James Halliday has never been busier, though he admits his commitments have made him a bit grumpy.
Every year, the former lawyer and winemaker churns out 'Australian Wine Companion,' his ever-expanding guide to wines in the region. The 2012 edition is his biggest yet: At 776 pages, it contains tasting notes for more than 6,000 wines and profiles of more than 1,000 wineries. A favorite among oenophiles, the book is the best-selling wine guide in Australia.
This year, in what he calls 'a moment of madness,' he agreed to write a second guide called '1001 Wines Under $20.' The book is slated to come out in November.
'I thought, 'Well, it's only 1,000 wines, I'll do that very quickly,' he says. 'It turns out it was murder.'
Mr. Halliday spoke with the Journal's Jason Chow about his new 2012 guide, the state of the Australian wine market, and how Australia can capitalize on the growing Chinese audience. The following interview has been edited.
The Wall Street Journal: What's your process for updating the guide?
James Halliday: I start my tastings in early June, but my peak tasting period is in early September. For 12 to 14 days, I'll be tasting every day from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., two breaks during the day, for an annual Top 100 wines that I write for the Weekend Australian newspaper. I'll have tasted 1,200 to 1,400 wines for that. I taste 120 wines a day for 14 days. All wineries in Australia are invited to submit. The bulk of the wine notes comes from this.
My other source of tasting notes is from wine judging, mostly at regional wine shows. I deliberately judge smaller regional shows, because I pick up on small wineries that won't surface at capital-city wine shows.
The real ugly time for us is from January to late March, where we send emails to every winery in Australia to update their information. Winemakers come and go, and we have to update our database.
WSJ: What has changed the most about Australia's wine scene over the years?
Mr. Halliday: Back in our 2000 guide, there were only 1,000 wineries. Today, there's 2,400 active wineries. The industry has grown almost 1.5 times in the past 11 years. Even in this edition, we've added 105 new wineries.
WSJ: In Australia, there's still a massive wine glut and yet more wineries are still popping up. Tell us your take on the local industry today.
Mr. Halliday: It's paradoxical, isn't it? But the wine lake [the excess wine produced] is a byproduct of the dramatic increase of the wine industry, due to exporters, not those who were producing for domestic consumption.
Back in 1995, I was on a thinktank panel that did a 30-year vision for the wine industry, and we predicted that in 2025, we'd see the industry become a 4.5 billion Australian dollar (US$4.5 billion) industry with A$2.5 billion in exports and A$2 billion in domestic sales. But in fact, we hit those numbers in 2002. What we projected to happen in 30 years actually occurred in seven years.
Then in 2004, 2005 and 2006, we had three vintages that were all very good vintages ─ very good weather conditions ─ and three very huge vintages. They created this excess of wine. And the industry since then hasn't taken enough steps to remove vines and rationalize itself since.
The contrary argument is this: If we held market share of the world as we had in 2002, we wouldn't have a wine lake. It's not simple matter of overproduction, but it's also falling export demand. The reason for the falling demand is a number of things. The strong Australian dollar plays a big factor.
And the competition is harder too. There was a diaspora [of Australian winemakers] that went across Europe, mainly Southern France. Australian winemakers went there and started making better-quality wine, and showed them how. In the 1980s and 1990s, we were producing wine in Australia that was clearly better that any comparable wine out of Europe in terms of price. We were killing France. France was the top exporter to the U.K., and we pushed them down the list. But now, the Europeans have come up in quality.
WSJ: How does Australia break into the Chinese market?
Mr. Halliday: By persistence. It will require us taking a Chinese view of things and plan for the long-term.
Australia already has 20% market share of the Chinese imported wine market, only trailing France at 40%. And China is Australia's largest market for wines that are sold at more than US$10. And by volume, China is the fourth-largest market, after the U.K., U.S. and Canada.
History tells you that whenever you have a strong trading relationship between two countries ─ and here it's about coal and iron ore ─ other things will get sucked into the proposition. Australia could do nothing and sit on its hands, and wine exports would still increase. But of course, we're not just going to sit on our hands.
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
Monday, July 4, 2011
"Little Prince" classic warmth Quotations
You know — one loves the sunset, when one is so sad…
If someone loves a flower, of which just one single blossom grows in all the millions and millions of stars, it is enough to make him happy just to look at the stars. He can say to himself, "Somewhere, my flower is there…" But if the sheep eats the flower, in one moment all his stars will be darkened… And you think that is not important!
Flowers are so inconsistent! But I was too young to know how to love her…
For she did not want him to see her crying. She was such a proud flower…
My flower is ephemeral, and she has only four thorns to defend herself against the world. And I have left on my planet, all alone!
His flower had told him that she was only one of her kind in all universe. And here were five thousand of them, all alike, in one single garden!
I thought that I was rich, with a flower that was unique in all the world; and all I had was a common rose. A common rose…
To me, you are still nothing more than a little boy who is just like a hundred thousand other little boys. And I have no need of you. And you, on your part, have no need of me. To you, I am nothing more than a fox like a hundred thousand other foxes. But if you tame me, then we shall need each other. To me, you will be unique in all the world. To you, I shall be unique in all the world.
The wheat fields have nothing to say to me. And that is sad. But you have hair that is the color of gold. Think how wonderful that will be when you have tamed me! The grain, which is also golden, will bring me back the thought of you. And I shall love to listen to the wind in the wheat.
It is your own fault, I never wished you any sort of harm; but you wanted me to tame you... but now you are going to cry! Then it has done you no good at all!
It has done me good, because of the color of the wheat fields. Go and look again at the roses. You will understand now that yours is unique in all the world.
And now here is my secret, a very simple secret. It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eyes.
It is the time you have wasted for your rose that makes your rose so important.
Men have forgotten this truth. But you must not forget it. You become responsible, forever, for what you have tamed. You are responsible for your rose…
Only the children know what they are looking for. They waste their time over a rag doll and it becomes very important to them; and if anybody takes it away from them, they cry…
If someone loves a flower, of which just one single blossom grows in all the millions and millions of stars, it is enough to make him happy just to look at the stars. He can say to himself, "Somewhere, my flower is there…" But if the sheep eats the flower, in one moment all his stars will be darkened… And you think that is not important!
Flowers are so inconsistent! But I was too young to know how to love her…
For she did not want him to see her crying. She was such a proud flower…
My flower is ephemeral, and she has only four thorns to defend herself against the world. And I have left on my planet, all alone!
His flower had told him that she was only one of her kind in all universe. And here were five thousand of them, all alike, in one single garden!
I thought that I was rich, with a flower that was unique in all the world; and all I had was a common rose. A common rose…
To me, you are still nothing more than a little boy who is just like a hundred thousand other little boys. And I have no need of you. And you, on your part, have no need of me. To you, I am nothing more than a fox like a hundred thousand other foxes. But if you tame me, then we shall need each other. To me, you will be unique in all the world. To you, I shall be unique in all the world.
The wheat fields have nothing to say to me. And that is sad. But you have hair that is the color of gold. Think how wonderful that will be when you have tamed me! The grain, which is also golden, will bring me back the thought of you. And I shall love to listen to the wind in the wheat.
It is your own fault, I never wished you any sort of harm; but you wanted me to tame you... but now you are going to cry! Then it has done you no good at all!
It has done me good, because of the color of the wheat fields. Go and look again at the roses. You will understand now that yours is unique in all the world.
And now here is my secret, a very simple secret. It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eyes.
It is the time you have wasted for your rose that makes your rose so important.
Men have forgotten this truth. But you must not forget it. You become responsible, forever, for what you have tamed. You are responsible for your rose…
Only the children know what they are looking for. They waste their time over a rag doll and it becomes very important to them; and if anybody takes it away from them, they cry…
Thursday, May 26, 2011
China Pushes Hon Hai, Peers to Improve Safety
China's government said Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. and other Taiwan companies operating on the mainland should strengthen safety measures after a deadly explosion at one of the electronics manufacturer's plants, a facility where labor activists have criticized working conditions.
In a news briefing in Beijing on Wednesday, Fan Liqing, spokeswoman for the State Council's Taiwan Affairs Office, said the explosion at a workshop in one of Hon Hai's Chengdu factories, which killed three and injured 15, has been recognized as a 'product-safety accident.' She said Beijing hopes Hon Hai and other Taiwan-funded companies 'draw lessons from the accident,' strengthen internal monitoring and take precautions to ensure safe production.
The official's comments weren't so harsh as to suggest additional trouble for Hon Hai, which makes iPads and iPhones for Apple Inc. as well as devices for Sony Corp., Hewlett-Packard Co. and others. Hon Hai, which uses the trade name Foxconn, has suspended production at polishing workshops like the one where the accident occurred. Officials at that plant said they are cooperating fully with a government probe of the blast.
Still, Ms. Fan's comments marked a rare public chiding by the government for a company that is one of China's biggest employers, with about a million workers at sites across the country.
In a written statement, Hon Hai said, 'We have a shared commitment with the government to doing everything possible to ensure the health and safety of all Foxconn workers.'
Ms. Fan's remarks follow allegations from a Hong Kong-based labor-rights group that the explosion, which Hon Hai says was likely caused by combustible dust, could have been prevented if Hon Hai had better ventilation systems within its polishing workshops. The group, Students & Scholars Against Corporate Misbehavior, or Sacom, said it warned Hon Hai before the explosion to take measures to protect workers from inhaling dust in its polishing workshops.
Sacom on Tuesday released a video made before the accident showing men covered in silver-colored dust. The group said the men worked at another of Hon Hai's Chengdu facilities.
