In 2009, because U. S. imports were $2,535 billion while exports were $2,116 billion: A. imports exceeded exports by a sizeable $419 billion.
B. there was a huge influx of foreign capital into the U. S. economy.
C. government policy caused a lessening of foreign aid.
D. exports exceeded imports by a sizeable $419 billion.

David burdick is the ceo of acme bubblegum, a successful public company. as one of the cofounders of the company, burdick has enjoyed speaking and writing about the success of acme bubblegum for several years. typically, he speaks at conferences or directly to the press, but recently, he has been blogging about his firm anonymously. specifically, he defended a recent advertising campaign that was unpopular among consumers and pointedly attacked one of acme bubblegum’s competitors. burdick deeply enjoys his anonymous blogging and believes that none of his readers actually know that he works for acme bubblegum. should burdick be allowed to praise his company’s performance anonymously online? should he be allowed to attack his competitors without disclosing his relationship with the company? how would you feel if the ceo of a company at which you shopped was secretly writing criticisms of his or her competition? how would you feel if you knew a writer for your favorite blog was actually closely involved in a company that the blog discussed? 1. define the ethical issue? 2. who are the primary stakeholders? 3. what are the possible alternatives? 4. how could you evaluate the ethical implications of the alternative actions (use appropriate decision rules)? 5. what action would you recommend and why?

Coca-cola was primarily known for its core competencies in marketing, bottling, and distributing aerated drinks. however, with the success of gatorade, coca-cola developed competencies in the development and marketing of its own sports drink, powerade. which of the following is true of coca-cola? a. it is leveraging existing core competencies to improve current market position. b. it is building new core competencies to protect and extend its current market position. c. it is redeploying and recombining existing core competencies to compete in markets of the future. d. it is targeting the chasm between the early adopter and early majority market segment.

Zara, a global retail and apparel manufacturer based in spain that has successfully implemented this idea by having a continuous flow of new products that are typically limited in supply. zara has created a system that draws its clientèle into its stores, on average, 17 times per year as compared to 4 times per year for most stores. how is zara using it to gain competitive advantage? what specific technologies are used by zara to maintain this advantage over its competition?