July 2007 Edition
ILLEGALS
European businesses caught employing illegal immigrants face jail sentences under new proposals from the EU to control immigration. As much as 16 per cent of Europe's business is done off the books. It is estimated that there are about five million illegal immigrants in the EU, a figure increasing by 500,000 every year because of easy access to illegal work.
MANUALS
Luxury-car makers are bulking up the guides that motorist are supposed to check if they wish to understand their new vehicles. The manual and two supplements for the Lexus hybrid runs to 1,097 pages and the manual for the Mercedes-Benz GL is 983 pages. The manual for the Cadillac Escalade is 574 pages. Land Rover instructions are only 265 pages and the BMW gets all the information into 253 pages.
UNIVERSITIES
Unless they improve quality and access, British, French and German universities will be overtaken by those in China and India within a decade. Britain is the second most popular destination for overseas students, second to the U.S., with Oxford and Cambridge in the top ten. Europe has 200 universities in the top 500 but the U.S. has 37 in the top 50. Indian technology is now the third best in the world and China aims to have several top universities by 2015.
OIL
The U.S., the world's largest oil consumer, imports 60 per cent of the oil it consumes, over 95 per cent of which arrives by sea. Japan, the world's third-largest oil consumer, is almost completely dependent on maritime imports. In 2005, China imported 46 per cent of the oil it consumed, India 68 per cent. By 2025, import figures are expected to balloon to 75 per cent of total consumption for China and about 85 per cent for India. Both bring in about 90 per cent of their imported oil by sea.
SERVICES
According to the World Trade Organization, trade in commercial services, measured by adding up exports, rose by 11 per cent in 2006. Trade in goods rose by 15 per cent. India enjoyed the biggest proportionate rise in services exports last year, by 34 per cent to US$73-billion and imports grew to $70-billion. The U.S. topped the imports league with $307-billion as well as that for exports of services, with $387-billion.
ONLINE
Consumers in the U.S. spent more money online for clothes than computers last year, the first time this has happened. A recent report shows that apparel, accessories and footwear sales hit US$18.3-billion in 2006 while computers were $17.2-billion. It is predicted that 10 per cent of all clothing sales will occur online this year. Autos and auto parts sales online were $16.7-billion and home furnishings were $10-billion.
SKILLS
A girl's school in Japan is refusing entry to students who are not expert with chopsticks. Entrants must be able to transfer marbles, beads and beans from one plate to another using chopsticks.
TANKERS
The size and the strength of the global tanker fleet have increased markedly over the last two decades. From 1980 to 2006, the number of tankers grew from 2,516 to more than 10,000, and the average capacity of each tanker increased by 400 per cent, with a disproportionate amount of the new tonnage having been added in recent years. Single-hulled tankers are being phased out in favour of more resilient double-hulled ones.
FACT
Filling the 25-gallon tank of an SUV with pure ethanol requires over 450 pounds of corn, which contains enough calories to feed one person for a year.
TRAINING
The Conference Board of Canada reports that Canadian organizations spend an average of around C$850 per employee on training and educational programs, an amount that has remained constant for a decade. Adjusted for inflation, the figure is 17 per cent less that a decade ago. Last year, the average employee received 25 hours of education and skills development training.
ANTARCTIC
An extraordinarily diverse array of marine life has recently been discovered in the deep, dark waters around Antarctica, Scientists have found more than 700 new species of marine creatures in seas once thought too hostile to sustain such rich biodiversity. Groups of carnivorous sponges, free-swimming worms, crustaceans and molluscs have been collected.
WOMEN
The popularity of chick lit and chick flicks--books and movies aimed at women, may have spawned the marketing world's latest trend: chick food. More than 1,000 new foods and drinks targeting women have hit the global market in the past four years. These are not just diet foods. There are energy bars for women, even one just for pregnant women. There's bread for women, and a tortilla and a tea for women.
IT
Canadian companies plan to boost their spending on information technology by 5.5 per cent this year to C$86.6-billion, led by purchases of computer servers, data storage equipment and software. By 2010, annual spending will reach $100-billion. Business services companies, financial institutions, governments and manufacturers will be the biggest spenders on IT.
WINES
Six American, Australian and European wine regions have joined forces in a growing U.S.-based movement to prevent wine makers from using misleading place labels on their products. The movement, which now includes 13 wine regions, was originally formed in 2005 after the California Supreme Court ruled that a U.S. wine with "Napa" on the label was required to use Napa valley grapes or cease using the name.
