IV. International
(2-16-10)
. ASEAN
is an economic
powerhouse in its own right. Since 1992, it has been a
free trade area stretching from the banks of the
Irawaddy to the forests of New Guinea. It embraces 10
countries with over 1 billion people and a collective
economic output of $1.5 trillion.
.
It has two advantages:
1) ASEAN is growing at a fast clip. While the US
struggled to break 3% growth in 2007 and 2008, ASEAN
chalked up GDP growth at 16% in each of those years. By
the end of 2008, ASEAN nations nearly doubled their
collective GDP in just 4 years.
.
2) It will soon have China and vice-versa. Six ASEAN
nations and China eliminate tariff barriers this year
and the other 4 (Cambodia, Burma, Laos and Vietnam)
will eliminate tariff with China by 2015. By the middle
of the decade, the ASEAN bloc will add to itself a
Chinese economy with its own impressive accomplishment.
. China’s
economic strategy over the past 2 decades has been
remarkably successful. By opening its doors to foreign
investment and manipulating currency markets to keep the
renmimbi from rising against the US dollar, it
hitched itself to consumers in the industrial world and
acknowledged spectacular growth.
. While the
strategy is still working for China, it is
exacerbating weakness around the globe. If China
keeps it up, other countries are likely to use their
last available weapon—protectionism—to stop the
onslaught of artificially cheap Chinese goods. A trade
war is easy to start and hard to contain. It could hit
everybody’s exports, disrupting growth everywhere.
. China’s
strategy is doing considerably more harm. In many
countries, fiscal stimulus efforts have been hampered by
inflows of cheap Chinese imports that have soaked up
some of the money added by these government programs.
With global demand flagging, the Chinese government has
manipulated its currency (renmimbi) even more
aggressively.
.
Former president Chen
Shui-bian’s sisters visited him in Taipei Detention
Center in Taiwan and told them he remained
confident about his legal fight to prove he is innocent
of corruption charges.
. A 52-year
old man who paid the price for drinking, staying up late
and eating nonstop, gorging himself on sweets in
particular, dropped dead after a marathon mahjong last
Sunday with friends at his home.
.
There was a 2.1% rise from 2008 in the number of people
listing themselves as Aborigines, with more than
half living in the mountains, said the Ministry of
Interior.
.
All Nippon Airways
(ANA) of Japan will start charging for coffee,
juice and other beverages on its domestic flights from
April, as part of a drive to cut costs. Green tea and
water will be served at no charge. It will also increase
the range of beverages available.
.
Listed companies and other major firms paying executives
100 million yen ($1.1 million) or more per year
will have to disclose their remuneration under new rules
drafted by the Financial Services Agency. It is
aimed at providing greater oversight to shareholders and
investors.
.
Shinsei Bank and Aozora Bank, scheduled to
merge in October, could abandon the plan and seek to
survive independently, sources said. The two banks
remain apart on basic management policies, particularly
whether to downsize risky consumer financing business.
. Philippine
Speaker Prospero
Nograles directed key Congressional committees to
convene emergency meetings to address an impending
energy crisis and concerns about defects of the poll
automaton system.
.
The Overseas Workers
Welfare Administration (OWWA) said the labor dispute
between 200 overseas Filipino workers and their employer
in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia was settled 4 days after the
workers sought the help of the Philippine Overseas
Labor Office (POLO).
.
RP has a new Permanent Representative to the UN
in Geneva, Switzerland. Evan Garcia presented his
credentials earlier this month to the
Undersecretary-General of the UN Office in Geneva
representative.
.
A court trying Anwar
Ibrahim on sodomy charges heard explicit details from
his accuser after the Malaysian opposition
leader denied that he had illicit sexual relations with
a male aide.
.
Proton
will decide on the Shah Alam auto plant by 2011.
The carmaker may decide whether to sell or lease its
main manufacturing plant in Selangor by year-end or
early 2011.
.
