KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia said on Wednesday (Mar 6) it will closely monitor how the EU responds to a WTO ruling that supported the bloc’s stance that palm oil-based biodiesel should not count as a renewable biofuel, but sought changes in how it implemented that decision. A World Trade Organization adjudicatingContinue Reading
Korea:” Prudence, robot”! As it travels down the street to a Tokyo meat filet restaurant to pick up an order from Uber Eats, the natural self-driving delivery vehicle whistles. The US-based food app, which hopes to eventually expand the service more widely in Japan, will start offering robot deliveries inContinue Reading
Premier Li Qiang announced on Tuesday ( Mar 5 ) that China will work to reduce wasteful spending by local governments by about 5 % this year as it works to change its development model, stop industrial overcapacity, defuse property sector risks, and reduce wasteful spending.
In the cramped Great Hall of the People in Tiananmen Square, Li presented his first work report at the annual meeting of the country’s legislature, the National People’s Congress ( NPC ).
China’s expansion goal was comparable to that of last year, but stronger federal stimulus may be necessary for it because the country’s economy is still dependent on state investments in infrastructure, which have resulted in a mountain of metropolitan debt.
A mumbling post-COVID treatment over the past year has exposed China’s extensive architectural imbalances, including fragile home use and decreasing investment returns, provoking calls for a new development model.
China’s leaders have been under more pressure to respond to calls for a house problems, worsening depreciation, a stock market rout, and mounting regional government debt issues.
” We should be properly prepared for all risks and challenges and not lose sight of worst-case cases,” Li said.
” In particular, we must move forward with transforming the growth design, making architectural changes, enhancing value, and enhancing achievement.”
On the alterations China intended to adopt, there were no immediate information.
The yuan was thin, suggesting that investors were unsatisfied with the trigger ideas and reform promises, and Chinese stocks recovered earlier losses to commerce largely intact on the day.
According to Ben Bennett, an Asia-Pacific purchase strategist at Legal And General Investment Management, “politicians seem content with the latest trajectory,” the economic priorities were” as expected.”
” That’s disappointing for those who hoped for a bigger drive.” Local government loan and the real estate market have some facetious aid, but the key is how this is applied in practice.
According to Li, politicians “have taken into account the need to improve jobs and incomes and prevent and alleviate risks,” while adding that China intended to have a “proactive” fiscal position and “prudent” monetary plan.
China intends to have a budget deficit of 3 % of its output, down from a revised 3.8 % last year. Importantly, it intends to issue 1 trillion yuan ( US$ 39 billion ) in particular ultra-long-term Treasury securities, which are not included in the funds.
Local governments ‘ specific bond issuance limit was set at 3.9 trillion renminbi, compared to 3.8 trillion yuan in 2023. China also wants to create more than 12 million urban jobs this year, keeping the unemployment rate at about 5.5 %, while maintaining the consumer inflation target of 3 %.
According to Xia Qingjie, professor of economics at Peking University,” the Taiwanese government does not want to stimulate the economy to much,… and also wants to keep utilize somewhat low.” Xia added that the budget deficit goal may be modified as needed in the future of the year.
Researchers anticipate that China will reduce its goals for annual growth in the future. The International Monetary Fund projects that China’s economy will grow at 4.6 % this year and will experience a 3.5 % decline in the medium term by 2028.