Hon Hai has rejected Sacom's criticism, saying in response to the video and allegations that it is 'addressing this challenge through improvements in workshop ventilation and the air-conditioning system,' among other changes to its policies and practices. The company added that the cause of the explosion is still under investigation, and that it would 'not hesitate to immediately implement' any specific measures where enhancements can be made to its facilities.
The explosion isn't expected to have a significant impact on Hon Hai's output unless the investigation of its facilities leads to a prolonged suspension. Hon Hai said this week that tests of the affected workshops could be finished in a matter of days, and Sony said the incident 'will have no impact' on its PlayStation and television businesses, for which it uses Hon Hai as a contract manufacturer.
Hon Hai is the world's largest contract manufacturer, with more than $80 billion in revenue last year.
Experts say industrial combustible dust is a common problem in China. Five accidental polishing-related explosions occurred in the country last year, resulting in several deaths, according to Zhong Shengjun, associate professor at the Industrial Explosion Protection Institute of Northeastern University in Shenyang. The U.S. has also had a number of combustible-dust accidents, with the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration listing at least 10 deaths from more than 100 accidents since 2002.
China's State Administration of Work Safety publishes warnings on its website about combustible dust, including one as recently as this month, but Mr. Zhong said national fire-protection standards are inadequate for preventing such accidents. 'Many corporate leaders and operations staff do not have any knowledge of dust explosions,' he said.
In a news briefing in Beijing on Wednesday, Fan Liqing, spokeswoman for the State Council's Taiwan Affairs Office, said the explosion at a workshop in one of Hon Hai's Chengdu factories, which killed three and injured 15, has been recognized as a 'product-safety accident.' She said Beijing hopes Hon Hai and other Taiwan-funded companies 'draw lessons from the accident,' strengthen internal monitoring and take precautions to ensure safe production.
The official's comments weren't so harsh as to suggest additional trouble for Hon Hai, which makes iPads and iPhones for Apple Inc. as well as devices for Sony Corp., Hewlett-Packard Co. and others. Hon Hai, which uses the trade name Foxconn, has suspended production at polishing workshops like the one where the accident occurred. Officials at that plant said they are cooperating fully with a government probe of the blast.
Still, Ms. Fan's comments marked a rare public chiding by the government for a company that is one of China's biggest employers, with about a million workers at sites across the country.
In a written statement, Hon Hai said, 'We have a shared commitment with the government to doing everything possible to ensure the health and safety of all Foxconn workers.'
Ms. Fan's remarks follow allegations from a Hong Kong-based labor-rights group that the explosion, which Hon Hai says was likely caused by combustible dust, could have been prevented if Hon Hai had better ventilation systems within its polishing workshops. The group, Students & Scholars Against Corporate Misbehavior, or Sacom, said it warned Hon Hai before the explosion to take measures to protect workers from inhaling dust in its polishing workshops.
Sacom on Tuesday released a video made before the accident showing men covered in silver-colored dust. The group said the men worked at another of Hon Hai's Chengdu facilities.
Hon Hai has rejected Sacom's criticism, saying in response to the video and allegations that it is 'addressing this challenge through improvements in workshop ventilation and the air-conditioning system,' among other changes to its policies and practices. The company added that the cause of the explosion is still under investigation, and that it would 'not hesitate to immediately implement' any specific measures where enhancements can be made to its facilities.
The explosion isn't expected to have a significant impact on Hon Hai's output unless the investigation of its facilities leads to a prolonged suspension. Hon Hai said this week that tests of the affected workshops could be finished in a matter of days, and Sony said the incident 'will have no impact' on its PlayStation and television businesses, for which it uses Hon Hai as a contract manufacturer.
Hon Hai is the world's largest contract manufacturer, with more than $80 billion in revenue last year.
Experts say industrial combustible dust is a common problem in China. Five accidental polishing-related explosions occurred in the country last year, resulting in several deaths, according to Zhong Shengjun, associate professor at the Industrial Explosion Protection Institute of Northeastern University in Shenyang. The U.S. has also had a number of combustible-dust accidents, with the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration listing at least 10 deaths from more than 100 accidents since 2002.
China's State Administration of Work Safety publishes warnings on its website about combustible dust, including one as recently as this month, but Mr. Zhong said national fire-protection standards are inadequate for preventing such accidents. 'Many corporate leaders and operations staff do not have any knowledge of dust explosions,' he said.
Monday, May 9, 2011
'Thor' Wins At US Box Office
'Thor,' the newest comic-book adaptation from Marvel Studios, powered its way to the top of the box office with a $66 million opening weekend in North America, according to early studio estimates. Internationally, the film grossed $46 million in 60 markets, bringing its worldwide cumulative gross to $242 million after 11 days of release.
Starring relative newcomer Chris Hemsworth as the titular Norse god of thunder, the $150 million film was distributed by Viacom Inc.'s (VIA, VIAB) Paramount Pictures and represents the third-highest start for a Marvel character launch. The debut trails the respective $114.8 million and $98.6 million openings for the higher-profile 'Spider-Man' and 'Iron Man' films, but it is ahead of the openings for the first 'X-Men' film and the Incredible Hulk films.
Paramount will also distribute 'Captain America,' another Marvel comic-book adaptation, this July. Walt Disney Co. (DIS), which bought Marvel for $4.3 billion in 2009, will begin distributing Marvel films starting with the superhero film 'The Avengers' in 2012.
The first major event film of the summer movie season, with 2,737 of its 3,955 locations screening in 3-D, saw 60% of its gross come from the premium-priced option. The film also played to its base, with males accounting for 63% of the audience.
'Thor' has kicked off the summer season in a big way,' Paramount Pictures Vice Chairman Rob Moore said in an interview Sunday. 'Both culturally and for the movie industry, the first week of May is when you can start to feel summer, and it's when schools start to let out and you can play into that window.'
Given its solid but not stellar opening, 'Thor' will depend for its long-term success on its box-office momentum in coming weeks, as the further installments in popular film franchises such as 'Pirates of the Caribbean' and 'Harry Potter' are also released in live-action 3-D.
'Fast Five,' last weekend's top-grossing film from Comcast Corp.'s (CMCSA, CMCSK) Universal Pictures, dropped to second place with $32.5 million. The action film's domestic cumulative gross is now $139.9 million. Internationally, the film continued to louis vuitton diaper bag, grossing $86.6 million and bringing its world-wide total to $324.7 million.
Appealing to the non-comic-fan demographic, the new romantic comedies 'Jumping the Broom' and 'Something Borrowed' from Sony Corp.'s (SNE, 6758.TO) TriStar Pictures and Time Warner Inc.'s (TWX) Warner Bros., grossed $13.7 million and $13.2 million, respectively.
Starring relative newcomer Chris Hemsworth as the titular Norse god of thunder, the $150 million film was distributed by Viacom Inc.'s (VIA, VIAB) Paramount Pictures and represents the third-highest start for a Marvel character launch. The debut trails the respective $114.8 million and $98.6 million openings for the higher-profile 'Spider-Man' and 'Iron Man' films, but it is ahead of the openings for the first 'X-Men' film and the Incredible Hulk films.
Paramount will also distribute 'Captain America,' another Marvel comic-book adaptation, this July. Walt Disney Co. (DIS), which bought Marvel for $4.3 billion in 2009, will begin distributing Marvel films starting with the superhero film 'The Avengers' in 2012.
The first major event film of the summer movie season, with 2,737 of its 3,955 locations screening in 3-D, saw 60% of its gross come from the premium-priced option. The film also played to its base, with males accounting for 63% of the audience.
'Thor' has kicked off the summer season in a big way,' Paramount Pictures Vice Chairman Rob Moore said in an interview Sunday. 'Both culturally and for the movie industry, the first week of May is when you can start to feel summer, and it's when schools start to let out and you can play into that window.'
Given its solid but not stellar opening, 'Thor' will depend for its long-term success on its box-office momentum in coming weeks, as the further installments in popular film franchises such as 'Pirates of the Caribbean' and 'Harry Potter' are also released in live-action 3-D.
'Fast Five,' last weekend's top-grossing film from Comcast Corp.'s (CMCSA, CMCSK) Universal Pictures, dropped to second place with $32.5 million. The action film's domestic cumulative gross is now $139.9 million. Internationally, the film continued to louis vuitton diaper bag, grossing $86.6 million and bringing its world-wide total to $324.7 million.
Appealing to the non-comic-fan demographic, the new romantic comedies 'Jumping the Broom' and 'Something Borrowed' from Sony Corp.'s (SNE, 6758.TO) TriStar Pictures and Time Warner Inc.'s (TWX) Warner Bros., grossed $13.7 million and $13.2 million, respectively.
Sunday, April 10, 2011
How to Deal With a Bad Performance Review
Are you ready for a verdict on your performance?
For many employees in corporate India, late March, which coincides with end of the financial year, is when they find out if they'll get the raise or promotion they have been hoping for.
But what if your performance review fails to meet your expectations? It may upset you - and may even make you want to quit - but that could do more harm than good.
Instead, it's best to keep your cool and consider the following steps when dealing with a poor review:
Prepare, Prepare, Prepare: In advance of the annual appraisal meeting, it's a good idea to maintain a log of your achievements and failures throughout the year. This can save you from becoming a victim of critical appraisal just because you didn't perform well in a recent project.
If needed, bring a list -- along with any documentary evidence -- to support your accomplishments to the meeting. The appraisal meeting 'is a time for you to highlight (your) successes,' says Debbie Meech, people director at information and technology services firm Cable&Wireless Worldwide Plc.
As much as possible, you should 'highlight the achievements that have had the maximum impact on the company,' says Veena Padmanabhan, general manager at Wipro Technologies Ltd., an information technology firm.
