Starbuck Corp reported better-than-expected quarterly profit but global sales at established coffee shops

fell short of analysts’ estimates due to weakness in Europe, sending its shares down five percent in after-
hours trade on Thursday.

Sales from caffes open at least 13 months fell 1 percent in the Europe, the Middle East and Africa
(EMEA) region during the latest quarter. Analysts polled by Consensus Metrix had expected a 2.2
percent rise in EMEA same-store sales.

Executives attributed the drop to weakness in Europe, which suffered its first decline in same-store since
2009.

Sales fell in Ireland and Germany during the fiscal second quarter and were up just slightly in France and
the United Kingdom, Starbucks Chief Financial Officer Troy Alstead said.

Europe has been a weak spot for the world’s biggest coffee chain. The region is grappling with debt woes
and austerity measures and, earlier this week, Britain said its economy had fallen into its second recession
since the financial crisis.

“The situation is very, very tough,” Chief Executive Howard Schultz said of Europe’s economy.

“We will turn the Europe business around in the same way we turned the U.S. business around” Schultz
told analysts on a conference call.
TOPIC : Starbucks’ difficulties in Europe

STEP 1 – Read the following article : READING COMPREHENSION ARTICLE 8

STEP 2 – Answer these questions ( choose the best answer):

1. What happened to Starbucks’ shares after that their quarterly profits failed to meet analysis’ estimates?
A. They rose by 5%
B. They plunged by 5%
C. They rose by 10%
2. “Quarterly profits” refer to profits during how many months?
A. Three
B. Four
C. Six
3. According to the article, in which European countries did Starbucks’ NOT see a slight increase in
sales?
A. The United Kingdom
B. Ireland
C. France
4. According to the article, .................. are/is to blame for Starbucks’ woes in Europe
A. Europe’s financial troubles
B. European disdain for American coffee
C. The availability of many other good cafes
5. Has Starbucks always struggled in Europe?
A. No
B. The article doesn’t specify
C. Yes
General Motors Co will build the next generation of its Astra compact in Britain after workers at its
factory in Ellesmere Port, northwest England, overwhelmingly agreed to a new labouur deal, leaving its
plant in Bochum, Germany in danger of closure.

The U.S. carmaker said on Thursday it would invest 125 million pounds in the Ellesmere Port plant,
where assembly of the new vehicle will start in 2015.

Britain’s Unite union said 94 percent of those balloted voted in favour of changes to working conditions
and that some 700 jobs would be created at the plant, securing its future until 2020.

“It’s almost certain that one of GM’s German plants will now be closed, probably the plant in Bochum” a
source close to the negotiations said.

GM, which sells under the Vauxhall brand in Britain, is expected to halt production of the Astra, its most
important model, at its main plant in Russelsheim, Germany, making the car only at Ellesmere Port and at
Poland’s Gliwice plant from 2015.

The source added that some production of GM’s Chevrolet marque could be shifted from Asia to Europe,
with Russelsheim the likely beneficiary. This would leave the Opel factory at Bochum as the most likely
site to be closed.

The decision is one of the most dramatic so far as Europe’s carmakers look to restructure or consolidate in
response to more than four years of falling demand and profits.

Many factories are running at partial capacity – analysts estimate automakers have cut some 3 million
cars, or 20 percent, from their production lines- and still producers struggle to sell their wares.
TOPIC : GM to close plant in Germany

STEP 1 – Read the following article : READING COMPREHENSION ARTICLE 1

STEP 2 – Answer these questions ( choose the best answer):

1. According to the article, which GM plant will likely be closed?

A. The plant in Russelsheim, Germany
B. The plant in Ellesmere Port, England
C. The plant in Bochum, Germany
2. The article states that from 2015, the Astra will no longer be produced in .......
A. Gliwice, Poland
B. Russelsheim, Germany
C. Ellesmere Port, England
3. Does GM own the Vauxhall brand?
A. Yes
B. No
C. It’s not specified in the article
4. How many years of falling demand and profits has GM seen, according to the article?
A. Three
B. Four
C. Two
5. The workers at GM’s UK plant ....................
A. Will soon be voting on a new labor contract
B. Rejected a proposed labor contract
C. Agreed to a new labor contract
Lockheed Martin Corp (LMT.N) hass won $237 million in etra funding for a fourth batch of F-35 Joint
Strike Fighters to account for changes to the hardware and software of the stealthy, supersonic new
warplanes, the Pentagon said on Monday.

The modified contract increases the cap on retrofits needed on early production planes due to issues that
arose in testing, which is still continuing, the U.S. Defense Department said in a daily listing of contract
awards.

Lockheed said the change would enable the Defense Department to pay for certain changes they want
incorporated into the new jets, up to the new cap. Lockheed is responsible for any additional costs beyond
the agreed cap.

The Pentagon projects it will cost $397 billion to develop and buld three variants of the plane for the U.S.
military, a total of 2,447 planes. Eight partner countries also share in the development costs.

The U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee will hold a hearing on the new warplane, the Pentagon’s
costliest weapons program, on Tuesday afternoon.

Vice Admiral David Venlet, who runs the program for the U.S. government, is expected to provide an
update on the program and Several technical issues, including problems with the helmet worn by F-35
pilots, and the tailhook that helps stop the aircraft carrier variant of the plane.
TOPIC : Lockheed Martin gets extra funding to build jets

STEP 1 – Read the following article: READING COMPREHENSION ARTICLE 7

STEP 2 – Answer these questions ( choose the best answer):

1. What will be the total cost of building all the planes that the article mentions?
A. Almost $400 million
B. Almost $240 million
C. Almost $400 billion
2. What is one of the technical issues mentioned in the article?
A. There’s a problem with the glass
B. There’s a problem with the pilot’s helmet
C. There’s a problem with faulty readings
3. How many other countries will share in the development costs of the airplanes?
A. Nine
B. Seven
C. Eight
4. The changes on the airplanes will focus on ..................
A. Both software and hardware
B. Software
C. Hardware
5. How does this program compare to the Pentagon’s other weapons programs?
A. It is more classified
B. It is more expensive
C. It costs less than the other ones
Apple Inc plans to use a larger screen on the next-geeration iPhone and has begun to place orders for the
new displays from suppliers in South Korea and Japan, people familiar with the situation said on
Wednesday.

