Davos, Switzerland (CNN) – Mark Spelman, head of strategy at Accenture, says emerging markets are spurring innovation.

“I can point to retailers and consumer goods companies who I think are bringing innovation to many emerging markets, through supply chains, through the way they’re addressing consumer preferences in local markets,” he told CNN’s John Defterios.

“But at the same time, you’re seeing a lot of innovation taking place in emerging markets,” he added. “Look at Indonesia, with 50% of the population under 29, real innovation using social media, and that’s going to be leveraged elsewhere.”
FULL POST

Davos, Switzerland (CNN) – “Bazooka” is competing for word of the year so far. As in, Europe needs to bring out its big bazooka to deal with the debt crisis in which it has been embroiled for nearly two years now.

Mexican President Felipe Calderon, head of the G20 group of countries, brandished the word with gusto at the World Economic Forum in Davos, declaring “we need to take out the bazooka immediately before the powder gets wet.”

Calderon compared the European situation to the economic crisis in Mexico in 1995. That crisis – referred to as “the first financial crisis of the twenty-first century” – exploded after a boom time and the influx of capital. The country was then bailed by the International Monetary Fund, and another country’s money – in this case the U.S. So far, so familiar.

Calderon pointed to the return of confidence that followed the international aid package, noting the same needed to occur in Europe. “The problem is not the money, the problem is the confidence,” he said.

FULL POST

Davos, Switzerland (CNN) – Indian IT giant Wipro is expanding globally to avoid feeling the heat of any slowdown in its top markets – primarily the United States and Europe. But Wipro Chairman Azim Premji said he is not worried about the pace at which those economies are recovering.

“Irrespective of all the slowdown you hear about vis-a-vis the global economy as far as IT is concerned demand is still strong, particularly for global partnering,” Premji told CNN’s John Defterios.

“I think partly it is determined by the fact that U.S. companies are full of cash flow, they’ve established relationships and are growing relationships with global companies, and they’re willing to invest in transformational projects, keep-the-lights-on projects,” he added. FULL POST

(CNN) - The delegates’ energy levels may be flagging, but there’s still plenty to get excited about on day three of the World Economic Forum, which begins with a report from the crucible of the Arab Spring by Hamadi Jebali, Prime Minister of Tunisia.

Jebali will then join Moroccan Prime Minister Abdelilah Benkirane and Egyptian presidential candidates Abdel Moneim Aboul Fotouh and Amre Moussa for a discussion of the future of governance in North Africa.

Israeli Deputy Prime Minister Ehud Barak will join Yukiya Amano, Director-General of the International Atomic Energy Agency, for an interactive session on how the world would respond to the news that Iran had successfully developed a nuclear weapon. And the heads of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and the United Nations World Food Program, Angel Gurria and Josette Sheeran, will join Sweden’s Minister of Finance, Anders Borg, for a televised debate on an issue which has been at the very heart of Davos 2012: fixing capitalism. FULL POST

Davos, Switzerland (CNN) - To hear the European leaders in Davos you would think the eurozone crisis had only just occurred and there was an urgency to deal with it hitherto unforeseen.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel, British Prime Minister David Cameron and European economics commissioner Olli Rehn -– just about any leader in Davos - is now saying that time is of the essence –- that it is time to actually sort out the eurozone's problems. Forgive me. What on earth have the European leaders been doing and promising over the past three years?

Map: Europe in crisis

It is strange that now as we enter a new year they believe 2012 is the right moment to actually take the necessary decisions and implement the changes. And yet they were saying similar things in 2011, in Davos. So it is entirely understandable if we are now skeptical that they have the willpower and ability to put things right. FULL POST

Davos, Switzerland (CNN) - It is perhaps not surprising that in a gathering of the elites at Davos, the issue of bankers’ bonuses is never far from the delegates’ minds.

But unlike in recent years - a time when bankers showed remorse over their high pay packets - there seem to be noises of a fight back.

Because with profits strong, the banking bonus culture is back - to the annoyance of many including the British Prime Minister David Cameron and the Governor of the Bank of England, Sir Mervyn King. FULL POST

The CEO of one of India’s leading IT companies has said that Europe remains key to his organization, despite Europe’s economic woes.

SD Shibulal, CEO of Infosys, told CNN’s John Defterios that Europe provided 23% of his company’s revenue.

“As far as we are concerned we continue to see Europe as a major market for us,” he said. “We will recruit 500 people in Europe alone in the next nine to 12 months. Europe is a good opportunity for us.”

He added that Western companies will need to innovate if they are to make the most of emerging markets. FULL POST

Sakyra, Turkey (CNN) - Turkey has in the past focussed its trade on Europe, but with Europe's growing economic woes and a new political era in the Middle East, Turkey is slowly turning its political and economic attention east.

Orhan Ozer is president and CEO of Toyota Turkey. He told CNN’s Rima Maktabi: “Turkey has lots of advantages in respect of the geographical advantages, in respect to the location of the country at the middle of Europe, Middle East – even Central Asia.”

“Also the population is young, they are very dedicated, qualified, experienced and they are very ambitious for their work,” he added
FULL POST

(CNN) - The line-up of some of the biggest names in politics and business continues on day two of the World Economic Forum, but it’s not exclusively about the rich and powerful: the worlds of art and sport get a look in as well.

The second day of the relentless Davos schedule launches with one of the world’s wealthiest men and best-known philanthropists, Microsoft founder Bill Gates, taking part in a discussion on food security. In the evening, he will return to moderate a conversation with Mexican President Felipe Calderon on the role of the G20 in tackling the global economic crisis.

Map: Europe in crisis

Facebook’s chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg will form part of a panel on the way technological advances are driving economic growth and employment, and World Bank president Robert Zoellick will feature in a session on how development can continue without destroying the ocean. Pascal Lamy, director-general of the World Trade Organization, will take part in a discussion on China’s new role as world’s lender of last resort, and how the country can best deploy its massive current account surplus and private capital without triggering a backlash. FULL POST

Ten years from now Qatar will make history as the first Middle Eastern country to host the football World Cup.

Qatar's ruling Al-Thani family has laid out a detailed strategy for its capital city, Doha, and a vision for spending the country's hydrocarbon wealth in a sustainable fashion. They see the World Cup as a key step in the region’s development.

This week on Future Cities, CNN’s Richard Quest sees how sport is the perfect economic tool to put an emerging nation on the global stage.