AUGUST 1994 Economic Digest - Importing and Exporting

AUGUST 1994 Edition

ABOUT OURSELVES

            With this issue, we start the third year of our Economic Digest. It began with a modest distribution of 75 and now reaches over 750  monthly. It goes to most Canadian provinces and every State in the Union. One copy goes to Beijing. Information from it is translated and published in the Trading Post, a Vancouver Chinese Newspaper with a 15,000 circulation. A shorter version is available downtown courtesy of B.C. Trade.

            The Digest earns no revenue, in fact it costs us a considerable amount over the course of a year. But we hope that we continue to generate goodwill through this venture as we strive to show that we are interested in all aspects of the economy, not just the area in which A & A Contract Customs Brokers is specialist. It is our philosophy that if the economy is doing well, then we all benefit, whatever our business.

            We always have far more information left each month than we are able to fit in the Digest. In the coming year we hope to expand the sharing of this information utilizing the new technology. Using Faxback, we would like to make single-page Digests available monthly on specific sectors such as Retail, Manufacturing, EDI and USA\NAFTA. If readers have any suggestions about areas you would like to see us cover, please call us at 538-1042, or Toll Free 1-800-663-4270.

INTERPROVINCIAL TRADE

            The recent deal to reduce trade barriers between provinces is less ambitious than hoped, but makes progress in key areas such as procurement and investment. Governments will no longer be able to favour provincial suppliers in tendering for goods worth more than $25,000 and for services or construction projects over $100,000. The provisions will be extended to municipalities, municipal organizations, school boards and publicly funded academic, health and social institutions by June 1996. Governments spend about $49 billion a year on goods and services.

            Provinces will be prevented from using incentives such as tax breaks, grants or debt guarantees to get businesses from another province to relocate. Also, qualified workers will find it easier to work in another province and provinces will recognize licensing and other work standards in other provinces. Consumer health and safety standards cannot be used to discriminate against out-of-province suppliers. A work plan is to be completed by 1996 which will see common provincial standards for the trucking industry such as truck weights and dimensions, safety rules and bills of cargo.

            However, the agreement leaves in place barriers to agriculture, energy and alcohol. Consumers will still pay too much for electricity, milk and eggs and have less choice in wine and beer. Disputes will be handled by a panel of experts. Decisions are not binding but will be made public and the injured province will have the right to retaliate with measures of "equivalent effect."

HEALTH CARE

            Industry Canada has developed the Canadian Health Care Services Suppliers (CHCSS) computerized data base in collaboration with Health Canada. The CHCSS is being launched to enhance the Department's knowledge of Canadian private sector supply capability and to facilitate the matching of export opportunities with Canadian supply capability. The information in the database will also be used to encourage the formation of industry alliances and other partnerships for the pursuit of export opportunities.

            Interested applicants complete a questionnaire and profile sheet and return them, with company brochures, to Industry Canada. Search capabilities are extensive and users will be able to search on the basis of any fields (questions) contained in the questionnaire. To obtain a questionnaire or more information, call Luc C. Pamerleau at Industry Canada, Tel: 613-954-2951.

COMMUNICATIONS

            Ford Motor Co. will spend $100 million (US) on a system to link its dealers by satellite for employee training, customer service and relay of business information. The system will allow instructors at Ford headquarters to lead live video training sessions in its North American dealerships. It eventually may give dealers instant access to comprehensive information on individual customers who bring in their cars for repairs. Ford will pay for installation of dishes at dealerships and equipment to send and receive data and the dealers will provide televisions and a personal computer to tie to the system.

VACATIONS

            According to the Conference Board of Canada, fewer Canadians plan vacation trips this year than in any of the previous seven years. Only 59 per cent of those surveyed said they would take a trip this summer, down from 68 per cent last year and 70 per cent in 1990. Despite an improving economy, Canadians are still holding back on travel spending. Instead, they are putting their money into cars, appliances and furniture.  

THE FUTURE

            A study of 2,500 U.S. facilities managers showed what they expect workers will find in offices in ten years:

* Almost three-quarters will have on-site fitness centres.

* About 40 per cent will have day-care.

* 95 per cent will have increased security.

* More than 76 per cent will have voice mail.

* 16 per cent will have individual temperature controls in workspaces.     

