December 1, 2000

Harvey Nichols PLC, which owns one of London's most expensive department stores, says first-half profit rose 12 percent, to $6.5 million, as it adds more designer brands from United States and Italy (S)

Article in series, Medicine Merchants, describes Indian pharmaceutical company that manufactures slightly altered versions of drugs developed and marketed by Western companies, selling them for far less; under Indian law, only manufacturing processes, not products themselves, are covered by patents; that enables Indian drug companies such as Cipla Ltd to boldy reverse-engineer best-selling drugs and sell copies cheaply; Y K Hamied, Cipla's managing director, boasts that he makes every Pfizer product; Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA), which represents United States industry, calls India's licensing practices 'infamous' and says experience of some American drug makers has been so negative that most companies have abandoned efforts to obtain or enforce patents in India; PhRMA study finds losses in India were $69 million a year, just for 20 common knockoff drugs; one expert puts total loss figure for India at $100 million a year; photos (L)

Panic over mad cow disease that began in France weeks ago is spreading through Europe; number of cases remains minuscule compared with epidemic that hit Britain in mid-1980's, but disease has spread; more than 100 cases have been reported this year, against 31 last year, though expanded testing could have contributed to higher numbers; concern also increased after suspect meat got onto supermarket shelves and after television documentary showed for first time the human form of disease in French victim; fears were further heightened after news that Germany and Spain discovered their first cases; cross-country concern is leading countries to try to outdo each other in what they could ban; European Union proposes to remove from food chain all cows over age of 30 months that have not been tested and expanding current ban on meat and bone meal in feed from cattle to all livestock; but Union is unlikely to be able to do anything about spontaneous protests and consumer fear (M)

Birthrates have soared at many hospitals in New York region in last year, especially in recent months; deliveries are up as much as 15 percent over last year at some hospitals; even hospitals where birthrates have been relatively flat for most of year report that October and November were especially busy; many directors of obstetrics departments are puzzled; some suggest millennial madness; others note that Year of the Dragon, which began in February, is considered great one in which to have baby among Chinese and Korean immigrants; still others suspect that people with money who would have left city in other eras are now staying and having children, due to booming economy; it is not clear whether apparent mini-boom has extended to suburbs; photo (M)

European Union passes rules that will allow consumers to sue in their own country an online retailer based in another union country; European officials argue that such a consumer right is essential to help get e-commerce off the ground in Europe (M)