Corporate Warfare: Sudameris and the Franco–Italian Banking Rivalry in South America, 1945–1960

Introduction. With this paper we want to show that the study of international competitiveness only at a country level does not correspond to the contemporary development of the global economy. The author presents the methodology for competitiveness grouping of international integration groupings’ member states in order to assess the global competitive force of trade and economic groupings in the world economy. Based on the data of the Global Competitiveness Report 2019 regarding the competitiveness of the EU Member States, the Global Competitive Force Index of the EU as an interstate integration grouping has been calculated. The Index will help evaluate economic integration or disintegration processes in the global economy. The research demonstrates the necessity of the annual global competitive force ranking of international integration groupings. This study will enhance knowledge in the field of economics by grouping the EU Member States’ global competitiveness indices according to 12 criteria and identifying the new quantitative and qualitative integrated Global Competitive Force Index of an international integration grouping. To reach this objective, we will define the Integrated Global Competitive Force Index as the average of the individual points of the EU Member States in 2019. The novelty of our study lies in the comparative analysis of the three largest interstate integration groupings from the perspective of their competitive force. The introduction of the new integrated Global Competitive Force Index of interstate integration groupings will help competition policy makers decide which processes of economic integration or disintegration should be preferred in order to increase their competitive force in the global economy. The purpose. Research and calculation of the European Union’s Integrated Global Competitive Force Index to analyze the attractiveness of the European Union in terms of global competitive force. Based on the calculation of the EU Integrated Global Competitive Force Index 2019, the attractiveness of the EU competitive environment has been determined according to 12 criteria. Results. The ranking of the three largest regional integration groupings of the world economy has been formed. Specification of the assessment and results of the integrated index of interstate integration groupings’ global development can be used for the competition policy development of the individual member state of an integration grouping as well as the communitarian competition policy. The EU Integrated Global Competitive Force Index will help understand what the integration grouping’s competitive force means and whether the process of interstate integration of countries contributes to enhancing the competitive force of an individual country and the integration grouping as a whole. To calculate the EU Integrated Competitive Force Index, we will analyze the Member States on 12 competitive strength criteria, and Global Competitiveness Report 2019 will serve as the basis for our study. According to our calculations, the EU Integrated Global Competitive Force Index is 72 points out of 100. Conclusion. The results of a comprehensive integrated assessment of the competitive force of 28 EU Member States demonstrate a high overall competitive force index of the grouping, indicating the EU’s impact on global competitive processes. The EU Global Competitive Force Index can be used both as an indicator of the separate international integration grouping’s development and as a global criterion for the effectiveness of interstate integration groupings in the transformation of international competitive relations. Discussion. The highlighting of the EU global competitive force is a requirement for the contemporary development of the global competitive environment, since interstate integration groupings are the main actors of the world economy, which significantly affect the distribution and growth of competitive force.

Néstor Curbelo: The Latin American Andrew Jenson

Based on a survey and extended interviews with 78 domestic and international managers of a leading bank in India, this paper identifies some problems encountered with the utilization of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) by this enterprise in its global marketing strategy. A comparative analysis of the survey responses reveal recognizable differences among managers within and outside India concerning the problems and prospects of ICT as an instrument of global business strategy. Twenty problems that can diminish the influence of ICT in this strategy are identified and classified into four categories: Infrastructure, Regulation and Restrictions, Training and Culture, and Financial Constraints. The study finds that ICT has assisted the bank in maintaining its global competitiveness but the international managers of the bank do not agree that it has generated any competitive advantage. Using a qualitative methodological approach, this paper systematically explores the problems and prospects of ICT as an important supporting factor in the global strategy of a multinational bank from India. Keywords: Global Information Technology, Information Technology Strategy, Multinational banking

