'economy' - tagged features

Nokia, the Finnish mobile phone giant, plans to close down its huge factory in the German city of Bochum and move it to Romania. It’ll mean job losses and serious knock-on effects for the local German economy. But why is it moving? Nokia couldn't resist the temptation of producing their phones at a fifth of the current cost. 16 hundred kilometers east, everything from labour to electricity is a lot cheaper. 

Let’s first have a look at the business perspective. It's not easy for European businessmen to set up shop in China. They’re still prevented from running wholly owned foreign enterprises there because of trade barriers. But what about the other way around, Chinese businesses coming to Europe? Back in 2005, Fritz Schramma, the mayor of the German city of Cologne, launched a programme to encourage Chinese companies to settle in and around the city. It was called China Offensive. Deutsche Welle’s Monika Manke has been finding out how successful the initiative has been. 

Nicolas Sarkozy has set himself a hard task for the coming week. The hyper-active new French president has busied himself reforming French life. He seems hell-bent on inspiring the anti-Sarko banner-wavers to come out and defy him. First he took on university reform, then law and order and the scourge of repeat-offenders. This week it's the turn of union power and the right to strike. Mr Sarkozy wants to make sure that any public transport strikes in future do not bring the country’s cities to a standstill, as they often have in the past. He wants to make sure there’ll always be a bus or a train, eventually. 

The new French President, Nicolas Sarkozy, campaigned with proposals based on faulty economic analyses- this according to an article posted on the website of a leading American newspaper The Washington Post. France’s new president who was sworn in this week, said he would boost France’s economy through tax cuts and pushing back the 35 hour work week. But the article, written by Mark Weisbrot, co-director of the Center for Economic and Policy Research, says that there is little evidence that Sarkozy’s proposals will actually increase employment or economic growth. Radio France International’s Jan van der Made went to find out if economists in France agree. 

Sweden's TV and computer game industry raked in a billion kronor last year, and 98% of that was thanks to exports.  The film and music industries better watch out, because that statistic means games are fast becoming Sweden's cash cow. What’s more, industry figures say things can only get better.