A pint of Guinness and a packet of vindaloo, please

Economists like to talk about comparative advantage: the principle that each country should concentrate on the production of goods or services in which it has an inherent productive edge over other countries. We bring to your attention two stories bearing on this principle. First, in what seems like a clear invocation of the principle, Guinness has announced that it is to cease brewing the black stuff at the Park Royal brewery in London and is consolidating all brewing for the UK and Irish market in Dublin. The blow to Britain from this decision is mainly sentimental, since the multinational conglomerate that now owns Guinness, Diageo, had long since made the decision to reorient Park Royal as an office park, and the job loss is minimal. As for the Dublin brewery, it means that, as the Pope is alleged to have said about Mel Gibson's The Passion, "It is as it was," for there was a time when all Guinness was brewed here, reflecting some comparative advantage of Ireland in the production of stout.

But here's another case that is more difficult to interpret as comparative advantage. Thursday's Sun reported that brilliantly preposterous rockers The Darkness are living the cliche of the British visitors to the USA i.e. discovering that the curry isn't as good as back home, and so (it is claimed) they are shipping out the chef and staff of their favourite London curry house for the remainder of their US tour. Now, one might have thought that India has the comparative advantage in, like, Indian restaurants, but the lads are hedging their bets:

Justin [Hawkins, lead singer], who is on the road for most of the year, has tried curries all around the world. And he's more convinced than ever that we rule the curry world.

Justin added: "We've travelled quite a bit in the last few months...Nowhere in the world, with maybe the exception of India, can you find curry like you get in the UK -- that's what we're missing.
In summary therefore, Ireland is granted its supremacy in stout, but India is forced to share the title in curry. A mixed day for the former colonies.