By Stephanie Levitz, The Canadian Press | November 13, 2011
HONOLULU, Hawaii - It's a trade deal being heralded as a model for the economic future, but Canada won't let go of its economic past to become a member.
Nine Pacific rim nations agreed Saturday to forge ahead with a new trade bloc that will fast-track trade between some of the most lucrative and potentially lucrative economies in the world.
"The (Trans Pacific Partnership) will boost our economies, lowering barriers to trade and investment, increasing exports, and creating more jobs for our people," U.S. President Barack Obama said in announcing the new framework ahead of the start of the formal APEC leader summit in Hawaii on Saturday.
But that won't be the case for Canada.
While Canada would like to be part of the TPP, it doesn't agree with the cost of membership, particularly the suggestion that it needs to signal a willingness to abandon decades-old supply management policies, International Trade Minister Ed Fast said Saturday.
"There has been some resistance and suggestions that we should be pre-negotiating our entry to the Trans Pacific partnership," Fast said.
"We have made it very clear that Canada will not pre-negotiate, we believe all of those issues should be discussed at the negotiating table."
Nor does Canada feel it needs to exchange farmers' interests for the greater economic interest, Fast said.
"We have free trade agreements with 14 countries, in each case we have been able to negotiate agreements that are acceptable and that allow us to continue to support our supply management system," he said.
Supply management policies for Canada's dairy, egg and poultry products have been in place for over 40 years to protect them from foreign competition via quotas and tariff controls.
The system has fallen out of favour internationally as it's believed to keep prices artificially high and restrict innovation.
But the Conservative government has been steadfast in its commitment to the affected farmers, the vast majority of whom live in Ontario and Quebec.
Fast wouldn't say who is resisting having Canada at the TPP talks, but one observer said Canada doesn't need to look very far.
"Washington has no interests in structuring a deal which will see their benefits diluted by Canada being on the same footing as U.S. exporters," said Peter Clark, a former Canadian trade negotiator.
Clark said there are other issues at play.
"The reason that we could not get to the table had much more to do with U.S. demands that we commit to liberalize in a number of other areas, for example delaying the introduction of generic medicine, more intrusive protection of intellectual property rights by Canadian customs officers, foreign investment reviews and foreign ownership of telecoms providers," Clark said.
The end goal of the TPP is to expand it among all the 21 member economies of APEC.
There is little wiggle room when it comes to the terms of membership, said U.S Trade Representative Ron Kirk.
"I want to make it absolutely clear that not only Japan, but any of the other economies, once they decide to engage us, we would expect them to meet the standards to which we all collectively agree," he told reporters.
Japan has signalled an interest in being part of the talks and China hasn't ruled it out either.
Analysts say that in the absence of the TPP Canada needs to beef up bilateral relations in the Asia Pacific.
The government estimated that Canada’s trade with Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation economies grew from $374.6 billion in 1994 to $654.4 billion in 2010.Prime Minister Stephen Harper held a series of bilateral meetings in advance of the broader APEC summit to continue to push forward with bilateral deals.
"Asia is already an important part of the growth we’ve had in trade and the creation of jobs in recent years and obviously we are looking at ways of increasing that in the future," Harper said at a briefing early Saturday morning.
He sat down with the leaders of Indonesia, Chile and Peru.
Following his meeting with Peru, Harper announced Canada would contribute $4.8 million over four years towards a U.N. conflict prevention program that works in the South American country on issues that arise over natural resources.
Harper also announced an expansion of a science and technology development partnership with China.
His 30 minute meeting with the Chinese President was Harper's most formal bilateral of the day.
"You have repeatedly stated that you attach importance to our relationship and that you hope to forge an even closer relationship with China," Jintao told Harper through a translator.
"I appreciate that position."
Harper is also set to meet one-on-one with Obama on Sunday after the APEC summit wraps.
The two were originally meant to participate in the North American leaders summit with Mexican President Felipe Calderon on Sunday night.
