000 kilos. People are walking into precious metals dealers with wads of cash and walking out with gold bars. Gold has become a safe haven for investors who are concerned about Japan's economy. Gold futures are doing brisk business and trading volumes so far this year are three times greater than last year.

TAXES

The U.S. is reported to be upset at the news that the European Union plans to introduce a new tax on products downloaded from the Internet--including software, videos and music. This is being done to help Europe's web-based business compete with the U.S. The U.S. giants of the industry levy no taxes from online customers which gives a tax loophole to European buyers who find cheaper-priced goods on U.S.-based sites.

ADDICTION

A man in England addicted to munching his way through 50 ballpoint pens a week has been cured through hypnotherapy. He began spending $100 a month on his habit after he was banned from using pens at work because none of his colleagues could find anything to write with. He has been chewing pens for about five years but it started to get worse when he was stressed.

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May 2002 Economic Digest - Importing and Exporting

May 2002 Edition

RECOVERY

 
The World Bank is expecting recovery in the developing world to be led by East Asia, which is forecast to grow by 5.2 per cent in 2002 and by 6.9 per cent in 2003. By contrast, it expects Latin America and the Caribbean to grow by only 0.5 per cent this year. The Middle East and Africa will be the slowest-growing developing regions in 2003 and 2004.

SPAM

The company that manufactures the infamous luncheon meat expects to make their 6 billionth can of Spam in April. Worldwide, 3.1 cans of Spam are consumed every second. In the U.S., more Spam is eaten in Hawaii than in any other state, about 4.3 cans per resident per year. Other states with big Spam consumption are Alaska, Arkansas, Texas and Alabama. In England, Spam has a 2,000 member Spam fan club. The name Spam is registered in 111 countries.

AGE

The world's oldest known photograph--a French picture photographed in 1825--was recently sold to France's national library for US$625,000. The picture, a facsimile of a 17th century Flemish print, would have sold for more but the market was restricted by a French government order making it a national treasure which required it to stay in France.

TECHNOLOGY

The world's first talking washing machine is about to go on sale in India developed for the growing middle class who are no longer able to afford servants. Equipped with a vocabulary of more than 90 English and Hindi phrases, the Electrolux Kelvinator was developed after Indian customers said they wanted a washer that told them what to do. It uses simple phrases such as "Drop the detergent, close the lid and relax" and "Getting ready--please wait" accompanied by tinkling piano keys or a trumpet fanfare.

FILMS

Led by revenues from foreign movies, film distributors and videocassette wholesalers posted a record C$2.5 billion in total revenue in 1999/2000, easily eclipsing the C$2.3 billion mark reached in 1998/99. Revenue growth of 20.7 per cent in the pay television market and 14.0 per cent in the home video market contributed significantly to the record total. But with expenses growing faster than revenues, profits fell for the second year in a row, ( 17.6 per cent to C$271.5 million).

SELECTION

Scientists think they have figured out what goes on in the brain when a shopper browsing decides to buy something. The minds "shopping centre" --the part that becomes active when we select one brand of cola or ketchup over another--has been pinpointed in the right parietal cortex, a region of the brain just above and at the back of the right ear. In the not-too-distant-future, manufacturers of cereals, soft drinks and ketchup could be screening customers' brains to find out why one brand sells better than another.

EDUCATION

Among the Masai in Africa, the brightest children are sent off with the goats. School is for those less smart. The Masai contend that it takes brains to identify each animal, find water and ward off rustlers. Herders rely on their children's labour, so many feel that time spent with books is wasted. Barely one Masai in ten can read.

TRADE

Despite having signed a trade agreement with the U.S. in 2000, Vietnam's trade with China is growing faster than with any other country. Official trade has grown from US$955 million in 1998 to US$3 billion in 2001. In the north of the country, many Chinese goods are smuggled across the border into Vietnam including: knock-off clothes, complete with "Made in Italy" labels, cooking pots, suitcases, car parts, stationery, toys, mobile phones, plastic plants and even foods.

E-COMMERCE

Business-to-business transactions dominated U.S. electronic commerce in 2000 according to the Census Bureau. Such sales make up 94 per cent of e-commerce transactions. The manufacturing industry led all sectors surveyed with total e-commerce shipments of US$777 billion. Results came from surveys covering a total of 125,000 businesses in the manufacturing, wholesale, services and retail sectors.

WATER

The United Nations is warning that 2.7 billion people will face severe water shortages by the year 2025 if the world continues consuming water at the same rate. Another 2.5 billion people will live in areas where it will be difficult to find sufficient fresh water to meet their needs. The areas most at risk are in the semi-arid regions of sub-Saharan Africa and Asia. However, at least 120 million people living in Europe--one in seven of the population--still do not have access to clean water and sanitation.

LABELS

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has said that companies must do more testing before they label food as free of genetically engineered ingredients. Critics of biotechnology pressed the previous administration to label gene-altered ingredients as such, but the FDA instead has proposed the labelling rules for foods that are biotech free. The agency would likely allow genetically modified ingredients to make up no more than about one per cent of officially biotech-free foods.