Preface. About the Author. Acknowledgments. Chapter 1: Introduction. 1.1 Global Engineers and Constructors. 1.2 Engineering and Construction Global Ambassadors. 1.3 Global Risks to Engineers and Constructors. 1.4 Organization of This Book. 1.5 Summary. Chapter 2: The Concept of Culture and Global Issues Important to Engineers and Constructors. 2.1 Introduction. 2.2 Sources of Information. 2.3 Language and Translation Considerations for Design. 2.4 Design Criteria for Different Cultures. 2.5 Cultural Issues That Affect Engineers and Constructors. 2.6 Suggestions for Adapting to Foreign Cultures. 2.7 Economics. 2.8 Politics. 2.9 Summary. Discussion Questions. References. Chapter 3: Managing Global Engineering and Construction Projects. 3.1 Introduction. 3.2 Management Functions and Project Objectives. 3.3 Three-Dimensional Project-Objective Model (POM). 3.4 Hierarchy of Objectives. 3.5 Determining Objectives. 3.6 Managing Projects in Foreign Countries. 3.7 Characteristics of Global Project Managers. 3.8 Calendars and Time Considerations. 3.9 Technology Considerations. 3.10 Estimating. 3.11 Scheduling. 3.12 Permits and Codes. 3.13 Construction Safety Issues. 3.14 Construction Failures and Investigation Techniques. 3.15 Case Study: Indonesia. 3.16 Summary. Discussion Questions. References. Chapter 4: Global Competitiveness in the Engineering and Construction Industry. 4.1 Introduction. 4.2 Definition of Competitiveness. 4.3 Competitiveness Issues. 4.4 Competitive Forces in the 1980s. 4.5 Changes in the E&C Industry Structure in the 1990s. 4.6 Forces Driving Competition in the Twenty-First Century. 4.7 Changes in the E&C Industry in the Twenty-First Century. 4.8 The Changing Nature of E&C Industry Competition. 4.9 Summary. Discussion Questions. References. Chapter 5: Global Engineering and Construction Alliances. 5.1 Introduction. 5.2 Multinational Contractors. 5.3 The Global Dimension. 5.4 Risks in Global Investment. 5.5 Project Financing. 5.6 Privatization. 5.7 Build-Own-Transfer (BOT). 5.8 Joint Ventures and Partnerships. 5.9 Summary. Discussion Questions. References. Chapter 6: Global Construction Financial Techniques. 6.1 Introduction. 6.2 Countertrade. 6.3 Cofinancing with the World Bank. 6.4 Project Financing. 6.5 Global Payment Methods. 6.6 Bills of Lading, Commercial Invoices, and Consular Invoices. 6.7 The U.S. Export-Import Bank and Private Export Funding Agencies. 6.8 Summary. Discussion Questions. References. Chapter 7: Global Legal Issues for Engineers and Constructors. 7.1 Introduction. 7.2 International Conventions. 7.3 Regional Legal Issues. 7.4 International Contracts. 7.5 Claims and Change Orders. 7.6 Dispute-Resolution Techniques. 7.7 International Arbitration. 7.8 Anticorruption Legislation. 7.9 Kidnapping and Ransom Insurance. 7.10 Changing Governments. 7.11 Liability Issues. 7.12 Summary. Discussion Questions. References. Chapter 8: International Engineering and Construction Standards. 8.1 Introduction. 8.2 Definition of Standards. 8.3 Technical Standards. 8.4 Consensus Standards. 8.5 Government Standards. 8.6 Nongovernment Standards. 8.7 International Standards. 8.8 International Organization for Standardization (ISO). 8.9 The Development Process for Standards. 8.10 International Technical Standards. 8.11 ISO 9000 Quality Management System Standards. 8.12 ISO 14000 Environmental Management Series of Standards. 8.13 ISO 4217 Global Currency Codes and Names. 8.14 The ISO 9000 and 14000 Registration Process. 8.15 Advantages and Disadvantages of International Standards. 8.16 Summary. Discussion Questions. References. Chapter 9: Global Environmental Issues of Concern to Engineers and Constructors. 9.1 Introduction. 9.2 The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). 9.3 Effects of the Kyoto Protocol on the Engineering and Construction Industry. 9.4 Global Environmental Management. 9.5 Country-Specific Environmental Issues. 9.6 Summary. Discussion Questions. References. Chapter 10: Global Productivity Issues on Construction Projects. 10.1 Introduction. 10.2 International Comparisons of Labor Productivity. 10.3 Case Study: Worker Productivity in Nigeria and the United States. 10.4 Labor Productivity Variations. 10.5 Labor Productivity Factors. 10.6 Factors that Affect Productivity on Global Projects. 10.7 Summary. Discussion Questions. References. Chapter 11: Global Planning and Construction Delays. 11.1 Introduction. 11.2 Accounting for Global Variations in Construction. 11.3 Bribery Policies. 11.4 Categories of Global Nontechnical Delays. 11.5 Global Engineering and Construction Delays. 11.6 Indicators of Project Delays. 11.7 Global Project Planning Delays. 11.8 Summary. Discussion Questions. References. Chapter 12: Global Terrorism: Kidnapping and Design Considerations. 12.1 Introduction. 12.2 Definitions of Terrorism. 12.3 Terrorist Behavior. 12.4 Financial Support for Terrorism. 12.5 Terrorist Strategies and Profiles. 12.6 Kidnapping Issues. 12.7 Preventing Terrorism. 12.8 Building Protection. 12.9 Web Sites with Additional Information on Terrorism. 12.10 Summary. Discussion Questions. References. Chapter 13: Preparing Engineers and Constructors to Work Globally. 13.1 Introduction. 13.2 Definition of Culture. 13.3 Cultural Differences. 13.4 Language Differences. 13.5 Technology Transfer. 13.6 The Importance of Cross-Cultural Training Programs. 13.7 Developing Cross-Cultural Training Programs. 13.8 What to Know Before Working Overseas. 13.9 Language Training. 13.10 Educational Considerations. 13.11 Entertainment Issues. 13.12 Short- and Long-Term Housing. 13.13 Food and Water Supplies. 13.14 Transportation Issues. 13.15 Foreign Work Environments. 13.16 Prejudice. 13.17 Culture Shock. 13.18 Going Native. 13.19 Avoiding Foreign Jails. 13.20 Summary. Discussion Questions. References. Chapter 14: Country-Specific Information. 14.1 Introduction. 14.2 Africa. 14.3 Asia. 14.4 Eastern Europe. 14.5 The Near and Middle East. 14.6 North America. 14.7 Oceana. 14.8 South America. 14.9 Southeast Asia. 14.10 Western Europe. 14.11 Summary. References. Appendix A Glossary. Appendix B Case Study: Managing Projects in Rural Developing Countries. References. Appendix C Definitions of Religions. Index.