Analyze: In case your company provides you a written review in advance of the meeting, read it thoroughly and calmly. If it includes some criticism of your work which you don't agree with, first try to understand why the reviewer has made that criticism.
Although we may think we are doing a great job, it's important to be critical of our own performance and aware of our shortcomings. 'Try to be more objective,' says Ms. Padmanabhan.
Have a clear idea of what your performance has been like, before trying to convince your bosses.
At the meeting: On the day of the appraisal meeting it's essential that you come prepared and bring a calm, receptive mind. Be sure to hear out your manager fully, before saying anything.
If you realize that you've made a mistake or could improve your performance, own up to that. But if you feel you are being wrongly criticized, than you should stand up for yourself.
Some companies have two appraisal meetings. This allows you some time to prepare your case. But if your company has only one meeting, you'll have to think of your defense pretty quickly.
It's best to stick to facts when arguing you deserve a better review. 'Do not be defensive, as that can be detrimental,' saysNirmal Rana, head of human resources at Ozone Group, a firm providing healthcare products.
Whatever you do, don't lose your cool and don't react with 'hostility or anger, as that will not go down well with the management,' says Bhasker Bhandary, director human resources at Acer India Pvt., a firm providing information technology services.
If you feel like you didn't make a good case for yourself, you could try going back to your manager within the next day or two.
What's next? You've made your case, but your performance review stands. What should you do next - live with it, or hand in your resignation?
Don't make this decision immediately after the appraisal meeting. A critical review might leave you upset and emotionally charged, which is not the best state of mind in which to take decisions on your future.
Remember that quitting is not always the ideal answer, because there's no guarantee you'll get better recognition at your next job. 'Moving from one place to another reflects (poorly) on the career of the person,' says Mr. Rana of Ozone. 'So, you should try and work it out first.'
Give yourself time to absorb the feedback. 'Step back and let yourself ponder over it for a week or ten days,' says Ms. Padmanabhan. 'Time mellows down reactions'
New targets: If you have decided to stay at your company, make the best of the feedback you received from your bosses.
Talk with your manager about a list of targets you need to achieve in the coming year, and how to go about achieving them. Maybe you need to upgrade your skills. It's important to keep building your soft skills and your relationship with your manager.
'Communicate often to get a clear idea of what the manager expects,' says Mr. Rana. Developing this regular feedback system can not only help you achieve your goals but also help you get a better performance review next time around.
For many employees in corporate India, late March, which coincides with end of the financial year, is when they find out if they'll get the raise or promotion they have been hoping for.
But what if your performance review fails to meet your expectations? It may upset you - and may even make you want to quit - but that could do more harm than good.
Instead, it's best to keep your cool and consider the following steps when dealing with a poor review:
Prepare, Prepare, Prepare: In advance of the annual appraisal meeting, it's a good idea to maintain a log of your achievements and failures throughout the year. This can save you from becoming a victim of critical appraisal just because you didn't perform well in a recent project.
If needed, bring a list -- along with any documentary evidence -- to support your accomplishments to the meeting. The appraisal meeting 'is a time for you to highlight (your) successes,' says Debbie Meech, people director at information and technology services firm Cable&Wireless Worldwide Plc.
As much as possible, you should 'highlight the achievements that have had the maximum impact on the company,' says Veena Padmanabhan, general manager at Wipro Technologies Ltd., an information technology firm.
Analyze: In case your company provides you a written review in advance of the meeting, read it thoroughly and calmly. If it includes some criticism of your work which you don't agree with, first try to understand why the reviewer has made that criticism.
Although we may think we are doing a great job, it's important to be critical of our own performance and aware of our shortcomings. 'Try to be more objective,' says Ms. Padmanabhan.
Have a clear idea of what your performance has been like, before trying to convince your bosses.
At the meeting: On the day of the appraisal meeting it's essential that you come prepared and bring a calm, receptive mind. Be sure to hear out your manager fully, before saying anything.
If you realize that you've made a mistake or could improve your performance, own up to that. But if you feel you are being wrongly criticized, than you should stand up for yourself.
Some companies have two appraisal meetings. This allows you some time to prepare your case. But if your company has only one meeting, you'll have to think of your defense pretty quickly.
It's best to stick to facts when arguing you deserve a better review. 'Do not be defensive, as that can be detrimental,' saysNirmal Rana, head of human resources at Ozone Group, a firm providing healthcare products.
Whatever you do, don't lose your cool and don't react with 'hostility or anger, as that will not go down well with the management,' says Bhasker Bhandary, director human resources at Acer India Pvt., a firm providing information technology services.
If you feel like you didn't make a good case for yourself, you could try going back to your manager within the next day or two.
What's next? You've made your case, but your performance review stands. What should you do next - live with it, or hand in your resignation?
Don't make this decision immediately after the appraisal meeting. A critical review might leave you upset and emotionally charged, which is not the best state of mind in which to take decisions on your future.
Remember that quitting is not always the ideal answer, because there's no guarantee you'll get better recognition at your next job. 'Moving from one place to another reflects (poorly) on the career of the person,' says Mr. Rana of Ozone. 'So, you should try and work it out first.'
Give yourself time to absorb the feedback. 'Step back and let yourself ponder over it for a week or ten days,' says Ms. Padmanabhan. 'Time mellows down reactions'
New targets: If you have decided to stay at your company, make the best of the feedback you received from your bosses.
Talk with your manager about a list of targets you need to achieve in the coming year, and how to go about achieving them. Maybe you need to upgrade your skills. It's important to keep building your soft skills and your relationship with your manager.
'Communicate often to get a clear idea of what the manager expects,' says Mr. Rana. Developing this regular feedback system can not only help you achieve your goals but also help you get a better performance review next time around.
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
Big Deals Roar Back As Spirits Rebound
The deals market is back in a big way.
In just the past 48 hours, new mergers popped up across the globe -- including Texas Instruments' $6.5 billion purchase of venerable National Semiconductor, an unsolicited $6.5 billion offer by a state-owned Chinese mining company for a Canadian-Australian firm, KKR's $2.4 billion deal for a Pfizer unit, and a consortium of Japanese metal companies paying $680 million for Kentucky-based Arco Aluminum.
So far this year, companies around the world have announced $784.1 billion worth of deals, up from $637.9 billion over the same period in 2010, according to Dealogic. That marks the largest year-to-date volume since 2007, when $1.1 trillion worth of transactions were announced in the same stretch.
The deals show a renewed confidence by corporate executives and private-equity firms -- many in the developing nations of Asia -- who are sitting on $2.4 trillion in cash. With rates held low by the U.S. Federal Reserve, financing rates remain at some of the cheapest on record. The deals also reflect the unleashing of years of pent-up demand, as mergers across the globe largely came to a halt at the end of 2007, and worries that inflation might pick up, boosting rates.
All this has happened while evidence mounts that mergers often fail. Nonetheless, a change in psyche has pushed corporations to make deals -- if only for fear that a rival may strike first. Nowhere is that more clear than in the financial-exchanges business, where seven global players -- in the U.S., Germany, Canada, England, Singapore, and Australia -- are fighting for primacy of the world's financial markets. 'There are certain situations if you don't act now, you've lost your chance,' said Bruce Evans, head of Americas M&A at Deutsche Bank.
Deal makers may be further encouraged by stockholders, who are tending to reward companies that make acquisitions, pushing shares higher after deal announcements. Typically, shareholders punish companies that make big deals. Shares of Nasdaq OMX Group, for instance, rose 9% on Friday, after it announced an unsolicited $11.3 billion for NYSE Euronext Group last week.
Chip maker Texas Instruments on Monday announced its all-cash purchase of rival National Semiconductor, bringing together two big makers of devices used in cell phones, industrial equipment and consumer electronics. The price represented a nearly 80% premium over what National shares traded at on Friday.
The scope of this year's deals has been larger than in years past, with three so far valued at more than $15 billion each, compared to four at those heights in all of 2010, said Antonio Weiss, Lazard's global mergers-and-acquisitions chief.
The latest deals are bypassing traditional hot spots in the U.S. and Europe. In nearly a third of all deals last year, at least one party came from an emerging market, Mr. Weiss said. Emerging-markets deals are at their highest ever, says Dealogic, at around $210 billion during 2011.
China is now the third-most active nation for cross-border deals, with volume about one-third that of the U.S. and more than half that of the United Kingdom, according to Dealogic. Chinese firms have targeted oil and gas deals most avidly, followed by mining and chemicals.
One of the boldest moves this week came from China's Minmetals Resources Ltd., which said Monday it was making a $6.5 billion bid for Canadian-Australian Equinox Minerals Ltd. Minmetals is part of a Chinese state-owned mining conglomerate, whose previous interest in Canadian companies in 2004 received widespread derision among Canadian politicians at the time. Sentiment in Canada has changed since then, as politicians view Chinese deals as a necessary part of raising capital for new natural-resources investment.
The proposed deal represents China's largest acquisition bid since China Petrochemical offered $7.1 billion for a 40% stake in Repsol Brasil last October, according to Dealogic.
Despite turmoil in the Japanese economy, companies there haven't shied away from transactions. On Monday, Japan's Sumitomo Light Metal Industries announced it was leading a group of Japanese firms to buy Kentucky-based Arco Aluminum from BP PLC for $680 million.
Companies and private equity firms see the next several months as a window of opportunity, especially if inflation picks up. Private equity firms also need to put money to work as funds wind down and they embark on new fundraising rounds.
