Lessons from Japan: Not all companies sink in hard times

Japan and its stock market have been a tough sell for the better part of two decades - and with good reason. Nearly a generation after the collapse of its property and market bubbles in the late 1980s, the country remains hobbled by soaring deficits, debt and periodic bouts of deflation and despair. There was a time when economists regarded Japan as an anomaly among developed countries - a thankfully rare example of what can happen when timid politicians face an overwhelming financial and economic crisis armed with ineffective policies and an unwillingness or inability to tackle contentious fiscal, banking and market reforms.

German President Wulff quits

German President Christian Wulff has announced his resignation, after prosecutors called for his immunity to be lifted. An ally of Chancellor Angela Merkel, Mr Wulff, 52, stepped down over corruption claims involving a dubious home loan. He denies any wrongdoing. The scandal surrounding Mr Wulff escalated in December. At the centre of the row is the story - first published by the Bild newspaper - that Mr Wulff received a low interest 500,000 euro loan (£417,000; $649,000) from the wife of a wealthy businessman in October 2008. There were also corruption allegations against Mr Wulff, involving receiving political favours and free holidays from business executives. Wulff is the second German president to quit in less than two years, forcing Merkel to find a fresh candidate with cross- party support for the largely ceremonial post.  Mrs Merkel cancelled a visit to Italy on Friday to deal with the crisis, and said she regretted that he had quit. She said Mr Wulff was convinced he had "acted legally correctly" but was "stepping back from the office, from service to our people". Germany's political parties will now seek to agree on a new candidate for president, she said. Read more: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-17072479

VOCABULARY

1.       Resignation (n) - when you officially announce that you have decided to leave your job or an organization, or a written statement that says you will be leaving 

2.       Prosecutors (n) - a lawyer who is trying to prove in a court of law that someone is guilty of a crime

3.       Immunity (n) - the state or right of being protected from particular laws or from unpleasant things

4.       Ally (n) - someone who helps and supports you when other people are trying to oppose you

5.       Dubious (adj.) - probably not honest, true, right

6.       Scandal (n) - an event in which someone, especially someone important, behaves in a bad way that shocks people

7.       Escalated (v) -  it becomes much worse

8.       Allegations (n) - a statement that someone has done something wrong or illegal, but that has not been proved

9.       Cross-party (adj.) – interaction between 2 or more political parties

10.   Regret (v) - to feel sorry about something you have done and wish you had not done it

QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION

1.       What is corruption? What can you say about corruption in your country?

2.       Comment about Presidents resigning because of corruption.

3.       Have you been to Germany? Share what you know about Germany.

4.       Do you read news about politics? Why?

5.       Discuss about politics in your country.