In any industry, whether in the industrial countries or international, whether produced goods or services, competition rules included in the competition five factors, namely the influx of new immigrants, the threat of product substitution, the bargaining power of buyers, the bargaining power of suppliers and competition among the competitors there (Porter, 1985).
Entry includes obstacle-economic scale, product differentiation, brand identity, switching costs suppliers, capital needs, access to distribution networks, absolute cost advantages, government policies and resistance from the company. The power supplier differentiation is determined by the entries, the cost to switch suppliers from suppliers and companies in the industry, the input substitution, the concentration of suppliers, the importance of the volume of sales for suppliers, the cost relative to the total purchase in the industry, the impact of input cost or differentiation and integration threat to the future relative against the threat of integration to the back by the company in the industry. Determinants of the threat of product substitution of price and performance product substitution, the cost to switch suppliers and buyers to the trend of substitute products. Determinants of the strength of buyers includes purchaser concentration compared with the concentration of the company, the volume of purchase, the cost to switch suppliers from the buyers relative to the cost to switch suppliers from the company, information, buyers, and the ability to perform reverse integration, product substitution, the purchase price, product differentiation, brand identity, the impact of quality, the profit incentive buyers and decision makers. While the determinants of competition among companies that there is a growth industry, fixed costs, excess capacity, product differentiation, brand identity, switching costs suppliers, concentration and balance, motley competitors, betting corporation and exit barriers.
If the five factors determine the strength and they merely a function only of the characteristics instrinsik industry, competitive strategy will be dependent on the selection of appropriate indistri and understanding of the fifth factor is better than its competitors. Thus, the benefits can not compete understood if we do not see a company as a whole. Excellence comes from a competitive range of activities undertaken in the company to design, create, distribute, promote and market the products. In each of these activities can affect the relative cost position of the company and create the basis for differentiation. Strategy costs and benefits of differentiation strategies seek competitive advantages in a wide variety of industries, while pursuing strategies focus on the benefits of cost (the cost of focus) or differentiation (focus on differentiation) in a narrow segment.
Industry Environment
Best Sukuk Bank (Global Finance Award 2008) : Kuwait Finance House
Kuwait Finance House
Kuwait Finance House (KFH) was established in the State of Kuwait in 1977, as the first bank operating in accordance with the Islamic Shari’a. KFH is listed in Kuwait Stock Exchange (KSE), with a market capitalization of KD 3.133 billion as of 31 December 2006. Assets total KD 6.314 billion and deposits amount to KD 3.730 billion, representing 25% of the total deposits in the Kuwaiti market as per the balance sheet of 2006.
KFH has been highly rated by prestigious international agencies. Standard & Poor’s rated KFH A-/A2 for short and long term investments, respectively. Capital Intelligence rated KFH A/A1 for short and long term investments, respectively. Fitch International also rated KFH A, and Moody’s rating was Aa3. KFH has been awarded by The Banker magazine as the world’s Best Islamic Financial Institution, and for third successive year it has been awarded by EuroMoney magazine as the best bank.
KFH provides a wide range of Islamic Shari’a compliant products and services, covering banking, real estate, trade finance, investment portfolios, and other products and services.
Since the 1980’s, KFH has witnessed multi-activity in international expansion. It has established independent banks in Turkey, Bahrain, and Malaysia. Moreover, it has stakes in other Islamic banks. Its investment activities in the US, Europe, South East Asia and the Middle East contributed tremendously to achieving the ever-growing profit of KFH, in collaboration with the world’s leading companies and banks, such as Citibank, Deutsche Bank JP Morgan, Chase, BNP Parisbas, ABN Amro, HSBC, and Islamic Development Bank (IDB).
KFH has always endeavored to expand its local branch network, covering 42 branches, in addition to special sections for ladies. It adopts the out-of-branch client concept. KFH has maintained its foothold as a pioneering entity in utilizing the latest technologies to meet the requirements of the various activities in which it operates, using online, SMS, as well as phone service (Allo Baitak), which has received the highest accreditation from the US Purdue University for outstanding customer service level.
KFH is proud of its manpower skills. It employs a number of outstanding human resources, and is a pioneer in manpower Kuwaitization, where Kuwaiti manpower exceeded 52%.
Obama Favored in Key Muslim Countries
Gallup Polls conducted in May-August 2008 in six predominantly Muslim countries show that public interest in who wins the U.S. presidential election ranges from comparatively high in Saudi Arabia and Lebanon to very low in Pakistan. Those who do express a preference tend to prefer Democratic candidate Barack Obama to Republican candidate John McCain by margins of at least 2-to-1.
Attributable to the historic nature of the 2008 U.S. presidential race and presumed foreign policy differences between Obama and McCain, the conventional wisdom is that the race has generated unprecedented levels of interest worldwide. Yet only in Saudi Arabia and Lebanon do majorities of those Gallup polled voice a preference for a presidential candidate. In Saudi Arabia, more than two-thirds of those polled do so, with 50% preferring Obama versus 19% for McCain. This is similar to Lebanon, where 45% favor Obama versus 18% for McCain.
Fewer than half of Palestinians and Kuwaitis voice a preference for Obama or McCain, however, as do just 30% of Turks. In each of these countries, the margin of preference for Obama among those who do state a preference is about 3-to-1. Among Palestinians, where 33% favor Obama compared to 11% for McCain, the bulk of those who offer an opinion live in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, with few Gaza residents stating a preference.
Interestingly, the 10% of Pakistanis who express an opinion about the election are evenly split in their preferences between Obama and McCain. Pakistanis’ disinterest is noteworthy considering the high-profile nature of Pakistan’s relationship with the United States.
