| Seminar seeks ways to help SMEs
HA NOI � Reforms need to be made to the laws governing land-ownership, credit and human resources to help small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in rural areas, economic experts said at a seminar in Ha Noi last Wednesday. The seminar was organised by the Institute of Policy and Strategy for Agriculture and Rural Development (IPSARD) and the Spanish International Co-operation Agency. A survey conducted by the General Statistics Office last year showed that 34 per cent of the country�s 74,000 rural enterprises suffered financial losses last year compared with 24 per cent in 2000. Profit ratios reported by rural enterprises also dropped, particularly in the service sector. The seminar heard that SMEs in rural areas were facing a number of difficulties relating to capital, land, infrastructure and labour quality.
MoreBusiness.com Adds Over 100 Business Plans to Help Entrepreneurs and Small Businesses Boost Holiday Sales
MoreBusiness.com, a leading small business portal, launches the exclusive Small Business Holiday Resource Center where entrepreneurs can learn tips and ideas for boosting profits for the holidays. The new center adds 100 free business plans to its collection of more than 1,500 business how-to articles, including sample proposals and guides to starting and running a successful company. .
Aflac Honors Hispanic Entrepreneurs Making a Difference in Texas
COLUMBUS, Ga. (Map) - COLUMBUS, Ga., Nov. 2 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, four exemplary Hispanic entrepreneurs were recognized with an Aflac Civic Award for making a difference in Texas. Vernon Herrera, a district sales coordinator at Aflac, and Hector Barreto, chairman of the Latino Coalition and former administrator of the Small Business Administration, honored each winner during an awards ceremony held at the Fairmont Hotel in Dallas, Texas. "We are extremely proud to recognize these extraordinary business leaders for making a difference in their community," said Herrera. "They continuously strengthen the community through their civic contributions in their quest to building a better future." .
Reuters Canada Business Summary
TOKYO (Reuters) - Bombardier Inc, the world's third-largest maker of civil aircraft, said no additional air carriers have said they would stop using its Dash 8 Q400 aircraft after SAS AB's decision to do so. More than half of the 160 Q400 aircraft in service around the world were grounded after the landing gear on Q400s flown by Scandinavian Airlines Systems collapsed on touchdown in two separate incidents. BASF CEO says not ruling out firm can be taken over STUTTGART (Reuters) - The market valuation of BASF is not that high that it can't be taken over, Chief Executive Juergen Hambrecht said late on Wednesday. At 3:30 a.m. EST, BASF shares were up 1.5 percent at 92.80 euros, giving it a market valuation of around 45 billion euros ($67 billion). BHP chief tries to soothe China nerves on Rio deal BEIJING (Reuters) - China is worried that BHP Billiton Ltd will have too much power in setting iron ore prices if it takes over rival Rio Tinto Ltd/Plc but recognizes that a tie-up could help secure long-term supplies, a manager at the country's No.
Australian Small Business Confidence Dives To 6-Yr Low-Survey
SYDNEY (Dow Jones)--Australian small business confidence experienced a record fall in November amid uncertainty about the outcome of a federal election on Saturday. The Sensis small business index fell 16 percentage points in the three months to November to 43%, the lowest level in six years. Sensis, a subsidiary of telecommunications group Telstra Corp., based its findings on a survey of 1,800 businesses between Oct. 23 and Nov. 20. "We have never seen such a dramatic one-quarter fall in confidence in the 14 years Sensis has been tracking small businesses," said Christena Singh, author of the report. One third of small and medium businesses are worried about their business prospects because of a potential change of government and general electoral uncertainty, Singh said. Saturday's election is expected to be closely fought, but polls suggest the 11-year-old center-right coalition government will be ousted in favor of the center-left Australian Labor Party.
|
