IBT News Blog

Although this article only highlights current developments in the Taiwan/China issue, I think the article is valuable in pointing out some impacts that international relations has on economy. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/12/world/asia/12taiwan.html?ref=asia

Because of the history between Taiwan and China, the ensuing Korean War, and the rift between USSR and China, the sovereign status of Taiwan has been in limbo for over 50 years. Until fairly recently, Taiwan claimed to be the legitimate government over China, but changed its stance when a pro-independence president was elected almost 8 years ago. Then, in part due to China's soaring market, and in part due to political strife domestically and with China, Taiwanese economy soured. Today, any political development will greatly impact the Taiwanese economy (I believe almost 30% of the Taiwanese exports is to China). And vice versa, any development will also affect how the Taiwanese government approaches the issue of China.

submitted by: AL

This article discusses the attempts by the European Commission to increase its role in the trading activities of firms within member states, an area which was typically reserved for the member states themselves. See http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/0fcdeb3a-efc0-11dc-8a17-0000779fd2ac,noOfParas=2,emailFormat=plainText,storyType=ultralight,dwp_uuid=8baec054-53d0-11db-8a2a-0000779e2340,print=no,_i_email=y.html

This article discusses the successfulness of international trading agreements and dispute settlement entities, as well as their perception in the developed and developing world. See http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/58699264-ef9c-11dc-8a17-0000779fd2ac,noOfParas=2,emailFormat=plainText,storyType=ultralight,print=no,dwp_uuid=abb716b0-2f7a-11da-8b51-00000e2511c8,_i_email=y.html

The new British Budget was unveiled today and contained important assessments of the state of the British economy. See http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/em/fr/-/2/hi/uk_news/politics/7290372.stm

This article discusses the current status of the proposed free trade agreement between the US and Colombia and the issue of whether to submit this agreement to Congress for approval. See http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/b8b69b86-ef9b-11dc-8a17-0000779fd2ac,noOfParas=2,emailFormat=plainText,storyType=ultralight,print=no,dwp_uuid=d08c90e6-d316-11db-829f-000b5df10621,_i_email=y.html

This article provides insight into the world of grain trading, which has come under increasing scrutiny given the recent rises in grain prices. See http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/em/fr/-/2/hi/business/7289278.stm

This article discusses the World Bank's new aid pledge to Africa, which is particularly necessary in light of increasing food prices. See http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/em/fr/-/2/hi/business/7289747.stm

In light of increasing gas prices, the UK has announced that it will withhold a planned increase in gas taxes for at least 6 months. See http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/em/fr/-/2/hi/uk_news/politics/7291016.stm

This article discusses the new European investigation of price fixing by a variety of airlines. See http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/em/fr/-/2/hi/business/7290061.stm

New data indicates that the US trade deficit increased in January, 2008. See http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/em/fr/-/2/hi/business/7289907.stm

The EU regulatory body has given its approval to the acquisition of DoubleClick by Google, allowing the transaction to go forward. See http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/03/11/business/google.php