Asian Oenophile

Singapore-bound Wine Advocate embraces an Asian market that has come of age The Wall Street Journal reports that wine critic Robert M. Parker Jr. will be ending the print version of his newsletter, the Wine Advocate and stepping down as editor-in-chief. Stepping up to...

Strike Watch

Shut-down at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach enters its second week It has now been a week since strikes by clerical workers from the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) Local 63 have forced the closure of facilities at the ports of Los Angeles...

Down-Under Brand UGG on Top

Score for Deckers Outdoor, US company that’s a brand maker, not a shoemaker Move over electronic devices – Uggs was the No. 1 product searched for online on Thanksgiving and Black Friday, according to Experian Marketing Services (as reported here in the Wall Street...

Out of Pocket

An unexpected expense of international travel: having CBP seize your cash by Peter Quinter, guest columnist Below is a picture of a United States Treasury check. Not just any check, but a check payable to a client whose money was seized by US Customs and Border...

Trade Beat Goes On …

Moves and countermoves by China, US; end of a trade war; start of an FTA In a few crowded weeks, there have been new developments in several of the stories we’ve covered here: Start with China Digging into US Green Subsidies. In July, we wondered whether China’s...

Lessons from a 100-Year Storm

What not to mix with salt water: electric, communications, motorized systems by Bill Armbruster, blog anchor Port Newark Refrigerated Warehouse was just one of the hundreds of businesses in New Jersey and New York that felt the wrath of Hurricane Sandy after it hit...

Sandy’s Toll on the Port of NY-NJ

Despite preparation, no way to hold back water, no way (yet) to reckon loss  by Bill Armbruster, blog anchor The Port Authority of New York-New Jersey began preparing for Sandy days before the storm hit. The plans included warnings to terminal operators to secure...

Sandy Throttles Grey Goose

NJ is cut off from vodka as post-hurricane gasoline shortages persist in NY While New Jersey has ended the rationing of gasoline, in short supply after Hurricane Sandy closed the Port of New York-New Jersey, New York City drivers are still observing an even-odd gas...

Sales Swell

Coconut water meets US market’s growing thirst for natural, healthy drinks In the US market for nonalcoholic beverages, sales of sugary, fizzy soft drinks  are flat, while consumption of “wellness beverages” is up sharply. (The segment is getting its own trade show,...

More Beer Here

Whose brew uses hops from Hallertau? Anheuser-Busch, says the BOL trade data Bloomberg Businessweek’s cover story, The Plot to Destroy America’s Beer, charging that Anheuser-Busch InBev has fiddled with the recipes for Budweiser and Beck’s, has the brewer fuming....