globalEDGE Blog Archive June 2015

Tonight at some point before 8:00 PM Eastern Time, the world will experience what is known as a "leap second". There will be a minute of time that is 61 seconds long. Today, June 30, will be approximately one second longer than usual, and official atomic timekeeping will factor in this second before turning over to July 1. This strange concept has a fascinating history and explanation; however, it is also a cause of concern for market traders around the world, who fear that this extra second will disrupt global operations.

From the free silver policy issue of the 1800s to the Bretton Woods agreement of 1944, America has always had differing views on how the dollar should be valued and leveraged, as well its role in the global currency exchange. Ever since the eve of World War II, the U.S. dollar has had notable domination in the international marketplace. In nearly all transactions made using more than one currency in the past three years, the dollar was required as a conversion factor to complete trades. The U.S. dollar, for quite some time now, has been the world’s reserve currency. In Currencies After the Crash, Sara Eisen explores the impact of the world’s strongest currencies, the possible ramifications of highly leveraged monies, and the perilous yet profitable realm that is the foreign exchange market.

In her novel The Travels of a T-Shirt in the Global Economy, author and Georgetown University professor of international economics Pietra Rivoli researches and follows the lifespan of a simple commodity - a t-shirt - across the world, while examining the insights it provides into the markets, power, and politics of an increasingly interconnected global economy. Beginning with a street peddler selling shirts intended for tourists in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Rivoli investigates the roots and destinations of her t-shirt in an epic that spans the U.S. cotton industry's historical versatility and dominance of international markets, textile production facilities in China, market demands for affordable commodities in the United States and Europe, and ending its journey in used clothing markets in sub-Saharan Africa.

In the past few years, globalization has become more apparent in its role in the global economy, where more people, countries, and economies are becoming interconnected with one other. In the book The Lexus and the Olive Tree, Thomas Friedman attempts to break down the role that globalization has played and how it can be considered as a new sort of international system for the future.

Globalization often gets a bad rap and serves as the punching bag for many international issues. Because of this harsh under appreciation of the increasingly influential force that connects the world, global trade also comes under fire. The reliance of superpower nations on multinational corporations is perceived more frequently as a weakness due to inescapable interdependence. In A Splendid Exchange, William Bernstein manages to provide the reader with insight on key economic concepts found in trade since the origin of the first silk passages. Refreshingly honest, Bernstein accounts the major events and development of the global market, theorizing that trade is the single common denominator through past eras. Often villianized in terms of the global marketplace, trade is something that has shaped the world we so comfortably inhabit in the present.

The globalEDGE team has added another new section to its recent developments. The Insights by Economic Classification section has now been published and can be accessed via the Global Insights menu! Currently the new section has two groups of countries defined: emerging markets and frontier markets. This new section highlights where the emerging and frontier markets stand in comparison to the least and most developed markets in the world. Furthermore, the statistics page of the new section provides information on a selection of indicators, which visually helps to compare group countries with one another. A risk comparator is also available, where two group countries’ economies and credit risk assessments can be compared. The new section also lists resources related to emerging and frontier markets. Make sure to check out our new section today!

For the first time, Saudi Arabia has opened its markets to foreign investors in hopes that in can attract more international investments in the country. Saudi Arabia has experienced solid growth over the last decade due to hundreds of billions of dollars in revenue from the sale of oil and is attempting to maintain its local spending plan after crude prices have tumbled. The opening of the stock exchange can play a role in reducing its dependence on oil as a driver in its economy and also aid in its future economic growth.

Throughout the past ten years, the music industry has increasingly embraced digital media formats for music distribution. The adaptability of business models to the digital format, however, has been volatile at best. When methods of distribution for music were primarily physical—vinyls, tapes, and CDs—record labels had more control over their product and how it would be consumed by the masses. As the music industry becomes more decentralized and more streaming services are popping up, a power struggle is occurring between record and indie labels, recording artists, and consumers over the value of music in this day and age.

Be’er Sheva, a city of 200,000 in the middle of Israel’s Nagev Desert is quickly becoming a global technology hub, drawing in several of the world’s largest technology companies. What is causing these global companies to set up shop in the scorching heat of the Arab desert seemingly in the middle of nowhere? The answer to this question comes from Maya Hofman Levy, who is EMC Corporation’s site manager in Be’er Sheva, who stated that “The main reason EMC wants to be in Be’er Sheva is for access to talent.” 

In recent years, scientists have noted the impacts of climate change on crops worldwide. As a result of rising temperatures and widespread drought, coffee crops in Vietnam are suffering. In Pakistan, the recent periods of intense rains and hailstorms have reduced the yields of wheat nationwide. Although there are many measures being taken to prevent further climate change, such as major corporations reducing their carbon dioxide output, global economic expansion is exacerbating the effects of climate change and is actually harming some industries.

In hopes of inspiring nearly 1 trillion dollars worth of economic activity, African leaders will officially announce a new pact known as The Tripartite Free Trade Area (TFTA) at an upcoming summit of the African Union in South Africa. The new free trade zone will cover 26 countries in the area from Cape Town to Cairo, becoming the largest free trade zone on the continent. Three current trade blocs within Africa are to merge as one, the Southern African Development Community (SADC), the East African Community (EAC), and the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA).

Nigeria is a country that is steeped with opportunities and chances for economic growth, but has its problems and challenges as well. Between 1990 and 2010, Nigeria re-based its GDP, which resulted in an 89% increase in the economy's estimated size. Now, Nigeria has the largest economy in Africa with a nominal estimated GDP of  $590 billion, surpassing South Africa’s $340 Billion, and has maintained over the past decade an average growth rate of 6.8%, higher than the West Africa sub-region.

The “Internet of Things”, or IoT, is defined as the concept of connecting a variety of household devices to the internet. This global IoT market, according to research firm International Data Corp (IDC), is expected to grow from $655.8 billion in 2014 to $1.7 trillion by 2020, an annually compounded growth rate of 16.9%. Growth is likely to be a result of more devices coming online, the growth of platforms and services based around these devices, and declining costs of sensors, connectivity, and data processing power.

The Fédération Internationale de Football Association, or FIFA, is the international governing body of soccer, the world’s most popular game. FIFA has been under massive scrutiny from the fans, media, and government officials in the past month over the re-election, and subsequent resignation, of their embattled president and corruption charges leveled against nine current and former top FIFA officials. These charges culminated in the arrest of seven FIFA officials in Zurich, Switzerland on May 27th. These officials are now facing extradition to the United States on broad corruption charges, which include racketeering, wire fraud, money laundering, and tax evasion.

Some may think that the key to expansion is growing, but it is becoming more popular in the global business world today for companies to divest in order to achieve desired growth. Many CEO's are saying that divestitures are the key to unlocking hidden potential and value within a company and also help improve corporate performance. A growing abundance of divestitures is being seen throughout industries around the globe, even in industries where M&A activity like this is anything but the norm.

Earlier this year, Comcast Corporation was planning on taking over Time Warner Cable Inc., a deal that was met with harsh reactions from the public as well as many media companies and organizations. The fear was that a merger between two of the biggest media conglomerates in the United States would significantly reduce competition in the telecommunications industry. After the Department of Justice threatened an antitrust lawsuit against the companies, the merger plan was canceled about a month ago. Now Charter Communications Inc. has taken Comcast's place, having proposed a $56.7 billion plan for the takeover of Time Warner Cable. This time, the deal seems to be different and has gathered more support. Here is a closer look at the potential benefits and ramifications of this proposal.