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B.Read the text again. Match the missing sentences A-H with the gaps (1-6). There is one extra sentence that you do not need. There is an example at the beginning (0)

A.The government had made the mistake of printing more and more paper money, and as a result, the money became worth less and less.

B.This is understandable, because they were about the only useful tools that existed at that time.

C.The government later introduced exchange rates, which made it possible for people to buy and sell currencies from the three countries.

D.They had no opinion but to start once again exchanging goods and services with each other, and to forget about money completely.

E.These could, of course, only be bought from him, and since he controlled their supply, he could charge fantastic prices for them.

F.So it is not surprisingly that China also introduced the first paper currency in about AD 650.

G.In the French Sudan, they remained an acceptable currency for paying taxes until 1907, when they finally gave way to paper money.

H.History shows that almost anything can become money provided that it is relatively scarce and people want it.

Ex. 11. There are different forms of money. Translate the alternatives and choose the correct one to complete each sentence.

Ex. 12. Make up a project “Money matters”. Find any interesting information concerned with money: the history of money, the history of Russian currency, the richest person in the world and so on. Present your information to the group.

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UNIT XI. GLOBALISATION.

Topics for discussion:

1.What do you understand by globalization?

2.How do companies go global?

3.Are the brands local, national or global?

4.Are the tastes in food individual, national or global?

Ex. 1. Read the text and say what you understand by globalization. Explain the words in bold.

GOING GLOBAL.

The Economist has identified these key contributors to globalization:

free movement of capital ‘at the touch of a button’. This is the fuel of investment in all its forms;

trade liberalization, with the lowering of trade barriers;

lowering of shipping costs thanks to the efficiency of containerization. ( The shipping charge for a whole container of goods classing the Pacific can be as little as $ 50. the transport cost for each ‘Japanese’ TV, probably made in Malaysia or elsewhere, sold in the US or Europe is negligible.)

reduction in telecommunications and computing costs. (The cost of a 3-minute phone call from New York to London in 1930 was $ 300 in today’s money. There is more computing power in the average wrist watch today than there was in all the world’s computers in 1950.) Organisations with the resources and expertise to exploit the information on their networks on a worldwide scale that will have a key competitive advantage in many industries. Operating in and producing for not just one country, or even one continent, allows a company to reduce costs and benefit from economies of scale.

Some implications of for managers have been suggested by points raised in a series in the Financial Times. Even in a company that operates within one country, there is often resistance to ideas from outside, the not invented here syndrome; and with subsidiaries in many countries, this becomes even more of problem, because it is compounded by cross-cultural issues and potential misunderstandings. Resistance to the way of doing things elsewhere may be even stronger if the subsidiary was previously a local company taken over by a multinational, perhaps with loss of jobs and loss of a sense of security among those that remain. Developing international teams of managers in environment like these is a challenge.

A brand like Coca-Cola has been around long time, and dominates the fizzy drink market in almost every country, outselling local brands. One of the exceptions is Scotland, and their marketing specialists are trying to find out why this is, in an international market that should by now be homogenous. Anomalies such as the French preference for top-loading washing machines when the rest of Europe prefers door-loading ones, or the Americans liking for 4x4-type vehicles rather than saloon

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cars, even in cities, could be related to the smallness of French apartments or the cheapness of American petrol. But there are always cultural ‘traditions’ that are harder to explain. Why do the Spanish drink so little tea? Why do Germans eat so many bananas?

However, traditions can change. Interestingly, breakfast cereal is slowly progressing as a way of starting the day among younger people. A global breakfast cereal culture may be developing. This may seem a trivial example of the globalization of taste, but consumer goods companies must be aware of issues like these.

Of course, there is debate about whether the power of international capital and multinationals, and the supposed homogenization of tastes worldwide, are good things or not, you will no doubt have your own view.

From the Market Leader

Ex. 2. Think of people with similar jobs, background to you in another country that you know. When they go to a supermarket, do you think they buy the same products as you? Are their tastes and lifestyles very different?

A. Read the article.

Consuming fascination.

By Allison Smith

The global brand is real enough, but what of the global consumer? Nicholas Trivisonno, the chairman and chief executive of AC Nielsen, the US-based international market research company, believes such a character is fictional. “There is no global consumer. Each country and the consumer in each country has different attitudes and different behaviours, tastes, spending patterns,” he says.

Nielsen should be in a position to know. It has a presence in more than 90 countries across three continents, and works for more than 9,000 clients. Its revenue last year was $1.4 billion, out of a $12 billion global market research industry.

Mr. Trivisonno specifically includes teenagers in what he says, though they are often seen by marketing executives as people who have more and more in common worldwide – and to whom some of the leading global brands most appeal.

“We see changes in consumer behaviour, but not a convergence of consumer behavoiur,” he says. He believes the reason for this is that even though a global brand may get similar reactions in very different markets, the consumer will view it against different sets of rivals in the market.

“Take a global of soft drink. Acceptance of that product may be the same, but the competitive set in any particular country will be different – it could be mineral water, coffee or other types of soft drinks. You need to look behind not only reaction to the global brand but to competitors’ brands”

Mr. Trivisonno gives the example of a breakfast cereal manufacturer. At one time competition for a cereal would have been from the brands that it stood alongside on supermarket shelves: these days it may be with other breakfast foods, such as yoghurts. “Now it’s all about share of stomach, share of thirst,” he says.

From the Financial Times

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B. Answer the questions.

1.What do people have for breakfast in your country? Is there a difference between what younger and older people have?

2.Which of these things are sold under brand names?

3.Are the brands local, national or global?

4.If they are local, are they locally owned or part of a multinational group?

5.When people eat out in restaurants in your country, do they prefer restaurants with food from your country or do they prefer food from other countries? Is there a difference between what younger and older people like?

6.Do you think that global tastes in food are developing?