by Mark Sutcliffe

Cancun calamity

On September 14^th in Cancun, Mexico, global trade talks collapsed amidst a sea of recrimination and blame. The Economist leader on the 18^th September was scathing in its criticism of those concerned with its collapse.

"The failure sprang not from principle, nor even from intelligent calculation, but from cynicism, delusion and incompetence. It is going to leave most people in the world worse off – and, with out a doubt, those who will suffer worst are the world's poor."

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Sweden says 'no'

What a bad day September 14^th was for the European Union. As trade talks were collapsing in Cancun, for which the EU received a large part of the blame, at home ambitions to create a greater Europe were being dealt a significant blow by the Swedes, who were busy rejecting moves for them to join the euro. With over 56 per cent of the electorate voting against joining the euro, Sweden is set to retain the krone and remain, along with the UK and Denmark, on the sideline as the remaining 12 EU countries forge ahead with their euro vision. Why did Sweden reject the euro and what are its implications, both for the EU and for the UK's potential future membership?

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The dollar's dive

Since late 2001 the dollar has been falling steadily against the euro, such that by mid 2003 it had lost over 26 per cent of its value. Although the weakening of the dollar has not come as any surprise to the world's financial markets, there are concerns that its fall is far greater, and the speed of its fall far faster, than is healthy. There are also worries that the dollar's tumble is not yet over, and further losses in its value can be expected. The key to this trend is the American economy's rapidly widening trade deficit.

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A world looking to consolidate

Three short news stories that consider three distinct industries, all of which are seeing some of their major players attempting to consolidate their market positions.

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