It Loves
To
Winter
In
.
Florida, Too.
44
. • . • • :
N
/""is.t.I
Compiled by Steve Stein
Wherever your travels take you, from Boca Raton to Key Biscayne, take along
the Midwest Guaranty Bank ATM card and never pay transaction fees.
The "No Fees" ATM card from Midwest Guaranty. Don't fly South without it.
Beverly Hills/Birmingham
32800 Southfield Rd.
(At 14 Mile)
(810) 647-5900
Troy-Main Office/Columbia Center
201 West Big Beaver Road
(West of Livernois)
(810) 689-1200
Livonia
33897 5 Mile Rd.
(West of Farmington)
(313) 522-0900
WEIGHT WATCHERS of
South Texas, the fifth-largest
Weight Watchers franchise in
the country, has reappointed
Stone, August, Baker Communi-
cations Companies (SABCC) of
Trdy as its marketing services
agency.
SABCC was Weight Watchers
of South Texas' agency from
1983-93. For the past 15 years,
SABCC has represented W W
Group of Farmington Hills,
Weight Watchers' largest fran-
chisee.
SABCC also represents
Weight Watchers of the Mid-
South and Weight Watchers of
Washington, D.C.
HEAR MUSIC has opened a
retail store at the Somerset Col-
lection in Troy.
Founded in 1989 as a mail-or-
der catalogue, Hear Music
opened its first store hi Berkeley,
Calif., in 1992. It now has two
other stores — one in Westport,
Conn., and the other at the Som-
erset Collection.
Hear Music says its stores are
a 3-D version of its catalogue. The
stores feature many Cds by un-
known artists and places where
customers can listen to Cds on
headphones.
Growth Spurt
MIDWEST
GUARANTYE-ICBANK
Israel's emerging market is becoming more
inviting for foreign investors.
Member FDIC • Member Federal Reserve System
CHARLES R. MAURICE SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS - •
0
• CIGARETTES • CIGARS • PIPES
• TOBACCOS • LIGHTERS • ACCESSORIES
SMOKY'S GUARANTEE!
We Will Beat Any Competitors Coupon or Price
We Accept All Manufacturer's Coupons
WE ALSO CARRY ITS A BOY &
ITS A GIRL CIGARS
OPEN: MON.-SAT. 9-8 • SUN. 11-4
ioucco
2727 WOODWARD, BERKLEY • 546-8431
3 Blocks South of 12 Mile
LIVONIA • (313) 513-2622
COMING SOON AUBURN HILLS
• HUPMAN • ASHTON • ZINO
• TE-AMO • GRIFFIN • ALIADOS
• BERING • CUESTA REY
• CENTENNIAL • PARTACAS
• SMOKY'S CHOICE • DUNHILL
• ARTURO FUENTO
L
ligt4 Rola:
805 East Maple
SINCE 1892
■
Birmingham
■
j
647-9090
Find It All In
The Jewish News
Classifieds
Call 354-5959
ne of the exciting develop-
ments over the past decade
has been the rapid growth
of the stock markets of de-
veloping countries. Since the be-
ginning of 1994, The Economist,
the respected weekly magazine,
has been including Israel in its
regular survey of emerging mar-
kets.
There is no conclusive defini-
tion of what constitutes an
emerging market. One definition
includes only those markets
which have started the process
of expansion of their economy
in terms of increased capacity
and technological sophistica-
tion.
Another uses a broader defin-
ition which embraces all devel-
oping countries, based on the
underlying assumption that all
have the potential for economic
growth in the near future.
The World Bank has adopted
the broader definition of emerg-
ing markets, i.e. sweeping inclu-
sion of all developing countries.
It bases its definition on Gross
National Product (GNP) per capi-
ta. Thereby, the World Bank con-
siders countries with low or
moderate per capita income ($636
to $7,910) to be emerging
economies.
Can the definition of an emerg-
ing economy be applied to Israel?
Because Israel's economy has
been growing at a high rate for a
number of years, it meets the cen-
tral criterion of most definitions.
Charles R. Maurice is employed
by Marathon Investment in
Israel.
On the other hand, per-capita in-
come stands at about $13,000
and this positive fact prevents Is-
rael from formally being consid-
ered an emerging market.
The international investor
seeks investment opportunities
with strong and long-term po-
tential for growth — and profit.
From this perspective, Israel is
highly attractive to the foreign
investor.
This is similar to how Hong
Kong and Singapore are regard-
ed; significant emerging markets
in spite of the high per-capita in-
come ($19,000 and $17,000 re-
spectively).
Like many of the emerging
markets, Israel suffered hyper-
inflation during the early 1980s.
The first goal, of course, was rein-
ing in inflation by drastic reduc-
tion of the budget deficit and the
capital market.
These processes gave birth to
a string of economic reforms in
the shares and bond markets,
in taxation, foreign currency and
privatization of state-owned
companies, as well as institu-
tional savings, insurance, super-
vision and regulatory authorities,
limitation of monopolies and
more.
From the reformation phase of
the second half of the 1980s, the
Israeli economy entered into A
rapid-growth phase in the early
1990s which was amplified by the
waves of immigration from the
former Soviet Union.
Today, a third phase is in full
swing; rapid growth which is be-
ing nourished by the peace
process and the change in Israel's