Previously developed phylogenetic hypotheses for Neotropical colubrids are used as a framework to interpret the biogeographic history of these lineages. The distributions of members of two lineages of xenodontines, which comprise most of the Neotropical colubrid fauna, are documented. One lineage, the Central American clade, has its greatest generic di- versity throughout Central America and is poorly represented in North and South America. In contrast, the other major Neotropical xenodontine lineage shows its highest generic diversity in Amazonian and southern South America. Species richness patterns for each clade generally correspond with those shown at the generic level, with the exception that the Central American component has a high species richness in the Andes of Colombia and Ecuador due primarily to the presence of a large number of species of Atractus. Significant dispersal by Central American xenodontines into South America is inferred, but South American xenodontines are poorly represented outside South America. The major phyletic separation of Neotropical xenodontines into Central and South American clades is inferred to result from a late Cretaceous or early Tertiary vicariance or concordant dispersal event. This pattern corresponds to that shown by other components of the Neotropical biota. The relationships of the West Indian xenodontines do not conform to the commonest pattern predicted by general biogeographic models for the Caribbean; moreover, the suggested temporal framework for this radiation implicates dispersal as a plausible mechanism for its deployment. Xenodontines are suggested to be the oldest members of the Neotropical colubrid fauna, and probably date from the late Cretaceous or early Tertiary in that region. Their earlier history is uncertain, and may be with either northern taxa or with a Gondwanan-derived fauna in South America. Colubrines and natricines are much more recent components of the Neotropical fauna. For investigating mechanisms in historical biogeography, the desirability of deriving temporal estimates for the separation of major com- ponents of a biota independently of biogeographic considerations is emphasized. (Snakes; Col- ubridae; xenodontine; Neotropics; Central America; South America; biogeography; vicariance; West Indies.)

