MENDOZA- Mauricio Macri, Argentina’s reformist president, has been in office for just four
months. For Constanza Pimentel (photo), who along with her mother and brother runs a
small winery on the outskirts of Mendoza, the country’s winemaking capital, his
government has so far been a mixed blessing. Bodega Caelum, their 50-hectare
vineyard, produces 70,000 bottles a year of Torrontés, Malbec and other wines.
Recently it has struggled. Argentina’s previous president, Cristina Fernández
de Kirchner, introduced currency controls, which kept the peso artificially
strong and made exporting unprofitable. Ms Pimentel was delighted when Mr Macri
allowed the currency to float in December: she plans to expand sales in the
United States and Britain this year. But for now her customers are mostly
Argentine oenophiles, and they are drinking less. In March she raised prices by
12% to keep up with inflation. “Wine is becoming a luxury,” Ms Pimentel
laments. “Customers are watching their wallets.”
One can
hardly blame them. Mr Macri, whose election ended 12 years of populist rule by
Ms Fernández and her late husband, Néstor Kirchner, has been feted by
foreigners. He is on the verge of ending a 14-year confrontation with foreign
creditors; Barack Obama paid him a visit in March. But for most Argentines,
life is getting worse. The annual inflation rate is approaching 40%, according
to independent estimates (official numbers are not being published while
Argentina overhauls its statistics agency). It is the highest rate in Latin
America outside Venezuela. Meat, a staple, is 44% more expensive than a year
ago. A study by the Catholic University reports that 1.4m Argentines have
dropped below the poverty line so far this year.
Mr Macri
inherited high inflation (chart). During Ms Fernández’s reign the central
bank printed money to pay for subsidies, which reached 4% of GDP last year. But
the measures the new president has taken to stabilise the economy have made
things—temporarily—worse. The floating of the peso, to make exports competitive
and reduce a drain on the central bank’s foreign-exchange reserves, pushed up
inflation. So did cutbacks to subsidies of electricity, water, gas and
transport to control the budget deficit, which reached 5.8% of GDP in 2015. On
April 8th bus and train fares in Buenos Aires, the capital, doubled. The public
sector has laid off nearly 11,000 workers since December. The economy is likely
to shrink by 0.5% this year.
Mr Macri
warned that there would be pain, but he was not gloomy enough. His government
is likely to miss the inflation target of 20-25% it set for 2016, in part
because the country’s powerful unions are demanding pay rises of 30%. The
finance minister, Alfonso Prat-Gay, now promises that inflation will fall in
the second half of the year and predicts an inflation rate of 17% for 2017. “We
are very confident that we can hit” that rate, he told a conference on April
5th.
One reason
for his optimism is the prospect of Argentina’s return to the international
capital markets. On April 13th a court in New York cleared the way for
Argentina to repay bondholders who had rejected earlier debt restructurings. The
country now plans to issue up to $15 billion in new bonds. It will use most of
that to pay the holdouts. The rest will pay for government spending, reducing
the need for inflationary financing of the budget deficit.
The
government is betting that the return to the credit markets will encourage
investment by foreign companies. There are hopeful signs. Since Mr Macri took
office Dow Chemical and American Energy Partners have announced that they will
invest alongside YPF, the state-owned oil company, in exploring for shale gas
and oil in Vaca Muerta, which holds vast reserves of both. Coca-Cola has
promised to invest $1 billion in Argentina over the next four years; Fiat
Chrysler, an Italian carmaker, has said it will spend $500m to upgrade its
plant in Córdoba in central Argentina.
But
investment may not recover quickly enough to provide the lift that the
government is hoping for. Brazil, Argentina’s largest trading partner, is
suffering its worst recession since the 1930s. Some analysts argue that Mr
Macri needs to do more to restore confidence. Martín Redrado, a former head of
the central bank, thinks investment will not rebound until prices stabilise.
Even with renewed borrowing on the international markets, the government will
need to raise a lot of money from local investors to pay its bills or resort to
central-bank financing. To shore up confidence, Mr Redrado calls for the
president to establish a “council for macroeconomic stability”, which would set
inflation and growth targets at least two years in advance.
Ms Pimentel
is “confident” that Mr Macri has good intentions and thinks “it will take some
time” to heal the economy. The president is counting on the patience of voters
like her. According to a survey conducted in March by Isonomía, a consultancy,
72% of Argentines view him favourably and 69% think he can control inflation.
Their confidence may have been shaken when Mr Macri’s name appeared among the
thousands in the leaked “Panama papers”, showing that he was a director of an
offshore company founded by his father. He says he drew no income from it and
has nothing to hide; a judge is investigating. Argentines are giving him the
benefit of the doubt. If inflation does not retreat by the end of this year,
they may turn on him.
from The Economist
You can also watch this video by clicking on the Play Button
The technology and health sectors are two of the most vibrant, highly
innovative, and ultra competitive industries in the U.S. economy. To
maintain relevance, companies in these industries require highly skilled
and often highly educated employees. Such employees do not come cheaply
and to attract them, companies offer large compensation packages.
24/7
Wall St. reviewed the 25 highest paying jobs in America ranked by
median annual base salary.
These are the 10 highest paying jobs in America.
