Small Business Blog from Atlantic Canada

Canada is now staring at the American Dollar nearly at par. When it hits par; i.e. 1 US Dollar = 1 Canadian Dollar, the psychological barrier will have been broken and it will not take long for the US dollar to slide further. I am looking at a par exchange rate by mid 2008 - unless the market goes to hell in a handbasket.

Manufacturing may move back to the US. It may not be the exact same jobs that were lost, but they will be manufacturing jobs nevertheless. Countries exporting to the US may see the customer become a competitor. Today the US is the world’s largest consumer. Countries like China, Korea, Taiwan are the suppliers. Will the roles reverse? Consider the scenario where the US dollar has depreciated so much that it not only becomes cheaper for the US to manufacture its own goods (dollar stores stocked with American goods … hmmm) but it is also cheaper for, say China to import from the US. This is theory - sorry to burst your bubble. In practice, what may happen is that these countries may also devalue their currencies – especially with a peg (see fixed exchange rate) definition of peg at Wikipedia), and we are back where we started. Let’s look at a couple of scenarios at how the current account deficit can be reduced or turned into a surplus. - Atlantic Canada’s Small Business Management Blog by IQI Strategic Management Inc

For all those in the US who were shouting themselves hoarse about the evils of globalization, there’s some good news. The manufacturing jobs that were lost to the countries in Asia may just return. No, I am not kidding. I think we are just past that bend where companies might evaluate moving manufacturing & other outsourced services back to US. That’s the good news. The not so good news is it will not happen overnight. It will take some time. Ceteris paribus, I expect it to see the first trickle in the reverse direction in 7 to 10 years. Here’s why I think so.

I am “CA” Atreya (PMP, MBA), the author of this blog. I help businesses in Atlantic Canada achieve their BHAG successfully. You may subscribe to this blog using a feed reader (RSS).We have all been introduced at some point to have SMART goals. Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Timely. If it works for you - [...]

I recently came across this article in the New York Times - F.D.A. Tracked Tainted Drugs, but Trial Went Cold in China. The article is written by Walt Bogdanich - a Pilitzer Prize winner for national reporting in 2005 among other awards - along with other contributors.
“After a drug ingredient from China killed dozens of [...]

A number of years ago, we wanted to ship our booth to a tradeshow. I remember our admin staff trying to locate a trucking company that would ship the stuff at price point we could afford. It took them a while to get to a trucking company who would ship by the date we wanted, [...]

So you have made up your mind to export. However, before you commit your resources to this project, you must first evaluate if your organization is ready to export.

Do you know where your competition is? It used to be down the street not too long ago and then it went national. Today your competition is located half way across the globe. They are selling to your market. Are you selling to theirs? Small businesses who do not export are losing out BIG time. Let’s look at some of the top reasons why you should consider exporting: Trade marketing and strategy services to businesses in Halifax Nova Scotia Canada

Dr. Mary Brooks (William Black Chair of Commerce at Dalhousie University, Halifax), one of the transportation experts, believes it is important for Atlantic Canadians to realize that the Atlantic Gateway Initiative is not a Halifax-only initiative. It has positive implications for the entire region. But, is transforming Halifax to a global trade hub possible for a province that screwed-up the 2014 Commonwealth Games?

I came across this article by Katie Two reasons for college students to breathe easier about their future. Katie is a graduate student at the University of Malta’s Institute for Thinking working towards a degree in Creativity and Innovation. I started out writing a few lines of comment, but it turned out to be longer [...]