EoW March 2007

passport regulations. He cited the corporate blog posted 22 nd January by J Willard Marriott Jr, chairman and chief executive of Marriott International. The hotel chain chief wrote: “I’m afraid, if [the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative] is not properly implemented and communicated, that it could have a serious negative impact on legitimate commerce and tourism, as well as diplomatic relationships with our two largest trading partners – Canada and Mexico.” Mexican Tourism Secretary Rodolfo Elizondo Torres went further. As noted in the Post , he predicted that 318,000 fewer Americans would visit Mexico in the next year because of the new requirement. Quantifying his anxiety, Mr Torres said in a statement that “the lost income could reach $254 million a year.” As for the US, a 17% drop in overseas visitors since the 9/11 terrorist attacks in 2001 has cost the country more than $15 billion in lost taxes and nearly 200,000 jobs, according to a study published by the Intercontinental Hotels Group. Stevan Porter, company president and chairman of the Discover America Partnership, told Reuters in Washington (23 rd January): “Our economic security is suffering from a drastic decline in overseas travellers and we are missing an extraordinary opportunity to strengthen America’s image around the globe. We are in the midst of a travel crisis.” As a direct result of tighter security measures and stricter visa and entry requirements, the US was ranked as the country most unfriendly to visitors in a survey conducted last year of travellers from 16 nations. Of related interest . . . Lawmakers in the state of Maine on 25 th January became the first in the US to demand repeal of a federal law tightening identification requirements for drivers’ licences, a post-9/11 security measure. The Maine resolution urges repeal of the Real ID Act, which would create a national digital identification system by 2008. The lawmakers said it would cost Maine about $185 million to administer, not improve security, and put citizens of the state at greater risk of identity theft. Maine’s is the strongest stand yet by a state against the law, passed by Congress in May 2004 and giving states three years for implementation. Similar repeal measures are pending in eight other states. ❈ ❈

More restrictive security screening may dampen the US mergers and acquisitions market

The first item under ‘Steel,’ in this section, speaks of a round of cross-border deals expected to eventuate in a handful of global steel industry giants.

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EuroWire – March 2007