Pleasant morning

PLEASANT GROVE, Alabama (Reuters) – The government ramped up efforts on Saturday to help thousands of homeless victims of the country's second deadliest recorded tornado outbreak, which killed at least 350 people.

President Barack Obama, who surveyed the tornado destruction in the worst-hit state of Alabama on Friday and called it "heartbreaking," was sending top officials to the disaster zone this weekend to escalate federal assistance.

With some estimates putting the number of homes and buildings destroyed at close to 10,000, state and federal authorities in the U.S. South were still coming to terms with the scale of this week's devastation from the country's worst natural catastrophe since Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

Thousands of stunned survivors, many of whom had seen relatives and friends killed by twisters that obliterated whole communities, were camped out in the shattered shells of their homes or moved into shelters or with friends.

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Sri Lanka hotel profit margins on the rise: report

May 01, 2011 (LBO) - Profit margins of Sri Lanka's tourist hotels are widening with an influx of arrivals and rising room rates after the end of its 30-year ethnic war, a report said.


Given the rather "anaemic" demand prior to 2009, when the war ended, most hotel operators had been compelled to compete on price, RAM Ratings (Lanka) said in a report on the island's hotel sector.

"Price undercutting had been evident among most city hotels and those in the southern region, with certain 05-star establishment only charging about 60 US dollars per night."

However, the government started imposing minimum room rates in 2009 to curb excessive price competition, and a third increase recently implemented raised minimum rates to 125 dollars from April.

"With tourist arrivals hitting a record high in 2010, occupancy levels have also surged, reducing the pressure to compete on price," RAM Ratings said.

"The upsurge in demand for hotel rooms has led to a concurrent rise in room rates across the industry."

Room rates had increased over 20 percent as at end-December 2010 from a year ago.

The rating agency quoted the Global Hotel Price Index as saying Sri Lanka’s 05-star room rates had risen 21.38 percent to an average of 105.63 dollars by end-December 2010 from the previous year.

"This represents the fifth-largest spike in room rates globally," RAM Ratings (Lanka) said.

"The scenario of escalating room rates is likely to prevail in the short to medium term as the industry will be challenged to expand its capacity to meet the surge in demand.

"The higher price tags will in turn boost hoteliers’ financial performance through broader profit margins."

Robust demand and inadequate supply of rooms over the short to medium term will continue supporting occupancy levels and room rates, the report said.

"Part of the latter will be regulation-driven as the minimum room rates imposed by the government will be increased," it said.

"We believe the scenario of high occupancy levels is likely to prevail in the short to medium term, as the industry faces a room-supply deficit amid more robust demand."

The current capacity of nearly 15,000 rooms is sufficient to cater to only some 800,000 guests a year – indicating a "substantial deficit" in supply should the government’s target of 2.5 million tourists be achieved, the report said.

Industry experts believe that the current capacity of graded rooms should be nearly doubled to around 28,000 rooms.

"According to plans already announced by local and foreign hotel operators, 1,000 rooms will be added over the medium term, albeit still insufficient to cater to the expected influx of tourists," the rating agency said.

"Furthermore, the closure of hotels for refurbishment could tighten supply further in the short term.

"Against this backdrop, we believe that hotels will continue enjoying high occupancy levels and lucrative rates in the short to medium term."

RAM Ratings also noted that despite the recent rate hikes, Sri Lankan hotel rates are still lower than those of the other countries in the Asia-Pacific region.
 
source - www.lbo.lk

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India's Rejection Of US Aircraft : As Seen By Chinese

Chinese netizens interested in strategic issues have been showing interest in India's reported decision to go for European jet fighters for its Air Force in preference to the aircaft offered by US companies. They see this as a possible reflection of India's unhappiness over the continuing US restrictive policies relating to the transfer of high technology to India.

by B.Raman

(May 1, Chennai, Sri Lanka Guardian) Chinese netizens interested in strategic issues have been showing interest in India's reported decision to go for European jet fighters for its Air Force in preference to the aircraft offered by US companies. They see this as a possible reflection of India's unhappiness over the continuing US restrictive policies relating to the transfer of high technology to India. Another point being made is that the US support for India's permanent membership of the UN Security Council was as a quid pro quo for the Indian selection of the US aircraft. Now that India has rejected the US aircraft, will the US still support India's permanent membership of the UNSC?