On Monday, Pfizer Inc. announced it was selling its Capsugel unit, which makes hard capsules, to Kohlberg, Kravis & Roberts in a $2.4 billion deal. Also, private equity firm Apax Partners announced it was acquiring Epicor Software Corp. and Activant Solutions Inc., both software providers, in deals totaling about $2 billion.
In just the past 48 hours, new mergers popped up across the globe -- including Texas Instruments' $6.5 billion purchase of venerable National Semiconductor, an unsolicited $6.5 billion offer by a state-owned Chinese mining company for a Canadian-Australian firm, KKR's $2.4 billion deal for a Pfizer unit, and a consortium of Japanese metal companies paying $680 million for Kentucky-based Arco Aluminum.
So far this year, companies around the world have announced $784.1 billion worth of deals, up from $637.9 billion over the same period in 2010, according to Dealogic. That marks the largest year-to-date volume since 2007, when $1.1 trillion worth of transactions were announced in the same stretch.
The deals show a renewed confidence by corporate executives and private-equity firms -- many in the developing nations of Asia -- who are sitting on $2.4 trillion in cash. With rates held low by the U.S. Federal Reserve, financing rates remain at some of the cheapest on record. The deals also reflect the unleashing of years of pent-up demand, as mergers across the globe largely came to a halt at the end of 2007, and worries that inflation might pick up, boosting rates.
All this has happened while evidence mounts that mergers often fail. Nonetheless, a change in psyche has pushed corporations to make deals -- if only for fear that a rival may strike first. Nowhere is that more clear than in the financial-exchanges business, where seven global players -- in the U.S., Germany, Canada, England, Singapore, and Australia -- are fighting for primacy of the world's financial markets. 'There are certain situations if you don't act now, you've lost your chance,' said Bruce Evans, head of Americas M&A at Deutsche Bank.
Deal makers may be further encouraged by stockholders, who are tending to reward companies that make acquisitions, pushing shares higher after deal announcements. Typically, shareholders punish companies that make big deals. Shares of Nasdaq OMX Group, for instance, rose 9% on Friday, after it announced an unsolicited $11.3 billion for NYSE Euronext Group last week.
Chip maker Texas Instruments on Monday announced its all-cash purchase of rival National Semiconductor, bringing together two big makers of devices used in cell phones, industrial equipment and consumer electronics. The price represented a nearly 80% premium over what National shares traded at on Friday.
The scope of this year's deals has been larger than in years past, with three so far valued at more than $15 billion each, compared to four at those heights in all of 2010, said Antonio Weiss, Lazard's global mergers-and-acquisitions chief.
The latest deals are bypassing traditional hot spots in the U.S. and Europe. In nearly a third of all deals last year, at least one party came from an emerging market, Mr. Weiss said. Emerging-markets deals are at their highest ever, says Dealogic, at around $210 billion during 2011.
China is now the third-most active nation for cross-border deals, with volume about one-third that of the U.S. and more than half that of the United Kingdom, according to Dealogic. Chinese firms have targeted oil and gas deals most avidly, followed by mining and chemicals.
One of the boldest moves this week came from China's Minmetals Resources Ltd., which said Monday it was making a $6.5 billion bid for Canadian-Australian Equinox Minerals Ltd. Minmetals is part of a Chinese state-owned mining conglomerate, whose previous interest in Canadian companies in 2004 received widespread derision among Canadian politicians at the time. Sentiment in Canada has changed since then, as politicians view Chinese deals as a necessary part of raising capital for new natural-resources investment.
The proposed deal represents China's largest acquisition bid since China Petrochemical offered $7.1 billion for a 40% stake in Repsol Brasil last October, according to Dealogic.
Despite turmoil in the Japanese economy, companies there haven't shied away from transactions. On Monday, Japan's Sumitomo Light Metal Industries announced it was leading a group of Japanese firms to buy Kentucky-based Arco Aluminum from BP PLC for $680 million.
Companies and private equity firms see the next several months as a window of opportunity, especially if inflation picks up. Private equity firms also need to put money to work as funds wind down and they embark on new fundraising rounds.
On Monday, Pfizer Inc. announced it was selling its Capsugel unit, which makes hard capsules, to Kohlberg, Kravis & Roberts in a $2.4 billion deal. Also, private equity firm Apax Partners announced it was acquiring Epicor Software Corp. and Activant Solutions Inc., both software providers, in deals totaling about $2 billion.
Monday, March 21, 2011
Kate did not forget the wedding of William Charity, fundraising refuse gifts
Kate Middleton has asked her wedding guests to donate to an anti-bullying charity, in a tacit admission she was a victim at school. Former classmates have previously revealed how then 13-year-old Kate was forced to leave a private school after being targeted by bullies. Her parents are said to have removed her after just two terms, before sending their daughter to the exclusive Marlborough College part-way through the academic year.
Now the Beatbullying charity has been included in a list of good causes that ‘resonate with’ Kate, 29, and Prince William. While most couples set up a gift list ahead of their big day, the royal couple yesterday asked their 1,900 guests and tens of thousands of well-wishers to donate to one of 26 chosen charities instead.
They include a London Zoo project to save the black rhino in Kenya, where William proposed, and several military charities linked to William’s work as an RAF search and rescue pilot and his new role as a colonel in the Irish Guards.
Now the Beatbullying charity has been included in a list of good causes that ‘resonate with’ Kate, 29, and Prince William. While most couples set up a gift list ahead of their big day, the royal couple yesterday asked their 1,900 guests and tens of thousands of well-wishers to donate to one of 26 chosen charities instead.
They include a London Zoo project to save the black rhino in Kenya, where William proposed, and several military charities linked to William’s work as an RAF search and rescue pilot and his new role as a colonel in the Irish Guards.
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Elusive Economic Indicator: Quality Of Life Gauge
Money isn't everything. But in measuring the success of nations, it isn't easy to find a substitute.
Political leaders are increasingly expressing dissatisfaction with gross domestic product─a monetary measure of all the goods and services a country produces─as a gauge of a nation's success in raising living standards.
In November, British Prime Minister David Cameron announced plans to build measures of national well-being that would take into account factors such as peoples' life satisfaction, following a similar effort by French President Nicolas Sarkozy.
Their efforts cut to the core of what economics is supposed to be about: What makes us better off? How can we all have more of it? Anyone hoping for a clear-cut answer, though, is likely to be disappointed.
'There is more to life than GDP, but it will be hard to come up with a single measure to replace it and we are not sure that a single measure is the answer,' said Paul Allin, director of the Measuring National Well-Being Project at the U.K.'s Office of National Statistics. 'Maybe we live in a multidimensional world and we have to get used to handling a reasonable number of bits of information.
After a session on creating a national success indicator at the annual meeting of the American Economic Association on Friday, Carol Graham, fellow at the Brookings Institution, summed up the situation thus: 'It's like a new science. There's still a lot of work to be done.'
For much of the past four decades, economists have puzzled over a paradox that cast doubt on GDP as the world's main indicator of success.
People in richer countries didn't appear to be any happier than people in poor countries. In research beginning in the 1970s, University of Pennsylvania economist Richard Easterlin found no evidence of a link between countries' income─as measured by GDP per person─and peoples' reported levels of happiness.
More recent research suggests GDP isn't quite so bad. Using more data and different statistical techniques, three economists at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School─Daniel Sacks, Betsey Stevenson and Justin Wolfers─found that a given percentage increase in GDP per person tends to coincide with a similar increase in reported well-being. The correlation held across different countries and over time.
Still, for measuring the success of policy, GDP is far from ideal.
Making everybody work 120 hours a week could radically boost a country's GDP per capita, but it wouldn't make people happier. Removing pollution limits could boost GDP per hour worked, but wouldn't necessarily lead to a world we'd want to live in.
One approach is to enhance GDP with other objective factors such as inequality, leisure and life expectancy. In a paper presented Saturday at the American Economic Association meeting, Stanford economists Peter Klenow and Charles Jones found that doing so can make a big difference.
By their calculation, accounting for longer life expectancy, additional leisure time and lower levels of inequality makes living standards in France and Germany look almost the same as those in the U.S., which otherwise leads the pack by a large margin.
Mr. Klenow points out that the calculation is fraught with difficulties. For one, many countries have poor data on crucial factors such as life expectancy.
For the purpose of comparing well-being across countries, asking people how they feel might be better than monetary measures. Angus Deaton, an economist at Princeton University, notes that placing values on the extremely different goods and services consumed in the U.S. and, say, Tajikistan, can be impossible to do in a comparable way. Just asking people about their situation could be much easier and no less accurate.
Surveys already play a meaningful role in the way many countries assess their performance, from consumer confidence in the U.S. to the Netherlands's Life Situation Index, which accounts for factors such as relationships and community involvement.
As part of its effort to gauge well-being, the U.K. plans to add more subjective questions to its household surveys.
But surveys can also send misleading policy signals.
Mr. Wolfers, for example, has found that surveys of women's subjective well-being in the U.S. suggest that they are less happy than they were four decades ago, despite improvements in wages, education and other objective measures. That, he says, doesn't mean the feminist movement should be reversed. Rather, it could be related to rising expectations or greater frankness among the women interviewed.
Peoples' true preferences are often revealed more by what they do than by what they say.
Surveys suggest people with children tend to be less happy than those without, yet people keep having children─and nobody would advocate mass sterilization to improve overall well-being.
'What we care about in the world is not just happiness,' says Mr. Wolfers.
'If you measure just one part of what makes for a full life you're going to end up harming the other parts.'
For the time being, that leaves policy makers to choose the measures of success that seem most appropriate for the task at hand. That's not ideal, but it's the best economics has to offer.
