Thursday, August 27, 2009 PARIS: France will push for the G-8 group of industrial powers to admit the major emerging economies and thus become a G-14 when Paris presides over the group in 2011, President Nicolas Sarkozy said on Wednesday. The G-8 already includes the biggest emerging economies in some of its deliberations, but retains its own identity as the most influential world economic policy forum, despite mounting calls to broaden its base. 'I note with pleasure that the transformation of the G-8 into the G-14 has taken a decisive step forward,' Sarkozy told a meeting of French ambassadors in Paris, noting that France has supported Brazil's call for an end to the G-8. 'The Canadian presidency in 2010 will conduct the bulk of its summit as the G-14 and we intend to totally finish the transformation into the G-14 under the French presidency in 2011,' he promised. Already at this year's G-8 summit in L'Aquila, Italy, the G-8 - Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia and the United States - was joined by Brazil, India, China, South Africa, Mexico and Egypt. But some G-8 members, notably Japan, have resisted formally abandoning the G8 structure, arguing that more members would find it harder to reach a consensus on major economic policy issues.
Sunday, February 28, 2010 HAVANA: Hundreds of wealthy merchants and cigar aficionados from all parts of the world gathered in Havana this week to bid high stakes for humidors full of premium cigars. Cuba's annual Habanos festival ended on Friday night with an auction of ornate humidors of cedar and mahogany stacked with hand-rolled stogies that raised 800,000 euros ($1.09 million dollars). Habanos S.A. executives this month said cigar sales fell 8 percent to $360 million in 2009, so they have created the Julieta, a smaller, milder version of the Romeo y Julieta cigar, aimed specifically at female smokers. Women now make up only 5 to 10 percent of customers for Habanos. But even with the creation of the Julieta, Garcia said Habanos has only modest hopes for 2010 sales, due largely to a weak economy in Spain, the biggest market for Cuban cigars. The flavor of premium tobacco relies on the soil and climate in which it is grown. The western province of Pinar Del Rio, famous fo...
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