But Calderon pulled out of the meetings after his interior minister was killed Friday in a helicopter crash.
http://www.canadianbusiness.com/article/56805--canada-wants-in-to-new-asia-pacific-trade-pact-but-won-t-pre-negotiate-minister
Sunday, 13 November 2011
Thursday, 10 November 2011
Surging energy exports restore Canada's trade surplus
By John Morrissy, Postmedia NewsNovember 10, 2011
OTTAWA - An unexpectedly strong month for energy exports returned Canada's trade balance to a surplus in September, breaking a strong of seven monthly deficits, Statistics Canada reported Thursday.
As a result of a 4.2 per cent advance in overall exports, Canada's trade balance rose to a surplus of $1.2 billion from a downwardly revised deficit of $487 million in August, the federal agency said. Imports, meanwhile, fell 0.3 per cent.
Economists polled by Bloomberg had called for a monthly trade deficit of $560 million.
The Canadian dollar rose after the report's release, and was up 33 basis points to 98.21 cents US in early afternoon trading.
``Even in times of uncertain global growth, Canadian exporters get the odd ray of hope,'' said CIBC World Markets economist Emanuella Enenajor.
She, like other commentators, said the trade figures will contribute meaningfully to a rebound in third-quarter growth, removing any doubt Canada would post two consecutive negative quarters and fall back into recession.
Enenajor forecast that third-quarter growth will come in at three per cent annualized, while economist Shahrzad Mobasher Fard at TD Economics said the report ``presents another upside risk to our economic growth forecast of two per cent in the third quarter.''
In the second quarter, growth contracted by 0.4 per cent.
Exports in September rose to $39.7 billion, the highest value since October 2008 as six of seven sectors posted gains in September, Statistics Canada said.
Energy exports rose 11.3 per cent to $9.6 billion, while automotive exports climbed 5.6 per cent to $4.8 billion and industrial goods and materials rose 3. 4 per cent to $10.47 billion.
Statistics Canada cautioned, however, that much of September's gains were a result of prices, which rose 3.9 per cent, while volumes edged up only 0.3 per cent.
Moreover, economists don't expect September's figures to carry through into the coming months.
Economist Derek Holt at Scotia Capital said much of the month's strength resulted from an end to temporary refinery shutdowns and the accompanying one- time surge in energy exports
``With the global economy slowing into Q4, don't expect trade to repeat its strong performance,'' added Sherry Cooper, chief economist at BMO Financial Group.
The report showed that Canada made progress in reducing its reliance on the U.S., the country's largest trading partner, as exports to countries other than the United States rose 2.3 per cent to $11.5 billion, the fifth consecutive monthly increase.
An accompanying 0.7 per cent rise in imports resulted in Canada's trade deficit with countries other than the United States falling to $3.1 billion in September from $3.3 billion in August, the lowest level so far this year.
Meanwhile, Canada's trade surplus with the United States rose to $4.4 billion in September from $2.8 billion in August as exports to the U.S. climbed five per cent to $28.2 billion, the highest value since January 2011. Imports from the United States decreased one per cent to $23.8 billion.
http://www.canada.com/business/Surging+energy+exports+restore+Canada+trade+surplus/5691726/story.html
OTTAWA - An unexpectedly strong month for energy exports returned Canada's trade balance to a surplus in September, breaking a strong of seven monthly deficits, Statistics Canada reported Thursday.
As a result of a 4.2 per cent advance in overall exports, Canada's trade balance rose to a surplus of $1.2 billion from a downwardly revised deficit of $487 million in August, the federal agency said. Imports, meanwhile, fell 0.3 per cent.
Economists polled by Bloomberg had called for a monthly trade deficit of $560 million.
The Canadian dollar rose after the report's release, and was up 33 basis points to 98.21 cents US in early afternoon trading.
``Even in times of uncertain global growth, Canadian exporters get the odd ray of hope,'' said CIBC World Markets economist Emanuella Enenajor.
She, like other commentators, said the trade figures will contribute meaningfully to a rebound in third-quarter growth, removing any doubt Canada would post two consecutive negative quarters and fall back into recession.
Enenajor forecast that third-quarter growth will come in at three per cent annualized, while economist Shahrzad Mobasher Fard at TD Economics said the report ``presents another upside risk to our economic growth forecast of two per cent in the third quarter.''