Political leaders are increasingly expressing dissatisfaction with gross domestic product─a monetary measure of all the goods and services a country produces─as a gauge of a nation's success in raising living standards.
In November, British Prime Minister David Cameron announced plans to build measures of national well-being that would take into account factors such as peoples' life satisfaction, following a similar effort by French President Nicolas Sarkozy.
Their efforts cut to the core of what economics is supposed to be about: What makes us better off? How can we all have more of it? Anyone hoping for a clear-cut answer, though, is likely to be disappointed.
'There is more to life than GDP, but it will be hard to come up with a single measure to replace it and we are not sure that a single measure is the answer,' said Paul Allin, director of the Measuring National Well-Being Project at the U.K.'s Office of National Statistics. 'Maybe we live in a multidimensional world and we have to get used to handling a reasonable number of bits of information.
After a session on creating a national success indicator at the annual meeting of the American Economic Association on Friday, Carol Graham, fellow at the Brookings Institution, summed up the situation thus: 'It's like a new science. There's still a lot of work to be done.'
For much of the past four decades, economists have puzzled over a paradox that cast doubt on GDP as the world's main indicator of success.
People in richer countries didn't appear to be any happier than people in poor countries. In research beginning in the 1970s, University of Pennsylvania economist Richard Easterlin found no evidence of a link between countries' income─as measured by GDP per person─and peoples' reported levels of happiness.
More recent research suggests GDP isn't quite so bad. Using more data and different statistical techniques, three economists at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School─Daniel Sacks, Betsey Stevenson and Justin Wolfers─found that a given percentage increase in GDP per person tends to coincide with a similar increase in reported well-being. The correlation held across different countries and over time.
Still, for measuring the success of policy, GDP is far from ideal.
Making everybody work 120 hours a week could radically boost a country's GDP per capita, but it wouldn't make people happier. Removing pollution limits could boost GDP per hour worked, but wouldn't necessarily lead to a world we'd want to live in.
One approach is to enhance GDP with other objective factors such as inequality, leisure and life expectancy. In a paper presented Saturday at the American Economic Association meeting, Stanford economists Peter Klenow and Charles Jones found that doing so can make a big difference.
By their calculation, accounting for longer life expectancy, additional leisure time and lower levels of inequality makes living standards in France and Germany look almost the same as those in the U.S., which otherwise leads the pack by a large margin.
Mr. Klenow points out that the calculation is fraught with difficulties. For one, many countries have poor data on crucial factors such as life expectancy.
For the purpose of comparing well-being across countries, asking people how they feel might be better than monetary measures. Angus Deaton, an economist at Princeton University, notes that placing values on the extremely different goods and services consumed in the U.S. and, say, Tajikistan, can be impossible to do in a comparable way. Just asking people about their situation could be much easier and no less accurate.
Surveys already play a meaningful role in the way many countries assess their performance, from consumer confidence in the U.S. to the Netherlands's Life Situation Index, which accounts for factors such as relationships and community involvement.
As part of its effort to gauge well-being, the U.K. plans to add more subjective questions to its household surveys.
But surveys can also send misleading policy signals.
Mr. Wolfers, for example, has found that surveys of women's subjective well-being in the U.S. suggest that they are less happy than they were four decades ago, despite improvements in wages, education and other objective measures. That, he says, doesn't mean the feminist movement should be reversed. Rather, it could be related to rising expectations or greater frankness among the women interviewed.
Peoples' true preferences are often revealed more by what they do than by what they say.
Surveys suggest people with children tend to be less happy than those without, yet people keep having children─and nobody would advocate mass sterilization to improve overall well-being.
'What we care about in the world is not just happiness,' says Mr. Wolfers.
'If you measure just one part of what makes for a full life you're going to end up harming the other parts.'
For the time being, that leaves policy makers to choose the measures of success that seem most appropriate for the task at hand. That's not ideal, but it's the best economics has to offer.
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Road Warrior: Midas Promotions's Michael Hosking
Another in our series of travel tips for executives who are often on the road.
Michael Hosking
CEO, Midas Promotions
In the Air: 100 flights a year, about twice a week
Areas of transport, mainly from Singapore, Bangkok and Hong Kong. I've also been in England five times this year.
The best hotel in the region: The Ritz-Carlton when I'm in Singapore, the Landmark Mandarin Oriental in Hong Kong, and Amanpuri in Phuket
The best airport in the region: Singapore Changi International, undoubtedly
The best sales process in Singapore and Hong Kong. Check-in and leave my luggage at Hong Kong Station
Better taxis: Probably Singapore
The best route from the airport to the city: Singapore, the city is only 10 to 15 minutes by road
The best frequent flyer lounge: The spring of First Class (Cathay Pacific) living in Hong Kong and Silver Kris First Class Lounge (Singapore Airlines) in Singapore
preferred carrier, Cathay Pacific and Singapore Airlines
Best Luggage: Samsonite, in soft cover and is lighter and more flexible
Best airline food: eggs Benedict for breakfast in Singapore Airlines. Caviar first class of Cathay and Singapore Airlines
The best coffee in Asia: My espresso machine
The best advice to keep in shape on the road: Eat and drink in moderation
How to beat the jetlag: Drink alcohol in moderation and as much water as possible when in flight. Enter the area mentally next time you board the plane.
How to get an update: Shirt and shoes, be very friendly at check-in and be an airline's frequent flyer
Travel essential equipment: My iPhone and I can watch movies on it. I have also recently started a Kindle.
101 Travel tip: Be patient. International travel is stressful, but just relax.
Michael Hosking
CEO, Midas Promotions
In the Air: 100 flights a year, about twice a week
Areas of transport, mainly from Singapore, Bangkok and Hong Kong. I've also been in England five times this year.
The best hotel in the region: The Ritz-Carlton when I'm in Singapore, the Landmark Mandarin Oriental in Hong Kong, and Amanpuri in Phuket
The best airport in the region: Singapore Changi International, undoubtedly
The best sales process in Singapore and Hong Kong. Check-in and leave my luggage at Hong Kong Station
Better taxis: Probably Singapore
The best route from the airport to the city: Singapore, the city is only 10 to 15 minutes by road
The best frequent flyer lounge: The spring of First Class (Cathay Pacific) living in Hong Kong and Silver Kris First Class Lounge (Singapore Airlines) in Singapore
preferred carrier, Cathay Pacific and Singapore Airlines
Best Luggage: Samsonite, in soft cover and is lighter and more flexible
Best airline food: eggs Benedict for breakfast in Singapore Airlines. Caviar first class of Cathay and Singapore Airlines
The best coffee in Asia: My espresso machine
The best advice to keep in shape on the road: Eat and drink in moderation
How to beat the jetlag: Drink alcohol in moderation and as much water as possible when in flight. Enter the area mentally next time you board the plane.
How to get an update: Shirt and shoes, be very friendly at check-in and be an airline's frequent flyer
Travel essential equipment: My iPhone and I can watch movies on it. I have also recently started a Kindle.
101 Travel tip: Be patient. International travel is stressful, but just relax.
Monday, November 8, 2010
Rice Winds Up Mideast Visit With No Sign of Progress
The United States' top diplomat has concluded a peace mission to Israel and the Palestinian territories. But she has little to show for it.
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice wound up her visit by hosting a trilateral meeting with the Israeli defense minister and Palestinian prime minister. But after two days of talks in Jerusalem and the West Bank there was no sign of progress in peace talks sponsored by the United States.
The headline of the visit was Rice's unusually harsh criticism of Israeli settlement expansion in disputed East Jerusalem and the West Bank. Rice did not speak to reporters before she left Israel. But on Sunday, she was clearly angry over Israeli plans to build 1,300 new homes in East Jerusalem, on land the Palestinians claim for their future capital.
"No party should be taking steps at this point that could prejudice the outcome of a negotiation, and I want to make very clear that the United States will not consider these activities to affect any final status negotiations including final borders; these are to be negotiated between the parties," she said.
Israeli spokesman Mark Regev says there are differences but not a crisis.
"Success isn't guaranteed. There are a lot of sensitive issues on the table, but I can say that we in Israel, and I believe the Palestinian leadership too, are committed to doing the work that needs to be done," said Regev.
Palestinian analyst Mahdi Abdel Hadi is less optimistic. He says settlement activity is eroding support for the peace process.
"Israel is controlling the land and this is creating more hate and more frustration, more anger among the Palestinians," said Hadi.
Disputes over settlements, Palestinian refugees and the status of Jerusalem have put further doubt on the U.S. goal of a peace agreement by the end of the year.
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice wound up her visit by hosting a trilateral meeting with the Israeli defense minister and Palestinian prime minister. But after two days of talks in Jerusalem and the West Bank there was no sign of progress in peace talks sponsored by the United States.
The headline of the visit was Rice's unusually harsh criticism of Israeli settlement expansion in disputed East Jerusalem and the West Bank. Rice did not speak to reporters before she left Israel. But on Sunday, she was clearly angry over Israeli plans to build 1,300 new homes in East Jerusalem, on land the Palestinians claim for their future capital.
"No party should be taking steps at this point that could prejudice the outcome of a negotiation, and I want to make very clear that the United States will not consider these activities to affect any final status negotiations including final borders; these are to be negotiated between the parties," she said.
Israel says it has the right to build anywhere in Jerusalem because it will remain the capital of the Jewish state in any final peace agreement.
Israeli spokesman Mark Regev says there are differences but not a crisis.
"Success isn't guaranteed. There are a lot of sensitive issues on the table, but I can say that we in Israel, and I believe the Palestinian leadership too, are committed to doing the work that needs to be done," said Regev.