CITIES

According to a recent Merrill Lynch of New York survey, Toronto and Calgary are the only healthy office markets in North America. And Montreal and Vancouver are two of only seven North American cities or markets that the financial management company considers to be stable. The study showed that the four Canadian cities are in far better shape than their U.S. counterparts. The study looked at 75 markets in 40 U.S. cities and four Canadian cities.

PRIVATIZATION

Two of Russia's top oil companies, a telecommunications giant and a major airline are among the hundreds of companies that the Russian government is planning to sell its stakes in this year. The privatization plan includes over 600 agricultural, defense, automobile enterprises, mass media companies and banks.

MEASUREMENTS

Britain's euro-sceptics are incensed that the European Union plans to produce a list of standard garment sizes for the 15-nation community--in metric. There are now various sizing systems in Europe.: a British size 12 equals a size 38 in Germany and the Netherlands, a C38 in Norway, Sweden and Finland, a 40 in Belgium, a 44 in Italy and a 44\46 in Portugal and Spain. In the U.S. this would be a 10. Under the new system 74 centimetres would mean just that from Athens to Zeebrugge. A draft standard will be available at the end of this year.

GROWTH

Scientists have managed to make chunks of fish grow by soaking them in a broth of nutrients. This suggests that meat could be manufactured. Chunks of goldfish muscle grew 14 per cent after a week immersed in a nutrient-enriched liquid extracted from the blood of unborn calves.

EMISSIONS

Sports Utility Vehicles (SUV's) in Canada are to be re-classified as cars in order to lower their emissions. SUV's have evaded the regulations that were put in place for passenger vehicles. By placing SUV's in the same category as cars, manufacturers will be forced to produce vehicles that conform to higher emission standards. New SUV's will emit one-twentieth of the pollution of current models.

CAMERAS

Digital camera penetration of U.S. Internet households reached 33 per cent in 2001. A new survey indicates that penetration could reach as high as 60 per cent by the end of 2002. Only 20 per cent of U.S. Internet-connected households have not considered purchasing a digital camera. 19 per cent of digital camera users say they no longer use film, up from 10 per cent of camera users in 2000.

TRENDS

Employment agencies in Britain have spotted a growing trend for companies to appeal to the vanity of employees by offering them fancy titles--while keeping their pay rates firmly down. The trend is so common it is now referred to as "uptitling." In a survey of 1,700 workers across the country it was found that many large companies have taken to uptitling in a bid to keep staff happy without handing out raises.

JAPAN

A key government panel in Japan has concluded that the country needs to pursue bilateral free-trade agreements to survive increased global competition. Japan has just signed its first FTA with Singapore. The pact removes tariffs on 94 per cent of Singapore's exports to Japan. Singapore in turn will scrap tariffs on goods imported from Japan. Japan is studying similar agreements with South Korea and Mexico.

MAKEOVER

In Britain, Mars bars are to be given a less macho image in a bid to make it more appealing to women. In a US$10 million dollar makeover, the biggest in 70 years, the snack will be given a fluffier filling and new packaging in a bid to boost sales.

DAYLIGHT

Pakistan has become the first South Asian country to observe daylight savings time. The country is now six hours ahead of GMT. The government says the move is an experiment and will save electricity by reducing the time people need lights in the evening.

INVESTMENT

The U.S. is still by far the largest direct investor in Canada, according to statistics Canada. And in turn, the U.S. was the primary destination for Canadian investment abroad. With investments of $215 billion in 2001, the U.S. accounted for 67 per cent of direct investment in Canada, up from 63 per cent in 2000. In contrast, Canadians made 51 per cent of their direct investments abroad--worth a total of $198 billion--in the U.S.

UNFAIR

Japan, the European Union and China came in for the heaviest criticism by the U.S. administration in a report spotlighting trade barriers against U.S. exporters. In all, the report cited 52 countries and three trading blocks. Canada is cited for provincial timber-cutting regimes and the Canadian Wheat Board's export monopoly. The report devotes much more space to Japan, followed by the 15-country European Union and China, which for the past two years has had the largest surplus of trade with the U.S.

LIFESTYLE

According to a book released by a U.S.-based environmental group, British Columbians live longer, consume less energy and live in better-managed cities than their counterparts elsewhere in the Pacific Northwest. Greater Vancouver is doing a better job of containing population sprawl than Seattle or Portland and residents can expect an extra two years to enjoy their surroundings. The study looks at 10 quality of life indicators ranging from health and population to energy consumption and salmon productivity.

WINNING

A Thai street hawker briefly became a winner by answering all 16 straight questions correctly in the Thai version of "Who Wants to be a Millionaire." Organizers apologised when it was learned that a technician had accidentally plugged the wrong cable into the contestant's computer monitor feeding her the correct answers.

Thank you for reading the A & A Economic News Digest. For more information visit our website www.aacb.com or contact A & A Contract Customs Brokers Ltd. at strehler@aacb.com.

Past issues of the A&A Economic News Digest can be found at http://www.aacb.com/publications/ed/index.asp