In the second quarter, growth contracted by 0.4 per cent.
Exports in September rose to $39.7 billion, the highest value since October 2008 as six of seven sectors posted gains in September, Statistics Canada said.
Energy exports rose 11.3 per cent to $9.6 billion, while automotive exports climbed 5.6 per cent to $4.8 billion and industrial goods and materials rose 3. 4 per cent to $10.47 billion.
Statistics Canada cautioned, however, that much of September's gains were a result of prices, which rose 3.9 per cent, while volumes edged up only 0.3 per cent.
Moreover, economists don't expect September's figures to carry through into the coming months.
Economist Derek Holt at Scotia Capital said much of the month's strength resulted from an end to temporary refinery shutdowns and the accompanying one- time surge in energy exports
``With the global economy slowing into Q4, don't expect trade to repeat its strong performance,'' added Sherry Cooper, chief economist at BMO Financial Group.
The report showed that Canada made progress in reducing its reliance on the U.S., the country's largest trading partner, as exports to countries other than the United States rose 2.3 per cent to $11.5 billion, the fifth consecutive monthly increase.
An accompanying 0.7 per cent rise in imports resulted in Canada's trade deficit with countries other than the United States falling to $3.1 billion in September from $3.3 billion in August, the lowest level so far this year.
Meanwhile, Canada's trade surplus with the United States rose to $4.4 billion in September from $2.8 billion in August as exports to the U.S. climbed five per cent to $28.2 billion, the highest value since January 2011. Imports from the United States decreased one per cent to $23.8 billion.
http://www.canada.com/business/Surging+energy+exports+restore+Canada+trade+surplus/5691726/story.html
Wednesday, 9 November 2011
Loonie lower as Italian debt worries send investors to U.S. Treasuries
By: Malcolm Morrison
The Canadian Press
TORONTO—The Canadian dollar fell more than a full U.S. cent Wednesday as investors nervous about the state of Italy’s economy sold off risk and bought into the safe haven status of U.S. Treasuries.
The loonie fell 1.3 cents 97.89 cents US.
Financial markets had reacted positively Tuesday after premier Silvio Berlusconi lost a confidence vote and his majority in parliament and said he would resign after his government’s new austerity budget is passed. There was little confidence that he could implement the tough measures that eurozone officials have demanded.
But pessimism returned to markets with a vengeance Wednesday as the country’s 10-year yield jumped above the seven per cent level amid uncertainty about who will steer the country through its debt crisis.
There was also unhappiness about the fact Berlusconi isn’t resigning immediately.
“The problem ... is that we are now entering a political interlude that is too long a timeframe for an already grumpy market,” said Mark Chandler, Head of Canada FIC Strategy at RBC Dominion Securities Inc.
“The transitional government dynamic could prove messy in the interim, especially given that elections would unlikely be held before February.”
Bond yields in the seven per cent range are considered to be unsustainable in the long run.
When Greece, Ireland and Portugal saw their ten-year borrowing rates rise above seven per cent, the markets concluded they had to be bailed out.
The dollar was also pressured by commodity prices forced lower on demand concerns and the rising U.S. dollar.
A stronger greenback usually helps depress prices for oil and metals, which are denominated in dollars, as it makes commodities more expensive for holders of other currencies.
Commodity prices headed lower Wednesday with the December crude contact on the New York Mercantile Exchange down $2.17 to US$94.63 a barrel.
Metals also fell back as the December copper contract in New York lost six cents to US$3.48 a pound.
The December gold contract in New York was off $6.70 to US$1,792.50 an ounce.
The Canadian Press
TORONTO—The Canadian dollar fell more than a full U.S. cent Wednesday as investors nervous about the state of Italy’s economy sold off risk and bought into the safe haven status of U.S. Treasuries.
The loonie fell 1.3 cents 97.89 cents US.
Financial markets had reacted positively Tuesday after premier Silvio Berlusconi lost a confidence vote and his majority in parliament and said he would resign after his government’s new austerity budget is passed. There was little confidence that he could implement the tough measures that eurozone officials have demanded.
