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    Managing the Venezuelan exchange control system

    Since January 23 2003, an exchange control regime authorised by the Venezualan Central Bank (BCV) has been in force in Venezuela, strongly restricting the sale and purchase of foreign currency. This restricted currency market was initially developed by Exchange Control Convention Number One, and was then reviewed by several other Exchange Control Conventions. Resolutions were issued by the BCV and administrative orders issued by the exchange control authorities (CADIVI). The main bans and sanctions relating to the exchange control are stipulated in the Law on Exchange Control Violations. The sanctions consist of heavy fines that could amount ...
    On January 11, 2013 / By
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    Tort team attack Big Food

    In 2009, a group of parents filed a class action lawsuit with the potential to bring Big Food down to its knees. The parents had taken issue with an ad campaign that tried to pass off Nutella – the chocolate and nut paste – as a healthy breakfast staple, citing the wholesome ingredients used to make the ‘hazelnut spread’. They argued that while hazelnuts, skimmed milk and healthy cocoa were indeed used in the preparation of Nutella, the spread also contained as much as 21 grams of sugar and 11 grams of fat, 3.5g of which are saturated, in every two-tablespoon serving. In the advert a mother feeds her children breakfast, suggesting Nut...
    On January 10, 2013 / By
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    Ireland confident in debt deal after €2.5bn bond sale

    Ireland’s National Treasury Management Agency has held a successful five-year bond auction, attracting €7bn of orders and allowing the debt office to raise €2.5bn- a yield of about 3.35 percent. The auction was the latest in a series of steps towards rebuilding the country’s finances and regaining the trust of the markets. The auction was the first mainstream offering since the country was bailed out in 2010, though money was raised last summer through a bond exchange. Though analysts agree that the offerings are good signs, the next real test will come in March when €3.5bn worth of bonds will reach maturity, the equivalent of this ...
    On January 9, 2013 / By
  • Technology 0

    The Importance for Individuals to Use Sustainable Chemicals

    The increasing global population creates an unsustainable demand on fossil fuels and polymer feedstocks. The chemical industry has risen to meet the challenge with a focus on development of sustainable chemicals. Sustainable Chemicals are a product of environmentally safe sustainable chemistry. ‘Green’ chemistry is a new research philosophy which promotes the design and use of processes and products where the content of hazardous substances is significantly reduced. The drive for sustainability arises from the warning signs from the world’s ecosystem. Our population growth is in overdrive, with a projection of 9.5 billion i...
    On January 7, 2013 / By
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    Bank of America ramps up lending

    Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan has announced that the company should overtake JPMorgan Chase in direct-to-consumer mortgage lending over the next six months, according to the Financial Times. Moynihan says he has instructed bankers to be “more aggressive” in pursuing and offering loans to companies. In the first nine months of 2012, BofA originated $53.4bn of retail mortgages, making it the third biggest lender after Wells Fargo and JPMorgan. BofA has endured a challenging few years due to compensation claims against mortgages gone bad, most of which had been underwritten by Countrywide, whom the bank acquired in 2008. In the same int...
    On January 3, 2013 / By
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    India benefits from a billion brains

    Clip on a harness, lift your legs and hurtle down a wire towards the sharp corners of a 15th-century Rajasthani fort. As you whizz, you might have a few niggling doubts. Was the zip-wire serviced by someone who knew what they were doing? Is the safety adviser any good? Who is trained in first aid? Fortunately the staff in Neemrana, a tourist spot some 130km southwest of Delhi, are on the ball. Raj Kumar, the lead instructor of Flying Fox, has an impressive (if not entirely relevant) qualification as a Master of Philosophy in ancient Indian history. “I had planned to do my PhD, but this opportunity came along,” he says. The outfit’s Brit...
    On November 5, 2012 / By
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    Global trade enters new era

    Historic news this August, as Russia officially became a member of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) after 20 years of negotiations and debates over preferential treatment for domestic manufacturers. A spate of major deals involving its oil, petrochemical and metals industries no doubt greased its path to WTO accession. Putin has since done something of a diplomatic U-turn and is selling himself as a free-trade pioneer. In advance of hosting an Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Russia’s east coast city of Vladivostok, he told The Wall Street Journal Asian edition: “The very principle of free trade is undergoing a crisis....
    On November 5, 2012 / By
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    Plans for quotas for women on boards dropped by Brussels

    The original plan obliged all publicly traded companies to fill a quota of 40 percent of women by 2020 or risk incurring fines and sanctions, has now been scrapped. EU lawyers have ruled that mandatory gender quotas are not allowed under the region’s treaties. The EU justice commissioner, Viviane Reding, announced the suspension of the proposal, after months of defending the scheme. There had been vociferous opposition from within the European Commission since the proposal was announced, which was facing a potentially divisive vote within the commission. Nations opposing the notion argued that any quota system should be addressed domestical...
    On October 24, 2012 / By
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    Japanese exports tumble amid territorial dispute

    Not since the earthquake and tsunami in 2011 have Japanese exports declined so sharply as this past September, figures from the Ministry of Finance confirm. Overseas shipments from Japan have fallen 10.3 percent year-on-year. The drop in exports is being attributed to the difficult diplomatic relations between China and Japan following a tense stand-off over the Senkaku/Diaoyu islands. The dispute was intensified by ongoing protests in China throughout the month over Japan’s purchase of the disputed islands from their private owner.  Taiwan also lays claim to the little uninhabited islets. According to the figures, exports of products that...
    On October 23, 2012 / By
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    Australia unveils budget cuts to spur Central Bank

    Australia’s government has announced AUS$16.4bn in new cuts in order to do good on its promise of budget surplus. The price of commodities in the global market is sliding fast, depriving Australia of billions of dollars worth of taxes. The cuts, to be implemented over four years, are meant to protect against any future economic turbulence and lend confidence to the country’s finances. Australia, one of only seven countries in the world to retain a AAA rating with a positive outlook by all three major credit agencies, has long since pledged to become the first developed country to operate a budget surplus. “Global volatility and substant...
    On October 22, 2012 / By