Chapter 3: What Is Culture?

 International Business

 Article Link: http://www.thestar.com/sports/2008/05/15/when_in_china_do_as_they_do.html

Article Title: When In China Do As They Do
  Published on Thu May 15 2008

   This article talks about the things to do when in China. In China, there are plenty of "business etiquette" to be learned an used. As said in this article, one example of the etiquette is to always hand out a business card. Although this may seem to be odd, a business card represents a lot about yourself. It basically represent your "status" at the moment. Basically meaning that people would like to know your name, where you work, and how "high" of a rank you are in your business.

As you can see, China is very different compared to Canada. We're more hand shaking and talking and jokes, while other countries such as China, bow and get straight to the point of the conversation. But this brings up questions such as, "Does Canada need a specific etiquette to maybe improve our business?" In my opinion, I believe that it's sort of a waste of time. We don't need an action or piece of paper representing who we are, we have our voices, and I intend to use it. Plus, we weren't born with the etiquette so I believe adding it would be pretty insufficient.

 Do you believe business etiquette is important, and should it be used in Canadian business?

Chapter 2: Trade In The Modern World

International Trade

Atricle Link: http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2014-10-10/news/54867898_1_trade-facilitation-international-trade-global-trade

Article Title: India plans committee to ease customs norms for boosting international trade

Dilasha Seth, ET Bureau Oct 10, 2014, 03.29AM IST

 

 In this article, India, two months after it blocked an international agreement on easing trade regulations against the WTO, India has initiated measures to reform customs procedures and cut red tape to speed up international trade.

The government has decided to set up a national committee on trade facilitation, which will suggest and implement measures to ensure seamless movement of cargo by addressing constraints like high transaction costs and poor infrastructure.

India on July 31 Vetoed the trade facilitation agreement at the World Trade Organization. The World Trade Organization is the only global international organization dealing with the rules of trade between nations whose goal is to help producers of goods and services, exporters, and importers conduct their business. Since India vetoed the WTO, they'll start carrying out trade facilitation and customs reforms. It will cut transaction cost for exporters.

  The WTO trade facilitation pact, signed in December 2013, contains legally binding provisions to standardise customs rules in all 159 member-countries for faster and more efficient movement of cross-border cargo.

Since India vetoed the agreement, they're committed to there own Trade Facilitation. The trade facilitation goal requires harmony between departments like customs, shipping & ports, road transport & highways, and the Directorate General of Foreign Trade ( DGFT). It is important to get each of them on board, said the official quoted above.

"WTO deal or no deal, we are carrying out trade facilitation and customs reforms. It will cut transaction cost for exporters," said the official. "We are anyway working towards ratifying the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement. We need to make legal amendments in two to three places. We are prepared," he added. During his US visit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had told President Barack Obama that trade facilitation was important for India and it expected the US' support in addressing India's concerns over public stockholding for food security. Finance minister Arun Jaitley had made several announcements in the budget, allocating significant funds towards trade facilitation. It included extension of 24x7 customs clearance facilities to many more ports, airports and sea ports.

Was it smart for India to Veto the WTO TFA? Since India is committed to having there own Trade Facilitation, What are the pros and cons of this situation & do you think they will survive without the WTO?

Chaper 1: What Is Trade?

International Business

Article Link: http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/canada-china-sign-currency-deal-aimed-at-boosting-trade-1.2828707 

 Article Title: Canada, China sign currency deal aimed at boosting trade  
  The Canadian Press Posted: Nov 08, 2014 5:23 AM ET

 This article focuses on allowing direct business between Canadian dollar and Chinese yuan, cutting exchange costs. Canada and China have signed a reciprocal currency deal that's expected to dramatically boost exports.

This then creates "The hub" that will foster far easier trade between the Canadian dollar and the Chinese yuan, also known as the "renminbi". It makes Canada the first country in the Americas to have a deal to trade in the renminbi.

This deal will allow direct business between the Canadian dollar and the Chinese yuan, cutting out the middle man — in most cases, the U.S. dollar. This now forces Canadian exporters to use the American currency to do business in China are faced with higher currency exchange costs and longer waits to close deals.

Jason Henderson, head of global banking for HSBC Canada, calls the deal great news for Canada, given that China is the second largest economy in the world after the U.S. If Canada is to maintain the standard of living that it enjoys today, he adds, it needs to tap into the Chinese market. The currency deal is the first step on that path, and it's said trade between Canada and China supports more than 470,000 jobs in Canada a year, which was about 2.67 per cent of total Canadian jobs in 2013.


As read in this article, there seems to be minor ups and downs with this deal. How might this deal affect us in the long run? What are the pros and cons?