WCA July 2011

From the americas

Bush Intercontinental and Dallas-Fort Worth International were the only Texas airports on the list. Also authorised are airports in Atlanta, Baltimore, New Orleans, Chicago, Pittsburgh, Tampa and Fort Lauderdale (both in Florida), and San Juan, Puerto Rico. Previously, flights could be arranged only from Miami International, Los Angeles International, and John F Kennedy International airport in New York. The charter-only flights will be limited to family visits and trips for authorised groups in a small number of specific areas, including agriculture, medicine, education and religious activity. When Mr Peña spoke with the Chronicle , no Cuba- bound individuals or group had yet made inquiries of the Houston Airport System. In brief ❖ The Customs and Border Protection agency of the US government operates an extensive radiation screening network at the nation’s seaports, airports and border crossings. Installed after the 9/11 terrorist attacks in 2001 to thwart smugglers of nuclear weapons, the system is now being used as well to detect any unusual radioactivity in cargo from Japan. The heightened scrutiny was ordered for Japanese imports when radiation was reported to be escaping from the Fukushima nuclear power plant, damaged in the earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan on 11 th March. At the Pacific coast port of Oakland, across the bay from San Francisco, ship cargo typically goes through one round of radiation contamination screening before being cleared to leave port. Containers from Japan now get multiple checks, but as of the first week of April no dangerous levels had been detected and no cargo had been detained. ❖ The US Justice Department on 7 th April asked a federal court for permission to compel London-based HSBC, one of the world’s largest banks, to direct its US affiliate to turn over the names of wealthy Indian-American clients suspected of evading taxes through offshore accounts at the bank’s affiliate in India. The request extended to India a widening investigation into private offshore services sold by Swiss and Swiss- style banks that have helped some Americans avoid income taxes by hiding money overseas. Holding a foreign account is legal in the US, but citizens and residents must file annual disclosures with the Internal Revenue Service for accounts with balances higher than $10,000. In 2003, the wealth management company Merrill Lynch estimated that there were 200,000 millionaires of Indian origin in the United States. According to court documents, HSBC Bank USA operated offices in New York and Fremont, California, for HSBC India under the name NRI Services. (NRI stands for Non-Resident Indian.) In a statement on the Justice Department request, HSBC said: “While we haven’t seen the summons, HSBC does not condone tax evasion and fully supports US efforts to promote appropriate payment of taxes by US taxpayers.”

Setbacks this year could cost Toyota its spot as the world’s top-selling auto maker, taken from General Motors in 2008 and now likely to be given back. ❖ The largest of Detroit’s “Big Three,” General Motors posted first-quarter sales of 592,545 units, some 26% higher than in the same quarter of 2010. As noted by Forbes (1 st April), GM has been trying to remake itself as it comes out of private ownership, having gone through with its initial public offering in November 2010. While its stock price has lagged, the company has done well launching new products and managing to keep sales growing. With its electricity-powered Chevy Volt and Chevrolet Cruze compact sedan, GM is targeting American car buyers worried about high gasoline prices. ❖ Ford Motor Co posted a 20% rise in its Chinese sales to 53,440 vehicles during March. Recently, the Detroit auto maker announced plans to invest $1.1 billion in China, notably to raise capacity at its new plant in Chongqing to 650,000 units by 2012. Power train and engine capacity at the plant, operated by Ford’s joint-venture partner Changan Automobile Co, will also be increased, from 400,000 units to 750,000 units. As reported by Zacks Equity Research (9 th April), Ford’s sales in China grew 40% in 2010, largely on higher sales of compacts and subcompacts. Changan Ford sold 403,283 vehicles, an increase of 34% from 2009. Additionally, Ford’s commercial vehicle venture in China, Jiangling Motors Corp, reported a remarkable 56% rise in sales to 178,999 units for the year. Ford also had a good year in India. Its sales there almost tripled to 95,395 in 2010, helped by the Figo, its first small car for India ❖ In other news of Ford, the company in the week of 11 th April resumed production at plants in Louisville, Kentucky; Flat Rock, Michigan; Hermosillo, Mexico; and Genk, Belgium. The facilities had been closed either because of shortages of parts from Japan or to reduce inventory.

International

Texas as “gateway to Cuba”? Not yet – but Houston gets ready

Houston Airport System officials in Texas are evaluating the market potential in charter flights to Cuba after George Bush Intercontinental Airport was named one of the US airports that may offer such flights under limited conditions. Genaro Peña, the air service development director for the system, told the Houston Chronicle , “We’re going to do everything we can to position Houston as a gateway to Cuba.” (“Want to Fly to Cuba?”, 8 th April). Until recently, only three domestic airports were authorised to offer charter service to the island nation only 90 miles from Florida, the subject of a US embargo in place for half a century now. But, as noted by the Chronicle ’s Ronnie Crocker, the Obama administration, while retaining the embargo, has ordered the easing of some prohibitions on travel to Cuba. On 24 th March, US Customs and Border Protection, a component of the Department of Homeland Security, expanded to 13 the number of airports able to offer the charter service.

Dorothy Fabian – Features Editor

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Wire & Cable ASIA – July/August 2011