But pessimism returned to markets with a vengeance Wednesday as the country’s 10-year yield jumped above the seven per cent level amid uncertainty about who will steer the country through its debt crisis.
There was also unhappiness about the fact Berlusconi isn’t resigning immediately.
“The problem ... is that we are now entering a political interlude that is too long a timeframe for an already grumpy market,” said Mark Chandler, Head of Canada FIC Strategy at RBC Dominion Securities Inc.
“The transitional government dynamic could prove messy in the interim, especially given that elections would unlikely be held before February.”
Bond yields in the seven per cent range are considered to be unsustainable in the long run.
When Greece, Ireland and Portugal saw their ten-year borrowing rates rise above seven per cent, the markets concluded they had to be bailed out.
The dollar was also pressured by commodity prices forced lower on demand concerns and the rising U.S. dollar.
A stronger greenback usually helps depress prices for oil and metals, which are denominated in dollars, as it makes commodities more expensive for holders of other currencies.
Commodity prices headed lower Wednesday with the December crude contact on the New York Mercantile Exchange down $2.17 to US$94.63 a barrel.
Metals also fell back as the December copper contract in New York lost six cents to US$3.48 a pound.
The December gold contract in New York was off $6.70 to US$1,792.50 an ounce.
Sunday, 6 November 2011
Quebec needs to move beyond simply smelting aluminum
For decades, Quebec’s foreign-owned aluminum sector has been a source of pride in a province that can use all the high-powered manufacturing might it can get.
Boosted by financial backing from the government and cheap hydroelectric rates, the sector has played a starring role in the province’s economic development. But the three major players in North America’s most aluminum-intensive region – the third largest in the world after China and Russia – struggle to make Quebec a centre of aluminum-product innovation.
Despite years of effort by the industry to update, including Alcoa’s confirmation of plans on Monday for a $2.1-billion expansion and modernization program at three Quebec facilities, the province remains for the most part a simple exporter of primary aluminum to the four corners of the world.
For the industry to continue to thrive, moving up the value chain is imperative. Powerful emerging players like China and Russia are already shifting in a big way from primary manufacturing to higher-margin products, part of a growing worldwide shift to the use of aluminum in non-traditional areas.
The lightweight industrial metal has long been a staple material in such products as window frames, juice and soft drink cans and cooking utensils. But its usage is being stretched into other areas, including building construction and aerospace.
“Aluminum is becoming a tremendous source for all sorts of applications – the auto sector for example,” says Jesus Villegas, senior analyst with Harbor Intelligence in Austin, Texas. “Cars are increasingly being made with aluminum parts.”
Companies such as Alcoa Inc. – the U.S.-based parent of Alcoa Canada – that are developing innovative uses for aluminum are benefitting to a much greater extent in foreign markets, notably Asia.
Alcoa Inc. is already working with a Chinese partner – Zhengzhou Yutang Bus Co., the country’s biggest bus manufacturer – to make environmentally friendly buses with aluminum chassis, turning out about 27,000 a year. The vehicles are 46 per cent lighter than a regular bus, so they use less fuel and emit fewer greenhouse gases.
“Why can’t we do that here?” asks Jean Simard, head of the Aluminum Association of Canada. “It’s not rocket science. It’s common sense.”
Canada produced 2.9-million tonnes of aluminum in 2010, about 7 per cent of global capacity. About 80 per cent of that is exported.
In Quebec, where 90 per cent of the Canadian industry is concentrated, aluminum production represented 10 per cent of the total value of manufactured exports last year. It employs an estimated 30,000 people directly and indirectly.
The three main players – Rio Tinto Alcan, Alcoa Canada and Aluminerie Alouette – are aware of the risks posed by more aggressive competitors. They plan to invest between $7-billion and $10-billion over the next 10 years to modernize and expand their Quebec facilities to produce more innovative, higher-margin products.
Some of that is earmarked for R&D and special projects. The companies, for example, have formed a consortium to develop a prototype for a 30-seat microbus made with aluminum parts. Aluminerie Alouette has a program to encourage its suppliers to come up with ideas for integrating aluminum in their products.
There are also plans for a public-private sector collaboration on the development of aluminum decking for bridges to replace steel.
