In my last post I discussed why multinational investment has started to split between China and other destinations, including Mexico, in recent years. But wages are a shrinking fraction of overall production cost—across many manufacturing sectors wages are a tenth to a quarter of overall production costs. Why? Automation makes wages less of an issue, […]
Confusion, fear and indignation spread through all extremities of the Haitian population, including the legislative body, following the controversial detainment of Deputy Arnel Belizaire in spite of his parliamentary immunity and constitutional protection. “We are dealing with a dictatorship,” revolted Sorel Jacinthe, president of the House of Deputies. “The Constitution and the law no longer […]
China has been the world’s factory floor for over a decade, but its manufacturing dominance is abating. Sure, a significant amount of investment will continue to enter the Middle Kingdom, if for no other reason than to target its burgeoning middle class, but factory investment that used to automatically go to China is diversifying. Much […]
“It shows that the OAS cannot be relied upon as a neutral, independent arbiter of electoral disputes, because of the control of its administration by the United States government and its allies,” read a report recently published by the Center for Economic and Policy Research (CEPR). The Organization of American States in Haiti, a study […]
After ensuring each Minister in his novice administration took the oath of office, President Michel Martelly launched a new initiative aimed at restructuring the country’s political infrastructure, as a roaring opposition still in its infancy mobilized to reclaim power. Using the century-old daily newspaper Le Nouvelliste, the emerging opposition enumerated three areas of concern that […]
Last Friday the first long-haul Mexican truck entered the United States, fulfilling its express design. Mexican trucks should have been allowed onto U.S. interstates by 2000, but lobbying by the Teamsters union kept Mexican trucks within an earshot of the border. U.S. dithering has been clearly unfair (Canadian trucks have traversed America’s highways without conditions), […]
“Today, I take over the reins of a government of renewal and a Haitian rebirth,” trumpeted new Prime Minister Garry Conille as lawmakers crowned him head of government. “By allowing me access to the highest office of the State,” affirmed president Michel Martelly, “The Haitian people have invested their trust in me as the bearer […]
How is it that Mexico got caught up in an Iranian plot to assassinate the Saudi ambassador to the United States? Manssor Arbabsiar had his flight itinerary diverted from Mexico City to New York, where U.S. law enforcement arrested him for plotting the murder of Adel Al-Jubeir in Washington, DC. Apparently Arbabsiar, an Iranian who […]
“It is necessary to restore order in the administration of Haiti,” declared Monseigneur Guire Poulard, the Archbishop of Port-au-Prince, during a meeting with officials of international volunteer groups. “If the country was well organized,” he added, “in 10 years it would be rebuilt.” In its article, Mgr. Guire Poulard wants more Order in the Government, […]
From July 2010 to June 2011 the Employment Security Commission of North Carolina advertised 9,050 jobs openings. Only 752 Americans expressed interest, even though North Carolina’s unemployment rate is above 10 percent. Short-handed, farmers across the state have resorted to the H-2A visa program, which allows foreigners to work in the United States temporarily. So […]
Relationships between President Michel Martelly and the Haitian press took another nosedive on October 3, 2011 as the president launched his free education program for disadvantaged children at the National School of Tabarre, located 10 miles north of Port-au-Prince. “Don’t do that,” Martelly told Germain Etienne, a young reporter of Radio Scoop FM. “If you […]
Mexico Today, an outfit I’m proud to write for, just launched a great new interactive magazine for anyone looking to share experiences about Mexico. Right now the Mexico Today Social Magazine on Facebook is dominated by content from leading Mexico bloggers, covering such diverse topics as tortillas, infrastructure projects, and architecture. So if you’d like […]
“We have nothing against Mr. Conille, but we must respect the Constitution,” argued Senator Jean Hector Anacacis disputing the constitutionality of his candidacy. “He did not have his identification card, he has not voted, has not paid his taxes and is only someone seizing the moment to access the post of prime minister, overlooking conditions […]
The hurly-burly of two dozen supporters of former dictator Jean-Claude Duvalier shouting obscenities and paralyzing an Amnesty International press conference rattled the civil community, rights and advocacy groups. “It was a chilling reminder of the intimidation tactics the 1957 regime used against opinionated citizens,” wrote the Platform of Haitian Human Rights Organizations (POHDH) in a […]
On Saturday Agustin Carstens announced a hands-off approach to the Mexican peso: “A neutral monetary policy is the right stance right now.” In normal times such a statement by a central banker rarely qualifies as news, even to the financial news wires. When conducted by an independent central bank monetary policy is a slow, bland […]