Word: importance
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...died, and the Agriculture Ministry admitted that more than 6 million chickens had already been culled. As China learned after its SARS coverup last year, viruses thrive in a climate of secrecy and denial?and can cost a country dearly. The E.U., Japan and other countries immediately banned the import of Thai chickens. Thaksin's own credibility has also taken a hit. Thai officials anonymously told local newspapers they were aware of the presence of avian flu in November but were told to keep it quiet and blame the culling of poultry on an outbreak of chicken cholera and bronchitis...
...evidence as it swings into election mode?not by promising to fulfill key items of the Hindu-nationalist agenda, like building the temple in Ayodhya, but by talking economics. Finance Minister Jaswant Singh has announced a $2.7 billion handout to India's middle class by slashing taxes and import duties on foreign travel, cell phones and computers. "We don't want any agenda that is religious or divisive," says Pramod Mahajan, a key electoral strategist for the BJP. "We want to fight on economic, rational issues." The party, says Mahajan, is projecting Vajpayee as the only leader who can transform...
...probably no coincidence that most of its cattle are fed on grass, not feed concocted from animal parts, which has been banned in several countries--including the U.S.--after being suspected of spreading mad cow. But falling prices in the U.S. could hurt Australian beef, which Americans import for its leaner content. In other words, it is all a mad-cow mess, and no one quite knows where it is going. "This happens in a global economy," says Sigalla, an economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, with a sigh. In the meantime, tell your kids to keep those...
...recent report, Morgan Stanley gloomily predicted that the Big Three will probably face the "same problems, just less of them." The falling value of the dollar, which makes imports more expensive, should help somewhat. Although an improved economy and job market are expected to nudge 2004 vehicle sales to about 16.8 million (from about 16.6 million in 2003), Detroit's share will probably remain the same or even slip slightly, according to several analysts, as aggressively priced import brands continue to dominate. Here's how the Big Three are fighting back...
...longer lending at all to companies where we can't understand what's going on," vows a top credit officer at one big Italian bank. But small and mid-sized firms will be hit too. "For family firms that need more capital to grow, this will be an important problem," worries Guido Corbetta, a professor at Bocconi University in Milan. Prosecutors probing the now-bankrupt Parmalat are increasingly focusing on the roles Italian and U.S. banks may have played in the affair. One potential winner: the Italian stock market. Family businesses have traditionally shunned it, but Corbetta believes firms with...