2. Annexed are some comments carried in the People's Forum section of the party-owned "People's Daily" online on the subject on May 1,2011. It is not clear whether these comments are of the "People's Daily" readers or have been lifted from non-Chinese sources. Normally, when the comments are lifted from non-Chinese sources, the sources are identified. In this case, no source has been identified for the post as a whole. ( 1-5-11)

( The writer is Additional Secretary (retd), Cabinet Secretariat, Govt. of India, New Delhi, and, presently, Director, Institute For Topical Studies, Chennai, and Associate of the Chennai Centre For China Studies. E-mail: seventyone2@gmail.com )

ANNEXURE

(Text of a post in the "People's Forum" section of the "People's Daily" online carried on May 1,2011)

India arms contract spurns US fighters

India has shortlisted European jet fighters, in preference to US and Russian rivals, in a hotly contested $11bn competition to supply the Indian air force with advanced combat aircraft.

At stake is a deal to equip India with 126 multi-role fighter jets in one of the world’s largest military contracts. The winning bid is expected to shape India’s air power for the next three decades and serve as the bedrock of a strategic partnership.

After trials, India selected France’s Dassault Rafale and the multinational Eurofighter Typhoon – both currently operating over Libya – to compete in the next stage of the competition, according to India’s defence ministry. A spokesman told the Financial Times that a final decision would be taken within a year.

The move will be a blow to the US. Washington strongly lobbied India to buy its aircraft as payback for the landmark Indian-US civil nuclear deal in 2008. The agreement – brokered by Manmohan Singh, Indian premier, and then-US president George W. Bush – brought India’s nuclear programme out of decades of global isolation.

Timothy Roemer, US ambassador to Delhi, said the US was “deeply disappointed” by the decision not to select US defence companies. Earlier on Thursday, Mr Roemer, a personal friend of Barack Obama, US president, announced his resignation.

While Mr Roemer said he was leaving India for personal reasons, as ambassador he had heavily promoted the US bids. He said he had “accomplished all of the strategic objectives set forth two years ago” when he took the job.

Top Indian officials and politicians had indicated that they wished to buy US military hardware to improve a fast-warming relationship between the two democracies in the wake of the transformative nuclear deal.

Are U.S. export policies to blame?

Defense contractors and industry experts are trying to come to grips with India’s decision to exclude The Boeing Co. and Lockheed Martin Corp. from its $11 billion competition for a new fighter jet.

India's decision was very surprising, says Tom Captain, vice chairman of global and U.S. aerospace and defense leader at Deloitte LLP. If the selection was based on technical merits, "It is difficult to explain how those two very capable aircraft were eliminated."

In the absence of factual information about how the selection was made, speculation is growing that restrictive U.S. export policies may have played a significant role in India’s evaluation of fighter jet candidates.

India is projected to spend $80 billion on new weapons and space systems over the next five years. It’s only a small fraction of what the United States spends, but the industry still regards it as a promising region where, once you get a foot in the door, opportunities could blossom.

Defense industry analyst Byron Callan contends that “technology transfer was a major consideration in this competition.”

Larry Christensen, an export controls attorney at Miller & Chevalier, in Washington, D.C., believes the Indian decision will have lasting implications for U.S. industry, even though he says he has not seen any proof that India’s choice was influenced by ITAR, the International Traffic in Arms Regulations that restrict exports of sensitive U.S. technology.

The fact that an emerging power such as India would snub U.S. advanced weaponry offers further evidence that the current export control system — which dates back to the Cold War — has outlived its effectiveness, Christensen says. “The U.S. government cannot repeal the laws of economics,” he says. As the United States denies access to some of its best technology, it leaves a market void that, sooner or later, another country will fill. “When that happens, the U.S. export control policy of denial, or policy of heavy restrictions, become ineffective” for the purposes of barring potential enemies access to advanced weaponry, he says.

