TeachMeet at Somerset House on Weds 13th Feb–an inspiring evening

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUDwk6gduCcOEjJOE760_Wo2lkaTSXjZSoXMLe1P_MDOyQVjULl-5C032eDFWnav2CCqB9iRXQ48hx3gSpilO4E9hMtPZii_2LHhK3JY2KSDnYoiCIMxWMdUD-QJxdksSMvg3YKl4CRVo/s1600-h/image%25255B3%25255D.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="image" border="0" height="86" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1jaJb6tZHyBHrW15ftGpmr2YDmYPT7NUdezxHfVkGv8hq8uFprPBbmNjWBpnUCjwRZxk8mPfD-xOTkMAOTJqhPtq3R7EBzEel65uhx-D7zPRHDvUTJsdaWTQpwUtkCicULxLZDdjd7OA/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="400" /></a></div><br /><em><br /></em><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><em>Submitted by Fiona Beal</em></span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After attending the TeachMeet at Somerset House Preparatory school in Somerset West last night, I left with a feeling of great hope for education in South Africa. The teachers who presented were so enthusiastic about what they do, and the ideas shared about how to make education inspiring and relevant made me wish I was back in the classroom!</span><br /><br /><strong><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Somerset Prep – a primary school that embraces BYOD</span></strong><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Somerset House Prep is a very go-ahead primary school nestled in the heart of the Helderberg Basin mountains. I always love to hear about the latest developments at the school. Their whole campus has been wi-fied and it is not uncommon to see parents sitting on the grass working on their computer devices as they wait to collect their children from school. The school embraces the BYOD policy of 'Bring your own device' from Grade 6 upwards, and the principal Chris Storey reports that the engagement of the students is incredible. This is a fine example of “teaching children the way children learn best”. The school works hand in glove with the parents in every change they make. One of the great advantages of BYOD, says Chris Storey, is that one has to be task-orientated as opposed to application-orientated since every device is so different. The students also have the knack of knowing what works better on the different devices and they share this knowledge with one another. Best is, the teachers benefit enormously from the students’ knowledge of technology. This year they are piloting project-based learning in Social Sciences in one of the grades and this has been hugely successful. This school has big ideas and plans. Next on the cards is changing the traditional library to a 'knowledge centre’' and building has already started for this project. They have also started a teacher exchange programme with another very progressive school in Cape Town, Elkanah House, where two teachers from the one school will spend a day with their corresponding teachers at the other school and vice versa sharing ideas all the while. Amazing idea! No wonder I strongly feel that this is a school to watch closely!</span><br /><strong><br /></strong><strong><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The TeachMeet</span></span></strong><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The evening started off with a a light supper so that teachers could meet each other and network. The TeachMeet itself was led by the enthusiastic Michele Botha, Head of the Intermediate Phase and Chris Storey, the principal, welcomed everyone. I thought I would show the opening video here as it really set the tone for the evening. It is called ‘What is 21st Century Education?’ </span><br /><br /><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/Ax5cNlutAys" width="420"></iframe> <br /><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There were 10 presentations, and we first had the Windows machines' presentations followed by Apple machines' presentations. Since they only used one data projector Michele gave us a programme for the evening. </span><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzPwwzsGNq_IdccsLI6o6YM-rZG5IEF8Uw5bqTXRuwLf2Efk2Cnmu21w4rj2M5KakY9kxVykPjaukYZlWP3J2JYYs4ej9Mse-H8bStz7-fHi0NzKlmVQCiRRXawAETHdqAFLUyBDSdAyI/s1600-h/teaachmeet%25255B6%25255D.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="teaachmeet" border="0" height="356" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-I-lnmo6RKdupbPYDtpRzb9gnNjiIQT5GNil1Nr_q8BzkNvOakuoB6t_MiZW0yp-s4eIE1Ghy72BhgMjJbMZ0ipkxXLMnr1o4H3VRaPTRLV52fyUQ7y3xIsbzN3JwGgIk2uEr-qJlA14/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="teaachmeet" width="246" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>1. Youblisher.com </b></span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Pam Roberts, who teaches Grade 1 at Somerset House, gave an inspiring presentation on how she uses Youblisher.com in her Grade 1 classroom.  She demonstrated this by showing a lovely e-book that her Grade 1 class had created. Each student contributed an illustrated page of writing. Pam also showed how you can make lovely 2nd language books on various topics with Youblisher, and ways of using Youblisher to encourage reading in a Grade 1 class. </span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLHKbCQlWqe3AciB8J0jXbYM8nzVbt5cw4ty2Vmi7DvKC4-jb23DzUIIWTrlZDJ3cEaXCcRL7klQLM-D0I42G42dwSxZKxLbbBZhUbAg0BxE3P0S4TRbH-He9dvymoMpSvlhecP3wlRQY/s1600-h/image%25255B8%25255D.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="image" border="0" height="174" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgd_BgFCtnTW-gUHL9hZWfSPVLIVCgx-kPTahBxiNViy25n-LCEum4TTCuZ93gW-E9JTRSel3bmBsDaf3Flz5cSlXmLrVySDKHfa-ui0Fv4dV-JXiZvYG6D2QHsuQDNrghhooK0vlHJYIs/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="242" /></a></div><br /><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>2. Edcanvas.com </b></span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Jenny Martin, who teaches Grade 7 at Somerset House, showed her use of an application called Edcanvas which is perfect for a flipped classroom environment. This was a very fascinating presentation and I definitely want to try out this tool very soon. Jenny has started a blog called ReachaTeacha.weebly.com on which she displays all her amazing edcanvas lessons. I do hope she won’t mind if I give the link here <a href="http://www.edcanvas.com/lessons/jOvzAkmpnVCE6g/nouns-a-collection-of-resources" title="http://www.edcanvas.com/lessons/jOvzAkmpnVCE6g/nouns-a-collection-of-resources">http://www.edcanvas.com/lessons/jOvzAkmpnVCE6g/nouns-a-collection-of-resources</a></span><br />. <br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimcuimiG3c-UnF7N-APD5js8VeHTQMPOnNYoy3UcTMJIPW4yxWnmTUD5D_IDBDsemKq7m4IjdCHM1QJjq2_WohKIhlZaYELcANy9u9veCJic21cOstpV0IDuZx_DrLopkzZa4zbvzTc9g/s1600-h/image%25255B11%25255D.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="image" border="0" height="138" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif1EPpMiz4iUmPuRUG2yQ2-MDKA_IfnAM-qWfYfRQ-VWpannniZOwXYb899CjrWTq2iVIAoJJwVgloDhpGkll-wVw8SpXFmxSTK-ruFfwQdzOt3LglqyefnAtt9o5xkooP7okaRaKB268/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border: 0px; display: inline; margin: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="244" /></a></div><br /><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I loved the way Jenny summed up the benefits of using <a href="http://www.edcanvas.com/">http://www.edcanvas.com</a></span> <br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1g1HtRZ-KqWPZ0X-zsvy9JSzROLid1pr5mp_uWi5XLSoX9R7iDeIvlumvd_Y3rstqg_vmVHm5zaem9BdjrtB4R9pzdBKH_lkq2jFbh6Lxu9PLW0QhXhT-Vi6NvUDlgxRztWLTemsi6FU/s1600-h/image%25255B14%25255D.