But Lloyd O’Carroll, an aluminum-industry analyst with Davenport & Co. LLC in Virginia, says the Canadian industry faces significant challenges. Quebec’s competitive advantage has always been access to plentiful, cheap electricity – aluminum smelting requires massive amounts of electrical power – and that isn’t about to change overnight, Mr. O’Carroll said.
“Quebec and B.C. – where a major aluminum smelter is located – will always be centres of smelting because of the available and highly competitive power,” he said.
Setting up major value-added facilities – such as plants that make aluminum wheels – is difficult in Quebec because it is far from major centres such as Detroit and shipping costs are prohibitive, he said.
The fact that the leading aluminum producer in Quebec – Rio Tinto Alcan – is no longer in the business of making semi-fabricated products (it has sold off those divisions over the years) doesn’t help foster a transformational attitude, he said.
And there’s another key stumbling block – government regulations that limit the use of aluminum in construction and infrastructure projects, and thus hamper the development of homegrown expertise.
Alexandre de la Chevrotière, president and chief executive officer of Montreal-based aluminum design-and-build firm Maadi Group, finds it incredible that the provincial bidding process for infrastructure projects excludes the use of aluminum as a construction material.
Rules in the other provinces vary, but steel remains the No. 1 choice there as well, he said.
“On the one hand, the Quebec government pushes the big aluminum producers to create jobs in the transformation sector. And yet they shut out aluminum when they put out tenders,” he said.
That’s in stark contract to the attitude in Europe, where about 30 per cent of construction projects use some aluminum, says Mr. de la Chevrotière, whose company makes such products as all-aluminum pedestrian and bicycle bridges.
A spokesman for Sam Hamad, Quebec’s Minister for Economic Development, said the government is working on developing a new aluminum-transformation policy but the Minister won’t comment until the plan is completed and ready to be unveiled, some time in the next few months.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/industry-news/energy-and-resources/quebec-needs-to-move-beyond-simply-smelting-aluminum/article2228534/
Thursday, 3 November 2011
Why Chinese workers don’t hate the boss
By: Erin Millar
Special to Globe and Mail Update
Published Thursday, Nov. 03, 2011 5:00AM EDT
The light bulb moment occurred while Dr. Daniel Skarlicki was teaching an organizational behaviour class in Shanghai. Speaking with his MBA students during one of the many social events that are an essential part of doing business in China, the Sauder School of Business professor was struck by how differently they thought about employers compared to Canadians. Dr. Skarlicki’s research, which focuses on how employees react when treated unfairly by their employer, had until then been conducted exclusively in North America. But a global approach to human resources research that could account for cultural influences would be relevant not only for companies with global offices, but for anyone managing a diverse workforce, he realized.
And thus was born Dr. Skarlicki’s collaboration with researchers in Paris and Shanghai. “We found that the Chinese are highly collectivist,” he said. “They recognize ‘power difference,’ or leadership hierarchy, more than North Americans do. They tend to think, ‘If my boss mistreats me, he’ll just get it back in the next life.’”
Like the Sauder School of Business at the University of British Columbia, many Canadian business schools have set up satellite campuses or partnered with universities overseas in the past decade; while the initial motivation was to find new markets of potential students, the indirect benefits of these programs − such as collaborative research like Dr. Skarlicki’s − are more far-reaching than could have been expected.
“People sometimes say that business schools are out offering [international] programs just for the money, but that’s not enough reason,” says Dr. Harrie Vredenburg, a professor at the Haskayne School of Business at the University of Calgary. “We’re getting essential knowledge and collaborations. Our experience informs our research back home. We learn as much from [our students] as they learn from us.”
The benefits of offering international programs such as UCalgary’s Global Energy EMBA extend beyond academia, according to Dr. Vredenburg. “This isn’t just good for the university, but also for Calgary, being recognized as a global energy centre, and for Canada.”
By training a generation of up-and-coming business leaders in fast-growing economies such as China, business schools are paving the way for Canadian companies by forging key relationships, raising Canada’s profile and promoting Canadian business practices and values. “I regularly get calls from companies here thinking about growing their businesses in these markets,” says Dr. Vrendenburg. “They want to know about the business environment there. They want our contacts.”