A theory is proposed for the early biogeographic history of ostariophysan fishes that incorporates: 1) the most recent data on geographic and geologic distribution of ostariophysans, 2) plate tectonic theory, 3) a phylogenetic hypothesis, including a consideration of Hennig-Brundin concepts of phylogenetic biogeography. The evidence suggests only three possible centers of origin for ostariophysans: 1) Africa, 2) South America or 3) Gondwana. If the origin of ostariophysans was a post-Jurassic event, then South America is the most likely center of origin for the group. We postulate that ostariophysans originated in South America in the earliest Cretaceous and there split into two sister groups, the Cypriniformes and Siluriformes. These groups dispersed throughout South America and the adjoining west shield area of Africa by middle Cretaceous. After regression of the west African epicontinental sea and rifting apart of west Africa and South America in the late Cretaceous, characoids and siluroids dispersed throughout Africa. In South America and Africa these groups underwent independent adaptive radiations.

Caimanines are crocodylians currently restricted to South and Central America and the oldest members are from lower Palaeocene localities of the Salamanca Formation (Chubut Province, Argentina). We report here a new caimanine from this same unit represented by a skull roof and partial braincase. Its phylogenetic relationships were explored in a cladistic analysis using standard characters and a morphogeometric two-dimensional configuration of the skull roof. The phylogenetic results were used for an event-based supermodel quantitative palaeobiogeographic analysis. The new species is recovered as the most basal member of the South American caimanines, and the Cretaceous North American lineage 'Brachychampsa and related forms' as the most basal Caimaninae. The biogeographic results estimated north-central North America as the ancestral area of Caimaninae, showing that the Cretaceous and Palaeocene species of the group were more widespread than thought and became regionally extinct in North America around the Cretaceous-Palaeocene boundary. A dispersal event from north-central North America during the middle Late Cretaceous explains the arrival of the group to South America. The Palaeogene assemblage of Patagonian crocodylians is composed of three lineages of caimanines as a consequence of independent dispersal events that occurred between North and South America and within South America around the Cretaceous-Palaeogene boundary.

The number of actors that affect the distribution of the competitive force in the global economy is growing, and the spheres of economic competition or cooperation are expanding to build up the competitive force. The article emphasizes the significant impact of international economic integration on the sustainable economic development of the world economy. It also shows that the study of the competitive force of interstate integration groupings is highly relevant today, as international economic integration plays a fundamental role in the development of trade and competitive relations between countries. The paper offers the methodology for competitiveness grouping of Member States of the international integration groupings in order to assess the global competitive force of trade and economic groupings in the world economy. The purpose is to investigate the Integrated Competitive Force Index of Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) 2019 in order to analyze the attractiveness of APEC in terms of the global competitive force. It is also important to determine the attractiveness of APEC competitive environment according to 12 criteria on the basis of the research, which, in turn, allows for a better understanding and ranking of interstate integration groupings according to their competitive forces. Result. Based on the data of the Global Competitiveness Report 2019 on the competitiveness of Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Member States (APEC), the Integrated Competitive Force Index of APEC as an interstate integration grouping has been calculated. The Index will help to assess economic integration or disintegration processes in the global economy. The article proves the necessity of the annual integrated competitive force ranking of international integration groupings. Practical implications. The introduction of the new Integrated Competitive Force Index of interstate integration groupings will help competition policymakers to decide which processes of economic integration or disintegration should be preferred in order to build up their competitive force in the global economy.

New World monkeys (platyrrhines) are a diverse part of modern tropical ecosystems in North and South America, yet their early evolutionary history in the tropics is largely unknown. Molecular divergence estimates suggest that primates arrived in tropical Central America, the southern-most extent of the North American landmass, with several dispersals from South America starting with the emergence of the Isthmus of Panama 3-4 million years ago (Ma). The complete absence of primate fossils from Central America has, however, limited our understanding of their history in the New World. Here we present the first description of a fossil monkey recovered from the North American landmass, the oldest known crown platyrrhine, from a precisely dated 20.9-Ma layer in the Las Cascadas Formation in the Panama Canal Basin, Panama. This discovery suggests that family-level diversification of extant New World monkeys occurred in the tropics, with new divergence estimates for Cebidae between 22 and 25 Ma, and provides the oldest fossil evidence for mammalian interchange between South and North America. The timing is consistent with recent tectonic reconstructions of a relatively narrow Central American Seaway in the early Miocene epoch, coincident with over-water dispersals inferred for many other groups of animals and plants. Discovery of an early Miocene primate in Panama provides evidence for a circum-Caribbean tropical distribution of New World monkeys by this time, with ocean barriers not wholly restricting their northward movements, requiring a complex set of ecological factors to explain their absence in well-sampled similarly aged localities at higher latitudes of North America.

