BADM 633 - Wks 5-8 International Business Culture NEWS ARTICLES

1. BADM 633 - Wks 5-8 International Business Culture NEWS ARTICLES

2. Irish Vote Decisively to Support EU Reform Irish voters approved the European Union's Lisbon Treaty, which will establish a permanent president and foreign minister for the EU, by a nearly 2-to-1 margin Saturday. The final tally, with 67% voting in favor, marked a substantial shift of sentiment after the treaty was defeated last June. Irish government leaders, who strongly supported the treaty in a campaign that closely tied Ireland's economic future to the EU, were aided by strong voter turnout across the country. Finance minister Brian Lenihan said the "yes" vote is a "first step" toward economic recovery.

3. DOES MONA LISA LIKE McNUGGETS? McDonald's is banking on it, opening an outpost in Paris's Louvre museum. Elizabeth Strott on Monday, October 5, 2009 9:51 AM Sacrebleu!  McDonald's (MCD) plans to open its 1,142nd outlet in France next month to celebrate its 30th anniversary in the Gallic country, according to the U.K. paper The Daily Telegraph, and the location is at the pinnacle of all things cultural and classy: the Louvre.  Visitors to the museum will soon be able to enjoy their Le Big Macs and pommes frites after studying the likes of Leonardo da Vinci's "Mona Lisa" or the Winged Victory of Samothrace at McDonald's new burger bar and a McCafe. They will be sited in the underground approach to the museum in central Paris, known as the Carrousel du Louvre.

4. McCurry Wins Big McAttack in Malaysia Kuala Lumpur Eatery Defeats Trademark Challenge From McDonald's in Country's Top Court By JAMES HOOKWAY American fast-food giant McDonald's Corp. on Tuesday lost an eight-year battle to prevent a family-run Kuala Lumpur restaurant from calling itself McCurry, after Malaysia's top court said the Indian-food joint could use the prefix "Mc" in its name. A McCurry lawyer, Sri Dev Nair, said the ruling means McDonald's doesn't have a monopoly on the prefix "Mc," and that other restaurants could also use it as long as they distinguished their food from McDonald's. Slide 18-18

5. To Outfox the Chicken Tax, Ford Strips Its Own Vans Logic Takes a Back Seat -- and Windows, as Auto Maker Plays Tariff Games By MATTHEW DOLAN SEPTEMBER 22, 2009 BALTIMORE -- Several times a month, Transit Connect vans from a Ford Motor Co. factory in Turkey roll off a ship here shiny and new, rear side windows gleaming, back seats firmly bolted to the floor. Their first stop in America is a low-slung, brick warehouse where those same windows, never squeegeed at a gas station, and seats, never touched by human backsides, are promptly ripped out. The fabric is shredded, the steel parts are broken down, and everything is sent off along with the glass to be recycled. Why all the fuss and feathers? Blame the "chicken tax."  The seats and windows are but dressing to help Ford navigate the wreckage of a 46-year-old trade spat. In the early 1960s, Europe put high tariffs on imported chicken, taking aim at rising U.S. sales to West Germany. President Johnson retaliated in 1963, in part by targeting German-made Volkswagens with a tax on imports of foreign-made trucks and commercial vans.

6. To Outfox the Chicken Tax, Ford Strips Its Own Vans Logic Takes a Back Seat -- and Windows, as Auto Maker Plays Tariff Games The 1960s went the way of love beads and sitar records, but the chicken tax never died. Europe still has a tariff on imports of U.S. chicken, and the U.S. still hits delivery vans imported from overseas with a 25% tariff. American companies have to pay, too, which puts Ford in the weird position of circumventing U.S. trade rules that for years have protected U.S. auto makers' market for trucks.

7. Kraft Covets Cadbury's Know-How in India By SONYA MISQUITTA and CECILIE ROHWEDDER Associated Press At the heart of Kraft Foods Inc.'s craving for British confectionery maker Cadbury PLC are consumers such as Divya Rodrigues. Ms. Rodrigues, a 21-year-old accounting student in Mumbai, regularly munches on Cadbury's Crackle and Dairy Milk brands, eats twice as much chocolate as she used to and might buy even more as presents for India's Diwali holiday. Cadbury estimates that more than half of India's population has never tasted chocolate , providing opportunity for growth.  a shop in New Delhi. Cadbury's hold on consumers in India and other emerging markets was a factor in Kraft's $16.73 billion takeover offer for the U.K. candy maker. A successful bid would boost Kraft's presence in two fast-growing parts of the global confectionery market: developing countries and the chewing-gum business.

8. Kraft Covets Cadbury's Know-How in India .Kraft, which makes the Milka, Toblerone and Cote d'Or brands, already has sizable chocolate businesses in Europe and Latin America. But in reaching consumers in overseas growth markets, Cadbury has had a double advantage: It is deeply entrenched in British Commonwealth countries such as India, where it has been selling chocolate for more than 60 years. Cadbury's 2002 acquisition of several chewing-gum brands from Pfizer Inc. has yielded a strong presence in Latin America. One of those brands, Trident, was Cadbury's main growth motor in South America in the first half of this year. In Mexico, Cadbury's sales of about $500 million far outpace Kraft's sales of $350 million there, according to Andrew Lazar, an analyst with Barclays Capital.

