The Perils of Gifting in Asia!
This article shows the danger of not taking the time to research local customs. What is remarkable is this was a British Minister who really should have known better.
This story was covered world wide and shows how the wrong gift can cause lots of problems!
"A British transport minister on a trade visit to Taipei got a lesson in the perils of diplomatic gift giving Monday when she presented a pocket watch to the city's mayor -- a taboo act in Chinese culture.
Keith Lipert
Baroness Susan Kramer apologized for the inadvertently inauspicious gift -- the word for a watch or clock in Chinese sounds like "the end" and many associate it with death."
Full Article: http://www.cnn.com/2015/01/27/asia/taiwan-watch-gaffe/