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="image" border="0" height="139" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidWrbmExuSUy1vCzjmbl-UxOqOtGSFlX9KZTyJmlwlQfDDX6d9G_91LQgayTdJZ26yho-spZ2wgEMO3r1FfudYsW-P_T2vXPXw8Jop3K94DKxLG0LN6bqr11qaAAJrvU3khXG7hnleA3U/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border: 0px; display: inline; margin: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="244" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr></tbody></table> <b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">3. Teenpower</b><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Michele Botha who is the Head of the Intermediate Phase at Somerset West and also their Technology Integration specialist, gave her presentation on Teen Power using Prezi. There were six steps in this superb project. This investigated the likes and dislikes of teens and used survey tools of choice (i.e. Survey monkey, Poll Daddy) plus data interpretation techniques using Excel. The groups had a lot of leeway in their choice of tools to use. It was fascinating to note how a teacher can make concepts that have the potential to be considered boring really come alive when using the right approach. </span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>4. Inspire your students to write the right stuff</b></span><br /><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This was a presentation by Fiona Beal of SchoolNet (that’s me!) on creative writing tools. I used this presentation to lead up to introducing the upcoming ‘African Storybook Project’ (which will soon be piloted in four countries in Africa) and the writing opportunity it presents for our learners.</span><br /><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span> <br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnfQ9JRPXt-jjxdGbrIgyx2F5CxDTJdQsndJGpGdTq3D27oEQol_wWQ0pDvuk3YSs0Iw8foCq2mS5BoEk0YMxszqxGN83g1FWzbEveLUOUeQdxQEsoP-NgzlQzhGf9RAp1jC31J7DGLQM/s1600-h/image%25255B19%25255D.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="image" border="0" height="183" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL-HGZ3kqO6fr-i2yoQfH_wCWFKJPl-6ajm6kJNfapPB2-YDDtSiZ_jrWOZDXhAApmvd4QBgQMuDzdCcq9KqdYAafNNIsNAZycoHeN6N1CnrPq97daFFr2_RrnvmC377ryX4PHdR8B44A/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="242" /></a></div><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I have put my presentation on the SchoolNet blog for anyone who would like the links that I used: </span><br /><a href="http://e-blogschool.blogspot.com/2013/02/inspire-your-students-to-write-right.html"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Inspire your students to write the right stuff – a TeachMeet presentation</span></a><br /><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>5. One stop shopping!</b></span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This was another lovely presentation by Michele Botha on all the amazing tools one can find in <a href="http://classtools.net/">http://classtools.net</a>. This is the place where the Random Name Picker can be found that is often used at TeachMeets (sometimes referred to as the ‘Fruit Machine’). Michele outlined some of the useful tools and showed how one could use them in a classroom setting. She showed The random Name Picker, Fakebook, Countdown Timer, QR codes Game Generator, Timelines, and some of the others with their potential for being used in the classroom.  </span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj77kGcJ_1TT3Owx_xOI0gkLkloYoi0EXhmLMykOx49roSHyV_HYjjxokY0U5rtZu32RzJRaUVRiYgppHn2juccwR0N6nX0HdYoBGbA1U_ZSxHdTIhbn_qRg_RAoy9sBR0KHxQRsozVrT4/s1600-h/image%25255B25%25255D.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="image" border="0" height="184" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpzYbUj30tnmeSRJ7ivNyIbuPVZZIGVlabSP3b4fjMEYgkPVLwrx5XEIwNViqwYo6vxnv4-ttNIxuYjX4sQgufZLE7Mlkt5sHnRpfgEhQ_F_GmHfAnPUnyjRK23ycCfBrq68XijGQj8jU/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border: 0px; display: inline; margin: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="244" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Now the Apple presentations started, mainly iPad presentations, and unfortunately there are no presentations for these in the Dropbox folder as they were all hands on demonstrations..so I can't show the opening slides.</span><br /><strong><br /></strong><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong>6. You can play games at school!<br />7. You don’t even know you are learning</strong></span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong>8. Making friends all over the world</strong></span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">These three were all presented by Dianne de Villiers who is the librarian at Somerset College ( another school in Somerset West). She spoke on gaming and told us how she uses critical thinking apps which are presented as 'games' as rewards for work completed. These are exceptionally motivating, Di says, and the students love them. Di demonstrated some of these apps and I must add that they were very indeed captivating.</span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span> <strong><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">8. Foundation Phase kids have fun in the library<br />9. Foundation Phase and Story Apps</span></strong><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">These two presentations were by Kerry Dunkley from Somerset College. She showed us some of the ideas she used in her stop animation club. The club made the most gorgeous stop animation videos using iMotionHD. These videos were accompanied by lively, enjoyable music. Kerry's second presentation demonstrated iBooks, e-books and story apps on the iPad. What is great about these books is that they can include text, images, videos and some form of interaction with the reader which makes them really engaging. She also showed some of the story apps she uses for reading on the iPad and how appealing they are to the students.</span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Kerry demonstrated a lovely Cinderella story that has interactive features. I m not sure if this is the one – but it was captivating!</span><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFynJu0dFfdQjapddPKWbHa17BpmRTUOFgab3HZW0DGX9ds-m6HdkX0wiYPGi6nPDnjuqYUIp5Y8puO0jb8yOTDqHqDNkqe0KZPgkVhamJ8lA8Y_F-VT5fBDLvENPre_bmestOfQwRHc0/s1600-h/image%25255B29%25255D.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="image" border="0" height="83" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBoGOxx0DRdyySc6MKTLQiJdNPKO7jb7zrE_MTAPlLukbggL1zSeQiJ-OcjTaqci_xMSIbZQHGnk3B-1hRE7VUwIGErdMt-vKMtu9ptyG2XcuiKV4dGzr6-2o148fMfk1k_JeWadwPN2s/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="242" /></a></div><br /><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>10. Zanzibar – Hakuna Matata </b></span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Carolyn Bruton gave a demonstration of how Book Creator on the iPad can be used to give a scrapbook-like effect when recording a holiday or an event. She used her recent holiday to Zanzibar as an example where she used video, sound, pictures, and  words to easily create a wonderful memory of a holiday. This could be made into a fun task for students in their holidays.   </span><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCkUbps207CqDW8y4f1mEIQSwuJDdw0FhdodwKLudOweYuv6JnQrtBNRW6somXY6hg_pweXLxlFQ3L_Rfkm596pteeT5S7JgtgcN7Tf7SXOZ4_qlwKbCNoS0QbU7vxW1y1dX6s4x83VQg/s1600-h/image%25255B33%25255D.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="image" border="0" height="92" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWoVGKOS18Zn0q1vgEpxuGryPuAoSUR2iZxuQSSqnba7tzPDTfkFYj2spS7vE0ypUTtjmUmKUuOsgg9SdA-icFw4mnMq3uP8QWic7PI-xiz1f1ErajovdvbuBgslRP-AAJ53WL13HL7fc/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="242" /></a></div><br /><strong><br /></strong><strong><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Tweet archive</span></strong> <br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Here is a summary of the tweets for the night archived in an application called<a href="http://storify.com/" target="_blank"> Storify:</a> You can read the tweet summary at: </span><a href="http://storify.com/edchatsa/tweet-summary-of-the-teachmeet-at-somerset-house-p"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Tweet summary of the TeachMeet at Somerset House on 13 Feb 2013</span></a><br /><strong><br /></strong><strong><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Conclusion</span></strong><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This was a really wonderful and inspiring evening. I must say a big thank you to Michele Botha and the Somerset House staff for hosting this TeachMeet. I believe the next one is going to be hosted at Somerset College which is also in Somerset West – so we look forward to that!</span></div>

teachmeets TeachMeet at Somerset House on Weds 13th Feb–an inspiring evening

Submitted by Fiona Beal After attending the TeachMeet at Somerset House Preparatory school in Somerset West last night, I left with a feelin...

