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BUSINESS NEWS

HEADLINES [click on headline to view story]:
SETE of India visits TGI

US Social Security Foreign Work Test: How you can lose your U.S. Social Security retirement benefits

Dunkin Donuts

Auto Alliance total exports worth more than 1 billion bhat in April

DHL ranked ‘Above World Class’ in INSEAD 2001 report

Cooks & Chefs to join Food & Hospitality Show

TNT links with Big Six to supply logistics

SETE of India visits TGI

A delegation from the Society for Electronic Test Engineering (SETE) India, led by D.J. Hahn, the GTZ principal technical advisor of SETE, visited the Thai-German Institute during their May 13-18 tour in Thailand.

The group enjoyed authentic Indian food at the Royal India Restaurant in Pattaya with host Walter Kretschmar, the German director of TGI.

The purpose of the visit was to exchange experiences on the management of demand driven and practice oriented training institutes, as well as to discuss possible cooperation in the field of didactics, and in training programs in the area of electronic and information technology.

Participants included Dr. S.L. Sarnot, the vice chairman of SETE and the director general of STQC Delhi, P.K. Singhal, director of SETE, Mr. Chandrashekhar, director of CETE Bangalore, and Mr. Mukherjee the joint director of CETE Calcutta.

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US Social Security Foreign Work Test: How you can lose your U.S. Social Security retirement benefits

by Barbara Frew

Working, even part time, when retired overseas can mean the total loss of an American’s U.S. social security retirement benefits. The following article outlines the specifics. Americans who are already retired and those who plan to retire abroad, may find this article vitally important.

Given current demographics, many Americans, both at home and abroad, are retiring and starting to receive their U.S. Social Security retirement benefits. If a person retires before reaching what the U.S. Social Security Administration considers full retirement age (65 in 2001 rising to 67 by 2027) the government questions how retired a beneficiary actually is if they opt to work while receiving benefits. The Social Security Administration has determined that beneficiaries living in the United States are not fully retired if they earn more than $10,680 (in 2001). When that occurs the Social Security Administration reduces their retirement benefits by one dollar for every two dollars of income they earn above the limit. The limit changes to $25,000 (in 2001) during the year beneficiaries reach full retirement and they lose one dollar for every three they earn above that limit. Once a beneficiary reaches full retirement age they are considered to be retired and they receive full benefits, regardless of how much income they earn.

Social Security Administration treats Americans living overseas differently. Your benefits can be forfeited, not reduced, by work you perform while receiving benefits before reaching full retirement age. Because earnings levels vary widely from country to country the earnings limits were scrapped. Instead, if you work and pay social security taxes to your host country while receiving U.S. Social Security retirement benefits you must pass the Social Security Administration’s “foreign work test”. If you pay U.S. Social Security taxes while receiving benefits (as is possible if working for a U.S. company or affiliate in certain countries) the foreign work test will not apply to you and you will be treated like a retiree living in the United States.

Put simply, the foreign work test says that you cannot work more than 45 hours a month overseas without losing your entire monthly U.S. Social Security benefit. The 45-hour limit applies whether you are self-employed, work for someone else, or even if you took leave and did not actually work. Not only do you lose your benefits, but other family members receiving benefits on your record (called the Master Beneficiary Record) lose their benefits as well. (For details see Social Security Administration Publication No. 05-10137, Social Security—Your Payments While You Are Outside The United States.) Once you reach full retirement age you are no longer subject to the foreign work test and can receive your full benefits regardless of how many hours you work.

The foreign work test has an additional facet. Social Security Administration Publication No. 05-10137 states: “A person is considered to be working on any day he or she: … is the owner or part owner of a trade or business even if he or she does not actually work in the trade or business or receive any income from it.” This statement indicates that U.S. citizens who own businesses overseas will lose their social security benefits, whether or not they pay themselves a salary or the business is making money. According to a Social Security Administration spokesperson, the stipulation is not meant to penalize citizens who hold foreign stock as investments. Once you reach full retirement age you can own a business overseas and still receive social security benefits.

Overseas American retirees pay a potentially high cost for working before reaching full retirement age. If U.S. social security benefits will be a significant portion of your retirement income you may not want to work more than 45 hours a month or own a business until after your reach full retirement age. Should you choose to work before reaching full retirement age, be sure to seek additional compensation to cover the loss of your U.S. retirement benefits.

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Dunkin Donuts

Dunkin’s Donut (Thailand) Co., Ltd. led by president Varin Narula (3rd left), and managing director Davindersigh Banditanukul (far right), general manager of operations Chairanong Sumitpabul (far left), and senior marketing manager Pongtip Pekkasut (2nd left), recently welcomed Jack Shafer (3rd right), chief executive offer of Allied Domecq Quick Service Restaurants and his team during their business trip to Thailand at Dunkin’ donuts Siam store.

Dunkin’ Donuts Thailand is a franchise of Allied Domecq Quick Service Restaurants which operates some 5,000 stores in 40 countries throughout the world. Presently Dunkin’ Donuts Thailand has been operating throughout the country for some 19 years.