In the 1960s, three of the 12 largest banks in the world were Canadian. Now, none are among the largest 25. The early growth and current more focused strategies must both be understood in relation to federal public policy. Canadian multinational banks (MNBs) developed in a country dependent upon inward capital flows to develop its natural resource base. Government concerns over stability were instrumental in creating a protected market in which Canadian banks developed competitive advantages for international competition. However, globalisation altered the ability of regulators to promote both stability and global competitiveness. The complex relationships between regulation and competitiveness is analysed for six historical periods: strangled trade and the origins of Canadian MNBs, 1792–1871; new nation, new national policy and new national banks, 1871–1900; mergers and new internationalisation, 1900–34; new corporate markets in Canada and abroad, 1934–67; the new international banking; the Euromarkets, 1967–80; global competition in Canada and abroad, 1980-date.

Apologetics and Antiquity: Book of Mormon Reception, 1830–1844

Imported Sophistication: The Ballets Russes Tours of the 1930s–50s and Toronto's Quest for Cultural Significance

T he mammals of the Paleocene, first epoch of the Tertiary, the Age of Mammals, are essential for the elucidation of numerous zoological, biological, and geological problems. Among these problems are determination of the affinities of mammals in general, of their ancestral and primitive structures and of the course of their evolution, as well as problems of the origin and nature of adaptations and habits, and more special and, in one sense, practical problems of stratigraphy and some other branches of geology. The first known Paleocene mammal was described in 1841, but intensive work began with Lemoine's first publication in 1878. Since that time work has continued at ever accelerated pace, by Cope, Osborn, Wortman, Matthew, Granger, Sinclair, Douglass, Gidley, Schlosser, Teilhard, Jepsen, Russell, Patterson, Simpson, and others. A nearly complete sequence of Paleocene mammalian faunas is now known from North America, and more limited but also important faunas are known from Europe, Asia, and South America. These faunas include multituberculates, marsupials and placental mammals, classified in seventeen orders, the general characters of which in the Paleocene are eviewed. From these mammals it is possible to infer with high probability the ancestral characters of placental mammals in general, the evidence for a primitive “tritubercular” or trigonal‐tuberculosectorial primitive molar type being particularly conclusive and important. The Cretaceous‐Paleocene transition in North America is marked by the disappearance of dinosaurs and the appearance of several orders of mammals apparently as immigrants from some unknown region. The Paleocene sequence on the same continent, which still has two breaks not represented by known faunas, is marked not only by great evolutionary advance but also by progressive enriching of the faunas, chiefly by the appearance of new and generally more progressive mammalian groups as immigrants. The Paleocene‐Eocene line is drawn at the culmination of this faunal change. Although in detail the change is by intergradation and gradual transition, from a broader point of view it marks a very radical difference in mammalian faunal type, the Paleocene forms eventually disappearing and the Eocene forms being the forerunners of the later Tertiary and Recent faunas. The same faunal change eventually occurred in South America, but at a much later date, around the end of the Tertiary. In the Upper Paleocene Asia, Europe, North America, and South America all show considerable local differentiation but give evidence of the derivation of their faunas from a common source. Those of North America and Europe are fairly similar, although not identical, and that of South America is most distinctive, evidence of longer separation from the other continents. In a general summary of known mammalian faunal history the few known Triassic mammals have no clear significance. The Jurassic mammals of Europe and North America are of distinctive type, with four primitive orders. From two of these developed the multituberculates, marsupials and insectivores of the Upper Cretaceous. Further differentiation of these three, but particularly of the general placental, carnivore‐insectivore stock produced the typical Paleocene faunal type. Finally, progressive evolution and diversification of the several Paleocene placental mammal stocks gave rise to the Eocene faunal type which still exists to‐day. Summary of Mammalian Faunal History The oldest known mammals, from the Rhaeto‐Lias in Europe and Africa, do not include the