PERMITS

            The United States has recorded imports of 366,700 tonnes more wheat and barley than Canada has officially exported during the first eight months of the crop year. It represents about 16 per cent of legal exports of more than  2.2 million tonnes. Record sales into the U.S. market this year have touched off a trade feud between the two countries, with promises of import restrictions unless Canada voluntarily cuts back. Farmers are required to obtain export permits for any wheat or barley heading south. The RCMP are looking into a variety of methods that may have been used to get grain over the border including not stopping at Customs and altering export permits.

ABSENTEEISM

            Sickness-benefit programs in Sweden used to pay workers 100 per cent of their salary for their first 180 days of sickness, resulting in the highest absentee rate in the Western world. (The average Swede missed 26 days of work per year and the problem was particularly acute on Mondays.) The government addressed the problem by eliminating pay for the first day of sick leave. Before this change, car-maker Volvo had to schedule 20 per cent more workers than it needed to ensure a full production crew. After the change, Volvo and other firms found absenteeism down by 25 per cent.

CAR BUYERS

            On some of Detroit's high profile new car launches, Canadians are getting much better prices--on a dollar exchange basis--than American buyers. Canadian auto companies say this is because competition for sales north of the border is much tougher these days. Canadians have less disposable income to spend on new vehicles, taxes are higher, and the economic recovery is slower. For example, a Ford Contour will sell south of the border for $14,655 (U.S.). Ford Canada's domestic price is $16,895 (Can). At the current rate of exchange, the U.S. price converted to Canadian dollars would be more than $20,000.             Not surprisingly, some Americans are trying to take advantage of their buying power in Canada but domestic new car dealers are prohibited from selling to U.S. customers under franchise agreements. The auto makers say there are other good reasons for restricting such sales. One is that vehicles made for the U.S. and Canadian markets are slightly different. Canadian cars, for example, must have daytime running lights and metric speedometers and other gauges.  

WOMEN

            According to a survey of 5,000 managers by the British Institute of Management, many managers believe "female" skills such as teamworking, consensus management and negotiating will become more valuable for businesses to succeed in the next century. Male bosses will have to learn these skills or become obsolete. But surveys show British women are still far behind in terms of pay and prospects for promotion. Only 9 per cent of managers and three per cent of senior managers in British companies are women.

U.S. GOVERNMENT PROCUREMENT

            A new information kit is now available to Canadian businesses and professional services wishing to sell to the $180 billion U.S. federal government procurement market. "Selling to the U.S. Federal Government: Non-defense Products and Services" consists of 23 fact sheets providing a comprehensive introduction on how to do business with the U.S. federal government. Produced by Foreign Affairs and International Trade in conjunction with the Canadian Embassy in Washington D.C., it reflects new opportunities available to Canadian suppliers under the NAFTA. The kit is available free from International Trade's InfoCentre in Ottawa, Fax 613-996-9709. Quote publication code #159UA.

RETAIL

            Another retail giant is planning to move north. Sportmart Inc, is a fast-growing chain of sports goods superstores based in Illinois and expects to open in Toronto early in 1995. This retailer was founded in 1971 and has 45 superstores and 3,800 employees. Typically, each Sportsmart has a broad and deep selection of name-brand products, with 65,000 items for sale. For example, 600 types of running shoes, 100 kinds of tennis rackets and 70 varieties of sleeping bags. An average store is around 4,000 square metres and sells no seconds or irregular merchandise. The company is also scouting for real estate in Ottawa and Vancouver although it may run into problems in B.C. where Sport Mart Discount Superstores Inc is an established Kamloops-based chain with 12 outlets in B.C. and Alberta.

JOBS

            Traditionally, B.C. employment growth is led by the service sector with the goods-producing sector usually trailing. But job statistics for June show that, year-to year, the goods sector moved to the forefront in job creation. Over the year, the goods sector added 54,000 jobs while the service sector produced 26,000. The change is attributed to growth in wood related manufacturing and construction, both of which belong to the goods sector. The number of jobs actually fell in some segments of the service sector. For example, retail sales lost 23,000 jobs, public administration 6,000 and transportation 7,000. Between June 1993 and June 1994, B.C. created 80,000 new jobs, about 40 per cent of the Canadian total. 