Dr. Steven Murphy, associate dean at Sprott School of Business at Carleton University, believes Carleton’s presence abroad also benefits the countries in which it operates. In 2002, Carleton launched the first MBA and master of business programs available in Iran in partnership with Qeshm Institute of Higher Learning. That an Ottawa-based university has set up shop in a country with decidedly strained relations with Canada may come as a surprise, but Dr. Murphy sees the school as a positive influence. “We want to play a positive role in [Iranian] society by being there,” he says. “Politics will come and go, but we’re a neutral arbitrator of what Canadians stand for. We’re playing an important role by providing the skill set for Iranians to move forward as they choose to.”
When Carleton first began offering an MBA in China, the school was criticized for working in a country with such a dismal human rights record. Rather than boycotting certain countries, Dr. Murphy says Carleton “can make more of a difference on the ground.”
Now with hundreds of schools from all over the world offering business education in China, Carleton is looking farther afield for its next global undertaking. Plans are in the works to launch an MBA in Colombia with a partner university there. “We see Colombia as a gateway to Chile,” Dr. Murphy says, “but it also has its own story. Colombia is trying to attract foreign investment, and by us being there, we want to signal: Canada is here, we care about your business, we care about your people.”
Of course, there are many other concrete advantages enjoyed by business schools operating internationally. Professors say that the programs boost recruitment of international students to Canada-based programs. Canadian students are typically given the option of completing one or more courses towards their MBA at foreign campuses, giving them an invaluable experience studying alongside young business leaders from different cultures.
But perhaps the most significant, if unintended, bonus is the knowledge professors bring back to Canada after they’ve been sent to teach in Shanghai and Qeshm and Bogota. “You get a deep understanding of how these cultures do business,” Dr. Murphy says. “When you’re armed with that knowledge, you can present to your students a perspective on global business that is more informed.”
This knowledge is not limited to a deeper appreciation for the business cultures within which these schools are operating, but also insight into Canada.
“We’re like fish,” says Dr. Skarlicki. “A fish doesn’t know he’s in water until you take him out and return him. Like any travel, when you return home you notice what you took for granted.
“Teaching in other countries has made me see Canada differently.”
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/careers/business-education/why-chinese-workers-dont-hate-the-boss/article2222620/
Special to Globe and Mail Update
Published Thursday, Nov. 03, 2011 5:00AM EDT
The light bulb moment occurred while Dr. Daniel Skarlicki was teaching an organizational behaviour class in Shanghai. Speaking with his MBA students during one of the many social events that are an essential part of doing business in China, the Sauder School of Business professor was struck by how differently they thought about employers compared to Canadians. Dr. Skarlicki’s research, which focuses on how employees react when treated unfairly by their employer, had until then been conducted exclusively in North America. But a global approach to human resources research that could account for cultural influences would be relevant not only for companies with global offices, but for anyone managing a diverse workforce, he realized.
And thus was born Dr. Skarlicki’s collaboration with researchers in Paris and Shanghai. “We found that the Chinese are highly collectivist,” he said. “They recognize ‘power difference,’ or leadership hierarchy, more than North Americans do. They tend to think, ‘If my boss mistreats me, he’ll just get it back in the next life.’”
Like the Sauder School of Business at the University of British Columbia, many Canadian business schools have set up satellite campuses or partnered with universities overseas in the past decade; while the initial motivation was to find new markets of potential students, the indirect benefits of these programs − such as collaborative research like Dr. Skarlicki’s − are more far-reaching than could have been expected.
“People sometimes say that business schools are out offering [international] programs just for the money, but that’s not enough reason,” says Dr. Harrie Vredenburg, a professor at the Haskayne School of Business at the University of Calgary. “We’re getting essential knowledge and collaborations. Our experience informs our research back home. We learn as much from [our students] as they learn from us.”
The benefits of offering international programs such as UCalgary’s Global Energy EMBA extend beyond academia, according to Dr. Vredenburg. “This isn’t just good for the university, but also for Calgary, being recognized as a global energy centre, and for Canada.”