The Obama Factor
In each of the six countries surveyed a majority of those who do say the winner of the U.S. presidential election makes a difference to their country favor Obama. There is little evidence that people in the Muslim world view Obama in the context of his father’s religious origins in Kenya, as the Arab media only typically mention this connection when there has been a stir about it in the U.S. media. For the most part, the Arab media simply portray Obama as an American.
Perceived Relevance of U.S. Election
Across the six Muslim countries surveyed, the percentage of respondents who say the outcome of the election makes a difference to their country ranges from a high of 42% in Lebanon to a low of 10 % in Pakistan.
Though country variations can’t be pinned to a single factor, the presence of U.S. troops in Iraq and other Muslim countries — as well as the possibility of an impending conflict with Iran — make the perceived lack of relevance across all six countries somewhat surprising. However, among the majorities who say either the outcome of the election does not make a difference to their country or did not express an opinion on the issue, the default reaction may be to simply expect foreign policy as usual — whichever candidate is elected, reported by Jihad Fakhreddine
Survey Methods
Results based on face-to-face interviews with 1,150 Saudis, aged 15 and older, conducted in May 2008; 1,000 Lebanese, aged 15 and older, conducted in May 2008; 804 Pakistanis, aged 15 and older, conducted in June 2008; 1,004 Turks, aged 15 and older, conducted in July 2008; 1,000 Palestinians, aged 15 and older, conducted in August 2008; and 484 Kuwaiti nationals, aged 15 and older, conducted in June 2008, For results based on the total sample of national adults in each survey, one can say with 95% confidence that the maximum margin of sampling error is ±5 percentage points. In addition to sampling error, question wording and practical difficulties in conducting surveys can introduce error or bias into the findings of public opinion polls.
Integration lessons for Berlin Imams
Germany’s politics, history and way of life are the focus of a pilot program for Berlin Muslim Imams.
BERLIN Germany’s politics, history and way of life are the focus of a pilot program for Berlin Muslim Imams, which aims at equipping the Muslim scholars with the tools to help their community integrate in the mainstream German society.
“In today’s world, imams are no longer just asked for advice on religious issues,” Berlin Integration Commissioner Guenter Piening told Reuters.
“They are also quizzed about mundane, everyday life,” he added.
About 25 imams from all over the capital have registered so far to join the voluntary pilot program which started this week.
The goal of the program is to make the Muslim leaders better informed about the ways of life in the country they live in.
The program was initiated and developed by the Islam Forum Berlin, an organization established in 2005 with the aim of improving the relationship between Muslims and non-Muslims in the city.
Germany’s federal government and the European Union are funding the Berlin pilot scheme.
During the course, which has two lessons per week, imams will get sessions about the German history and society.
In addition, participants will visit the Bundestag lower house of parliament and engage in discussions on Germany’s democratic political system.
Germany has some 2,250 imams who tend to receive their theological schooling abroad because their training is not available in Germany.
About 800 imams in Germany are from Turkish origin.
* Positive
German officials affirm that the program is so far met with welcome from the Muslim community and the bigger society.
“We’ve received a very positive response from both religious and non-religious communities,” Piening said.
He added that other federal states have even expressed interest in establishing similar programs for imams in their cities.
For the Muslim leaders, taking part in the course would help their community to blend in the mainstream society.
“I was motivated to join the program because imams have a huge responsibility these days,” said Suat Oezkan, one of the participant imams.
Oezkan, who used to work as a television presenter in his homeland Turkey, believes that educating programs like the Berlin course help breaking down barriers and eventually help better understanding between different communities.
“The program offers a lot of support and is a wonderful way of creating more transparency between people from all religions.”
Germany is home to some 3.2 million Muslims in a population of 82 million, making Europe’s second-biggest Muslim population after France.
Islam comes third in Germany after Protestant and Catholic Christianity.
Source: IslamOnline
What is Paypal
PayPal is an e-commerce business allowing payments and money transfers to be made through the Internet. PayPal serves as an electronic alternative to traditional paper methods such as cheques and money orders.
PayPal is a type of person-to-person (P2P) payment service. A P2P payment service allows anyone with an e-mail address to transfer funds electronically to someone else with an e-mail address. The initiator of an electronic funds transfer via PayPal must first register with and fund their PayPal account. A PayPal account can be funded with a check or money order, an electronic debit from a bank account or by a credit card. The recipient of a PayPal transfer can either request a check from PayPal, establish their own PayPal deposit account or request a transfer to their bank account. PayPal is an example of a payment intermediary service that facilitates worldwide e-commerce.
PayPal performs payment processing for online vendors, auction sites, and other commercial users, for which it charges a fee. It sometimes also charges a transaction fee for receiving money (a percentage of the amount sent plus an additional fixed amount). The fees charged depend on the currency used, the payment option used, the country of the sender, the country of the recipient, the amount sent and the recipient’s account type. [1] On October 3, 2002, PayPal became a wholly owned subsidiary of eBay.[2] Its corporate headquarters are in San Jose, California, United States at eBay’s North First Street satellite office campus. The company also has significant operations in Omaha, Nebraska; Scottsdale, Arizona; and Austin, Texas in the U.S.; India; Dublin, Ireland; and Berlin, Germany, and now also in Tel-Aviv, Israel after PayPal acquired an Israeli startup called FraudSciences for $169 million.[ As of July 2007, across Europe, PayPal also operates as a Luxembourg-based bank.
source:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PayPal
