CNN (December 7)
“With days left to reach a trade deal with the European Union, the stakes have never been higher.” Boris Johnson “will have to decide whether sticking to his guns on national sovereignty… makes real-world sense given the economic price the United Kingdom will pay if negotiations fail.” In a no-deal exit “UK companies, already reeling from the pandemic, would lose tariff-free, quota-free access to a market of 450 million consumers that is currently the destination for 43% of British exports.”
Tags: Access, Consumers, EU, Johnson, Market, Negotiations, No-deal, Pandemic, Quotas, Sovereignty, Stakes, Tariffs, Trade, UK
The Economist (December 14)
“Mandatory quotas for women on company boards” are gaining traction “after softer targets failed to move the needle much.” The Netherlands was the latest country to “join seven European countries (and California) in replacing the carrot of ‘please’ with the stick of ‘or else’ to increase gender diversity.”
Tags: Boards, California, Carrot, Europe, Gender diversity, Mandatory, Netherlands, Quotas, Softer targets, Stick, Women
Wall Street Journal (October 19)
“Like OPEC in the 1970s, Beijing seems willing to put the developed world over a barrel.” China has become the world’s final assembler, and aspires to more. By placing a stranglehold on the export of rare earths, Beijing thinks it can force technology transfer. If essential rare earths are difficult to attain overseas, companies will have to move high-end processes to China. The Wall Street Journal believes this gambit is unacceptable. China’s accession to the WTO in 2000 specifically forbids quotas on all products and export taxes on rare earths.
Tags: China, Quotas, Rare earths, Technology transfer, WTO