It's a surprise for many analysts that US fighters didn't win out. In recently years, America has been trying to court India by asserting its supportive stance over India's aspiration for a permanent UNSC seat. America arms makers are one of beneficiaries in the improved bilateral ties. They even got deals from India with big number without competing with rivals in public bidding. Some defense expert said the embarrassing result indicates that India's wariness toward America doesn't loose. And your say...?

The Royal Wedding: Tying the knot between countries

Prince William and Kate in the centre with attendants, (clockwise from bottom right) the Hon. Magarita Armstrong-Jones, Miss Eliza Lopes, Miss Grace van Custem, Lady Louise Windsor, Master Tom Petttifer, Master William Lowther-Pinkerton Photo:Burnand Clarence House

by Michael R. Czinkota and Mariele Marki

(May 1, London, Sri Lanka Guardian)The royal wedding of Prince William of England and Kate Middleton had millions viewers around the world with their eyes glued to televisions. If student actions at Georgetown University are an indicator, in the U.S. at three in the morning, many Americans tuned in to live coverage of the royal wedding or even met at hotels with large screens to watch and have British breakfast . Most major media networks were broadcasting from London.

According to a study by Nielsen, a leader in market research, “United States news and media outlets have out-published their U.K. counterparts in terms of wedding coverage.” The fascination and romanticism that the United States has for the royal family and the increase in attention ever since the engagement was announced last November, demonstrates the strong ties between the United States and the United Kingdom.

This cultural connection is an excellent example of a concept developed in international business. Psychological distance is the perceived distance from a firm to a foreign market, caused by cultural variables, legal factors, history and other societal norms. A common model used to demonstrate this theory is a comparison of the link between the United States and Canada, with the United States and Mexico. Americans tend to identify more with Canada than with Mexico. Both countries border the United States, but for reasons of language and culture, Canada appears to be psychologically much closer.

While the U.S. and the U.K. share the same language and have a linked history, one can also see the allure of royalty in both cultures. Disney princesses have a strong presence in every young girl’s childhood in the United States and many movies center around the plot of a fairytale with the prince and princess living happily ever after. Women want to be treated like princesses and it is culturally very common to rejoice when one has “found her prince.” Even though the U.S. hasn’t had a royal leader in centuries, news on royal families is a regular part of television and magazine entertainment. A large portion of the American population maintains a high level of interest in all that is regal.

Psychological proximity is much preferable to psychological distance. It helps business, creates friendships and leads to national decisions which are often unabashedly in favor of one’s friends. Psychological distance in turn tends to slow down relationships and, in a proverb mentioned by international travellers, affects the quality of the water one might otherwise share. That makes it important that all nations work on bridging distances through collaboration, mutual visits, and confidence building measures. Every business transaction is another step in mutual diplomacy which links nations together. Some nations even built their growth and success based on tying the knot and closing the distance through their leading families. For example, for centuries, the proverb in Europe was “Tu Felix Austria, nube”, meaning that (in order to prosper,) you, lucky Austria, just get married .

However, as international business theory shows us, the best quality of psychological proximity occurs when it is close but not too close. Closeness creates better relationships and does make it easier for firms to enter markets. But too much of a focus on similarities can lead to what may be considered unwelcome intrusiveness, and lets managers lose sight of important differences. Even between the U.S. and the U.K. there are behavioral and language differences which are ignored at great peril. Just think of how new acquaintances address each other or how one talks about past accomplishments.

England and other countries close to the U.S. often have a society quite different from the U.S.. The British royal wedding certainly is interesting. But it is the multitude of other overlaps in interests on a daily basis which creates the real psychological proximity. Looking at each other and smiling when one realizes the mutuality of thought – that is what brings us closer to each other. That in turn is never the result of one single event, but rather the consequence of growth in a relationship over decades and perhaps even centuries. But that is perhaps discussed best over a cup of tea.

Michael R. Czinkota is a Professor of International Business and Marketing at Georgetown University and the University of Birmingham in the U.K. Mariele Marki is a research assistant at Georgetown University.