At issue is the feasibility of establishing a branch of ABC Cosmetics
             Co. in the country of Spain within the next year. In order to make an
             informed determination as to whether this is a viable business decision, we
             will examine Spain's geography, demographics, political and social
             structure, culture, business climate, economics and potential.
             Subsequently, we will develop recommendations in accordance with our
             Spain is located in Southwestern Europe, bordering the Bay of Biscay,
             the Mediterranean Sea, the North Atlantic Ocean and the Pyrenees Mountains
             which are situated along the Southwest of France. According to the CIA
             World Factbook's 2003 estimates, Spain's population is broken down by age
             |Age Range |Percent|Males |Females |
             |0-14 years |14.4% |2,985,705 |2,808,791 |
             |15-64 years |68% |13,721,053 |13,626,121 |
             |65 + |17.6% |2,962,646 |4,113,097 |
             Although at first blush it seems good news that the majority of the
             population is of the cosmetics consumerism age, the even better news is
             that the cosmetics industry is broadening to include baby care products and
             anti-aging products, making the entire population in one sense a potential
             As for U.S./Spanish relations, both countries are NATO allies as well
             as developed democracies. Spain has historically been one of the largest
             export markets for the United States (the U.S. had a $2 billion trade
             surplus with Spain in 2001), and Spain has been an ally in the war on
             terrorism since the September 11th attacks. That's the good news. The bad
             news is, U.S. firms pay higher duties than its European and Japanese
             counterparts, giving the U.S. exporter a competitive disadvantage.
             However, this can be augmented with lower production costs if economies of
             The U.S. is the number one supplier of cosmetics to Spain outside of
             Europe, and fifth including the European nation...