Search Results for: America

BY PACIFICA GODDARD

CONSTRUCTION for a ground-breaking ecology-friendly airport is under way in Ecuador’s ecological paradise, the Galapagos Islands. This is the Ecuadorian government’s latest step towards creating a model for sustainable eco-tourism in the islands, renowned as one of the most bio-diverse regions of the world.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

IN business, traditional security is all about keeping the bad guys out – stopping them stealing your money and property: intellectual and physical. And so it has been with telecommunications and Internet security. Companies have tried to protect their computers, telephones and other electronic communications devices from cybercriminals, unit by unit.…

BY JILL LANGLOIS, IN SÃO PAULO

BRAZIL’S dyeing and finishing sector is working hard to maintain a commercial edge – especially through environmental good practice – while its key market, the Brazilian textile industry, faces some tough times.

Foreign competition, weak international branding and unhelpful Brazilian government regulations are weakening the textile sector in Brazil: "The industry’s deficit will hit a record USD5 billion [last] year [2011] – we’ve already had to cut 19,000 jobs…" said Aguinaldo Diniz Filho, president of the Brazilian Textile and Apparel Industry Association (ABIT).…

BY MJ DESCHAMPS

WITH renewable energy continuing to grow worldwide, concerns about its limited production predictability are growing. That is why energy companies, researchers and engineers are concentrating on developing innovative electricity storage solutions – primarily geared at harnessing energy from renewables – so during periods of low solar irradiance or wind, backup systems can distribute power to the grid.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

THE EUROPEAN Commission has proposed its long-awaited package of measures designed to prevent major oil or gas rig accidents that could pollute European Union (EU) waters. They have been collated into a proposed regulation, which would have to be followed to the letter by member states, if the proposal is approved by MEPs and EU ministers.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

THE WORLD Trade Organisation (WTO) has ruled American beef and pork product origin labelling rules are so tight they breach a global trade agreement. A WTO disputes panel has backed a Canadian complaint about US rules insisting pork or beef products sold in America must be born, raised and slaughtered in the United States to carry a ‘made-in-the-USA’ label.…

BY MARK GODFREY and MJ DESCHAMPS

THE EXTENSION of the European Union’s (EU) emission trading scheme to the civil aviation sector might have been welcomed by environmentalists, but it has upset politicians and industry leaders abroad notably in the United States and China.…

BY MEGAN DETRIE and KACI RACELMA

THE IMPACT of the Arab Spring revolution has rattled though North Africa, leaving no economic sector unscathed – including the personal care products industry. Despite the fact that the growth of the cosmetics markets in countries like Tunisia, Egypt and Libya remains limited in lieu of the year of demonstrations and political upheaval, efforts are currently being made to boost the industry.…

BY MARK GODFREY

THE iPhone 4 and pricey bottles of Bordeaux appear to have become unlikely but essential business tools to crack the China market. "We have staff flying to Hong Kong to get them as soon as they hit the Apple Stores there," explains a European dealmaker who links state-owned Chinese energy firms with Western suppliers of turbines and high-tech tooling machines for the energy sector.…

BY GEMMA HANDY

Endemic corruption in a British overseas territory, compounded by claims of bribery and fraud, saw its constitution suspended and it returned to direct UK rule.

The Turks & Caicos Islands are now being prepared for a return for responsible government, but are sufficient checks and balances in place to prevent a backslide to commercial crime?…