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BY KEITH NUTHALL
A REPORT from European Union (EU) power federation Eurelectric has said that when regulators or governments impose public service obligations under the 2003 electricity directive, utilities “should be granted fair compensation.”

The group adds that such obligations should be organised “in a transparent and non-discriminatory manner”, using “market-based mechanisms.”…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
A EUROPEAN Union-funded research consortium is developing an industrial system for producing biodegradable plastics from whey, separated from milk curd during cheese-making. Around 30 per cent of the 50 million tonnes of whey produced in Europe annually is currently discarded, and the Euro 1.6 million WHEYPOL project is creating process to synthesise polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) generated from whey into plastic.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
UNITED Arab Emirates (UAE) knitted clothing exports to the United States are expected to be boosted in the future by a new Trade and Investment Framework Agreement signed by the two countries. The US imported US$1.1 billion million in UAE goods in 2003, with knitted apparel a key component of this commerce, (along with woven clothes and oil).…

BY MONICA DOBIE
AMERICAN researchers have developed a ‘curtain of air’ system that could keep disease-carrying insects from boarding civil aeroplanes. The technology, created by the Agricultural Research Service (ARS) in the United States, is a high velocity fan system used in passenger walkways that excludes 99 per cent of mosquitoes and flies.…

BY MONICA DOBIE
AUSTRALIA’S two large brewers have shifted their advertising campaigns to attract more 18-30’s into drinking their beer over pre-mixed drinks. Carlton & United Breweries and Lion Nathan spent far more money last year promoting premium and youth oriented beer brands than on their traditional top-selling brands.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
THE ASSOCIATION of British Insurers (ABI) is pressing the UK Government to maintain its raised level of spending on flood defences, as it works towards its next public spending round announcement in the summer. Following the spate of disastrous floods in 2000, Whitehall in 2002 increased its annual spending on the problem by Pounds 150 million.…

BY PHILIP FINE

UNITED States private-label garment retailers will be asking themselves whether they should in future demand more stringent labour relations codes with external clothing manufacturers, after chain Wet Seal settled a case involving questionable third-party labour practices. Four garment workers had filed wage claims against their employer, DT Sewing, as well as Wet Seal, the 619-store national chain with which DT did business.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
THE FREE trade deal struck between the United States and Australia that will phase out all tariffs on non-ferrous metals traded between the two countries has been welcomed by a specialist US federal committee, consulted as part of the ratification process.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
A SPECIALIST ferrous metal United States government committee has criticised the recent free trade agreement struck between the US and Australia that will remove tariffs on iron, steel and related products traded between the two countries. The federal inter-sector advisory committee on ferrous ores and metals has concluded the although the deal itself does promote US interests, there are a number of elements that fail to cover concerns “which certainly affect our sector’s economic interests and the equity and reciprocity for the US overall that we seek in US trade agreements.”…

BY MONICA DOBIE, ALAN OSBORN and MARK ROWE
SENDING employees abroad or setting up overseas branches always take some preparation and maybe the most important job is taking care of workers’ health needs. Not only must local employment laws be followed, but companies must ensure that they can manage the alien health risks faced abroad.…