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Sr SAP CRM Analyst ( functional ) (#108467)

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="WordSection1"><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Job Title:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> Sr SAP CRM Analyst<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Location:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> Milpitas, CA<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Duration:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> Fulltime<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Job title: <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: small;">We are currently seeking an energetic self-starter to work as a senior SAP CRM Business Process Analyst (Sr. CRM BPA). The Sr. CRM BPA will be responsible for conducting business process analysis, needs assessment, and preliminary cost/benefit analysis to support business requirements.  They will work closely with business partners to assess business requirements and build design specifications. They will perform required SAP system configuration changes and work with technical team to build new system functionality or to change existing system functionality.  Their work will span both system enhancements and projects in ECC –Sales & Distribution (SD), CRM (SAP) and other application platforms.  They are expected to support key Service business functionalities such as Case Management, Service Logistics, Contract & Quote management, and Pricing. They will collaborate with other IT departments such as Architecture, Business Engagement, Governance and Infrastructure to build and improve information system solutions.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Preferred Qualification / Responsibilities:<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: small;">Candidate should be able to think independently, be comfortable with sharing and accepting ideas in an open manner.  Should possess solid written and oral communication skills and should have an aptitude for thriving in complex business situations. Candidate should enjoy working in a fast-paced, self-directed, diverse and customer service-oriented environment. Candidate should be able to translate business requirements into system & process solutions. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: small;">Candidate should possess good understanding of IT change management and ticket release processes & systems (e.g. ServiceNow, Remedy). Must possess ability to work with global application service vendors <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: small;">Candidate may possess project management skills such as planning, execution and control of project/task deliverable. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Candidate should have following technical and process skills: <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: small;">1.5-7 years of IT industry experience<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: small;">2.3-5 years proven SAP ECC & CRM (Service) experience <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: small;">3.Specific system knowledge of SAP ECC-SD and CRM Service modules/functionalities such as Case, RPA, Contracts, Quote, Order management, Pricing & Configuration, Partner determination, Billing/Invoicing.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: small;">4.Good business understanding of key service processes in areas of Interaction Center, Service Delivery, and, Commercials<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Additional experience:<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: small;">1.IPC, Business partner management, CRM middleware, and ECC integration.  <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: small;">2.CRM 7 Web UI and Interaction Center<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: small;">3.CRM Service Delivery experience for a large/midsize global company.  <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: small;">4.Understanding of SAP CRM Sales & Marketing modules (Opportunity, Campaigns, Contacts etc.) is a plus <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: small;">5.Project management experience is a plus<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: small;">6.Additional certification in an industry group or related SAP module(s) is a plus. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Minimum Qualification:  <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: small;">Bachelor's Level Degree (Engineering or Business) with at least 7 years of IT industry, and 5 years of SAP ECC  & CRM experience. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: small;">OR<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: small;">Master's Level Degree (Engineering or Business) with at least 5 years of IT industry, and 3 years of SAP ECC & CRM experience.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Please send your resumes to vinod.sanker@kla-tencor.com</span></b><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div></div></div>

Sr SAP CRM Analyst ( functional ) (#108467)

Job Title: Sr SAP CRM Analyst Location: Milpitas, CA Duration: Fulltime Job title: We are currently seeking an energetic self-starter to...

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Library Associate: Acquisitions - Bay Path College, Longmeadow (MA)

<strong>Library Associate: Acquisitions -</strong> <strong><span style="color: #48286d;">Bay Path College</span></strong>, Longmeadow (MA). Part Time. Become part of a vibrant community of world-class professionals transforming the lives of a motivated and diverse student population. A pioneer in innovative academic programs since 1897 and one of the fastest growing colleges in New England, Bay Path College seeks a Library Associate for acquisitions, interlibrary loan, and other related tasks as assigned. The Library Associate will oversee and maintain acquisitions functions for library materials in all formats using WMS software; assist in interlibrary loan functions using OCLC and other automated systems; and perform public services, including circulation of library materials, reserves, and general office support. Twelve-month position, approximately 30 hours per week during regular business hours; occasional evening and/or weekend hours may be required. Qualifications: academic degree, business focus preferred; familiarity with academic library services; knowledge of Microsoft Word and Excel software; Internet search skills; library experience desirable; experience with WMS and OCLC software a plus. To apply, send a curriculum vitae and cover letter that includes a summary of your qualifications, and names and contact information of four professional references to <a _fcksavedurl="mailto:hr@baypath.edu" href="mailto:hr@baypath.edu">hr@baypath.edu</a>. Application materials should be sent in MS Word format. For questions about the position or the curriculum, email Michael Moran, Director of Library and Information Services, at <a _fcksavedurl="mailto:mmoran@baypath.edu" href="mailto:mmoran@baypath.edu">mmoran@baypath.edu</a>. Review of applications will begin immediately and will continue until the position is filled. An equal opportunity employer, Bay Path College is committed to fostering diversity in its student body, faculty, and staff.

Library Associate: Acquisitions - Bay Path College, Longmeadow (MA)

Library Associate: Acquisitions - Bay Path College , Longmeadow (MA). Part Time. Become part of a vibrant community of world-class profes...

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28 in 28 #14: Detail in Contemporary Concrete Architecture

