Global Challenges
On December 9, the European Council met in Brussels to devise a resolution of the Euro crisis that imperils the still fragile recovery from the global financial crisis. The Brussels Agreement includes a range of measures aimed at deepening fiscal integration in the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) and disciplining Euro zone countries whose financial excesses precipitated the crisis.
On 27 October 2011, the 17 Euro countries agreed to new €100 billion bailout package for Greece, which included a 50 percent write down of Greek government bonds held by private European banks. Global financial markets reacted favourably to the accord, raising hopes that the Euro crisis could be contained to Greece and relieving fears of a “double dip” recession.
As the growth of Africa’s ICT (Information and Communications Technology) infrastructure proceeds, industry players are placing greater emphasis on mobile data and other value added services such as mobile banking and funds transfer. As a result of these innovations, African countries (particularly Kenya) are extending ICT services to both urban and rural populations on the continent.
Amid rising concerns about global climate change and growing anxieties over regional energy security, the European Union has launched a range of initiatives to spur adoption of clean technologies.
On October 2, 2009, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced the awarding of the XXXI Olympiad to Rio de Janeiro, defeating finalists Chicago, Madrid, and Tokyo. The selection of Rio as the host city for the 2016 Olympics constitutes a seminal development in Brazilian history, inviting comparisons with prior Games (e.g. Seoul 1988 and Beijing 2008) that showcased newly ascendant emerging markets as global players.
Over the past two decades, India has become the global leader in offshore IT (Information Technology) and BPO (Business Processing Outsourcing) services. India’s IT/BPO industry is poised to reach annual revenues of US$225 billion by 2020.
Small and medium enterprises, which played a crucial role in job creation and economic growth in the early and mid-2000s, incurred major setbacks during the Great Recession. In the European Union, SME employment fell by over three million jobs in 2009-10. American SMEs, which account for over 99 percent of non-farm employment in the United States, also reeled under the impact of the global downturn. For many SMEs still standing after the crisis, the continuing credit squeeze hinders access to the debt financing needed to expand their operations.
“Corporate Sustainability”– broadly conceived as the formal integration of economic, environmental, and social factors in managerial decision making and corporate governance – is assuming a central role in global business.
Three years after the onset of the global financial crisis, the contours of the global rebound have taken shape.
The development of renewable energy in Europe faces a host of environmental, economic and political hurdles. Imported fossil fuels represent more than half of European energy consumption. At projected growth rates, the share of imported hydrocarbons will rise to 70 percent of total energy consumption by 2020.
International sporting events offer significant potential benefits to host countries: modernization of infrastructure; upgrading of tourist facilities; increased foreign commerce; heightened global prestige and visibility.
Emerging and developing countries stand to reap particular gains from hosting such events. The 1988 Summer Olympic Games in Seoul brought South Korean multinationals (LG Electronics, Samsung, et al) to international prominence, while the 2008 Beijing Olympics showcased the rising commercial power and technological prowess of China. The 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro is widely anticipated as Brazil’s arrival as a major global player.
Eurasia, the landmass bridging the traditional continents of Europe and Asia, has become a bulwark of the global economy.
The ancient network of trade routes that for thousands of years brought goods from the Far East to Western Europe is now a rapidly modernising network of pipelines, rails, super highways, and Information Technology links. The Eurasia of the Third Millennium is home to some of the world’s largest oil producers, wealthiest investors, and fastest growing economies along with more than half the world’s population.
Since its creation in 1991, MERCOSUR (acronym in Spanish for Mercado Común del Sur or Common Market of the South) has been developing at an uneven pace. MERCOSUR, initiated in a restrictive framework by Argentina and Brazil, now includes four South American countries (Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay) with Chile and Bolivia as associate members. Venezuela’s formal admission to the organization has been ratified by the parliaments of Brazil, Argentina, and Uruguay but is pending approval by the Paraguayan legislature.
Companies planning to expand their international operations need to consider a wide variety of factors: Foreign demand for the company’s products and services; transparency and cost efficiency of foreign subsidiaries; operating, investing, financing and non-cash expenses; and the impact of international expansion on the company’s aggregate tax burden.
Having a few key safeguards in place can reduce the risk of smartphones becoming a matter of national security.
While smartphones often create a wave of security anxiety, the convenience they offer can’t be ignored. In today’s business environment, senior executives expect—maybe even demand—the ability to receive e-mail and have network access on their iPhone, Blackberry or Motorola smartphone. This makes managing smartphone risk a top priority for information technology departments everywhere.
The collapse of Enron and other corporate scandals in the early 2000s demonstrated how imprudent company cultures can lead to unethical practices and outright fraud. The more recent implosion of Lehman Brothers showed how a culture of risk-taking pervaded financial institutions and precipitated the global financial meltdown.
In early 2009, many analysts feared that Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) was hurtling toward a regional crash reminiscent of the East Asian crisis of the late 1990s.
The global economy is showing unmistakable signs of recovery from the steepest downturn since World War II. Economic contraction has ceased in North America, Europe, and developed Asia, and most of the advanced industrialised countries are poised for positive GDP growth in 2010.
The Euro Med Partnership now includes all 27 member states of the European Union, along with 16 partners across the Southern Mediterranean and the Middle East. However, in the bars, tea gardens and boardrooms of Istanbul the question is still asked ‘Is Turkey Middle Eastern, Asiatic or European?’
As a leading provider of Information Technology risk management services in Australia and the Asia Pacific region, RSM Bird Cameron is closely following developments in the IT risk management sphere during the economic slowdown. In recent months, a number of changes have occurred that underscore the need to align IT risk management services with shifting market demand.
On April 7, the Westin Excelsior in Rome hosted the 2009 European Business Awards to honor the achievements of leading European companies. As part of the event, RSM International (a sponsor of the European Business Awards) conducted a survey to gauge the views of participants on the European business environment in the wake of the global recession.
Global climate change looms as a disruptive force in coming decades. The International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) predicts a 1.1-6.4˚C rise in global temperatures in the 21st century, a warming trend that presents an array of planetary threats.
Growing numbers of family-owned and closely-held enterprises in Europe, North America, and other regions are undergoing leadership successions as company founders depart and new owners assume control…
Chile’s economy is open and strongly export-oriented…
The expansion of commercial relations between China and the European Union constitutes a signal development in the global economy. Sino-European trade has increased 60-fold since the PRC’s opening in 1978...
China’s rapid economic growth over the past three decades has attracted a tremendous amount of foreign direct investment (FDI)…
What started as turbulence in segments of the U.S. subprime mortgage market has become a global financial crisis, which some analysts deem the biggest challenge to the international financial system since the Great Depression....