Change the Guard

hunnieb11 asked:


When I say “American foreign policy” I mean in the media. You never hear about America and Latin America unless we are bashing Hugo Chavez or Fidel Castro yet we play such a MASSIVE role in everything from their economic to military policies. You never hear about America and Africa unless it involves Angelina Jolie or celebrities and their “concern” for Sudan. Why do you think this is?

Heidi Grumm asked:


FDI stands for Foreign Direct Investment, a component of a country’s national financial accounts. Foreign direct investment is investment of foreign assets into domestic structures, equipment, and organizations. Foreign direct investment is thought to be more useful to a country than investments in the equity of its companies because equity investments are potentially “hot money” which can leave at the first sign of trouble, whereas FDI is durable and generally useful whether things go well or badly

The resilience of foreign direct investment during financial crises may lead many developing countries to regard it as the private capital inflow of choice. Although there is substantial evidence that such investment benefits host countries, they should assess its potential impact carefully and realistically

Economists tend to favor the free flow of capital across national borders because it allows capital to seek out the highest rate of return. Unrestricted capital flows may also offer several other advantages. First, international flows of capital reduce the risk faced by owners of capital by allowing them to diversify their lending and investment. Second, the global integration of capital markets can contribute to the spread of best practices in corporate governance, accounting rules, and legal traditions. Third, the global mobility of capital limits the ability of governments to pursue bad policies.

In addition to these advantages, which in principle apply to all kinds of private capital inflows,the gains to host countries from Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) can take several other forms:

• FDI allows the transfer of technology—particularly in the form of new varieties of capital inputs—that cannot be achieved through financial investments or trade in goods and services. FDI can also promote competition in the domestic input market.

• Recipients of FDI often gain employee training in the course of operating the new businesses, which contributes to human capital development in the host country.

• Profits generated by FDI contribute to corporate tax revenues in the host country.

Foreign Direct Investment ( FDI) versus other flows

Despite the strong theoretical case for the advantages of free capital flows, the conventional wisdom now seems to be that many private capital flows pose countervailing risks. many host countries, even when they are in favor of capital inflows, view international debt flows, especially of the short-term variety, as “bad cholestero.

In contrast, FDI is viewed as “good cholesterol” because it can confer the benefits enumerated earlier. An additional benefit is that FDI is thought to be “bolted down and cannot leave so easily at the first sign of trouble.” Unlike short-term debt, direct investments in a country are immediately repriced in the event of a crisis.

Recent evidence

To what extent is there empirical support for such claims of the beneficial impact of Foreign Direct Investment?

A comprehensive study by Bosworth and Collins (1999) provides evidence on the effect of capital inflows on domestic investment for 58 developing countries during 1978-95. The sample covers nearly all of Latin America and Asia, as well as many countries in Africa. The authors distinguish among three types of inflows: Foreign Direct Investment, portfolio investment, and other financial flows (primarily bank loans).

Countries should concentrate on improving the environment for investment and the functioning of markets. They are likely to be rewarded with increasingly efficient overall investment as well as with more capital inflows.” Although it is very likely that FDI is higher, as a share of capital inflows, where domestic policies and institutions are weak, this cannot be regarded as a criticism of Foreign Direct Investment per se. Indeed, without it, the host countries could well be much poorer.

Fire sales, adverse selection, and leverage. Foreign Direct Investment http://korea.ixs.net/foreign-direct-investment.aspx is not only a transfer of ownership from domestic to foreign residents but also a mechanism that makes it possible for foreign investors to exercise management and control over host country firms—that is, it is a corporate governance mechanism. The transfer of control may not always benefit the host country because of the circumstances under which it occurs, problems of adverse selection, or excessive leverage.

Both economic theory and recent empirical evidence suggest that Foreign Direct Investment has a beneficial impact on developing host countries. But recent work also points to some potential risks: it can be reversed through financial transactions; it can be excessive owing to adverse selection and fire sales; its benefits can be limited by leverage; and a high share of Foreign Direct Investment in a country’s total capital inflows may reflect its institutions’ weakness rather than their strength. Though the empirical relevance of some of these sources of risk remains to be demonstrated, the potential risks do appear to make a case for taking a nuanced view of the likely effects of Foreign Direct Investment. Policy recommendations for developing countries should focus on improving the investment climate for all kinds of capital, domestic as well as foreign.

For More Information about Foreign Direct Investment visit : http://eng.ifez.go.kr/guide/org/foreign-direct-investment.asp

billy d asked:


When she’s so ignorant to foreign policy that she doesn’t even know what the Bush doctrine is, and her running mate supported our current disastrous foreign policy.

Joe Biden is chairman of the senate foreign relations committee!!!

I studied foreign policy and leading up to the war in Iraq, the professor pointed out everything Obama did as reason not to go to war, and everything has come true!

Ronald Reagan true hero. asked:


What does Brazil think of George W Bush? I think he is a great man. He is not a terrorist so please dont call him one. Bush has made lives much better for the Iraqis. Iraq basically started the war. Cause of 9/11. Most US hispanics voted for Bush over 75% of them. But some places like venezulea dont like him at all. Im just wondering how Brazil sees it. Another reason Brazil should like Bush is that he is a soccer fan.