<i>February is Book Month on A Daily Dose of Architecture. The "<a href="http://archidose.blogspot.com/search/label/28%20in%2028">28 in 28</a>" series features a different book every day of the month.</i><br /><br /><a href="http://www.laurenceking.com/en/category/architecture/detail-in-contemporary-concrete-architecture-1/"><b><i>Detail in Contemporary Concrete Architecture</i></b></a> by David Phillips and Megumi Yamashita<br />Laurence King Publishing, 2012<br />Hardcover, 224 pages<br /><br /><img alt="28-28_concrete.jpg" src="http://www.archidose.org/Blog/28-28_concrete.jpg" title="Book cover" /><br /><br />Previously I've reviewed a couple of Laurence King's <a href="http://www.laurenceking.com/en/catalogsearch/result/?dir=asc&order=relevance&q=detail+in+contemporary"><i>Detail in Contemporary ...</i></a> series, both by Virginia McLeod: <i><a href="http://www.archidose.org/books/mcleod.html">... Residential Architecture</a> </i>and <a href="http://archidose.org/wp/2011/11/23/detail-in-contemporary-glass-architecture/"><i>... Glass Architecture</i></a>. Those books varied from each other in terms of what they emphasized, but also in how they were presented; the former grouped details of the 100 houses into chapters (walls, floors, roofs, etc.), while the latter presented each project with its details, one after the other. I can see the value in both approaches, but just like a set of working drawings, as long as cross-referencing is considered the titles will work; they will have value in educating architects and students about details, and allowing them to compare different ways of detailing where walls meet roofs and various other conditions.<br /><br />Not surprisingly <i>... Concrete Architecture</i>, written by David Phillips and Megumi Yamashita, follows the same format as <i>... Glass Architecture</i>, putting about 50 projects into four chapters by building type (cultural, residential, commercial and public, and educational). Of course the emphasis is on concrete as a material, but it varies from overtly expressive concrete shells (Ryue Nishizawa's <a href="http://www.domusweb.it/en/architecture/teshima-art-museum-/">Teshima Art Museum</a>) to buildings that use concrete to achieve similar ends even as they cover the material with metal panels (Zaha Hadid's <a href="http://www.zaha-hadid.com/architecture/evelyn-grace-academy/">Evelyn Grace Academy</a>). But in this series it's all about the details. And in this regard the book is hit or miss, partially because each building is different and because the architects supplied the drawings; what they're willing to share obviously varies. For example, Toyo Ito's drawings for the <a href="http://www.toyo-ito.co.jp/WWW/Project_Descript/2005-/2005-p_11/2005-p_11_en.html">Tama Art University Library</a> are fantastic, going so far as to show the rebar layout in the hybrid steel-and-concrete arches. On the other hand, Nishizawa's Teshima Art Museum is documented with three long sections with absolutely no detail; they are laughable and probably should have been left out of the book, if it weren't for the fact the project is so unbelievable (part of the reason the drawings look preliminary). Thankfully the majority lean toward Ito rather than Nishizawa.<br /><br />But if those sections are laughable, they pale in comparison to the Imperial conversions that are found throughout the book. Yes, people outside of the United States may hate inches, feet, and other units of measurement, but nevertheless there are standards to it that should be followed, just like one follows metric standards. When it comes to the small sizes of details—less than an inch—that is especially important. Fractions of an inch are 1/2, 1/4, 1/8, and 1/16. But what do we find in these details? Exposed concrete that is 3-9/10" thick; insulation that is 7/10" thick; a 2/5" thick piece of glass. These are not real measurements. Pick up an Imperial ruler and try to make these measurements; it's not possible. And that's a shame, for it's a distracting detail in an otherwise good book of details.<br /><br /><b>US: <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1780670095/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=aweeklydoseof-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1780670095" target="_blank"><img alt="Buy from Amazon.com" border="0" src="http://www.archidose.org/books/buy-from-tan.gif" /></a> CA: <a href="http://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/1780670095/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=aweeklydoseof-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1780670095" target="_blank"><img alt="Buy from Amazon.ca" border="0" height="28" src="http://www.archidose.org/books/buy-from-tan-ca.gif" width="90" /></a> UK: <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/1780670095/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=aweeklydoseof-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1780670095" target="_blank"><img alt="Buy from Amazon.co.uk" border="0" height="28" src="http://www.archidose.org/books/buy-from-tan-uk.gif" width="90" /></a></b>

28 in 28 #14: Detail in Contemporary Concrete Architecture

February is Book Month on A Daily Dose of Architecture. The " 28 in 28 " series features a different book every day of the month. ...

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For the Love of Skunks!

<strong>Skunk love is in the air on this Valentine's Day</strong>. Literally! Have you noticed an increase in these odiferous creatures this time of year? That's because it's breeding season for skunks in Ohio in late February.<br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtu3YQ3rNXH9buUJNfkKsmGyXGYNogioFyW0daaQ8stzhbLJ0QtazTT5jwGmuctWIYT7ervcI_rFHfDF3GyEmbu-n1GiL79xakIAHsGnag2MfNNtU5bic7pLVyFHACZ5cM5Cc3fWrOvLE6/s1600/6753_stripedskunk.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtu3YQ3rNXH9buUJNfkKsmGyXGYNogioFyW0daaQ8stzhbLJ0QtazTT5jwGmuctWIYT7ervcI_rFHfDF3GyEmbu-n1GiL79xakIAHsGnag2MfNNtU5bic7pLVyFHACZ5cM5Cc3fWrOvLE6/s320/6753_stripedskunk.jpg" width="291" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The common Striped Skunk</td></tr></tbody></table>The striped skunk is the only native skunk found in Ohio. Found throughout most of North America, it is one of four species of skunks on this continent. They include the more southern spotted skunk, and the southwestern hooded and hog-nosed skunks.  All are members of the <em>Mephitidae </em>family, which is Latin for "stench."  All skunks have a gland around their anus that is capable of projecting a foul-smelling secretion up to 15 feet.  This defense mechanism, while rarely used, is what makes the skunk an unlikely prey for most predators.  Animals remember the bold black and white stripes and learn from experience to stay away.  The exception is the great horned owl.  Since owls have little to no sense of smell, they could care less about getting sprayed.  Just ask the unfortunate grad student who has to conduct nest surveys on great horned owls.<br /><br />Skunks are not true hibernators.  They do, however, take a lot of really long naps.  They will store up body fat for the winter and, when the weather is bad, will take to their dens for weeks to a month at a time.  By the time February rolls around, they are ready to roam about looking for love.  Skunks are omnivores and will eat just about anything they come across.  However, they have pretty poor eyesight.  You might notice an increase in road kill skunks this time of year as they are out wandering around looking for food and a mate. And, like our friend Pepe Le Pew, the males are promiscuous, mating with several females during the season.  Gestation is approximately two months and the females give birth to litters of 2-10 young.  They are born hairless and with eyes closed and remain in the den for about 6 weeks.  They are weaned at 6 weeks and begin to join their mother on her nightly ramblings.<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXSyDArzJM6Hf5f7SKN1efcHkWe721NnsQMRWLzH40nRoMinQZae0rHftmw0HnXfJTTPZfL9DlEoQrxbBEwtHQ21c-Zc8xWAY7kN5tVtg_IQSfW9AoZMjcWHq-lNYUDFuu8ofryYU6UsYf/s1600/imagesCAN4TQMT.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="This famous "Looney Tunes" skunk was always looking for love in the wrong places." border="0" height="246" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXSyDArzJM6Hf5f7SKN1efcHkWe721NnsQMRWLzH40nRoMinQZae0rHftmw0HnXfJTTPZfL9DlEoQrxbBEwtHQ21c-Zc8xWAY7kN5tVtg_IQSfW9AoZMjcWHq-lNYUDFuu8ofryYU6UsYf/s320/imagesCAN4TQMT.jpg" title="Pepe Le Pew" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This famous "Looney Tunes" skunk was always looking for love in all the wrong places.</td></tr></tbody></table>Striped skunks are very adaptable and can become habituated to humans and their trash, pet food, and other sources of food.  In particular, they love our nicely manicured lawns, which tend to be full of grubs in the spring.  If you notice some morning that your lawn looks like someone went over it with a spade, you've probably had a visit from a family of skunks in the night.  They use their long claws and heavily padded feet to tear up your sod and eat the grubs of Japanese beetles and other yard bugs.  While you can probably appreciate the reduction of the grubs, it doesn't look pretty.  There's not much we can do about it except to let them pass on by.  After all, would you want to try to persuade a skunk to leave?<br /><br />For more information about Ohio's striped skunk, and other Ohio mammals, check out our <a href="http://www.dnr.state.oh.us/Home/species_a_to_z/SpeciesGuideIndex/stripedskunk/tabid/6774/Default.aspx" target="_blank">A to Z Species Guide</a>.  And Happy Valentine's Day!<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>

For the Love of Skunks!