Thailand is set to become a regional hub for electric vehicles ( EVs ), aviation, finance, and the digital economy, according to Sattha’s ambitions. He has also urged legislators to promote Thailand as a gateway for food, healthcare, and hospitality. Prommin praised methods like visa-free tourism, policies to address familyContinue Reading
TOKYO: Japan’s lower house of parliament passed the government’s budget for the coming fiscal year in a rare Saturday (Mar 2) session, a win for Prime Minister Fumio Kishida whose public support has slumped. The vote ensures that the 112 trillion yen (US$746 billion) budget, including relief funds for theContinue Reading
Hong Kong’s housing prices, once among the most expensive in the world, have plunged 20 per cent since their 2021 peak, dragged down by fragile market sentiment and a rise in interest rates. Some analysts expect a further 10 per cent drop this year. Hong Kong had already reduced stampContinue Reading
BEIJING: Chinese state-owned planemaker COMAC will conduct flying displays of its C919 and ARJ21 jets in five Southeast Asian countries, it said on Tuesday (Feb 27), as it looks to lay the groundwork for future international sales. Over the next two weeks, the C919 and ARJ21 jets will conduct showcaseContinue Reading
HONG KONG: Dior has postponed a fashion show set to be held in Hong Kong next month, a city official confirmed Saturday (Feb 24), dealing a blow to the financial hub’s ambitions to boost its economy through major events. Hong Kong is courting top international celebrities and brands in theContinue Reading
JAKARTA: Following a decree by Indonesian President Joko Widodo for digital platforms in the country to pay media that provide them with content, Meta Platforms – the parent company of Facebook – on Wednesday (Feb 21) said that the firm has no obligation to do so.
Mr Rafael Frankel, Meta’s Director of Public Policy for Southeast Asia, said that despite the new regulation, the firm is not obliged to pay for news content posted by publishers voluntarily.
“After undergoing several consultations with policymakers, we understand that Meta will not be obliged to pay for news content posted by news publishers voluntarily to our platform,” Mr Frankel was reported as saying by CNN Indonesia.
The media outlet further reported that Meta claimed that its users do not go to its platforms to look for news content. Instead, the tech giant said that news publishers have voluntarily decided to share its content on their various platforms and not the other way around.
Earlier on Tuesday, Mr Widodo signed the regulation that requires digital platforms to pay media that provide them with content, in a move the outgoing Indonesian president said is aimed at helping the media industry level the field with big tech, Reuters reported.
“The spirit of the regulation is … to ensure a fair cooperation between media and digital platforms, provide clearer cooperation framework between them,” said Jokowi, as the president is popularly known.
Digital platforms in Indonesia include Meta Platforms’ Facebook, Alphabet’s Google and some local aggregators.
Google said it will review the regulation. It has worked with news publishers and the government to build a sustainable news ecosystem in Indonesia, its spokesperson said.
Google had last year said that the regulation would restrict public access to diverse sources of news instead of promoting quality journalism.
Australia in 2021 became the first country to require digital platforms to pay for news, while Canada followed in June 2023. Other countries such as Brazil, New Zealand and the United States are also looking to pass similar laws.
Jokowi said the drafting process of the regulation, proposed three years ago, had been very long due to different opinions among media and digital platforms.
The regulation posted on the government’s website suggests cooperation between digital platforms and media companies could be in the form of paying licenses or sharing data of news users.
A committee would be formed to ensure digital platforms fulfil their responsibilities to the media companies, it said.
The regulation, which takes effect in six months, would not harm content creators as it applied only to digital platforms, Jokowi said.
Following Jokowi’s announcement on Tuesday, the head of the country’s Press Council – an independent institution to protect press freedom in Indonesia – said that it will form a committee to support the new regulation, Tempo reported.
“This committee is tasked with making considerations, receiving input, and seeing developments,” said Press Council Chair Ninik Rahayu, adding that it will be tasked with ensuring the fulfillment of the obligations of digital platform companies and the implementation of quality journalism practices in Indonesia.
Content creators had previously complained it could restrict their operations.
Indonesia’s communication and information minister, Mr Budi Arie Setiadi, in a statement said the regulation was part of government efforts to ensure media companies “are not eroded” by digital platforms.
In Australia, the News Media Bargaining Code took effect in March 2021 and tech firms have since signed deals with media outlets compensating them for content which generated clicks and advertising dollars, according to a report by its Treasury Department.
TOKYO: Japan welcomed more than 2 million visitors for an eighth consecutive month in January, official data showed on Wednesday (Feb 21), setting the stage for a potential record year for tourism. The number of foreign visitors for business and leisure was 2.69 million last month, down slightly from 2.73Continue Reading