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CAFE Society (Contrived Acronyms For Exporters)

27 December, 2013
Posted by: International Trade News
Features

This article was published before we became the Chartered Institute of Export & International Trade on 10 July 2024, and this is reflected in references to our old brand and name. For more information about us becoming Chartered, visit our dedicated webpage on the change here.

 

CARBS - Canada, Australia, Russia

We are continuing with our export acronyms this week with help from Catriona Tippin, who runs a proofreading service Proofreading Tips and is also a writer and illustrator of children’s books.

Catriona has looked beyond the well-known BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India and China) coined by Goldman Sachs economist Jim O’Neill in 2001 to present her CAFE Society (Contrived Acronyms For Exporters) –  a veritable seasonal selection of acronyms that could be tripping off our tongues in 2014.

BRIC – Brazil, Russia, India, China

Which grew into

BRICS – with the addition of South Africa

and evolved into

BICIS – with the subtraction of Russia and the addition of Indonesia

Or there’s

IBSA – India, Brazil, South Africa

which acquired

BASIC – Brazil, South Africa, India and China

Then we have the possibly controversial

PIGS – Portugal, Italy, Greece, Spain

or

PIIGS – Portugal, Italy, Ireland, Greece, Spain

And facing different difficulties there’s

JIB – Japan, Israel, Britain

unlike

CASSH – Canada, Australia, Singapore. Switzerland, Hong Kong

CARBS – Brazil, South Africa

Something we may all have overdosed on this holiday is

CARBS – Canada. Australia, Russia, Brazil, South Africa

Then we heard about the potential in

VISTA – Vietnam, Indonesia, South Africa, Turkey, Argentina

But what about

CIVETS – Colombia, Indonesia, Vietnam, Egypt, Turkey, South Africa

….. we thought it was an animal known for its scent glands!

We wrote about this one last week

MINT – Mexico, Indonesia, Nigeria, Turkey

Finally, how about some sympathy for

CEMENT – Countries in Emerging Markets Excluded by New Terminology!

So whether you are in a JIB or feeling full in CARBS we’d like to wish you a very happy holiday from the Institute of Export.

Catriona Tippin has been a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI) since 2006 and proofreads study guides, house magazines and publicity material for two national educational charities, in addition to working on a variety of proofreads and copyedits for the growing self-published world.