Skunk love is in the air on this Valentine's Day . Literally! Have you noticed an increase in these odiferous creatures this time of yea...

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Pregnancy: In the Beginning - Part 1

I found out I was pregnant on a Wednesday.  By that Friday I had a doctor's appointment with my primary care physician just to verify the results <i>(This probably seems odd in hindsight, but I really didn't know what I should be doing in this situation.  Plus I have zero knowledge of the OB's in the area.)</i>  She confirmed the results, and basically stated that over-the-counter pregnancy tests are just as reliable as the urine tests they run in their office.<br /><br />That afternoon Joel and I decided to tell both of our parents the news.  Even though I would've only been about 6 weeks pregnant, we were still upset over it.  We thought that by telling them and hearing their reaction, it might help cheer us up.  Of course, they were both very excited and it did help us feel a little better about everything.  In fact, both of us shared the news with many people straight away.  I know that is a big, old pregnancy faux-pas because of the vulnerability of the fetus in the first trimester.  However, I needed to talk about it.  I needed to hear positive reactions and words of comfort to keep me going.  Plus, my coworkers were beginning to question why I wasn't showing up to work.  I don't regret doing this.   <br /><br />By the following Monday I was set to have my very first appointment with the OBGYN, but it got cancelled due to Hurricane Sandy.  By this time, I was in full fledged "all day sickness" mode.  There was no such thing as "morning sickness" with me.  I attempted work for two straight days the following week and had to leave both days by noon.  Fortunately, I can work at home.  But for those who work jobs that don't allow that kind of flexibility, I don't know how you do it! <br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://lastshredsofsanity.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/cartoon11.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://lastshredsofsanity.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/cartoon11.png" width="260" /></a></div>I literally felt like I was dying a slow death each day.  The smell of most things nauseated me, and trying to find things to eat was a whole new challenge.   The sight of ALL food gagged me.  I had to go buy unscented body wash, hand soap and deodorant   Joel had to take over laundry duty because I couldn't stand to smell the detergent.  Even loading the dishwasher and seeing bits of food on the plates was enough to send me over the edge! <i>(This is why I've been absent of comments from many of your blogs - reading about food - I could not take it!  I even had to take about 2 months off from Pinterest because I couldn't bear seeing pictures of food on there!) </i> I had a hard time showering - something about the water made me nauseous.  Brushing my teeth.... oh Lord!  I couldn't attempt that until at least noon every day because first thing in the morning was just asking for a disaster. <br /><br />To say the least, I was in total disbelief that this was all happening, and <i>so </i>quickly at that.  Literally, overnight, my world was turned upside down with the daily bouts of sickness and going to bed at 7 PM - I was having such a hard time processing it.   I lost total control of everything - God was definitely testing us!  Some things I found comfort in during that time was watching re-runs of Roseanne followed by Reba.  That became my nightly routine!  I also caught up on all the DVR'd episodes of 19 Kids and Counting - another show that comforted me.  Also, Joel was so incredibly helpful and positive throughout the entire ordeal, I wouldn't know what to do without him! <br /><br /><br />

Baby Busbee Pregnancy: In the Beginning - Part 1

I found out I was pregnant on a Wednesday.  By that Friday I had a doctor's appointment with my primary care physician just to verify th...

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ARGENTINA - AGRICULTURE CURSE