Stephen McLaughlin asked:


A successful baseball manager knows when it is time to pull his starting pitcher out of the game and bring in his ace reliever. A good poker player knows when to get up and leave the table with his winnings after the cards start going against him. A top boxing trainer knows that sometimes it is better to throw in the towel and save his fighter for another night, rather than having him go on all 12 rounds and risk serious injury. In the world of sports, the top people know what to look for, and know the actions that need to be taken to give them the best chance for success.

The same holds true with investing - and particularly in the area of foreign investing. Knowing when it is time to cash in your overseas investments is every bit as important as finding the right investments in the first place. The challenge, of course, comes from the fact that your foreign investments are affected by factors that, in many cases, your US investments are not. While it is certainly true that we live in an increasingly global economy, those trends and events that affect the New York Stock Exchange and the NASDAQ - and specifically the companies that trade there - will not necessarily have the same effects on the businesses you have invested in South America, Europe or Asia. In order to maximize the profits of your foreign investments, it is necessary to monitor a number of factors within the specific regions you are doing business in and take these factors into consideration when making the decision on whether to stay with an investment, or get out. These factors include:

Regional Economic Stability: Despite occasional fluctuations, and upward and downward turns, the American economy has been remarkably stable for years. While, as any Venture Capitalist can tell you, this certainly does not make investing in American companies a foolproof proposition, devastating, fast moving economic downturns in the over all US economy are few and, thankfully, far between. This is not necessarily the case worldwide. War, natural disasters, changes in a specific nation’s economic policy and in some areas even revolution - all of these factors play a part in analyzing a region’s economic stability. To protect your investments, it is necessary to be completely familiar with the area in which you have put your money, and keep a close eye on both regional economies and the local economies of the areas in which the businesses you have invested in are located. By watching the economic trends in a specific region closely during the entire length of your investment, it is often times possible to accurately assess exactly the right time to pull your money out for maximum profit.

Regional Political Stability and Policy: In the United States, every two years national elections are held which influence the direction the nation as a whole will go. But regardless of whether it is the Republicans or Democrats who win, the essential stability of our governmental structure - and in most cases the nation’s foreign policies - remains basically unchanged. This, however, is most certainly not the case in many other parts of the world where you might have your investments. One need look no further back than Hugo Chavez’s election as President of Venezuela in 1998 - and the disastrous effect his government’s anti-American policies had on numerous investors in Venezuelan businesses - to understand the dramatic effect the political stability of a nation can have on your investment dollars. While it is probable that you will have a country or region well researched before you invest in companies located there, it is also critical that you constantly monitor the political stability of that nation while your money is there. It is equally important to keep an eye on the region as a whole as, particularly in Latin America and the Middle East, changes in some of the larger, more powerful countries in the region can have a dramatic effect on the countries you may have your dollars invested in.

Regional and Multi-national Trends: What is “hot” in the United States is not necessarily going to be a best seller in Argentina, or in Germany, or in Singapore. Whether due to economic considerations on the part of customers or general taste and preference changes that are influenced on a national or cultural level, each unique area of the world has its own trends that need to be watched. This is particularly true in the area of consumer goods and manufacturing where what customers are interested in purchasing can often times change on a monthly - or even weekly - basis. While it is certainly not possible to predict what any given market will do every time, all the time, by carefully monitoring economic and cultural shifts in a given region and keeping a close eye on the purchasing trends in that region, you will give yourself a much better chance of getting your money out at the proper time to maximize profits.

The above examples are just three of the many factors that need to be taken into consideration when making the decision to stay with a foreign investment, or get out when you feel that the getting is good. While ultimately the decision on whether to stay or go will be based on your basic belief in a particular investment’s continuing viability and profitability, it is critical that you not only have access to the most up-to-date information across a broad spectrum of economic and social trends, but also either have or hire the expertise to analyze that information as it pertains to your specific investments. Overseas investing can be among the most profitable things you can do with your investment capital, but also one of the riskiest. The best way to minimize that risk is to make sure you have the tools to allow you to get out with your profits intact, and not stay in the game one inning too long.

Author Bio: Steve McLaughlin founded Global Market Insights, with offices in Europe and the U.S., with his vision of giving clients two synergistic competencies: knowledge of the global marketplace and industry expertise in manufacturing, finance and information technology. Steve has over twelve years of international experience in three continents, having started in executive search as a Beckett-Rogers Associate. Steve is a graduate of Rice University, where he was student body president, and completed post-graduate studies in International Economics at the Universidad Mayor, Santiago, Chile.

kimi asked:


Please give me world events that happened between 1995 to now with the exact DATE. Please don’t use what I’m using as examples except for the date of the war in Iraq because I don’t know that.

You know like the start of the 21st century is one and stuff like 9/11 and when the war in Iraq started.

Pablo Scottsworth asked:


I need 10 examples of U.S Foreign Policy that had an effect somehow. I don’t need the effect, just the examples are fine pretty please.

pineapple incident asked:


I need to do a currents event project for world history, and i need to write a paper over an article talking about current events in world history, the article has to be written on or after august 25, 2008, online.

know of any big world events that happened recently?