DEBT

            Equity magazine calculates that if every province and territory put in $442-million per month to retire the existing federal and provincial debts, at the end of 100 years the debt will not be reduced by even one cent.

ADVERTISING

            Advertising to an international market can be tricky and translations often have hilarious results. When KFC exported its "Finger Lickin Good" slogan to China, it emerged as "Eat your Fingers Off". Similarly, Pepsi didn't have much luck trying to get them to guzzle their cola. "Come Alive With The Pepsi Generation" ended up as "Pepsi Will Bring Your Ancestors Back From The Dead". Coors Beer lost its fizz in Spain when their hip phrase "Turn It Loose" came out as "Drink Coors and get Diarrhoea". When Otis Engineering took part in a Moscow exhibition, "completion equipment" was translated as "equipment for orgasms". And "Body by Fisher" boasted by General Motors in Belgium came out as "Corpse by Fisher". In Spain, when GM introduced the Nova they quickly discovered the word no and va mean "doesn't go".

PAPERWORK

            Citing budget constraints, the office of the Montana governor has refused to issue paperwork proclaiming such events as National Accordion Awareness Week. So far there has been no public outcry.

JULY 1994 Economic Digest - Importing and Exporting

JULY 1994 Edition

U.S.TRADE

            Canada set trade records in April with autos and aerospace helping to push exports up $804 million from March to $17.4 billion. Imports also reached a new peak in April, rising $600 million to $16.1 billion leaving a $1.3 billion merchandise trade surplus. Autos and parts were the single largest contributor with shipments reaching a record $4.6 billion, up $441 million, helped by the fact that many of the most popular new models, such as minivans, are made in Canada. The aerospace sector--including planes, engines and parts--was the best performer in the machinery and equipment sector, where exports reached a record $3.4 billion, up $77 million. Exports in this sector are 30 per cent above a year ago.

The biggest rise in imports was in machinery and equipment as Canadian companies continue to increase production.

TRADE SHOW

            For the fourth year running, North America's largest agent\distributor locator and recruiter show, WORLD TRADE'94, will be held in Toronto on October, 20, 1994. This international import\export match-making event is designed for manufacturers and companies interested or involved in exporting. It is also a venue for Canadian and international agents\distributors to identify new domestic and foreign sources of supply and representation. At the last show, there were 168 exhibitors representing 51 countries, states and provinces. The 2,500 visitors represented primarily agents, distributors, manufacturers, exporters, importers and re-exporters. More information is available from the Canadian International Trade Association at: Tel: 416-351-9728, Fax: 416-351-9911.

MINING

            Over $307 million in mine exploration funding was raised on the Vancouver Stock Exchange last year. $167 million was earmarked for Latin America, $86.1 million for Canada, $44.8 million for the U.S., $6 million for Asia and $2.4 million for Africa. 21 per cent of 913 B.C.-based miners are active in Latin America, with Mexico, Venezuela and Chile topping the list. Even Cuba signed seven joint-venture agreements with Canadian miners.

ROYAL BANK

            This bank is making it easier for Canada's importers and exporters to access international markets with the establishment of a Trade Help Line.

            From anywhere in Canada, companies requiring trade information and assistance can call the bank's Help Line toll free at 1-800-263-9191, from Monday to Friday, 8:00am to 8:00pm local time. Through the Help Line, businesses can access a pool of trade expertise of some 180 people, who speak 25 languages, have international experience and can assist them with their business dealings in other countries. The trade specialists are highly skilled in areas such as letters of credit, bonds and guarantees, country risk analysis as well as innovative financial structures to help companies do business in the global markets.

MEXICO

            Trade between Mexico and the U.S. during the first quarter of the NAFTA rose sharply to record levels. U.S. imports from Mexico grew much more rapidly cutting the U.S. trade surplus with Mexico for the first quarter nearly in half. U.S. exports rose 15.7 per cent to $US11.85 billion compared to the same quarter a year earlier. U.S. imports from Mexico increased 22.5 per cent to a record $US11.29 billion,  narrowing the U.S. trade surplus with Mexico by 45.1 per cent to $560 million. There are no figures available yet for Canadian trade with Mexico in 1994.