1. Physician
> Median base salary: $180,000
> Number of job openings: 2,064
Like
law professions, doctors and physicians have been among the most
highly-paid and respected occupations for some time. A typical U.S.
worker starting out as a physician earns $180,000 annually. The growing
population of elderly Americans is expected to only accelerate in coming
years, a trend that will increase the demand for physicians and other
medical practitioners.
2. Lawyer
> Median base salary: $144,500
> Number of job openings: 995
The
value of a law degree has been recently questioned due to the high
number of law school graduates relative to job openings. Perhaps as a
result, law school enrollment has fallen in recent years. Still, the
demand for legal services will likely remain steady in the future, as
the BLS projects growth for lawyer occupations in line with the national
average. Due to the high level of education required, lawyers are also
very well paid, trailing only doctors in starting salary.
3. Research & development manager
> Median base salary: $142,120
> Number of job openings: 112
A
wide range of organizations in many industries require some research
and development, and the individuals capable of managing such projects
do not necessarily have the same set of skills and educational
background. The profession will likely remain relatively invulnerable to
offshoring and automation, and the starting base salary of $142,120 is
among the highest in the country. On the other hand, Glassdoor estimates
just 112 job openings, one of the lower such figures of any U.S.
occupation.
4. Software development manager> Median base salary: $132,000
> Number of job openings: 3,495
Automation
and offshoring are among the most prominent forces impacting U.S.
industries and employment. Much of the automation trend is fueled by
software and other technological advancements. Since humans will likely
continue to design and construct this software into the foreseeable
future, software development managers will likely remain in high demand.
Not only are such workers highly paid, but they are also in high demand
— Glassdoor estimates close to 3,500 current job openings, above
average.
5. Pharmacy manager
> Median base salary: $130,000
> Number of job openings: 1,766
The
pharmaceutical and health care industries in the United States are
closely interlinked. Like many other health professions, pharmacy
managers are largely protected from competition and automation. Pharmacy
managers are often trained pharmacists, another one of the highest
paying jobs.
6. Strategy manager
> Median base salary: $130,000
> Number of job openings: 701
Strategy
managers frequently consult companies charged with complex problems and
large management teams. Strategy managers are usually relatively well
educated, but perhaps more importantly, most positions call for many
years of experience.
7. Software architect
> Median base salary: $128,250
> Number of job openings: 655
The
increased use of technology guarantees at least steady demand for many
technology-related jobs. In particular, demand for software developers
and architects will continue to rise with the increased use of
computerized applications, which further drives up wages. The base
salary of a software architect in the United States is $128,250 a year,
one of the highest — even among technology jobs.
8. Integrated circuit designer engineer
> Median base salary: $127,500
> Number of job openings: 165
Integrated circuits,
chips, microchips, or semiconductors are essential component of
virtually all computing products and processes. Anything from an
automobile’s electric windows to a computer’s operating system requires
chips of some kind. Designers and engineers of these products spend many
years learning the necessary knowledge and skills, and are therefore in
high demand. While the pay is high, Glassdoor estimates a relatively
low number of current job openings.
9. IT manager
> Median base salary: $120,000
> Number of job openings: 3,152
Information technology
managers are needed to manage IT infrastructures, especially in
expanding organizations. Not only do these workers require knowledge of
computer systems, but also management skills.
10. Solutions architect
> Median base salary: $120,000
> Number of job openings: 2,838
Solutions
architects deal primarily with data-related projects and often work in
consulting and technology firms that offer data storage products and
services. The typical pay for a starting worker in the occupation is
$120,000.
More on the highest-paying jobs in America
Physicians
and lawyers are the highest and second highest paying professions in
the United States, with salaries of $180,000 and $144,500, respectively.
The
majority of the 23 other highest paid occupations are — like physicians
— in the health sector but also in the technology sectors.
The
highest paying jobs are concentrated in these sectors largely because
they are in high demand. These professions also frequently require
skills that are exceedingly difficult to automate.
Many of these health sector and technology jobs involve a
level of judgment and creativity that is impossible to automate at
present. The urgency of many healthcare scenarios requires
snap-decisions or creative solutions to existing medical conditions.
Similarly, in the technology sector, a
degree of flexibility and creativity in these highly paid jobs is
required that is very difficult to automate.
Fifteen of the 25
highest paying jobs are management positions. The manager skill set that
requires maintaining a working team in a fast-paced, highly-educated
industry like tech, finance or healthcare is also something that
employers find difficult to automate, and will invest in with higher
employee salaries.
By contrast, the typical
receptionist, server, leasing consultant, or office assistant — to give
just a few examples — earn starting salaries between $30,000 and
$35,000. The relatively low salaries for these jobs can be at least
partially attributed to the fact that, unlike the highest paid
occupations, they do not typically require high levels of education,
technical skills. In some cases, automation of these jobs is also
partially to blame.
Pay is among the most important factors for
individuals looking for a job. According to a recent Glassdoor survey,
more than two-thirds of people consider compensation one of their
primary considerations when accepting a job.
While a high salary
may attract job-seekers to particular positions, once they are in the
job, pay is by no means the primary driver of employee satisfaction. Culture and values, career
opportunities, and trust in senior leadership are the biggest drivers of
employee satisfaction.
edited from USA Today
You can also watch this TED Talk by clicking on the Play Button