9. A Jar of Vegemite, a Window on Kraft By ILAN BRAT WSJ SEPTEMBER 30, 2009 The recipe for Vegemite, a salty brown yeast spread famous in Australia, remained unchanged for more than 80 years. Then Irene Rosenfeld became chief executive of Kraft Foods Inc. This summer, a milder version of Vegemite appeared on store shelves across Australia. Ms. Rosenfeld had almost nothing to do with the reformulated taste, its new packaging or its rollout – which says a lot about how she has tried to transform Kraft since taking over as the food giant's CEO in 2006. The new Vegemite, an idea that sprang from regional managers down under who were concerned about changing tastes, is just one result of Ms. Rosenfeld's drive to decentralize decision-making and shift more marketing dollars and attention to the biggest-selling brands at the world's second-largest food company by revenue. As Kraft tries to acquire British confectionery company Cadbury PLC, the results of her changes could be crucial to convincing Cadbury directors and shareholders that Kraft is in better position to grow and profit than Cadbury on its own. Kraft has proposed to buy Cadbury for $16.7 billion in cash and stock. The chocolate maker has resisted, arguing that shareholders will reap greater long-term value from a stand-alone Cadbury.

10. A Jar of Vegemite, a Window on Kraft By ILAN BRAT WSJ SEPTEMBER 30, 2009 The new Vegemite went from concept to launch in 10 months -- an unthinkable speed before Ms. Rosenfeld, according to former and current Kraft executives. The new product also combines Vegemite with another big Kraft brand, Philadelphia Cream Cheese. "You love that autonomy to really be agile ... and try to really make your own decisions and be accountable," says George Zoghbi, who became Kraft's managing director in Australia in October 2007. Two months after the July 7 launch, Kraft had sold more than 2.8 million jars of the new stuff in Australia and New Zealand before it even had a name; the company held a contest for consumers to give it one. It's now called Vegemite iSnack 2.0. In the same period, Kraft sold about 3.2 million jars of traditional Vegemite, which remains on the shelves. In the year-earlier period, Vegemite sales had totaled 3.3 million jars, indicating that the new product was bringing in new consumers.

11. A Jar of Vegemite, a Window on Kraft By ILAN BRAT WSJ SEPTEMBER 30, 2009

12. Starbucks Takes New Road With Instant Coffee Company Launches Marketing Campaign and Taste Challenge to Tout Its Portable, Less Expensive Product Via By JULIE JARGON – WSJ SEPTEMBER 30, 2009 Starbucks Corp. aims to convince Americans and Canadians that its new Via instant coffee is comparable to its brewed product. The Seattle-based coffee giant on Tuesday is planning to roll out Via to Starbucks stores across the U.S. and Canada after having tested it in Seattle, Chicago and London for several months. Portability will be an important selling point. As such, Via will be available in stores such as sporting-goods retailer REI and Office Depot Inc. On Tuesday, all customers on domestic United Airlines flights longer than two hours will get free packets of Via; starting Oct. 25, Via will be available for travelers to purchase on those flights.

13. Trade Upturn Hints at a Recovery By SUDEEP REDDY, JOHN W. MILLER and ALEX FRANGOS WSJ OCTOBER 12, 2009 World trade, which plunged more sharply during the financial crisis than at any time since the Great Depression, is beginning to pick up, another sign that the global economy is healing. Although the volume of trade remains well below pre-crisis levels, imports and exports appear to have touched bottom in the second quarter. Trade volumes had fallen even further than global growth. So signs of an upward turn in trade could spur production and encourage hiring in exporting economies that are still plagued by high unemployment. The turnaround is tentative, though, and comes amid continuing concerns about rising protectionism and weak global demand.

14. Trade Upturn Hints at a Recovery The report came amid other optimistic signs, both for trade and for global growth. The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development said Friday that an increase in its index of leading indicators suggests major economies are beginning to recover. In Asia, China, Korea and Taiwan are reporting renewed growth in exports. Korea, for instance, said the value of its exports in September was up 11.1% from August. In the U.S., a declining dollar is giving exporters a boost. "The weak dollar has made it a whole lot easier," says Randy Baerg, president of Warren & Baerg Manufacturing Inc. of Dinuba, Calif., which sells machines to grind biomass material into everything from horse feed to fuel.

15. Yen's Rise Dents Toyota Results Auto Maker Warns of Currency Impact, Vows Quick Action on Safety Defect By YOSHIO TAKAHASHI 04 Oct 2009 WSJ TOKYO -- Toyota Motor Corp.'s president on Friday warned that the rising yen will make it harder for the company to return to profitability, illustrating the effect of the strengthening Japanese currency on the nation's key exporters. President Akio Toyoda, speaking Friday at the Japan National Press Club, also said the company is investigating the cause of its largest -ever safety recall in the U.S., though he declined to say what effect it would have on the auto maker's business.

16. Yen's Rise Dents Toyota Results Intervention Returns to Currency Agenda Slow recovery from the credit crunch means that strong currencies are a problem for some economies. As a result, currency manipulation is being needed for the first time since most major countries subscribed to free floating currencies in 2004. "We understand that we are facing a tough situation" because of the yen's gains, he said. He added, "As we [already] have excessive production capacity, it will be hard to return to profitability...just by increasing sales volume." Mr. Toyoda said that the company would take all conceivable measures to help soften the impact of the strong yen, though he didn't elaborate.

17. Car Makers Hit Nikkei Shares of Japanese automakers were hit hard Friday by weak September sales in the US and a strong yen, dragging the benchmark index down to its lowest level since July, 2009. Toyota fell 3.7%, Honda Motor shed 3.4 % and Isuzu Motors was down 5.5%.

18. Lost in the Clouds 'saut acrobatique sur tremplin de neige' COMING ATTRACTIONS