Palestinian analyst Mahdi Abdel Hadi is less optimistic. He says settlement activity is eroding support for the peace process.
"Israel is controlling the land and this is creating more hate and more frustration, more anger among the Palestinians," said Hadi.
Disputes over settlements, Palestinian refugees and the status of Jerusalem have put further doubt on the U.S. goal of a peace agreement by the end of the year.
Sunday, November 7, 2010
Indonesia's Most Active Volcano Erupts
An erupting volcano on Indonesia's Java island has sent ash and hot air onto surrounding villages, injuring at least six people.
Scientists say Mount Merapi, Indonesia's most active volcano, began erupting late Tuesday after days of rumbling that signaled a major eruption was possible.
Journalists in the area reported seeing at least six people being taken to a hospital with burns from the ash and hot air. They said villagers who ignored warnings to evacuate were fleeing in panic. A two-month-old baby died as her mother fled the area.
Before the eruption, Indonesian authorities evacuated several thousand children and the elderly from villages on the volcano's slopes to makeshift shelters. But thousands of other villagers stayed behind to take care of their livestock and crops.
Mount Merapi last erupted in 2006, killing two people. A similar eruption in 1994 killed at least 60 people, while a 1930 eruption killed 1,300.
Scientists say Mount Merapi, Indonesia's most active volcano, began erupting late Tuesday after days of rumbling that signaled a major eruption was possible.
Journalists in the area reported seeing at least six people being taken to a hospital with burns from the ash and hot air. They said villagers who ignored warnings to evacuate were fleeing in panic. A two-month-old baby died as her mother fled the area.
Before the eruption, Indonesian authorities evacuated several thousand children and the elderly from villages on the volcano's slopes to makeshift shelters. But thousands of other villagers stayed behind to take care of their livestock and crops.
Mount Merapi last erupted in 2006, killing two people. A similar eruption in 1994 killed at least 60 people, while a 1930 eruption killed 1,300.
Friday, November 5, 2010
Americans waste more energy in the food they throw away, than Switzerland or Sweden consume in a year
Researchers at the University of Texas, Austin say that points to a painless way to save energy: stop wasting food.
According to a new study in the Journal of Environmental Science and Technology, food waste and the energy required to produce it, represent an unrecognized opportunity to conserve energy and reduce climate changing emissions.
Scientists at the Center for International Energy and Environmental Policy set out to answer three questions about the relationship between food and energy use: how much energy is in food, how much food is wasted and how much energy is in the wasted food.
Wasting energy
Michael Webber, the center's associate director and co-author of the study, says between eight and 16 percent of U.S. energy consumption is tied up in food production, transportation, preservation and disposal. "And then we throw away at least a quarter of that food. Some people say even 50 percent."
What Americans spend on food has declined in relative terms for decades. And, because food is so abundant and cheap, Americans are not as concerned about tossing it out.
So, Webber and his colleagues calculated how much energy was needed to produce the trashed food. "We found that there's at least two percent of the nation's energy consumption is embedded in food we throw away. And that ends up being a pretty big number because of how much energy we consume overall as a nation."
Putting brakes on food waste
Two percent is more energy than Switzerland or Sweden consume in a year and the equivalent of about 350 million barrels of oil.
Webber's study suggests that putting the brakes on food waste would be good for the planet and the pocketbook. "It might reduce our emissions. It might reduce our environmental impacts. We just have to find a way to do it so that it is affordable as well. It might be we save money because we are wasting less money on food we don't eat."
Webber says that the study is based on old data badly that needs to be revised. But still he says the numbers are good enough to make a point: food waste is a waste of energy. "I think the next step for us at a research level is to get a better sense of what's going on, get better data, get better scientific analysis. At the same time perhaps we could consider some policy options to reduce the waste."
According to the study, the most wasted foods were fats and oils, dairy products, grains, eggs, fruits and vegetables.
According to a new study in the Journal of Environmental Science and Technology, food waste and the energy required to produce it, represent an unrecognized opportunity to conserve energy and reduce climate changing emissions.
Scientists at the Center for International Energy and Environmental Policy set out to answer three questions about the relationship between food and energy use: how much energy is in food, how much food is wasted and how much energy is in the wasted food.
Wasting energy
Michael Webber, the center's associate director and co-author of the study, says between eight and 16 percent of U.S. energy consumption is tied up in food production, transportation, preservation and disposal. "And then we throw away at least a quarter of that food. Some people say even 50 percent."
What Americans spend on food has declined in relative terms for decades. And, because food is so abundant and cheap, Americans are not as concerned about tossing it out.
So, Webber and his colleagues calculated how much energy was needed to produce the trashed food. "We found that there's at least two percent of the nation's energy consumption is embedded in food we throw away. And that ends up being a pretty big number because of how much energy we consume overall as a nation."
Putting brakes on food waste
Two percent is more energy than Switzerland or Sweden consume in a year and the equivalent of about 350 million barrels of oil.
Webber's study suggests that putting the brakes on food waste would be good for the planet and the pocketbook. "It might reduce our emissions. It might reduce our environmental impacts. We just have to find a way to do it so that it is affordable as well. It might be we save money because we are wasting less money on food we don't eat."
Webber says that the study is based on old data badly that needs to be revised. But still he says the numbers are good enough to make a point: food waste is a waste of energy. "I think the next step for us at a research level is to get a better sense of what's going on, get better data, get better scientific analysis. At the same time perhaps we could consider some policy options to reduce the waste."
According to the study, the most wasted foods were fats and oils, dairy products, grains, eggs, fruits and vegetables.
Bush Launches Fundraising Drive for Tsunami Victims
President Bush has launched a nationwide fundraising effort to encourage private contributions for relief groups helping those affected by the devastating earthquake and tsunami in the Indian Ocean.
President Bush says the new fundraising effort will be led by two former presidents, his father, George Herbert Walker Bush, and the last president from the Democratic Party, Bill Clinton.
Accompanied by the two men in the White House Roosevelt Room, Mr. Bush said he is grateful to the former presidents for taking on such an important responsibility.
"In the coming days, President Clinton and Bush will ask Americans to donate directly to reliable charities already providing help to tsunami victims," the president said. "Many of these organizations have dispatched experts to the disaster area and they have an in-depth understanding of the resources required to meet the needs on the ground."
President Bush says Americans are already showing their generosity through contributions to aid groups. He hopes this new effort targeting both individuals and corporations will further complement official U.S. assistance.
"From our own experiences, we know that nothing can take away the grief of those affected by tragedy," he said. "We also know that Americans have a history of rising to meet great humanitarian challenges and of providing hope to suffering peoples. As men and women across the devastated region begin to rebuild, we offer our sustained compassion and our generosity and our assurance that America will be there to help."
President Bush last week promised $350 million in U.S. government assistance for affected countries. That is ten times the $35 million that Washington initially pledged.
That first amount drew some criticism, considering the size and wealth of the United States when compared to other countries' contributions. There was also some criticism of the president himself for not cutting short his Texas vacation and returning to Washington.
Now back at the White House, President Bush is starting the first week of the year with a big push on tsunami relief efforts. He has dispatched a U.S. delegation to the region led by Secretary of State Colin Powell and the president's brother, Florida Governor Jeb Bush.
After launching the new fundraising effort, President Bush and former presidents Bush and Clinton visited the embassies of India, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, and Thailand to sign condolence books for those killed.
In an interview with NBC television, President Clinton says the Sri Lankan ambassador told them of an airstrip covered in crates where one of the challenges now is distributing aid that has already arrived. President Clinton says that is why cash contributions are often more useful.
"If you give money, even if it is a small amount of money, it will aggregate up," the former president said. "They will send it to the aid agencies on the ground and then they will spend it right there for what is most needed. And you won't have to worry about the cost and the time delay of physically getting other things overseas."
Both former presidents say they are in this fundraising effort for the long haul and hope Americans realize that any amount of assistance, no matter how small, will help someone somewhere.
President Bush says the new fundraising effort will be led by two former presidents, his father, George Herbert Walker Bush, and the last president from the Democratic Party, Bill Clinton.
Accompanied by the two men in the White House Roosevelt Room, Mr. Bush said he is grateful to the former presidents for taking on such an important responsibility.
"In the coming days, President Clinton and Bush will ask Americans to donate directly to reliable charities already providing help to tsunami victims," the president said. "Many of these organizations have dispatched experts to the disaster area and they have an in-depth understanding of the resources required to meet the needs on the ground."
President Bush says Americans are already showing their generosity through contributions to aid groups. He hopes this new effort targeting both individuals and corporations will further complement official U.S. assistance.
"From our own experiences, we know that nothing can take away the grief of those affected by tragedy," he said. "We also know that Americans have a history of rising to meet great humanitarian challenges and of providing hope to suffering peoples. As men and women across the devastated region begin to rebuild, we offer our sustained compassion and our generosity and our assurance that America will be there to help."
President Bush last week promised $350 million in U.S. government assistance for affected countries. That is ten times the $35 million that Washington initially pledged.
That first amount drew some criticism, considering the size and wealth of the United States when compared to other countries' contributions. There was also some criticism of the president himself for not cutting short his Texas vacation and returning to Washington.
Now back at the White House, President Bush is starting the first week of the year with a big push on tsunami relief efforts. He has dispatched a U.S. delegation to the region led by Secretary of State Colin Powell and the president's brother, Florida Governor Jeb Bush.
After launching the new fundraising effort, President Bush and former presidents Bush and Clinton visited the embassies of India, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, and Thailand to sign condolence books for those killed.
