Consumer Technology World Brief
As has been the trend for the last few years, Apple is still dominating the technology news. Apple has finally launched its long awaited iPhone 5. The phone has been well-received so far, and Apple, along with numerous other retailers, has sold out of their “Pre-reserve” stock.
Outside of “Apple World” Amazon is turning up the heat in the tablet war with an all new line-up of Amazon Kindle tablet and e-reader devices. Meanwhile, Microsoft is also looking to finally break into the Tablet and smartphone markets with their Windows 8 operating system being launched on devices from a range of manufacturers.
In other news, traditional Japanese technology giants such as Sony and Sharp continue to struggle. Sharp announced that it is cutting 10,000 jobs and the S&P has downgraded Sony to Triple B and a negative outlook over the next 12 months. The Olympus scandal is winding down with President Tsuyoshi Kikukawa pleading guilty and several other key Olympic mangers also pleading guilty.
North America World Review
Has Barack Obama Already Won Re-election?
Incumbent President Barack Obama is holding onto a narrow national popularity lead over rival Mitt Romney. More importantly, President Obama holds strong leads in several battle grown states. The United States uses an Electoral College system by which every state gets a number of delegates equivalent to the number of members it has in Congress. Unless the Romney campaign can stage a major comeback of the Obama administration suffers a serious set-back, Barack Obama will be reelected.
Waterloo Canada, the Next Silicon Valley?
In Canada, Waterloo Ontario, a small-college town, is developing into a tech start-up hub. An astounding 302 tech start-ups took root in Waterloo last year, compared with only 85 in New York City. Keep in mind that the Big Apple is over 80X the size of Waterloo. With low costs, an attractive tax breaks and other support from the government, Waterloo is becoming a start-up hot spot. Add in the world-class University of Waterloo and thousands of technology workers freed up by recent RIM layoffs and the city has ample talent to rival other hotspots, such as Silicon Valley.
Asia World Review
China’s Looming Labor Crisis?
China has grown to become the world’s manufacturing centre. Supply goods across the world, China’s manufacturing production capacity is unrivaled by any other single country. This explosive growth has been fueled by China’s massive population which until recent years was located primarily in the rural areas of China. As China’s factories grew, immigrants from the hinterland flocked to the cities to take manufacturing jobs. Now that source of cheap labor is drying up and the new generation of potential factory workers are demanding increased pay and working conditions. With the cost of doing business in China already increasing at breakneck speeds and the emergence of other low-cost manufacturers, there is a serious question as to whether China’s manufacturing sector can afford pay raises.
Australia’s Mining Industry Is Cooling Off
The Australian economy has enjoyed a strong period of sustained growth, fueled by demand for its mineral resources. China and other Asian manufacturers have been demanding large quantities of natural resources from Australia. Now, with Asian manufacturing hubs slowing down, the demand for Australia’s natural resources is dropping. The next several months will test the strength of Australia’s economy and its ability to thrive without a strong demand for finite natural resources.
Europe Review
Spain slammed by a bevy of bad news
Spain continues to deteriorate and may be the next European country to fail. The implications for Spain’s failure extend far beyond Greece, Iceland and other European countries that have folded in the last few years. Spain is the Eurozone’s fourth largest economy and should the country fail it is unlikely that the so-called Trokia (IMF, European Commission, European Central Bank) will be able to muster the financial resources to bail Spain out. Should this occur, governments around the world will be forced to either take extraordinary and unprecedented measures to bail Spain out or risk cascading economic affects that could send the world into a global depression.
Russia considering Oil Licenses for Western Companies
Russia is the world’s second largest crude oil producer and has vast oil fields stored across its massive territory. Until now, access to Russian off-shore oil fields has been restricted to Russian companies and specifically state-owned companies, such as Gazprom. Now, Russia is considering allowing foreign companies to not only exploit Russia’s oil wealth, but also to take ownership in licenses. With Russia looking to drum up USD 1 trillion in oilfield investments by 2020, this would be a major step in the right direction.
Other Regions
Syria-Turkey Edge toward War
Syrian-Turkish relations are growing increasingly intense. After a series of skirmishes that saw both sides launching minor attacks against each other’s sovereign territory, the Turkish parliament has now authorized military offenses against foreign countries. While this move may be intended more to force Syria to stand down there is a high-risk that the conflict could escalate into a full-blown war. Since the outbreak of Syria’s on-going civil war Turkey has been upping pressure on the Assad regime. Turkey has gone as far as to cut all economic and diplomatic ties with the Assad regime and is suspected of supporting the opposition within Syria.
George Soros Invests in Ethanol in Mozambique
Multi-billionaire George Soros, acting through his non-profit Soros Economic Development Fund, has invested some USD 6 million in Cleanstar Mozambique to market a new cooking system that will use Ethanol instead of the traditional charcoal. If successful, this system will create jobs and an entire industry built around the cooking system. It will also reduce the environmental effects and health hazards associated with charcoal cooking.