Slovak Unemployment Falls,
Sparking Shortage Concern
By Radoslav Tomek, Bloomberg News
Manufacturers such as South Korean carmaker Kia Motors Corp. face increased costs to recruit and retain workers at their new factories. Slovakia’ s unemployment rate fell in August to a record low, boosting concern a
shortage of labor will frustrate manufacturers who are trying to fill jobs at newly opened factories.
The jobless rate fell to 8.2 percent from 8.3 percent in July, the Labor Office said. The number of unemployed available for work fell to 212,905 from 215,789 in the previous month, the Bratislava, Slovakia-based office said. Accelerating economic growth in the country with population of 5.4 million has helped to cut the unemployment rate from as much as 19.7 percent in January 2002.
``Economic growth continues to generate new jobs,’’ said Juraj Valachy, an economist at Tatra Banka AS. ``The number of people ready to work has been shrinking, and sooner or later Slovakia needs to start importing workers.’’
The $66 billion economy has created about 200,000 new jobs in the past four years.
Furthermore, more workers will be needed in the coming years as foreign investment into Slovakia continues to flow. Companies have been lured to the country in part because of its flat tax and low labor costs.
`Getting Worse’
``The quality of available workforce is getting worse, which means we have to spend more time on training,’’ said Dusan Dvorak, spokesman for Kia’s Slovak unit. ``We can expect that the problem of labor shortage will become acute in one or two years.’’
Mercedes Expects 2007 Productivity to Rise Almost 10%
By Jeremy van Loon and Jann Bettinga, Bloomberg News
DaimlerChrysler AG’s Mercedes Car Group, the world’s second-biggest maker of
luxury vehicles, expects to boost productivity this year by almost 10 percent. Productivity will rise at a ``high singledigit’’ percentage rate, after a 12 percent
gain in 2006, Rainer Schmueckle, the unit’s chief operating officer, said during a
briefing at the International Motor Show in Frankfurt.
The Mercedes-Benz brand has rolled outnew versions of the $86,000 S-Class sedan and the new B-Class crossover model to compete with Munich-based Bayerische Motoren Werke AG, the world’s biggest luxury-car maker, and Toyota Motor Corp.’s Lexus brand. Stuttgart, Germany-based Mercedes is counting on a new version of its C-Class entry-level sedan in 2007 to boost sales. Mercedes is considering selling the twoseat Smart car in Asian markets and doesn’t rule out building a factory in eastern Europe, Schmueckle said.
EU Carmakers Need More Time for CO2 Goals, Fiat Says
By Jeremy van Loon and Jann Bettinga, Bloomberg News
European Union carmakers will need six to seven years to meet tighter emissions
rules, Fiat SpA Chief Executive Officer Sergio Marchionne said, signalling that manufacturers will miss a 2012 goal for trimming C02 pollution. The industry, while backing EU carbondioxide intentions, doesn’t foresee a ``single solution’’ to reducing emissions, Marchionne said at an Association of European Automobile Manufacturers press briefing in Frankfurt. Regulators must provide ``planning certainty,’’ he added.
Vehicle manufacturers are under pressure to reduce carbon- dioxide emissions and improve fuel efficiency while offering more safety features and electronics. The
European Commission, the EU’s regulatory group, is proposing a limit of 120 grams of CO2 emissions per kilometer for carmaker fleets by 2012.
``There will be no planning certainty until details of the legislation are known,’’
Marchionne said. Carmakers will need at least six years after approval to meet the demands, he said. ``The auto industry takes its responsibility seriously.’’
New cars sold in Europe last year by members of the association, which includes
Volkswagen AG and PSA Peugeot Citroen, emitted an average of 160 grams of carbon per kilometer, or about 9 ounces a mile, Transport & Environment, a Brussels-based advocacy group, said Sept. 5.
The carmakers reduced emissions by 0.2 percent compared with 2005 and won’t
meet their own target of 140 grams by 2008, the lobby group said.
BMW Says 40% of Cars Sold in 2008 to Meet CO2 Goal
By Jeremy van Loon, Bloomberg News
Bayerische Motoren Werke AG, the world’s largest maker of luxury cars, said two out of every five cars it sells next year will meet voluntary European targets for
lower carbon-dioxide emissions. ``The environment is at the center of our
focus,’’ Chief Executive Officer Norbert Reithofer said in a presentation at the International Motor Show in Frankfurt.
Vehicle manufacturers are under pressure to reduce carbon- dioxide emissions and improve fuel efficiency while offering more safety features and electronics. Carmakers agreed to reduce emissions of CO2 to 140 grams per kilometer (4.9 ounces per .62 mile) by 2009 and 40 percent of BMW’s cars will emit that figure or less, the company said.
Hip hotels need hip restaurants where diners can be served fashionable food by beautiful people.
Suka, at the Sanderson in London, fits the bill. The Philippe Starck-designed property is a celebrity hangout and the cuisine at the exotic new eatery, which replaces Alain Ducasse's Spoon, is Malaysian. The staff looks the part, and the customers are of the kind that fill Nobu each night. Let's call them Nobuddies.
Pan-Asian places are popular in London. E&O has been doing it for years, and the talented chef Ian Pengelley, who cut his teeth there, is now at Gilgamesh. Just down Regent Street from Haiku, Cocoon was going great guns when I last visited. The E&O stable of Will Ricker now includes XO, Cicada and Great Eastern Dining Room.
So what does Haiku bring to the table that's new? Indian food is the main thing. But the butter chicken and the lamb rogan josh I tried over two visits were run-of-the-mill for a city that boasts some of the best sub continental restaurants in the world. Chicken cheese kebab was better, though hardly outstanding.
Super Sushi, Pig Tongue Beckon at Two Eateries
Asian restaurants open almost every month in London, with Malaysian and fusion eateries just the latest additions to a city where Chinese food has been served for 100 years and curry first appeared on a menu in the 18th century.
If you're looking for egg-fried rice or meat vindaloo after a night in the pub, there's no problem. Finding authentic cuisine is trickier, which is why two new places are welcome. Dinings serves Japanese food you'd be happy to get in Tokyo, while the Sichuan dishes at Snazz are so uncompromising, you might not like them.