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font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} </style><![endif]--> <br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNuYKg_8NMdxT_NH7zf4aa-rbe-WrVEXSbOtkSxinnxmiRuFUsxB7YcW1pmgB4NfAbd5bDhkZMJq3Tb0T4AbfwPC3a44rY8hF9fsl_3AhaE8Hkj_whrbRQQ88Cy_tHtpNQ-e_ptHV0o5go/s1600/2691271871_485b72dd7a_z.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="237" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNuYKg_8NMdxT_NH7zf4aa-rbe-WrVEXSbOtkSxinnxmiRuFUsxB7YcW1pmgB4NfAbd5bDhkZMJq3Tb0T4AbfwPC3a44rY8hF9fsl_3AhaE8Hkj_whrbRQQ88Cy_tHtpNQ-e_ptHV0o5go/s400/2691271871_485b72dd7a_z.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="color: red;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">AGRICULTURE COMMODITIES: CURSE & FORTUNE FOR ARGENTINA</span></b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-outline-level: 1;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 18.0pt;">  <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br /></span></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; line-height: 115%;">Why the IMF and other international financial institutions and corporations such as Monsanto are desperate to “control” Argentina in whatever possible way in order to gain a slice of the large agr<span style="font-size: large;">iculture</span> commodity and natural resource cake.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="color: blue;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">INVESTORS SUCH AS JIM ROGERS AND GEORGE SOROS ARE INTERESTED IN LATAM FARMLAND</span></b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><br /></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">By Zachary Fillingham </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><br /></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Farmland has two important attributes that set it apart from most other investments. The first is obvious: its inelastic demand. Humans need food to survive, it’s just a question of what food they eat. Second are the various political and environmental factors that continue to whittle away at an already-finite supply of global farmland: factors like climate change, urbanization, farmland degradation, and erosion. <a href="http://wwf.panda.org/what_we_do/footprint/agriculture/impacts/soil_erosion/">According to the WWF</a>, one-third of the world’s arable land has been destroyed since 1960 by erosion and other types of degradation. Though we’ve heard it all before that ‘they aren’t making any more land,’ it turns out that we are also good at ruining what little we have.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><br /></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="color: blue;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">GROWING DEMAND ON MEAT, SOMETHING ARGENTINA HAS PLENTY OFF</span></b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><br /></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">This slowly dwindling supply must be juxtaposed to a level of global demand that is only going up.  It’s not just the growing global population (8 billion people by 2025 according to the World Bank) that will drive increases in food demand, but also the socio-economic changes that are already altering consumption habits all over the world. As the middle class of countries like China and India continues to swell, their diet shifts from being primarily vegetarian to including a lot more meat, which is more grain-intensive and thus places a greater demand on food producers.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><br /></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="color: blue;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">FEED FOR LIVESTOCK</span></b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><br /></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Consider <a href="http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=meat-and-environment">Cornell Professor David Pimentel’s assertion</a> that if the grain used to feed the livestock required for US beef consumption was just eaten directly instead, it could feed over 800 million people. Now extrapolate this dynamic across an Asian middle class that will easily number in the hundreds of millions, and you have some of the economic rationale behind the global farmland boom.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><br /></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="color: blue;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">FARMING BOOM</span></b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><br /></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">These fundamentals have piqued the interest of many investors around the world, <a href="http://moneymorning.com/2012/07/12/why-jim-rogers-is-investing-in-farmland/">including big names</a> such as Jim Rogers and George Soros.</span></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Farm prices in the United States have also been <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/23/us/across-corn-belt-farmland-prices-keep-soaring.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0">rising at a steady clip</a>, posting double-digit gains every year since 2005, with the sole exception of a brief recessive blip in 2008. This year, a survey by the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago revealed that farmland across Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, and Michigan has increased in value by an average of 15 percent.  These kinds of gains have some people worried the potential for an agricultural bubble, but others are quick to point out the relative security of farmland vis-à-vis unsettled equity markets and the inevitability of spiking food demand.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQPAZthrDsgFpHhKDMkPROYwLxhE1uGmLpDYXqWpJJga_EgcXkhnZte0ynNE21J9vP_Kcj82GAq9iIfiZF5Mi8yEQvlCIMcR71FqhAQDnBWouDs924uTG5N2eMgjEBdBxlht8qo840vLfP/s1600/WorldSoils_NRCS_FarmlandForecast.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="290" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQPAZthrDsgFpHhKDMkPROYwLxhE1uGmLpDYXqWpJJga_EgcXkhnZte0ynNE21J9vP_Kcj82GAq9iIfiZF5Mi8yEQvlCIMcR71FqhAQDnBWouDs924uTG5N2eMgjEBdBxlht8qo840vLfP/s400/WorldSoils_NRCS_FarmlandForecast.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="color: blue;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">FARMLAND IN LATAM</span></b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><br /></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">The frenzy to buy farmland in the United States has even spilled over to Brazil, where US farmers have bought up land at a fraction of the price it would cost north of the border. This prompted the government of Brazil to pass a law restricting the amount of foreign ownership to 25 percent per municipality. Government intervention to stop large influxes of foreign investment has increased worldwide as arable land is increasingly seen as a strategic resource, and this is a factor that should be taken into account by people investing in agricultural ETFs or companies with large farmland portfolios. <a href="http://seekingalpha.com/article/588421-protectionism-in-argentina-threatens-foreign-investment">Another example of land protectionism</a> is the ‘Rural Land Law’ that passed in Argentina in 2011. This law limits any foreign ownership of land in Argentina to 1,000 hectares.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><br /></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Another potential pitfall for farmland investors lies in the increasing unpredictability of global weather patterns. While it’s certainly true that global food demand will be trending upwards, there are no guarantees that a given patch of arable land will remain productive enough to reap the windfall. Given the large gaps in understanding that exist within climate science, it’s always possible that the record droughts experienced in the United States in 2012 will one day become the rule rather than the exception. </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIQv2nMfMP4d4h81xw40rFR3qcBo5cK03AVkkdhJKc9TdTN6rSt4QFNqlh3Pf5tyhAA_RYFjEsWaaqlusmGru4xyrG1Uk9cgTO6E4uSnE1EJJEGgn56AXFeipTipKpWqU7YmHVvJG2bvVm/s1600/corn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="228" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIQv2nMfMP4d4h81xw40rFR3qcBo5cK03AVkkdhJKc9TdTN6rSt4QFNqlh3Pf5tyhAA_RYFjEsWaaqlusmGru4xyrG1Uk9cgTO6E4uSnE1EJJEGgn56AXFeipTipKpWqU7YmHVvJG2bvVm/s320/corn.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="color: red;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">INTERNATIONAL CORPORATIONS GAIN RECORD EARNINGS IN LATAM AGRO INDUSTRY </span></b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" frameborder="0" height="266" mozallowfullscreen="mozallowfullscreen" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/VTaQf3nihBU?feature=player_embedded" webkitallowfullscreen="webkitallowfullscreen" width="320"></iframe></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><br /></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: blue;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">CORN-SEED SALES IN BRAZIL, ARGENTINA AND MEXICO HELP MONSANTO WITH RECORD EARNINGS</span></b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">See: </span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><a href="http://news-these-days.blogspot.com.ar/2012/02/monsanto-global-monster-corporation.html">http://news-these-days.blogspot.com.ar/2012/02/monsanto-global-monster-corporation.html</a></span></span></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> </span> </span></b></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">US agricultural giant Monsanto Tuesday posted a large increase in quarterly earnings on strong results in corn seed sales in the US and Latin America and better sales of pesticides. The St Louis-based corporation said net income for the first quarter was 339 million dollars, up from 126 million a year earlier.</span></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">The results were boosted by particularly strong sales of its gene manipulated corn seed products in Brazil, Argentina and Mexico, the company said.</span></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Farmers in Brazil and Argentina have upgraded to new Monsanto genetically modified products, the company said. Sales in this category rose more than 27% compared to the same period last year.</span></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">The company also said it also had a positive US order book that was better than the same point last year.</span></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">The other big improvement came in the agricultural productivity category, which includes crop protection products and law-and-garden herbicide products. Sales in this category rose nearly 31% compared with the same period last year.</span></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">“We've achieved a successful start to the year, with contributions from multiple areas that speaks to the strength of our global business and provides confidence in our ability to realize a third consecutive year of significant growth,” said Hugh Grant, CEO of Monsanto.</span></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Monsanto's earnings came in at 62 cents per share, excluding exceptional items, well above the 37 cents per share projected by analysts. Monsanto shares were up are currently up 3% to 98.86 dollars.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" frameborder="0" height="266" mozallowfullscreen="mozallowfullscreen" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/wvjCE_g2tKM?feature=player_embedded" webkitallowfullscreen="webkitallowfullscreen" width="320"></iframe></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="ES-AR" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: ES-AR; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span></div><h1><span class="watch-title"><span lang="ES-AR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: ES-AR;"><br /></span></span></h1><h1><span class="watch-title"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;"></span></h1><h1><span lang="ES-AR" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: ES-AR;"> </span></h1>

ARGENTINA - AGRICULTURE CURSE

AGRICULTURE COMMODITIES: CURSE & FORTUNE FOR ARGENTINA   Why the IMF and other international financial institutions and corporations su...

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ARGENTINA: HEDGE FUNDS HAVE NOT WON YET