In an interview with NBC television, President Clinton says the Sri Lankan ambassador told them of an airstrip covered in crates where one of the challenges now is distributing aid that has already arrived. President Clinton says that is why cash contributions are often more useful.
"If you give money, even if it is a small amount of money, it will aggregate up," the former president said. "They will send it to the aid agencies on the ground and then they will spend it right there for what is most needed. And you won't have to worry about the cost and the time delay of physically getting other things overseas."
Both former presidents say they are in this fundraising effort for the long haul and hope Americans realize that any amount of assistance, no matter how small, will help someone somewhere.
Thursday, November 4, 2010
The United Nations reports it is running a record funding-shortfall of $4.8 billion for its aid operations in 16 crisis-ridden countries
The United Nations says it has received less than half of the $9.5 billion it needs to carry out it humanitarian operations this year.
The United Nations says the number of people needing help this year is 43 million compared to 28 million last year. As a consequence, more money is needed to care for them. The United Nations says it requires $1.5 billion or 19 percent more money this year to run its operations.
"It is also the case that the global recession itself is having an effect on the number of people in need," said Holmes. "Climate change and the adverse weather that that has an influence on means that there is continued poor harvest in many countries-and again that has an influence, a significant influence on agriculture and therefore on the amount of food assistance that is required. And, food is always the biggest single component of these appeals."
Holmes says Sudan is running the biggest shortfall of $916 million.
He says deepening drought and a rise of Somali refugees in Kenya are putting greater pressure on that country. He says the more people need assistance in the Palestinian territories, particularly in Gaza, because of the conflict with Israel early this year.
But Holmes notes the most dramatic need is in Pakistan.
"Pakistan has seen probably the most dramatic and dramatically changing humanitarian situation this year with up to two million people fleeing the military operations in parts of NW Frontier Province. Up two million, as I say. That has meant scaling up, putting up or scaling up a major aid operation with a consequence of large figure of dollars attached to it," he added.
The U.N. humanitarian official says other situations include the 250,000 Tamil civilians who remain displaced in camps in the northern part of Sri Lanka. He says millions of Iraqi refugees in Syria and Jordan, as well as millions of Iraqis displaced in their own country continue to need food, water, shelter and other basic relief.
The United Nations says the number of people needing help this year is 43 million compared to 28 million last year. As a consequence, more money is needed to care for them. The United Nations says it requires $1.5 billion or 19 percent more money this year to run its operations.
Unfortunately, the top U.N. humanitarian official, John Holmes, says the world is in worse financial shape this year than last and this is having an effect on U.N. fund-raising capabilities.
"It is also the case that the global recession itself is having an effect on the number of people in need," said Holmes. "Climate change and the adverse weather that that has an influence on means that there is continued poor harvest in many countries-and again that has an influence, a significant influence on agriculture and therefore on the amount of food assistance that is required. And, food is always the biggest single component of these appeals."
Holmes says Sudan is running the biggest shortfall of $916 million.
He says deepening drought and a rise of Somali refugees in Kenya are putting greater pressure on that country. He says the more people need assistance in the Palestinian territories, particularly in Gaza, because of the conflict with Israel early this year.
But Holmes notes the most dramatic need is in Pakistan.
"Pakistan has seen probably the most dramatic and dramatically changing humanitarian situation this year with up to two million people fleeing the military operations in parts of NW Frontier Province. Up two million, as I say. That has meant scaling up, putting up or scaling up a major aid operation with a consequence of large figure of dollars attached to it," he added.
Other areas of concern include Zimbabwe, which continues to suffer from food security. But Holmes says U.N. aid workers have been more successful in assisting people in the country since the creation of the power-sharing government.
The U.N. humanitarian official says other situations include the 250,000 Tamil civilians who remain displaced in camps in the northern part of Sri Lanka. He says millions of Iraqi refugees in Syria and Jordan, as well as millions of Iraqis displaced in their own country continue to need food, water, shelter and other basic relief.
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Despite reports that many industrialized economies are beginning to emerge from their worst economic crisis in decades
The findings come from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development in Paris.
Indications that unemployment continues to rise is grim news for leaders heading to the G-20 summit in the United States next week. The Paris-based Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development reports unemployment reached its highest level among industrialized nations of 8.5 percent in July.
"Unfortunately, despite the most recent indicators that suggest the [economic] recovery may be in sight somewhat earlier than we were expecting only a few months ago, it will take far [longer] for the recovery to materialize in terms of significant improvement in the labor market," he said.
Scarpetta says young people are among the hardest hit. In Spain, for example, more than one in three young workers are unemployed.
So as world leaders discuss the financial and economic crisis during their meeting in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Scarpetta says it is important they also address the social dimensions of the crisis - like unemployment.
"The good news is that countries have already acted quite quickly and decisively, I would say," he said. "Part of the stimulus packages have been additional resources for labor markets and social policies."
But efforts by governments to extend and prolong unemployment benefits, and to offer more job counseling and training have not kept up with the rising numbers of jobless. Scarpetta says that means countries will need to target their resources more selectively and to ensure that the most vulnerable members of the labor force benefit.
Indications that unemployment continues to rise is grim news for leaders heading to the G-20 summit in the United States next week. The Paris-based Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development reports unemployment reached its highest level among industrialized nations of 8.5 percent in July.
OECD unemployment division chief Stephan Scarpetta says the number of jobless among the OECD's 30 member countries is expected to climb even higher next year, to nearly 10 percent. That translates into 57 million people out of work.
"Unfortunately, despite the most recent indicators that suggest the [economic] recovery may be in sight somewhat earlier than we were expecting only a few months ago, it will take far [longer] for the recovery to materialize in terms of significant improvement in the labor market," he said.
The United States, Spain and Ireland are among those countries with the fastest rising unemployment. All three were affected by the collapse of high housing prices. The damage spread to other sectors of the economy.
Scarpetta says young people are among the hardest hit. In Spain, for example, more than one in three young workers are unemployed.
So as world leaders discuss the financial and economic crisis during their meeting in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Scarpetta says it is important they also address the social dimensions of the crisis - like unemployment.
"The good news is that countries have already acted quite quickly and decisively, I would say," he said. "Part of the stimulus packages have been additional resources for labor markets and social policies."
But efforts by governments to extend and prolong unemployment benefits, and to offer more job counseling and training have not kept up with the rising numbers of jobless. Scarpetta says that means countries will need to target their resources more selectively and to ensure that the most vulnerable members of the labor force benefit.
Monday, November 1, 2010
Officials with Afghanistan's new peace council say they are in the early stages of beginning a process to negotiate peace with Taliban militants
This comes a day after the commander of U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan, General David Petraeus, said NATO has facilitated the safe passage of Taliban leaders to Kabul for talks with the Afghan government.
The spokesman for Afghanistan's High Council for Peace tells VOA there have been "unofficial" discussions between the Afghan government and the Taliban.
Bryali Helali says these talks have been in Kabul, other areas of Afghanistan and even other countries. He says Taliban officials are protected during these discussions.
"The protection was provided not only by the international security forces, but as well as the government of Afghanistan," said Helali. "This is something routine that is happening in Afghanistan."
Helali's comments Saturday come a day after the top commander for the international forces in Afghanistan, U.S. General David Petraeus, said NATO is facilitating the safe passage of Taliban leaders to Kabul as part of the alliance's support for President Hamid Karzai's reconciliation efforts.
Officials have not released details of any security arrangements.
The Taliban have not commented since Wednesday, when they issued a statement categorically denying any contact with the Afghan government.
Bakhtar Aminzai is the president of the National Peace Jirga of Afghanistan, an association of students, professors, lawyers, clerics and others in the country. He tells VOA in Kabul that he does not believe the world will ever see the Afghan government and Taliban leadership at the same table while the war continues.
"In Afghani communities, it is impossible to talk direct enemy to enemy. In Afghan tradition, we have totally independent people between two parties," said Aminzai.
He says he believes the most effective mediators between the two sides will be either the United Nations or fellow Islamic countries.
Afghan officials are urging the people to be patient, saying there still is a long way to go for any peace.
This year has been the deadliest for international forces since the start of the nine-year war. More than 2,000 foreign troops have died since 2001.
The spokesman for Afghanistan's High Council for Peace tells VOA there have been "unofficial" discussions between the Afghan government and the Taliban.
Bryali Helali says these talks have been in Kabul, other areas of Afghanistan and even other countries. He says Taliban officials are protected during these discussions.
"The protection was provided not only by the international security forces, but as well as the government of Afghanistan," said Helali. "This is something routine that is happening in Afghanistan."
Helali's comments Saturday come a day after the top commander for the international forces in Afghanistan, U.S. General David Petraeus, said NATO is facilitating the safe passage of Taliban leaders to Kabul as part of the alliance's support for President Hamid Karzai's reconciliation efforts.
Officials have not released details of any security arrangements.
The Taliban have not commented since Wednesday, when they issued a statement categorically denying any contact with the Afghan government.
Bakhtar Aminzai is the president of the National Peace Jirga of Afghanistan, an association of students, professors, lawyers, clerics and others in the country. He tells VOA in Kabul that he does not believe the world will ever see the Afghan government and Taliban leadership at the same table while the war continues.
"In Afghani communities, it is impossible to talk direct enemy to enemy. In Afghan tradition, we have totally independent people between two parties," said Aminzai.
He says he believes the most effective mediators between the two sides will be either the United Nations or fellow Islamic countries.
Afghan officials are urging the people to be patient, saying there still is a long way to go for any peace.
This year has been the deadliest for international forces since the start of the nine-year war. More than 2,000 foreign troops have died since 2001.