HOME WORK

            Last year, according to a recent survey, about 41 million people in the United States, or 33 per cent of the adult work force worked at home at least part of the time. That is up from 26.8 million, or 22.3 per cent of the adult work force, in 1989. It is projected that by the turn of the century, 40 per cent of all U.S. households will have at least one family member working at home. 

RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT

            In 1990, only 1.4 per cent of Canada's GDP went to R&D.That's only half of what the United States spends and much less than the 3.1 per cent Japanese firms spend. Private sector investment in human resources also falls short. Only 15 per cent of Canadian firms have training budgets. On-the-job skills development is a mere half of one per cent of total payroll.

DUMB MARKETING

            McDonald's in Britain and Coca-Cola in Spain came under fire from Muslims after printing the flag of Saudi Arabia, which contains a sacred scripture from the Koran, on hamburger bags and cola cans. This was part of promotions for this summer's World Cup soccer championship in which Saudi Arabia is competing. Muslim leaders say the holy words should not be used commercially on anything that is crumpled up and thrown away.

            Not to be outdone, Pepsi-Cola has now offended the Church of England by laser- beaming its logo onto the Anglican cathedral in Liverpool to promote a nightclub act. It is only speculation that these companies hired the three Hoover executives fired as a result of its marketing fiasco.

EXPORTING

            Canada is maintaining its position as a leading growth performer in the world with exports which will jump 10 per cent this year. Canadian exports will out-perform all industrialized countries and even some of the Asian giants for the second consecutive year. Last year, Canadian exports recorded a 14 per cent leap, the highest in the world.        

            This healthy export record can be attributed largely to the improvement of U.S. market conditions and the Canadian dollar. These factors will contribute to an 11 per cent increase in U.S. sales this year following a 20 per cent growth in exports to the U.S. last year, the largest increase in a decade. Last year saw 81 per cent of Canada's exports go to the U.S., a jump from 73 per cent recorded in 1989. Auto and parts exports will grow by 14 per cent and capital goods sales by the same amount. Lumber exports will increase 11 per cent and energy by five per cent. Agri-food exports should grow by two per cent.

            The Asian market should grow by 7 per cent in 1994 with government spending on infrastructure alone totalling around $65 billion. Latin America should grow by 3.5 per cent with projections over the next decade of $650 billion to be spent on infrastructure, $250 billion on power generating and the same on transportation and $125 billion on telecommunications equipment. 

WAL-MART

            This giant U.S. retailer drives a hard bargain with its vendors. The key to Wal-Mart's success is the buying strategy enforced by founder Sam Walton. The $67 billion chain negotiates a payment schedule that is slightly longer than the time it will take to move merchandise off the shelf. Vendor agreements cover 30 basic requirements, from UPC (universal product code, or bar-codes) on all goods to 100 per cent fulfilment on each order.

            There is a price to pay if you do not comply. If a supplier ships goods with an unreadable UPC, or without a purchase order number, Wal-Mart fines them $10,000 or 10 per cent of the value of the order. Fines climb to $50,000 for the second offence and top out at $100,000 the third time. Retail experts claim that this policy helps to make better manufacturers. Wal-Mart stores, usually with about 110,000 square feet, typically carry some 150,000 items restocked daily. The U.S. chain's stores move about $US297 worth of merchandise per square foot per annum.

PRIMARY GOODS

            Manufacturing in British Coumbia still means making boards, not furniture and chipping pulp not fine paper, according to the provincial statistical agency. Last year, 59 per cent of all shipments of manufactured goods were products that had only the most basic changes. Of those, half were primary wood products--boards, shingles, shakes, veneer, plywood and pulp. Even though the total value of manufacturing shipments increased 11 per cent to $26.9 billion --largely because of a 34 per cent increase in the value of shipments of wood products--there were fewer jobs. Secondary manufacturing accounts for 41 per cent of the value of shipments, up from 21 per cent in 1983.

OPPORTUNITY

            Patrocinio, Brazil, is a malaria-infested gold mining town of 2000 deep in the Amazon rain forest. It has no mayor, no doctor, no running water, no sewers and often no electricity. But it does have 20 Avon Ladies. Mostly, they trade cosmetics for gold nuggets, but they have been know to accept other barter goods such as wood fruit and eggs. Two dozen eggs will buy a Pop-Love water-melon flavoured lipstick, and 20 kilograms of flour a bottle of Topaze cologne. A jar of Avon's top-selling face cream will set you back three grams of gold or about six days pay.