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mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} </style><![endif]--> </div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: red;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span class="hps"><b><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">ELLIOT CAPITAL HEDGE FUNDS, A CLIENT AND SHAREHOLDER OF FITCH <span style="font-size: x-large;">RATING AGENCY?</span></span></b></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: red;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span class="hps"><b><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">  </span></b></span></span></span></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: blue;"><b>ARGENTINA</b><span class="hps"><b><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; line-height: 115%;"></span></b></span><span class="shorttext"><b><span lang="EN" style="line-height: 115%;">: </span></b></span><span class="hps"><b><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; line-height: 115%;">"HEDGE FUNDS</span></b></span><span class="shorttext"><b><span lang="EN" style="line-height: 115%;"> </span></b></span><span class="hps"><b><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; line-height: 115%;">HAVE</span></b></span><span class="shorttext"><b><span lang="EN" style="line-height: 115%;"> </span></b></span><span class="hps"><b><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; line-height: 115%;">NOT WON YET</span></b></span><span class="shorttext"><b><span lang="EN" style="line-height: 115%;">"</span></b></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><span class="hps"><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><br /></span></span></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">It is not a coincident that US Rating Agencies only recently downgraded Argentina significantly, just in time when the verdict regarding Elliot Capital Hedge funds, versus Argentina is about to go in its final round. After all Hedge Funds are the best clients of Rating Agencies and in the case of Fitch rating, who downgrade Argentina, even shareholders. </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><br /></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">The verdict and downgrading is part of a power struggle between the International Financial Institutions and Argentina. In 2001 Argentina defaulted, largely because of IMF doctrines, since then the country learned its lesson, paid back its entire dept to the IMF and thus was not subjected to IMF austerity doctrines, something the IMF is still furious about. Thus the IMF currently is entering its second round of in-flight, penalizing Argentina for not letting <span style="font-size: large;">it</span> conduct an audit in how Argentina obtains its economic data. If Argentina would nicely and unquestionably adhere to the rules of these institutions<span style="font-size: large;">,</span> the entire case would look somewhat different.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><br /></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">The entire showdown is revenge by international financial institutions simply because Argentina does not adhered to their doctrines which would enable them to control <span style="font-size: large;">Argentina's</span> Economy and its agriculture commodities. </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><br /></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: blue;"><b>ARGENTINA</b><span class="hps"><b><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; line-height: 115%;"></span></b></span><span class="shorttext"><b><span lang="EN" style="line-height: 115%;">: </span></b></span><span class="hps"><b><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; line-height: 115%;">"HEDGE FUNDS</span></b></span><span class="shorttext"><b><span lang="EN" style="line-height: 115%;"> </span></b></span><span class="hps"><b><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; line-height: 115%;">HAVE</span></b></span><span class="shorttext"><b><span lang="EN" style="line-height: 115%;"> </span></b></span><span class="hps"><b><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; line-height: 115%;">NOT WON YET</span></b></span><span class="shorttext"><b><span lang="EN" style="line-height: 115%;">"</span></b></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><span class="shorttext" style="font-size: small;"><span lang="EN" style="line-height: 115%;">Interview conducted by "Der Standard", an Austrian Daily Newspaper with Economist </span></span><span class="shorttext"><b><span lang="EN" style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;"><span class="hps"><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; line-height: 115%;">Andres</span></span><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; line-height: 115%;"> <span class="hps">Musacchio</span></span></span><span lang="EN" style="line-height: 115%;"> </span></b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size: large;"><span class="hps"><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; line-height: 115%;">If the</span></span><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; line-height: 115%;"> <span class="hps">U.S. hedge fund</span> wins the legal battle <span class="hps">against</span> <span class="hps">Argentina, it would have</span> <span class="hps">consequences</span> <span class="hps">for Europe</span> <span class="hps">itself</span></span></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><span class="hps"><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; line-height: 115%;">STANDARD</span></span><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; line-height: 115%;">: <span class="hps">The U.S.</span> <span class="hps">hedge fund</span> <span class="hps">Elliott Capital</span> <span class="hps">sued</span> <span class="hps">Argentina</span> <span class="hps">before</span> <span class="hps">a New York court</span>. <span class="hps">Why is the case</span> <span class="hps">attracting so much</span> <span class="hps">worldwide attention</span>?</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Musacchio: Because the verdict could have enormous <span style="font-size: large;">repercussions </span>on future sovereign debt crises. The hedge fund has bought Argentine bonds after 2001, after the country officially declared default. After its bankruptcy, Argentina has taken tedious agreements with its creditors to reduce the national debt. 97 per cent of investors agreed to the countries dept conversion, both in 2005<span style="font-size: large;"> an<span style="font-size: large;">d</span> 2010</span>. But Elliott Capital refused. If the hedge fund in New York wins its case and Argentina has to pay back most of its debt to Elliott, it would be tantamount to the premium for uncooperative behavior.</span></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><br /></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span class="hps"><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">STANDARD</span></span><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">: <span class="hps">The hedge fund</span> <span class="hps">has</span> never <span class="hps">agreed to</span> <span class="hps">the dept conversion</span>: <span class="hps">Legally,</span> <span class="hps">the lawsuit</span> seems questionable.</span></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><br /></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Musacchio: Elliott Capital is not a conventional lender, which borrowed Argentina money and now needs to reclaim its money. The hedge fund has bought the debt at a time when the securities were traded in the market with 15 percent of their actual value. Now they demand from Argentina to pay back 100 percent of the sum, including interest. <b>This is speculation in its purest form</b>, and I believe that even in this extreme case the financial industry will side with Argentina.</span></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><br /></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">STANDARD: Why?</span></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><br />Musacchio: Because in case the hedge funds win, it would jeopardize all future debt relief<span style="font-size: large;">s</span>. The purpose of dept relief is that the creditors of a financially constrained country waive some of their demands in order to not lose everything. If, it shows that it does not pay off to participate in a debt conversion, future creditors will refuse from the beginning to agree to negotiate for settlement. Particularly in Europe, one expects that Greece and soon Portugal, Ireland and perhaps Spain have also to conduct a dept conversion, which would have disastrous consequences.</span></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><br /></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span class="hps"><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">STANDARD</span></span><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">: <span class="hps">Why</span> does <span class="hps">the Argentine government</span> not simply drawback <span class="hps">and pay the fund, after all it’s only about</span><span class="hps">one billion</span> Euros, surely Argentina could <span class="hps">afford this amount?</span></span></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><br /><span class="hps">Musacchio</span>: <span class="hps">The amount is not</span> <span class="hps">the issue.</span> Last year <span class="hps">Argentina</span> <span class="hps">paid back</span> <span class="hps"><span style="font-size: large;">a </span>debt of</span><span class="hps">25 billion euros</span>, thus paying <span class="hps">the</span><span class="hps">billion</span> <span style="font-size: large;">is</span> <span class="hps">affordable.</span><span class="hps">But there</span> <span class="hps">is a moral question</span>: <span class="hps">For</span> <span class="hps">President Cristina</span> <span class="hps">Kirchner, dept </span></span></span><span style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><span class="hps"><span style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">relief</span></span> policies</span> are <span class="hps">the</span> <span class="hps">main components of</span> her <span class="hps">governing</span> <span class="hps">strategy</span>.<br /><br /><span class="hps"></span></span></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span class="hps"><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">STANDARD: How</span></span><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> <span class="hps">do you think</span> <span class="hps">the lawsuit will end</span>? <span class="hps">Argentina</span> <span class="hps">was</span> <span class="hps">sentenced</span><span class="hps">to pay the amount, but achieved</span> <span class="hps">a delay until March</span>.