By training a generation of up-and-coming business leaders in fast-growing economies such as China, business schools are paving the way for Canadian companies by forging key relationships, raising Canada’s profile and promoting Canadian business practices and values. “I regularly get calls from companies here thinking about growing their businesses in these markets,” says Dr. Vrendenburg. “They want to know about the business environment there. They want our contacts.”
Dr. Steven Murphy, associate dean at Sprott School of Business at Carleton University, believes Carleton’s presence abroad also benefits the countries in which it operates. In 2002, Carleton launched the first MBA and master of business programs available in Iran in partnership with Qeshm Institute of Higher Learning. That an Ottawa-based university has set up shop in a country with decidedly strained relations with Canada may come as a surprise, but Dr. Murphy sees the school as a positive influence. “We want to play a positive role in [Iranian] society by being there,” he says. “Politics will come and go, but we’re a neutral arbitrator of what Canadians stand for. We’re playing an important role by providing the skill set for Iranians to move forward as they choose to.”
When Carleton first began offering an MBA in China, the school was criticized for working in a country with such a dismal human rights record. Rather than boycotting certain countries, Dr. Murphy says Carleton “can make more of a difference on the ground.”
Now with hundreds of schools from all over the world offering business education in China, Carleton is looking farther afield for its next global undertaking. Plans are in the works to launch an MBA in Colombia with a partner university there. “We see Colombia as a gateway to Chile,” Dr. Murphy says, “but it also has its own story. Colombia is trying to attract foreign investment, and by us being there, we want to signal: Canada is here, we care about your business, we care about your people.”
Of course, there are many other concrete advantages enjoyed by business schools operating internationally. Professors say that the programs boost recruitment of international students to Canada-based programs. Canadian students are typically given the option of completing one or more courses towards their MBA at foreign campuses, giving them an invaluable experience studying alongside young business leaders from different cultures.
But perhaps the most significant, if unintended, bonus is the knowledge professors bring back to Canada after they’ve been sent to teach in Shanghai and Qeshm and Bogota. “You get a deep understanding of how these cultures do business,” Dr. Murphy says. “When you’re armed with that knowledge, you can present to your students a perspective on global business that is more informed.”
This knowledge is not limited to a deeper appreciation for the business cultures within which these schools are operating, but also insight into Canada.
“We’re like fish,” says Dr. Skarlicki. “A fish doesn’t know he’s in water until you take him out and return him. Like any travel, when you return home you notice what you took for granted.
“Teaching in other countries has made me see Canada differently.”
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/careers/business-education/why-chinese-workers-dont-hate-the-boss/article2222620/
Wednesday, 2 November 2011
International Trade Minister Undertakes Trade Mission to India to Deepen Canada-India Trade and Investment Ties
(No. 326 - November 2, 2011 – 8:30 a.m. ET) The Honourable Ed Fast, Minister of International Trade and Minister for the Asia-Pacific Gateway, will begin a week-long trade mission to India. The purpose of the mission is to strengthen Canada-India trade and investment ties, meet with Indian government ministers to advance key policy interests, meet with Indian business leaders to showcase Canadian know-how and capabilities, attract Indian investment to Canada, and advance the commercial interests of Canadian businesses seeking new opportunities in this priority market.
“With 1.2 billion consumers, India presents tremendous opportunities for Canadian businesses of all sizes,” said Minister Fast. “Given that one in five jobs and more than 60 percent of Canada’s economy depend on trade, deepening Canada’s trading relationship with India will help protect and strengthen the financial security of hard-working Canadians.”
Minister Fast will be in India from November 3 to 9, 2011, and will travel to the cities of Delhi, Ahmedabad, Pune and Mumbai to pursue Canadian interests in a focused set of key sectors (detailed below). India’s growing economy is increasing its demand for products, services and expertise. Last year, India’s GDP was $1.7 trillion and its economy grew by an annual average of 8.2 percent between 2006 and 2010—an indication that the Indian economy is well on its way to being one of the largest in the world.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh have committed to tripling the two countries’ trade by 2015—to $15 billion. The Indian market presents enormous opportunities for Canadian business due to its strong economic growth, growing middle class and increasing—and relatively young—population.