            Setting off in kayaks down the muddy tributaries of the Amazon or travelling on foot through dusty gold-mining communities, an army of more than 60,000 Avon vendors peddle products to some of the most remote communities in the rain forest. Since it changed its marketing strategy three years ago to boost its sales force in the Amazon outback, Avon has become one of the few Brazilian companies to see sales rocket despite a 10 per cent drop in per-capita income. The sale of Avon products has supplanted the extraction of gold as the main economic activity and Avon Ladies are now the commercial elite.

DATABASE

            The Open Bidding Service (OBS) from Information Systems Management Corporation is a national electronic service offering businesses current and complete information about procurement opportunities. All that is needed to have access to this information is a computer and modem. OBS has entered into an agreement with Foreign Affairs and International Trade for a one-year pilot. The OBS collects Mexican NAFTA procurement requirements and translates them from Spanish to English. Subscribers also receive procurement notices from over 20 Canadian federal departments, including Government Services, the Province of Alberta, and the U.S. Commerce Business Daily. Another service will search the database for opportunities matching a company's profile and an historical database of past procurement notices and awards. The annual subscription fee is $130 and online charges from anywhere in Canada are 42 cents a minute. For further information, or to register with OBS, call 1-800-361-4620.

ATMOSPHERE

            "Sounds of a Thriving Office" is a $19.95 tape unlikely to make the top of the charts. Aimed at a niche market, it is for people who work at home or for a small office but want to sound on the phone like they're working somewhere busy. The tape features the sounds of doors closing, phones ringing, typewriters clacking, drawers banging, feet shuffling and voices droning in the background.

LABELLING

            Mexico is drafting legislation requiring imported retail goods to include consumer safety, instructional information and product labelling in Spanish. Technically there has been a law to this effect since 1987 but it has not been enforced. The likely effective date will be April 1995. It has not yet been determined if the instructions and guarantees that come inside a packaged product must be in Spanish; if the importer-exporter label will still be required; how the laws will be enforced, either by Mexican customs brokers or through random checks of shelves in stores. Unaffected products will include apparel, footwear and tires, and products imported for manufacturing. As Mexicans consider products with English labelling to be of superior quality, companies are advised to plan a bilingual label strategy.

KILLING TIME

            Instead of reading old magazines while waiting for car repairs at Swedish Auto in Farmer Branch, Texas, you can now get married. The garage offers a free marriage ceremony with any 30,000-mile inspection on Hondas, Volvos and BMWs. The auto service comes with a warranty, the marriage does not.

JUNE 1994 Economic Digest - Importing and Exporting

JUNE 1994 Edition

 

GENERAL AGREEMENT ON TARIFFS & TRADE

            After seven years of work, more than 125 countries recently signed the Uruguay Round of the GATT which the OECD estimates will eventually result in $250 billion extra in global economic growth. The final document totalled 26,000 pages and weighed 175 kilograms. The anticipated implementation date is next January 1st but it could be delayed until July 1995.

            The biggest gains are in four areas:

Textiles & Clothing: Trade will gradually become freer in this sector. The so-called Multifibre Agreement will be phased out over 10 years. Countries like Canada will no longer be able to impose import quotas in this area.

Agriculture: Quotas and outright bans on food imports will gradually disappear to be replaced by declining import tariffs and government subsidies should fall. It will become easier for developing countries to sell to developed countries. It will be more difficult for the rich economies to flood the world with cheap, surplus food.

Minerals. Tariffs will fall to zero on many metals and other minerals, allowing developing countries, with their lower production costs, to export more.

Manufactured goods: Many countries, especially in East Asia, have become major exporters of finished goods. The broad decrease  in tariffs agreed in the Uruguay Round--40 per cent overall--will make these goods cheaper for consumers in the industrialized world. They gain, we gain.

CROSS-BORDER TRIPS

            Canadian shopping excursions to the U.S. remained near a five-year low in March despite a seasonally adjusted 0.4 percent increase over February. Statistics Canada attributed the decline partly to a drop in the Canadian dollar against its U.S. counterpart. It said another factor was rising U.S. gasoline prices. Before adjustment for seasonal factors, same-day car trips to the U.S. were down 17 per cent from a year earlier.