ancestors of the later mammals and have little bearing on mammalian faunal succession (see Simpson, 1928 b ). The Middle Jurassic fauna of England and the Upper Jurassic faunas of England, the United States, and East Africa (one specimen) are of a distinctive faunal type and suggest that this sort of mammalian fauna had then spread over a large part of the world. They include multituberculates, triconodonts, symmetrodonts, and pantotheres (Simpson, 1928 c , 1929 c ). The multituberculates reappear, in more advanced and varied form, in the Cretaceous and Lower Tertiary. The triconodonts and symmetrodonts do not reappear and probably became extinct during the early Cretaceous. The known pantotheres seem to represent a Jurassic radiation from the common marsupial‐placental stock. The known Upper Cretaceous faunas also are of a distinctive faunal type, but one quite different from that of the Jurassic. They consist of multituberculates (Asia and North America), marsupials (North America), and very primitive placentals of rather undifferentiated insectivore‐carnivore type, classified as Insectivora (Asia and North America) (Gregory & Simpson, 1926; Simpson, 1928 d ). The latter apparently represent primary dichotomous differentiation of the general pantothere stock, with a secondary local radiation within each group. The known Paleocene faunas of North America, Europe, Asia, and South America probably all had a common source and represent the radiation of a fauna derived from one of the known Cretaceous types but much more highly differentiated. Among the multituberculates and marsupials this differentiation was of relatively minor grade, in taxonomic terms of family or at most subordinal rank, while the more progressive and adaptive placentals show the beginnings of a more profound splitting, ultimately of ordinal rank, 1 and are more numerous and varied. In North America, at least, this new faunal type appears as an invasion from some unknown evolutionary center. In Europe, North America, and Asia, a new type of fauna began to appear during the Paleocene, the change culminating at the end of the epoch and becoming entirely complete during the Eocene. The new fauna is less markedly different from the old than in the previous changes noted, and consists of the appearance of new or “modernized” groups clearly derived from an already partly differentiated fauna of Paleocene type. The new forms appear to be immigrants where found, and came from some unidentified area where the earliest Paleocene fauna was well developed and where its rapid and diversified evolution was permitted and stimulated. Only placental mammals were involved, the few surviving multituberculates and marsupials clearly being stragglers from the known Paleocene. There has not been any other major spread of mammals or great change in faunal type. With positive changes resulting from long evolution and from repeated intermigration and negative changes resulting from extinction, the mammals now peopling at least the Holarctic continents are essentially those that appeared there in the Eocene invasion. In South America this change was long delayed, and what is essentially the incursion of the Holarctic Eocene fauna into the previous habitat of the Paleocene fauna took place at the end of the Tertiary and not toward its beginning as in Holarctica. In Australia this change never took place (aside from the agency of man). The early faunal history of Africa is unknown and still beyond logical conjecture.

Multinational banks from developing versus developed countries: Competing in the same arena?

Mass democracy went into abeyance with the demise of the Roman Republic. With the revolutions in America and France in the late eighteenth century, the masses asserted their political presence with a vengeance. Although both revolutions began moderately enough, they quickly diverged. In America, patronage became the predominant means of winning and keeping power. In France, in contrast, politics was soon dominated by a series of demagogues, from Danton to Robespierre. Rather than looking to ideology, this chapter proposes that the difference was due to the lower cost of patronage as a means of political incorporation in America compared to France. American elites had more than a century of working in the limited franchise democracy of British America prior to its "democratization." In France, in contrast, French elites had no such legacy on which to build. French institutions instead precluded the building of political parties, rendering direct appeals to the masses, especially those in the capital, cost-effective. The recurrent cycle of populism in France was interrupted only with Napoleon’s combination of popular appeal with the reimposition of centralized, executive power: a popular dictatorship.