Sectors where there are opportunities for Canadian businesses include:
- Agriculture and agri-food (Ahmedabad/Mumbai): While Canada is already providing 38.3 percent of India’s pulse imports, its growing population and demand presents an enormous opportunity for Canadian producers.
- Energy (Ahmedabad/Mumbai): India needs to quintuple its electricity within 25 years and is looking for alternative energy sources to meet this demand.
- Infrastructure (Delhi/Ahmedabad/Mumbai): The Government of India has identified the need for an investment of $800 billion in infrastructure, including roads, bridges, railways, ports and airports.
- Information and communications technology (Delhi): Canadian expertise in digital media and wireless technologies, among other areas, can help India to provide communications access to people living in remote areas of the country.
- Education (Delhi): Canadian know-how can help bridge the large gap between the supply of and demand for educational facilities and address the shortage of qualified educators.
- Manufacturing (Delhi/Pune): India is the world’s second-fastest growing automotive market, after China. Canada, as the third-largest exporter of automotive products after Japan and the United States, is well positioned to be part of this global value chain.
“As part of our government’s job-creating, pro-trade plan, reaching a comprehensive economic partnership agreement with India is a top priority,” said Minister Fast. “The Canada-India joint study shows that a trade agreement with India could help our economy grow by $6 billion a year and increase our two-way trade by more than 50 percent. In order to protect and strengthen the financial security of Canadians during these uncertain global economic times, our government is committed to deepening Canada’s trade and investment ties with India. The Canada-India relationship will be critical to the prosperity of Canadian businesses and hard-working Canadians and their families, now and in the future.”
In 2010, bilateral merchandise trade between Canada and India totalled $4.2 billion, an increase of 46.6 percent since 2005. In 2010, the stock of two-way direct investment was more than $7 billion.
http://www.international.gc.ca/media_commerce/comm/news-communiques/2011/326.aspx?view=d
http://www.international.gc.ca/media_commerce/comm/news-communiques/2011/326.aspx?view=d
Tuesday, 1 November 2011
Real estate professionals grow anxious over prospects
Steve ladurantaye — REAL ESTATE REPORTER
Globe and Mail Update
Published
Last updated
Canadian real estate professionals are increasingly anxious about the sector’s prospects over the next year, as a sector that has led the country’s economic recovery shows signs of slowing along with the broader world economy.
“Canadian consumers who have been on a spending and home-buying spree, encouraged by low interest rates, could see their self-assurance ebb and job growth has decelerated in response to all the noise about European and U.S. debt woes,” said Lori-Ann Beausoleil, the consulting firm’s Canadian real estate leader. “Sensing a general slowdown, respondents to our survey are taking a ‘better-to-be-cautious’ investment approach for 2012.”
An annual report to be released Tuesday by PricewaterhouseCoopers asked 950 industry representatives in Canada, the United States and Latin America what they expected to happen in the 2012. It was the 33rd year for the Emerging Trends in Real Estate 2012.
Globe and Mail Update
Published
Last updated
Canadian real estate professionals are increasingly anxious about the sector’s prospects over the next year, as a sector that has led the country’s economic recovery shows signs of slowing along with the broader world economy.
Canadian respondents to an annual PricewaterhouseCooper survey worried the job market would slow, leading to weakening confidence in the country’s housing sector. Meanwhile, commercial deal flow could be constrained as buyers find the market stalled by lack of willing sellers.
“Canadian consumers who have been on a spending and home-buying spree, encouraged by low interest rates, could see their self-assurance ebb and job growth has decelerated in response to all the noise about European and U.S. debt woes,” said Lori-Ann Beausoleil, the consulting firm’s Canadian real estate leader. “Sensing a general slowdown, respondents to our survey are taking a ‘better-to-be-cautious’ investment approach for 2012.”
An annual report to be released Tuesday by PricewaterhouseCoopers asked 950 industry representatives in Canada, the United States and Latin America what they expected to happen in the 2012. It was the 33rd year for the Emerging Trends in Real Estate 2012.
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