Russia's grid and power plants are going cheap because they are clapped out.
Humiliated by Russia's failed war in Chechnya in 1994-96, derided around the globe for years as a clapped out bunch of incompetents, the Russian army has long been looking for a way to restore its pride and morale.
In an ageing society where many pensioners are refreshingly sprightly, the ruling party looks utterly clapped-out.
The North is supposed to want the electricity from the reactors for its clapped-out economy.
The congested and clapped-out road and rail networks cause problems not only for Poland but also for its neighbours.
Max Warburton of BernsteinResearch reckons the firm may now be generating 4-5% margins, despite its clapped-out range of models.
These are typically costly and come from clapped-out fields along ageing pipelines through unreliable transit countries, with unwelcome political conditions attached.
At the Asia-Europe Meeting, the Europeans will also be asked by South Korea to help in the larger task of rebuilding clapped-out North Korea.
Sensible regulations not only make it easier for new firms to get started, but also help established firms change direction and clapped-out firms declare bankruptcy.
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Fixed investment in 2002 grew more slowly than the year before an ominous sign given the dire need to modernise clapped-out factories, equipment and public services.
His appeal sprang from who he was: a fresh young senator offering a new direction after the clapped-out administration of George Bush and a safer pair of hands than the 72-year-old John McCain.
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But others, such as hedge funds and private-equity groups, are wary of participating in government-backed plans after witnessing the hysteria whipped up over bonus payments at American International Group (AIG), a clapped-out (and now government-controlled) insurer.
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