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Auto Alliance total exports worth more than 1 billion baht in April

AutoAlliance Thailand (Co.) Ltd. - the Mazda-Ford joint vehicle assembly plant located in Rayong Province - said that its vehicle exports in April 2001 reached 2,916 units, worth more than 1.094 billion baht.

Since late 1998, when AutoAlliance first started to export, total exports have reached 107,428 vehicles with earnings approaching 40 billion baht. AutoAlliance has become the second largest vehicle exporter in Thailand.

AutoAlliance’s April exports were divided between the Ford Ranger pickup (1,535 units) and the Mazda Fighter pickup (1,381 units) for a total of 2,916 units. Major export destinations are Europe, Australia, New Zealand and the Mediterranean areas.

Total vehicle exports during the first four months of this year grew 13.7% to 13,460 units compared to 11,836 units registered during the same period last year. Of the total exports, 6,662 units were Ford’s Ranger and 6,798 units were Mazda’s Fighter.

The AutoAlliance plant in Rayong has achieved ISO 9002 and ISO 10401 as well as QS 9000 standards. The company encourages all of its suppliers to achieve the same quality standards to ensure that they deliver high-quality products to the world.

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DHL ranked ‘Above World Class’ in INSEAD 2001 report

DHL International announced it was one of just two companies in the transport sector to he ranked ‘above world class’ in the latest INSEAD report ‘Measuring Competitive Fitness of Global Firms 2001’. The other company was DHL shareholder Lufthansa.

DHL’s OMEC (Overall Market Effectiveness Capability) rating of 66 means it qualifies for an ‘above world class’ ranking. This is the 4th year running DHL has been awarded this accolade.

The report ranks companies according to twelve criteria, which determine the effectiveness of a firm in its relevant markets. Criteria include Planning and Intelligence, Innovation, Performance, Technical Resources, Customer Orientation and E-business.

The report was conducted amongst 309 companies from North America and Europe across eight separate sectors: Computers & Electronics, Automobiles & Automotive, Process Industries, Other Sectors, Other Services, Pharmaceuticals & Healthcare, Consumer Goods, and Financial Services.

Marks are awarded for each criterion, giving a total possible OMEC of 100.

Other companies to he ranked ‘above world class’ include Nokia, IBM, Compaq and Oracle.

DHL general manager, Dr. Don Bhasavanich commented, “It is very encouraging to see an independent body recognizing DHL’s ability to adapt to a constantly changing business environment. As we continue to evolve and develop, I am confident DHL will continue to improve its level of business fitness to compete in the global marketplace.”

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Cooks & Chefs to join Food & Hospitality Show

The president of the Thai Chefs’ Association, Sawakit Preeprem and the general manager of Bangkok Exhibition Services Ltd., David Aitken, recently signed an agreement to organise “The Culinary Gathering of Cooks & Chefs 2001” alongside the International Food & Hospitality Show 2001 from September 12-15, 2001 at the Queen Sirikit National Convention Center.

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TNT links with Big Six to supply logistics

TNT Thailand has signed an agreem6rtt to provide logistics solutions for Thailand’s most comprehensive B2B e-procurement marketplace.

The agreement with Pantavanich Co. Ltd., the joint venture company of Bangkok Bank, Charoen Pokphand Group, Siam Cement Group, Siam Commercial Bank, TelecomAsia and United Communication Industry, will see TNT providing online delivery solutions for suppliers and buyers both domestically and globally.

TNT is renowned in the industry for its highly developed IT infrastructure and services and was selected by the venture for its advanced products, which can be integrated into any system.

“TNT has spent over $65 million on IT development in recent years and spends around five percent of its revenue on IT systems. We are leading the sector in IT logistics products and this agreement is a result of our status as a clear front-runner in this field,” said Winfried Kiesbueye, country general manager of TNT Thailand.

“This is obviously a very exciting project for us to be involved in and we are sure that we can add to the value of the e-procurement process with our advanced logistics solutions,” added Kiesbueye.

The objective of the e-Procurement project, which is scheduled to go online this year, is to provide Thai businesses with the ability to reach national and global markets, while providing secure, reliable, cost-effective, and easy-to-access e-commerce business solutions for all of its customers.

The project will allow local companies to source their supply requirements worldwide through the Internet for product categories such as computer equipment and accessories, consumables, office equipment and supplies, services and paper products.

TNT will provide the vital link to deliver the supplies using online information and traditional services, a combination that is delivering huge benefits to the company, which is now ranked in second spot in the world’s top logistics companies.

In the last 12 months, TNT has doubled its logistics business and the express business has enjoyed double-digit growth in Thailand. The company has set itself aggressive targets to capture greater market share and to leverage its global strength in the Thai market.

Kiesbueye added, “This is one of several major projects that we are now involved with and we plan to announce other new agreements within the next few months. Our targets to triple business in Thailand have been set and we aim to reach them within the shortest time span possible.”

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