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcd-VJSEVDmN_GA6Z4Mf-8rTUy3quPBPTlfLat3R5RsIm-fp5AWslROciRqs1V66ZYKahX3CmmhxYrcevbumXhONUWqsMSn_IE6pTTNN2W23RRYaZtxS0KgTKDRfV4GL_BVY2Y0EZVfaXk/s1600/symbol+verdict.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="198" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcd-VJSEVDmN_GA6Z4Mf-8rTUy3quPBPTlfLat3R5RsIm-fp5AWslROciRqs1V66ZYKahX3CmmhxYrcevbumXhONUWqsMSn_IE6pTTNN2W23RRYaZtxS0KgTKDRfV4GL_BVY2Y0EZVfaXk/s320/symbol+verdict.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Musacchio: Nothing has been decided yet. The hedge fund has not won. Cristina Kirchner during the pending lawsuit several times stated that Argentina will not pay Elliott Capital, even if Argentina should lose the trial in New York. This statement infuriated the New York judge, which is why he set bail for Argentina to pay. Since Kirchner refused to pay the bail, it could easily happen that Argentina's payments to its other creditors - with whom there are no disputes – will be seized. That would technically mean bankruptcy for the country. Whether that happens remains to be seen in March when the next court decision is due.</span></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><br />STANDARD: Can EU countries learn something from Argentina's debt relief policy?<br /><br /></span></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Musacchio: I believe that these countries will not advance if they don’t obtain a debt relief. Just as was the case in Argentina in 2001, the debts of the countries in question are too high. The real lesson from the Argentine crisis is however that the debt relief restructuring alone will not solve the problem. The debt conversion was only a first step to correct the balances of the current accounts.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"></span></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><br /></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><span class="hps"><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; line-height: 115%;">STANDARD</span></span><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; line-height: 115%;">: <span class="hps">What</span>'s the second step?</span></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; line-height: 115%;"><br /><span class="hps">Musacchio</span>: <span class="hps">After the restructuring</span><span class="hps">the</span> <span class="hps">Argentine peso</span> <span class="hps">depreciated</span> <span class="hps">massively</span>, <span class="hps">the</span><span class="hps">government launched</span> <span class="hps">a program for the</span> <span class="hps">re-industrialization</span> <span class="hps">of the country</span> <span class="hps">and</span> <span class="hps">tried</span> <span class="hps">to revive the</span> <span class="hps">internal market</span>. <span class="hps">All these measures</span> <span class="hps">have stabilized the</span> <span class="hps">economy</span> <span class="hps">and ensured</span> <span class="hps">that growth</span> <span class="hps">returned</span>. <span class="hps">The difference to</span><span class="hps">Europe</span> <span class="hps">is that</span> <span class="hps">Argentina</span><span class="hps">for a while</span> was <span class="hps">able to isolate</span> itself <span class="hps">from the rest</span> <span class="hps">of the world</span> <span class="hps">and</span> <span class="hps">thus managed to overcome the crisis</span>. For t<span class="hps">he southern European countries</span> this will be <span class="hps">difficult</span>: <span class="hps">Spain and Portugal</span> <span class="hps">are</span> <span class="hps">much too dependent on</span> <span class="hps">exports</span> <span class="hps">to Germany than</span>, for example, <span class="hps">Argentina and its</span> <span class="hps">trade</span> <span class="hps">relations with the U.S</span>. Furthermore <span class="hps">relations between banks in Europe are</span> <span class="hps">much tighter.</span> <span class="hps">I think that</span> <span class="hps">an important</span> <span class="hps">step</span> <span class="hps">for the stabilization</span> <span class="hps">of the euro zone w<span style="font-size: large;">ill</span> be that</span> <span class="hps">Germany</span> <span class="hps">finally</span> <span class="hps">abandons its</span> <span class="hps">policy of</span> <span class="hps">wage competition</span>. <span class="hps">The purchasing power</span> of<span class="hps"> Germany</span> has to<span class="hps"> increase</span>; <span class="hps">the country</span> should not only<span class="hps"> export</span> to <span class="hps">the</span> <span class="hps">troubled</span><span class="hps">southern European countries</span>, <span class="hps">but</span> also increase its <span class="hps">imports</span>. </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><span class="hps"><i><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; line-height: 115%;">By </span></i></span><i><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; line-height: 115%;">András <span class="hps">Szigetvári</span> via <span class="hps"><span style="font-size: large;">DER</span> STANDARD</span>, (Austrian Daily Newspaper, Translated from German to English by Geopolitical Analysis and Monitoring )</span></i></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><span class="hps"><i><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; line-height: 115%;">Andres</span></i></span><i><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; line-height: 115%;"> <span class="hps">Musacchio,</span><span class="hps">is an economist</span> <span class="hps">at the Institute for</span><span class="hps">Economic and Social</span> <span class="hps">History at the University</span> <span class="hps">of</span> <span class="hps">Buenos Aires</span>. <span class="hps">He was</span> <span class="hps">a guest</span> <span class="hps">at</span><span class="hps">the Austrian Research</span> <span class="hps">Foundation for International Development</span> <span class="hps">(</span>ÖFSE), where he gave a speech regarding the<span class="hps"> Argentine crisis.</span></span></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><iframe allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" frameborder="0" height="266" mozallowfullscreen="mozallowfullscreen" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/jsmMKmOZDRg?feature=player_embedded" webkitallowfullscreen="webkitallowfullscreen" width="320"></iframe></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><h1 style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Argentinian Central Bank Targets Growth, Not Lower Inflation </span></h1><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Background:</span></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><br /></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><span class="hps"><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Fitch downgrades Argentina in the wake of Elliot Capital Hedge Funds lawsuit against Argentina</span></span></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Fitch Ratings agency announced it has downgraded Argentina's long-term foreign currency Issuer Default Rating from “B” to “CC,” with a negative outlook, as it sees a “probable default” if the country misses its payment to holdout investors.</span></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">The agency stated in a communiqué that “the increased probability that Argentina will not service its restructured debt securities issued under New York law on a timely basis reflects US District Judge Griesa's decision on Nov. 21 to remove the stay order on the ruling that Argentina must pay 1.33 billion dollars to holdout investors concurrent with or prior to its payments due to holders of the 2005 and 2010 restructured debt.”</span></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Fitch assured that a missed payment could lead to a “cross default on all exchanged debt securities issued under international law.”</span></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">“A missed coupon payment of any other external securities would also trigger a cross default on all exchanged bonds issued under international law,” it continued.</span></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Fearing Argentina will disobey his order, Griesa wants 1.33 billion deposited in a US escrow account by Dec. 15 to ensure payment if all appeals trying to overturn or block his decisions fail.</span></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">The “holdout” investors are suing to recover the full value of bonds that Argentina stopped paying in 2002, setting up a battle with the country's government which brands them as “vulture funds” and has refused to pay them.</span></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Fitch put a negative outlook on the credit which is two steps away from outright default.</span></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Argentina has vowed not to pay the holdout investors, led by Elliott Management's NML Capital Ltd and Aurelius Capital Management, prompting Griesa to order the payment be made before the 2nd Circuit rules on his decision.</span></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Fitch highlighted Argentina's 2005 “Lock Law” which prohibits “re-opening the exchange or from conducting any type of settlement with holdouts without prior authorization from Congress” as a likely reason that payment will not be made.</span></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">If no payment is made a technical default would ensue, with uncertainty remaining over treatment of credit default swap contracts, which have surged in prices as investors scramble for protection from a default or restructuring.</span></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">“The uncertainty related to the impact of the US Court ruling is likely to further damage confidence and intensify political and social tensions in the country and undermine growth prospects,” Fitch said in its statement.</span></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">“While the authorities have been able to stabilize international reserves by progressively tightening capital controls, this has come at the expense of increased economic distortions. The sustainability of this strategy is also vulnerable to international commodity prices, especially soy,” Fitch said.</span></span></div>

ARGENTINA: HEDGE FUNDS HAVE NOT WON YET

ELLIOT CAPITAL HEDGE FUNDS, A CLIENT AND SHAREHOLDER OF FITCH RATING AGENCY?   ARGENTINA : "HEDGE FUNDS HAVE NOT WON YET " It...

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