AABR BUSINESS BULLETIN, (Vol XX, No. 30), March 1, 2002

Special thanks to Mr. Simon Lee, President of STG Inc for making possible the 4-day International Conference in IT and Security on Feb 19-22 in Fairfax, VA. Our thanks go also to Sungkyu Lee, the conference coordinator. We also thank the presenters frm the Fed Govt—Glen Logan (DoD), Peter Mell (NIST), Beth Van Houtte (FAA), Levi Royster (FBI), Barry West (GSA), as well as those from the private sector—Dr. Helena Wisniewski, Dr. Surya Prasad, Daniel Barbara, Neil Johnson, Bud Taylor, John Weiler, Sushil Jajodia, Steven Lee, Jeffrey Thorpe, Jef Robertson, Tom Nightengale, Bill Hornish and Mike Carter.

As consumers, blacks are one of the most targeted market today. They spend $571 billion annually on consumer goods--$270 billion more than a decade ago.

With an estimated buying power of $450 billion, Mexicans and other Hispanics living in the US have become one of the most sought-after consumer groups.

The Bush plan is full of subsidies and tax incentives. Subsidies are bad because the Govt takes money from taxpayers and gives it to companies to carry out politically favored projects. Tax incentives similarly substitute political judgments for market-based decisions. Both are as anti-free market as it gets. It is legal plunder. Enron was some free-market advocate, when it was steeped to ts ears in Govt subsidies.

 Leaders of both parties are scrambling to bag the last of “soft money” donations which may become illegal by year’s end. Massive unregulated contributions from corporations, unions and individuals may be banned after the Nov 6 elections.

 Bankruptcy filings by US consumers and businesses jumped 19% in 2001, hitting a record high of 1.5 million, according to data compiled by the Administrative Office of the US Courts.  

II.   Private Sector

AES owns al or part of 182 power plants in 31 countries, half of them I Latin      America, most of them acquired in the past 5 years and paid for with $22 billion in debt now outstanding. It employs 60K people. Last year, AES was a darling of Wall Street and a study in how to run a decentralized company. Beset by falling energy prices, Enronitis and investors, ware of its anachronistic financial structure, AES stock has fallen fast its pre-1994 low.

 Nortel said demand for its telecom equipment has been slow, and a new revitalizing product is 6 months behind schedule. The company has also been battered by revelations that its CFO made improper trades and was forced to resign.

Advanced Switching Communications said that a customer wants a refund of some $17 million, claiming that it received defective equipment from the company. The news was already bad for the telecom equipment maker, which last month announced it was going out of business.

III.  Federal Government

The Bush administration asked a federal judge to dismiss a lawsuit by GE and uphold the Superfund toxic waste cleanup law. GE had 2 plants that dumped an estimated 1.3 million pounds of PCBs into the Hudson River between 1945-1977.

 American taxpayers overpaid IRS $311 million in taxes in 2000.

  INS lacks the ability to track and manage investigations of fraud and does not share information with other offices. That allows applicants denied benefits at one service center to apply for and receive benefits at another.

  There are still gaping holes in the nation’s airport security, according to an FAA investigator. Has the safety improved since 9/11?  Not on your life!

Asian central bankers meeting in Hong Kong last week were more upbeat about the world economy, especially in the region.

  The Beijing branch of Agilent Technologies’ central research group is on the verge of creating new optical communications tools to improve the design and building of next generation telecom networks.

Hutchison Whampoa has denied it was hiding HK$106 billion in contingent liabilities, saying the company strictly complied with Hong Kong's accounting rules.

  Taiwan made it easier to remit money to and from the mainland and opened its doors to 2,058 new Chinese imports, making good on promises to businesses and its commitment to WTO.

  Japanese bankruptcies jumped 19.3% last month from a year ago for the highest monthly figure in 1945, and are set to go higher with the specter of crisis hanging over the financial system, according to a research firm.

South Korea’s KTF said t has agreed with Microsoft to develop jointly a browser that would allow access to the Internet regardless of a cellular phone’s system.

ASTI, a Singapore maker of semiconductor parts, said its unit, Semiconductor Technologies & Instruments, won an order to ship its third batch of 300mm wafer inspection tools.

  Tuna may be the slightly salty answer from foreign creditors seeking repayment of the Philippines’ high foreign debt.

 

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