1 'Youth joblessness could prolong crisis' (Heather Stewart in The Guardian) Christine Lagarde, managing director of the International Monetary Fund, has warned that long-term prospects for eurozone growth look bleak unless politicians act urgently to stoke domestic demand and tackle youth unemployment. After months of relative calm in financial markets, and with Ireland due to end its painful bailout programme and its reliance on the IMF this weekend, some European politicians have declared the worst to be over for the 17-member single currency zone.
But Lagarde warned against prematurely declaring an end to the economic crisis. "Can a crisis really be over when 12% of the labour force is without a job? When unemployment among the youth is in very high double digits, reaching more than 50% in Greece and Spain? And when there is no sign that it is becoming easier for people to pay down their debts?" She warned that high youth unemployment could jeopardise the economy's ability to grow in the future, by creating a generation of young people without the skills to take their place in the jobs market.
In a veiled criticism of Germany, which has tended to rely on an export-led growth model, Lagarde suggested that boosting Europe's growth potential will require stoking demand at home too. The IMF would also like to see a series of labour market reforms, including making it easier for skilled employees to cross Europe's borders in search of work; cutting employment regulation; and shifting the burden of taxation from income on to consumption, in the hope of boosting future job prospects. "There can be no letting up on reforms until growth has recovered sufficiently to arrest the rise in unemployment and debt," Lagarde said.
http://www.theguardian.com/business/2013/dec/10/youth-unemployment-eurozone-crisis-christine-lagarde-imf
2 First woman CEO for big auto (San Francisco Chronicle) Mary Barra has spent the past three years as General Motors' product chief, making cars that drive better, last longer and look good in showrooms. Now she will take on an even bigger job. The board has tapped the 33-year company veteran to be the next CEO, making her the first woman to lead a major car company. Barra replaces Dan Akerson, who moved up retirement plans by several months to help his wife, Karin, battle advanced cancer.
When Barra starts her new job Jan. 15, she will lead a company that's made nearly $20 billion since emerging from bankruptcy in 2010, much of it from the cars and trucks she helped develop. But she still faces challenges in paring down GM's costs and winning over buyers in international markets such as India and South America. Akerson said the board unanimously picked Barra from several internal candidates because of the breadth of her experience, her management record, her people skills and her understanding of GM's operations.
Since February 2011, the 51-year-old Barra has held what many say is the most important job at GM — senior vice president for global product development. She joined the company in 1980 as an engineering student and became a plant manager, executive director of engineering and head of human resources. Among Barra's biggest tasks is executing plans designed to cut costs and put out better products, Akerson said. One big step in getting there: making more vehicles off the same underpinnings, or platforms, that can be sold in multiple markets, like the Chevrolet Cruze compact car.
http://www.sfgate.com/news/us/article/GM-executive-to-be-1st-woman-to-head-major-car-co-5051067.php
Yanukovych is also scheduled to have an audience with three former presidents of the republic. It should serve as an opportunity to recast the whole exercise of regional alignment in a new spirit and enable the administration to make a more even choice. That is why German Chancellor Angela Merkel has said that the doors of EU will always remain open for Ukraine.
Nonetheless, many of the European leaders believe that the terms and conditions for joining the 28-member club should remain non-negotiable. The second Orange Revolution in the making in Kiev could have far-reaching consequences for Russia and Europe alike. Hence Viktor Yanukovych needs to play it cool. Statesmanship is the need of the hour in Kiev.
http://khaleejtimes.com/kt-article-display-1.asp?xfile=/data/editorial/2013/December/editorial_December20.xml§ion=editorial
In a candid moment captured by AFP photographer Roberto Schmidt, Denmark's Helle Thorning-Schmidt can be seen holding up her smartphone, with Mr Obama lending a helping hand, as they pose for a picture with Mr David Cameron, all three of them smiling broadly in their seats at Soweto's World Cup stadium.
First Lady Michelle Obama, sitting to the left of her husband, does not join in with the lightheartedness, keeping her eyes firmly trained on the podium where world leaders were paying tribute to South Africa's anti-apartheid hero Mandela, who died aged 95. The so-called selfie - short for self-portrait - was quickly picked up by major international news outlets and went viral on social media sites, with many questioning whether the moment of mirth was appropriate for the occasion.
http://www.straitstimes.com/breaking-news/world/story/obama-cameron-selfie-mandela-memorial-creates-online-stir-20131211
No comments:
Post a Comment