The new iPhone screens will measure 4 inches from corner to corner, one source said. That would
represent a roughly 30 percent increases in viewing area, assuming Apple keeps other dimensions
proprtional. Apple has used a 3,5 inch screen since Introducing the iPhone in 2007.

Early production of the new screens has begun at three suppliers: Korea’s LG Display CO Ltd, Sharp
Corp and Japan Display Inc, a Japanese government-brokered merger combining the screen production of
three companies.
TOPIC : Apple to increase screen size on Iphones

STEP 1 – Read the following article: READING COMPREHENSION ARTICLE 2

STEP 2 – Answer these questions ( choose the best answer ) :

1. How many different suppliers will most likely be involved in the production of Apple’s new Iphone
screens?
A. Three
B. Two
C. Four
2. Are all the suppliers in Japan?
A. Yes
B. No
C. Yes, but there might be another supplier in Singapore
3. According to the article, who is Apple competing against?
A. Nokia
B. LG
C. Samsung
4. Why are companies making bigger display screens?
A. Because big screens are fashionable
B. Because consumers are using phones for things they used to do on their laptops
C. Because bigger screens makes dialing easier
5. How much bigger will Apple’s new screen be, compared to the old one?
A. 30%
B. 4 inches
C. 3,5 inches
 IMPROVING READING SKILLS
1. Annotating

Annotating, both a reading and a study skills activity, is done by making brief notes in the margin of a
text. When you have material for you to read – whether they are articles, essays, or short stories—keeping
a pencil in your hand and annotating the ideas as you read has two advantages: 1) the notes force you to
pay attention to what the writer is saying, thereby improving your concetration, and, 2) they help you
follow the direction of the writer’s thoughts.

Annotating is not the same as highlighting or underlining words with a magic marker pen. Many students
rely on this neon yellow or pink pens as a study aid when they read textbooks; however, most reading
instructors discourage this practice because such marks actually delay learning. Marking your text only
tells you that the material is important to learn – some day! Further, highlighting is a passive activity,
meaning that you are not actively involved with the text. Careful annotating, in contrast, allows you both
to read actively and to pull out the essential ideas in the same time.

When you annotate, you use your own words as much as possible, the first step when you write
summaries. You can devise any system for annotating that appeal to you. Play around with symbols and
other marks until you come up with a system that works for you. Again, remember to use a pencil, not a
magic marker pen.

Finally, be sure to keep your notations neat and brief. You don’t want to clutter up the margin with too
many notes or with words you can’t read in a few weeks. Annotate only the main idea and importan
supporting details, not unimportant or renforcing details.

Suggestion for Annotating

Main idea or thesis of the selection
Key supporting idea
Words, phrases, or sentences you don’t understand
Interesting ideas, perhaps an idea for future paper
Vucabulary words you look up before you read the
selection again
Underline, restate in your own words, and write
Main Idea in the margin
Restate in your own wordds and write Supporting
Details in the margin
Write “?” in the margin. The question mark will
help you quickly identify ideas you want to ask
Mark with a star or some other symbol you devise
Underline and mark with “V” or “voc”
Practicing exercise

The key to productive meetings is careful planning of purpose participants, agenda, and
location. You want to bring the right people together in the right place for just enough to
accomplish your goals. Virginia Johnson of 3M haps warns the biggest mistake in holding
meetings is not having a specific goal. So, before you call a meeting, satisfy yourself that one
is truly needed. Perhaps your purpose doesn’t require the interacting of a group, or maybe you
could communicate more effectively in a memo or through individual conversations.
In general, the purpose of a meeting is either informational or decision making, although many
meetings combine both purposes. An informational meeting is called so that the participants
can share information and, possibly, coordinate actions. This type of meeting may involve
individual briefings by each participant or a speech by the leader followed by questions from
the attendees. Decision-making meetings are mainly concerned with persuasion, analysis, and
problem solving. They often include a brainstorming session that is followed by a debate on
the alternatives. These meetings tend to be somewhat less predictable than informational
meetings. When planning a decision-making meeting, remember that your purpose is to
develop a course of action that the group can support. Therefore, each participant must be
aware of the nature of the problem and criteria for its solution
Children attach meanings to sounds long before they shed their diapers. They launch into
grammatical analysis before they can tie their shoes. And by the age of 3, most produce
sentences as readily as laughter or tears.
Scholars have bickered for centuries over how kids accomplish this feat ( learn to talk), but
most now agree that their brains are wired for the task.Like finches or sparrows, which learn
to sing as hatchings or not at all, we’re designed to acquire certain kinds of knowledge at
particular stages of development. Children surrounded by words almost always become
fluent by 3, whatever their general intelligence. And people deprived of language rarely
master it as adults, no matter how smart they are or how intensively they are trained. As MIT
linguist Steven Pinker observes in his acclaimed 1994 book The Language Instict,
“Language is not cultural artifact that we learn the way we learn to tell time or how the
federal government works. It is a distinct piece of (our) biological make up.” Whether they
emerge speaking Spanish, Czech, or Hindi, kids all acquire language on the same general
schedule. And as a a growing body of research makes clear, they all travel the same
remarkable path.