FAKE
After tainted Chinese pet food ingredients killed and sickened thousands of dogs and cats in the U.S., China is facing growing international pressure to prove its food exports are safe to eat. There is evidence that China also exported counterfeit drug ingredients that could undermine the credibility of another of its booming exports. At stake for China is more than US$30-billion a year in food and drug exports to Asia, North America and Europe. Recently, Wal-Mart Stores, the largest U.S. retailer, announced a recall of baby bibs made in China after some of them tested for high levels of lead.
LIBRARIES
The Library of Congress of the U.S. in Washington has almost twice as many volumes (29.6-million) as any other library, public or private. But there are impressive collections elsewhere with 85 having more than three million volumes each. The next largest are: Harvard University (15.2 million), Boston Public (14.9 million), Yale University (11.1 million).
ENERGY
The Altamont Pass in California is one of the largest wind-generating areas in the U.S. Oakland leads the country in using renewable energy and now draws 17 per cent of its electricity from renewable sources such as wind, solar and geothermal. California has mandated that by 2020, 20 per cent of utility purchases come from renewable resources. The next biggest renewable resource users are Sacremento, San Francisco and San Jose, followed by Portland, Oregon and Boston.
INDIA
This country currently has 8 per cent growth and a billion-person potential. Experts are assuming an average annual growth of 7.3 per cent over the next two decades and India may overtake Germany as the world's fifth-biggest consumer market by 2025. It is predicted that the middle class will expand from 50 million to 583 million, leaving only a fifth of Indians in the bottom income bracket.
FLIGHTS
The New Scientist reports that between May 1, 2005 and April 30, 2006, the world's airlines logged 3.2-million flights.
SERVICES
According to the World Trade Organization, trade in commercial services, measured by adding up exports, rose by 11 per cent in 2006. Trade in goods rose by 15 per cent. India enjoyed the biggest proportionate rise in services exports last year, by 34 per cent to US$73-billion and imports grew to $70-billion. The U.S. topped the imports league with $307-billion as well as that for exports of services, with $387-billion.
LIGHTING
The value of the global lighting market in 2006 was estimated to be US$102-billion. $30-billion is the estimated energy savings expected from solid-state lighting systems by 2027. Lighting's share of global electricity demand is 25 per cent.
DESIGNS
The value of the Canadian specialized design and landscape architecture industry was C$2.6-billion in 2005, up 5 per cent from the previous year. Operating revenues earned by firms in Western Canada grew at a much higher rate than those in the rest of the country
LAND
The U.S. Embassy in Britain is one of the most prestigious addresses and is about to go on sale with a price tag of around US$180-million. The 133,300 square foot building in Grosvenor Square has 939 years left on a 999 year lease. The sell-off is part of a move to provide staff with more secure premises overseas.
COUNTERFEIT
A new report by the OECD estimates that counterfeit products account for 2.4 per cent of global trade, about US$500-billion annually, more than the GDP of Switzerland.
RUSSIA
A huge appetite for autos has some Russians waiting months to drive a new vehicle off the lot, and when they do, it's likely to be a Ford or a Renault as the country's iconic Lada. Russian auto sales surged 20 per cent in 2006 from the year before, cracking two million for the first time. Strong growth is expected for the next four years with estimates of 3.4-million cars being sold in 2010. Last year, foreign cars made up 57 percent of the new car market.
TRENDS
Old vessels that once hauled cement and fuel to offshore oil rigs are being reborn as "shadow boats" to ferry jet skiis, helicopters and luxury cars for the super rich who do not want clutter on their yachts. The shadow boat conversion industry is one that is expected to grow as the number of new mega-yachts hitting the water increases. Shadow boats range in cost from US$7- to $13-million
CHIPS
A new process from IBM is copying nature's creation of seashells and snowflakes. Called airgap, it enables trillions of microscopic vacuum holes to be placed between the copper wire in chips to act as an insulator. This solves the problem of electrical energy leaking between wires, which creates unwanted heat. IBM says the chips will run 35 per cent faster and consume 15 per cent less energy.
CAFFEINE
A U.S. company is offering a soap that releases caffeine right through the user's skin and straight into the bloodstream. Called Shower Shock, soaping up with this product provides the same amount of caffeine as two cups of coffee. The soap is scented with peppermint oil.
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