            Trips by visitors to Canada of one or more nights have been increasing gradually over the past year. Overnight travel into Canada increased 2.7 per cent in March to 1.3 million trips. This type of travel was relatively constant between late 1986 and early last year but has been inching upwards since April 1993 because of the low Canadian dollar.

JAPAN

            Hands-on assistance to foreign businesses looking to gain a foothold in the lucrative Japanese marketplace will soon be available through Import Promotion Centres in four cities: Yokohama, Nagoya, Osaka and Kobe. This follows the positive response to the Business Support Centre which opened in Tokyo a year ago.

            The wide range of services provided include: private offices with telephone, fax, desk and cabinets; access to exhibition halls, personnel and a library. Further information is available from the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) office in Vancouver at 604-684-4174.

INFOCENTRE

            A new interactive fax information service (FaxLink), operated by Foreign Affairs and International Trade, Ottawa, can now be reached by dialling 613-944-4500 from an office fax machine (24 hours a day, seven days a week). Once connected, callers will be asked either to request an index of available faxables or to input the product code associated with the desired document(s). FaxLink presently includes information on the Access North America program and various documents on the GATT and NAFTA. The service will soon be expanded to include documentation on up-to-date foreign policy matters, and additional market information and intelligence of particular relevance to Canadian exporters. For additional information, there is a toll-free line 1-800-267-8376, from 09:00 to 17:00 (EST).

RETAIL

            During the first three months of the year, the amount of money Canadians spent in retail outlets took off. Sales in dollar terms were up more than 3 per cent from the final quarter of 1993, and with the consumer price index falling during that period, the real increase was closer to 4 per cent. The country hasn't seen such a jump since the late 1980s. By comparison, retail sales increased by less than 3 per cent in all of 1993.

            B.C. consumers spent $2.6 billion in both February and March. The March figures were a healthy 6.9 per cent higher than same month in 1993. National sales went from $16.94 billion in February to $17.16 in March.  Alberta had the strongest annual gain in retail sales at 13 per cent, followed by Nova Scotia at 9.4 per cent and Ontario with a 7.6 per cent increase. Experts say fashion sales have improved after lagging behind in recent years, though some fashion chains have not yet made the proper adjustments to inventory and pricing. Big-box retailers are doing well at the expense of the middle of the road, middle-size, middle pricing outlets.

SURREY

            Waugh Research was recently commissioned by the City of Surrey to undertake a survey of Surrey businesses on economic and development issues. 2354 survey packages were mailed which yielded 789 completed questionnaires, a remarkable 33.5 per cent response. Among the conclusions: 42 per cent of businesses are presently exporting products and services outside B.C,. 44 per cent to the U.S., 43 per cent to other Canadian provinces, 3 per cent to Europe, 2.5 per cent to Asia, 2 per cent to Japan, 1.6 per cent to China and 0.7 per cent to Mexico. 83 per cent of those exporting wish to increase their exports, with 82 per cent interested in the U.S. 63 per cent of companies plan to expand in the next three years, of which 69 per cent will increase employees, 54 per cent increase product\service lines and 50 per cent plan to expand their facilities. More information on this survey is available from Bruce Riddick, City of Surrey at 591-4333.

SHOPPING

            Supermarket lines could become a thing of the past according to a South African research group that wants to put microchips into shopping carts. The Pretoria-based Council for Scientific and Industrial Research recently demonstrated its "Supertag," a cart containing 50 different items imprinted with microchips that would take only one second to be scanned and priced. The CSIR described the device as a single integrated circuit chip which can broadcast its identity despite interference from other tags in the vicinity. This means that unlike products with barcodes that have to be read one at a time, products with the Supertag chip can be read at the same time, even when they are jumbled up with others in the cart.

OPPORTUNITY

            Cracking the Japanese market can be hard but Nu Skin International, a U.S. cosmetics manufacturer, has shown that selling door to door can yield spectacular results. After entering Japan less than a year ago, that country is already Nu Skin's top overseas  market. The company expects Japan sales to total some $100 million during the first 12 months, representing around one-fifth of its total sales. Nu Skin now has some 100,000 Japanese sales agents representing its products. The reasons for this success are attributed to Japan's population density and emphasis on relationships and family ties.