According to the Chinese calendar, 2010 is the
year of the Metal Tiger. Many feng shui
experts predict it to be a year of moderate growth,
which makes sense as the word’s economy is gradually
recovering from the worst economic crisis in decades.
.
The 24 jawans of
West Bengal paramilitary force in India died
without a fight as they were swamped by 100-odd Maoists
who struck the camp with grenades and automatic fire.
.
The Gujarat
Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF) which
market brand Amul claimed that Amul milk sales
has crossed 15 lakh liters a day in Delhi or NCR
market, overtaking arch rival Mother Dairy.
.
Three days after the
Pune blast, two obscure groups (LeT Al Alami
and Indian Mujahideen Kashmir) stepped forward to
take responsibility for the crime.
.
As many as 100 US
Special Forces members are in Pakistan, most of
them instructing the weak and poorly equipped Pakistani
paramilitary forces battling insurgents in the rugged
area bordering Afghanistan.
. It
reported the capture of the Taliban’s top commander,
with CIA help, could represent a dramatic shift after
years of protecting leaders of a militia that served at
its proxy in Afghanistan, analysts said.
. President
Asif Ali Zardari has said that Pakistan looks forward to
engage more closely with the US on bilateral political
tracks, including strategic dialogue.
.
Thousands of opposition
supporters took to the streets of Colombo, Sri
Lanka’s capital, to protest the results of the
recent presidential elections which they said was marred
by fraud.
. Several
leading Buddhist prelates called on all political
parties and all sectors of society to rise above petty
differences and unite to extend their cooperation and
encouragement to the president and the government to
take the country forward on the correct path.
.
Sri Lanka values her long-standing relations with the EU
and will continue her engagement with it in the upcoming
6 months with a view to obtain a timely reversal of the
temporary suspension of the GSP plus facility, according
to a statement from the Foreign Ministry.
. Australia
blocked 3 export
shipments to Iran over concerns that the contents might
be used to advance a nuclear weapons program.
. The
Coalition has recaptured popular leadership on the
economy from the Rudd government, which seems to have
lost political gains made during the global financial
crisis.
.
Westfield Group has reported an improved full
year loss of $458 million as the shopping center owner
was hit by lower property valuations. The net loss for
the 12 months to Dec. 31 recovered from a $2.2 billion
loss the year before.
.
A former ASB investment
adviser (Stephen Versalko), who stole nearly $18 million
in New Zealand’s largest case of employee theft,
is likely to repay just $3 million to $5 million to the
bank.
.
An Air New Zealand engineering subsidiary has to
shed about 100 jobs because of delays in a military
order from the US. It has worked on the US AF’s aging
C-130 Hercules aircraft as a subcontractor to a US-based
company L-3 Communications.
.
Trans-power chief
executive Patrick Strange has warned consumers to be
prepared for more failures on the national grid while it
is being substantially rebuilt during the next three
years.
.
The government of
Guam’s financial leaders said they would release
enough money on Friday so federally funded public school
system employees won’t have to skip work next week, said
Dept. of Ed Superintendent.
.
Former Sen. Matt Rector was arrested, booked and then
released but faces new criminal charges in connection
with his failure to disclose his past burglary
conviction.
.
Guam delegate Madeleine Bordallo outlines several of her
concerns with the military’s buildup plans but also
reminded residents about the need to work together to
address those challenges because of the buildup’s
importance to the region.
.
Award-winning Samoan
composer Iglese Ele signed the contract as the
Entertainment Manager for the Pacific Pavilion at
the Shanghai World Expo 2010. It will be the third
largest pavilion after China and the 40-country Africa
pavilion.
.
Impacts of the global
economic crisis are often reported in terms of figures
on economic growth, government. expenditures and
increases in poverty. A recent conference is a timely
reminder that the crisis has a human face in terms of
people’s lives and well-being.
.
Samoa’s organic banana exports are set to get a boost
for a new partnership between New Zealand and a Samoan
women’s group. The co-owner of All Good Organics
is launching New Zealand’s first free trade bananas next
week in Auckland.