Monday, October 18, 2010
Magic vs. Bird Dankan classic look forward Milan Ka Cilliers
Wednesday morning Beijing time, the Champions League will stage a remarkable strong dialogue, by the Real Madrid against AC Milan at home. This is a spotlight war, but Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho before the game was intended to "cool down" before an interview, Mourinho said that the eyes of the powerful of this world is actually duel no big deal, this is just another game just a third of the value.
Mourinho on Monday in an interview with AC Milan about the game, said: "We always prepare the same way every game, no opponents more respected than the other competitors. Tomorrow's game is just yet another competition, and other games the same score, nothing special big deal. After all, life must continue. "Mourinho said decompression perhaps also to the players.
Array of Milan, Ibrahimovic is the most familiar players Mike Mussina, the two had worked at Inter Milan. Mussina highlighted the danger of Ibrahimovic: "Spaniards may not know best what kind of Ibrahimovic, but I understand. When you are faced with this level of player, You have to respect him enough attention to him. "
Real Madrid goalkeeper Iker Casillas is also in an interview on Monday talked about the game with Milan. Mourinho calm attitude and different, Casey seems that much more than just another in a normal race, but a heavyweight, classic, every player is eager to participate in the contest: "This is our first game this season, the heavyweight match. I agree with the coach to say, this is just another game, but it is Real Madrid for AC Milan. It will be a classic game, each player is eager to participate, fans are eager to watch every game. "
Mourinho on Monday in an interview with AC Milan about the game, said: "We always prepare the same way every game, no opponents more respected than the other competitors. Tomorrow's game is just yet another competition, and other games the same score, nothing special big deal. After all, life must continue. "Mourinho said decompression perhaps also to the players.
Array of Milan, Ibrahimovic is the most familiar players Mike Mussina, the two had worked at Inter Milan. Mussina highlighted the danger of Ibrahimovic: "Spaniards may not know best what kind of Ibrahimovic, but I understand. When you are faced with this level of player, You have to respect him enough attention to him. "
Real Madrid goalkeeper Iker Casillas is also in an interview on Monday talked about the game with Milan. Mourinho calm attitude and different, Casey seems that much more than just another in a normal race, but a heavyweight, classic, every player is eager to participate in the contest: "This is our first game this season, the heavyweight match. I agree with the coach to say, this is just another game, but it is Real Madrid for AC Milan. It will be a classic game, each player is eager to participate, fans are eager to watch every game. "
Thursday, October 14, 2010
50 new retail stores and of course the iconic check, some of which is manufactured there
Three years after Burberry transferred production from its Treorchy, Wales factory to China--which became the infamous poster-child of U.K. manufacturing's flight to Asia--the Chinese continue to repay the favour at the tills.
On the mainland, Burberry has just finished buying out its franchise partner in China and bringing those 50 stores into its retail operations, which should add £20 million to operating profit in fiscal 2012.
And while they're overseas, Chinese tourists now account for 30% of the company's London sales. The Chinese are also the number one customer in many parts of Europe as well, according to Burberry CFO Stacey Cartwright.
Burberry, in return, has at least one Mandarin speaker at each of its flagship stores around the world.
A good thing given how many times they must have to say xie xie
On the mainland, Burberry has just finished buying out its franchise partner in China and bringing those 50 stores into its retail operations, which should add £20 million to operating profit in fiscal 2012.
And while they're overseas, Chinese tourists now account for 30% of the company's London sales. The Chinese are also the number one customer in many parts of Europe as well, according to Burberry CFO Stacey Cartwright.
Burberry, in return, has at least one Mandarin speaker at each of its flagship stores around the world.
A good thing given how many times they must have to say xie xie
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Why did China, India and Brazil all emerge so much more rapidly from the global financial crisis than advanced economies did?
In a presentation in Denver to the National Association for Business Economics, Nobel Prize-winning economist Michael Spence, now of New York University, offered several reasons:
* These economies learned bitter lessons in the 1997-98 crisis that afflicted them more than advanced economies.
* They were in 'a good initial position' with relatively low leverage, and thus didn't get hit with the severe 'balance sheet recession' that hit the U.S.
* They hadn't any complex securitized financial instruments.
* They had built up large foreign-exchange reserves.
* Their central banks responded, much as advanced countries' central banks did, with speed and agility to the credit tightening.
* Their economic managers displayed 'a high degree of competence.'
'Is this sustainable? Will they keep growing? I think the answer is a qualified yes,' he said. 'I wouldn't have said that 10 years ago.'
Rapidly growing economies aren't generating the ideas and technology to propel growth; rather, they're using ideas and technology from advanced countries to catch up.
'There is no reason to believe that will stop,' he said, unless emerging markets make the major mistake of walling them off from the rest of the world, as Brazil did around 1975.
Adding to the sustainability of growth in emerging markets are two other factors, he said: One, they are increasingly trading with each other and thus are less dependent on now slow-growing advanced economies; two, they have become rich enough for their consumers to buy the goods they produce. Spence said that emerging markets can sustain rapid growth even if the advanced economies, including the U.S, grow slowly - but not if the U.S. succumbs to recession.
'There is partial decoupling, but by no means complete decoupling,' he said.
But emerging markets have proven to be far more resilient to downturns in the U.S. than used to be the case.
He added that emerging markets have a large stake in discouraging protectionism in the U.S., and 'they know it.'
Continued rapid growth in emerging markets will be a plus for the U.S., but not a big enough plus to pull up U.S. growth, he said. 'We can't compete for that demand right now,'
* These economies learned bitter lessons in the 1997-98 crisis that afflicted them more than advanced economies.
* They were in 'a good initial position' with relatively low leverage, and thus didn't get hit with the severe 'balance sheet recession' that hit the U.S.
* They hadn't any complex securitized financial instruments.
* They had built up large foreign-exchange reserves.
* Their central banks responded, much as advanced countries' central banks did, with speed and agility to the credit tightening.
* Their economic managers displayed 'a high degree of competence.'
'Is this sustainable? Will they keep growing? I think the answer is a qualified yes,' he said. 'I wouldn't have said that 10 years ago.'
Rapidly growing economies aren't generating the ideas and technology to propel growth; rather, they're using ideas and technology from advanced countries to catch up.
'There is no reason to believe that will stop,' he said, unless emerging markets make the major mistake of walling them off from the rest of the world, as Brazil did around 1975.
Adding to the sustainability of growth in emerging markets are two other factors, he said: One, they are increasingly trading with each other and thus are less dependent on now slow-growing advanced economies; two, they have become rich enough for their consumers to buy the goods they produce. Spence said that emerging markets can sustain rapid growth even if the advanced economies, including the U.S, grow slowly - but not if the U.S. succumbs to recession.
'There is partial decoupling, but by no means complete decoupling,' he said.
But emerging markets have proven to be far more resilient to downturns in the U.S. than used to be the case.
He added that emerging markets have a large stake in discouraging protectionism in the U.S., and 'they know it.'
Continued rapid growth in emerging markets will be a plus for the U.S., but not a big enough plus to pull up U.S. growth, he said. 'We can't compete for that demand right now,'
Monday, October 11, 2010
Brazil's highest number of votes elected to Congress clown
Handout undated photo released by Tiririca's press campaign office of Brazilian newly elected federal deputy Francisco Everardo Oliveira Silva, known as clown Tiririca. Tiririca scooped up 1.3 million votes in Sunday's polls to represent Sao Paulo, the highest number of votes for any federal deputy across the country.
Voters the world over complain about having clowns for politicians, but Brazilians embraced the idea on Sunday by sending a real one to Congress with more votes than any other candidate.
Francisco Everardo Oliveira Silva, better known by his clown name Tiririca, received more than 1.3 million votes in Sao Paulo state in Brazil's presidential and congressional elections. That was more than double the votes of the second-placed candidate in Brazil's most populous state.
Tiririca caught the attention of disillusioned voters by asking for their support with the humorous slogan: "It can't get any worse" and a promise to do nothing more in Congress than report back to them on how politicians spend their time.
"What does a congressman do? The truth is I don't know, but vote for me and I'll tell you," the 45-year-old said in his campaign advertisements.
The clown, whose stage name means "grumpy," usually appears in public wearing a blond wig, a red hat and a garish outfit. He survived a last-minute attempt by public prosecutors to bar him from running because of evidence that he is illiterate.
His candidacy may not have been as spontaneous or innocent as it might appear.
Tiririca's well-financed campaign will help elect other politicians because under Brazil's election rules he can pass his substantial excess votes on to other candidates in his coalition, which includes the ruling Workers' Party.
Voters the world over complain about having clowns for politicians, but Brazilians embraced the idea on Sunday by sending a real one to Congress with more votes than any other candidate.
Francisco Everardo Oliveira Silva, better known by his clown name Tiririca, received more than 1.3 million votes in Sao Paulo state in Brazil's presidential and congressional elections. That was more than double the votes of the second-placed candidate in Brazil's most populous state.
Tiririca caught the attention of disillusioned voters by asking for their support with the humorous slogan: "It can't get any worse" and a promise to do nothing more in Congress than report back to them on how politicians spend their time.
"What does a congressman do? The truth is I don't know, but vote for me and I'll tell you," the 45-year-old said in his campaign advertisements.
The clown, whose stage name means "grumpy," usually appears in public wearing a blond wig, a red hat and a garish outfit. He survived a last-minute attempt by public prosecutors to bar him from running because of evidence that he is illiterate.
His candidacy may not have been as spontaneous or innocent as it might appear.
Tiririca's well-financed campaign will help elect other politicians because under Brazil's election rules he can pass his substantial excess votes on to other candidates in his coalition, which includes the ruling Workers' Party.
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