TRANSPORT

            A Memorandum of Understanding signed March 1st between Canada and Mexico allows Canadian trucks to travel 20 kilometres

into Mexico. Trucks originating in Canada may now load further goods in the U.S. for drop-off in Mexico and, even more usefully, load goods in Mexico for distribution in the U.S. as well as Canada on the way back. The quantity of trucked goods directly from Mexico for Canadian receivers is relatively light; having products for the U.S. markets makes the return journey more viable. It is the first time foreign trucks have been allowed into Mexico. By the end of 1995, commercial trucking to virtually any area in North America will be open to trucks from NAFTA countries.

AGING

            People over 50 now make up about 26 per cent of the population but own 80 per cent of financial assets in Canada. This group also control 55 per cent of discretionary income. They purchase 43 per cent of all new cars and 48 per cent of new luxury cars. The value of real estate owned mortgage-free by this age group is about $500 billion, approaching the total Canadian yearly economy. 60-plus people have an average income of $27,000 to 35,000 per person putting their average household income in the $60,000 range. Most of that income is disposable since most people in this age bracket are debt-free. Seniors in Canada hold about a trillion dollars in assets. Big marketing areas for the grey group involve financial services, pharmaceuticals, travel, automotive, health and fitness.

WORLD MARKETS

            World Markets at Your Doorstep is a one-day trade show and seminar that has proved successful in the East. Continuing across Canada, it will arrive in Vancouver December 8th. The Market helps exporters and potential exporters tap into the global networks, contacts and expertise of Canadian and International trading houses. To date, manufacturers who have attended the events have generated an estimated $25 million in new export sales and ventures. Their success is due to one objective: introducing qualified suppliers to selected trading houses and their extensive overseas contacts and expertise. Interested B.C. suppliers should contact Dale Harvey of the B.C. Institute for Studies in International Trade. Tel: 844-1905, Fax: 660-3917. Trading houses should contact Mike Reshitnyk at Foreign Affairs and International

Trade, Ottawa. Tel: 613-996-1862.

BUILDING

            A $28 billion effort to rebuild post-war Lebanon could be a huge opportunity for Canada's construction industry if it makes an effort. However, most Canadians ignore the Middle East market in favour of the U.S. and the Pacific Rim. As Iraq, Israel and Gaza rebuild their cities, Canadian businesses have a 10 year window of opportunity to sell concrete forming panels, two-by-fours, trusses, flooring, wall coverings, paint, shutters, blinds and epoxies. Saudi Arabia will spend $56 billion during the next five years to build homes, schools, commercial centres and health care facilities. Kuwait, which by law provides free homes for all nationals, has a current backlog of 60,000 units, a $4 billion market for  construction materials.

BOEING

            Several Canadian companies have a big stake in Boeing Co.'s newest aircraft, the Boeing 777, which was officially rolled out in April. The landing gear, fairings, aerodynamic coverings for struts holding the engines, control columns and other aluminum components are supplied by 15 Canadian companies with contracts worth $635 million, so far. To date, 16 airlines have announced 147 orders and 108 options for the new aircraft.

HOOVER: THE FINAL CHAPTER

            Readers may recall that we reported last year on the marketing fiasco by Hoover, the UK appliance manufacturer, a division of Maytag Corp. Consumers were offered two free return tickets to Europe or the U.S. if they purchased any appliance valued at $150. The campaign created an enormous response by consumers who were better at maths than were Hoover executives, three of whom lost their jobs. It also created a gigantic second-hand market in unused Hoover products.

            The final bill has been tallied and the cost is around $99 million. By the time the promotion ends this spring, Hoover will have flown more than 220,000 people free. A year ago, Maytag reduced profits $40 million to help resolve the problem but the bill turned out to be much higher. Even now, Hoover is not certain all the bills have been paid.

E-MAIL

            It is estimated that by 1995 North America's top 2,000 companies will exchange 14.3 billion E-mail messages. In a recent legal action over intellectual property in Palo Alto, California, the E-mail messages of four key corporate executives were ordered up by an attorney; the printout was 100,000 pages long.