Monday, June 8, 2009

Pouring cold water on global warming

There is now irrefutable scientific evidence that far from global warming the earth has now entered a period of global cooling which will last at least for the next two decades.

Evidence for this comes from the NASA Microwave Sounding Unit and the Hadley Climate Research Unit while evidence that CO2 levels are continuing to increase comes from the Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii.

Professor Don Easterbrook one of the principle speakers at the recent World Conference on climate change held in New York in March this year attended by 800 leading climatologists, has documented a consistent cycle of warm and cool periods each with a 27 year cycle. Indeed the warm period from 1976 to 1998 exactly fits the pattern of climate changes for the past several centuries long before there were any CO2 emissions. Greenland Ice core temperature measurements for the past 500 years show this 27 year cycle of alternating warm and cool periods. Recently the global temperature increased from 1918 to 1940, decreased from 1940 to 1976, increased again from 1976 to 1998 and has been decreasing ever since.

However throughout this time CO2 has been added to the atmosphere in increasing amounts. This point was brought out by at the New York conference by Vaclav Klaus the rotating President of the EU and President of the Czech Republic. If CO2 emissions cause temperature rises than why is it that every 27 years the earth climate switches to a cooling mode with decreasing temperature? Clearly there is another explanation that does not include humans. .

Nearly ten years into the 21 century it is clear that the UN IPCC computer models have gone badly astray. The IPCC models have predicted a one degree increase in global temperature by 2011 with further large temperature rises to 2100. Yet there has been no warming since 1998 with a one degree cooling this year being the largest global temperature change ever recorded. Nasa satellite imagery from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California has confirmed that the Pacific Ocean has switched from the warm mode it has been in since 1977 to its cool mode, similar to that of the 1945-1977 global cooling period.

The evidence that the earth is in a cooling mode rather than a warming mode is there for all to see. the RSS(Remote Sensing System) in Santa Rosa California has recorded a temperature fall of two to three degrees in the Arctic since 2005, while US Army buoys show an increase in Arctic ice thickness to 3.5 metres. North America has had two of its worst winters for sixty years with the temperature in Yellowstone Park falling to a staggering minus 60 degrees.

About 46” of snow fell in New York in two weeks! Last February Toronto had over 70 cms of snow, more than anything since 1950! Snow has fallen in parts of China and Asia for the first time in living memory while Britain had its worst January for twenty years. Alps have best snow conditions in a generation ran a newspaper headline last December. Strange indeed that the BBC , who likes us to believe it is impartial does not mention these freezing temperatures and Arctic conditions.

Some warming in the Antarctic has only been on a small 20 mile strip of the Antarctic Peninsula as a result of the 1977- 1998 warming period. This is insignificant compared to the overall size of the huge Antarctic continent.

Studies by the WeatherAction team(weatheraction.com) led by astrophysicist Piers Corbyn and also the measurements of sun spots by the Institute of Solar-Terrestrial physics in Irkutsk in Russia show that over the last 50 years solar activity has been at its highest for the past several thousand years.

The Russian physicists have analysed sun spot activity from 1882 to 2000 and have noted that the minimum of the cycle of solar activity will occur around 2021 to 2026 and that we will be facing not global warming but global cooling leading to a deep freeze around 2050.

The UN IPCC graphics have left out the medieval warming period (950-1300AD) and the Little Ice Age (1350- 1850). This alters the picture entirely

and does not then portray the alternating warm cool warm cool cycle of recorded world temperatures. Also statements put out by the UN IPCC are unrepresentative of many of its members. I do not recall any votes being taken of the opinion of members.

At the New York climate change conference in March as well as Vaclav Klaus delegates also heard Dr Richard Linzen from MIT probably the leading climatologist in the world today, as well as Professor Syun-Ichi Akasofu, former director of the International Arctic Research Center, Dr Willie Soon of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for astrophysics and Professor Paul Reiter of the Pasteur Institute who all demolished the global alarmists case piece by piece.

In his speech the EU President Vaclav Klaus had these controversial words for the environmentalist lobby.

“Environmentalists-even mainstream environmentalists are less concerned about any crisis posed by global warming than they are eager to command human behaviour and restrict economic activity” He also said “their true plans and ambitions: to stop economic development and return mankind centuries back.

They are interested in their businesses and their profits made with the help of politicians”

He got a standing ovation from the assembled audience.

His assertion about the involvement of politicians is not surprising. This whole movement is in many parts a political movement with nearly all the recognised climatologists throughout the world dissenting from the man made global warming theory.

This can be seen on the US Senate Environment committee web site with over 700 leading climatologists from 24 different countries including Nobel Prize laureates all dissenting from the man made global warming theory. It has been well reported that at least one of the architects of Koyoto has strong links with the New Age Movement which is not a movement that would promote economic growth.

We have all recently noticed the escalating price of food. The reason for this is because American grain, the breadbasket of the world, is increasingly being turned into ethanol which has led to a three fold increase of maize prices worldwide. This has the potential to cause worldwide starvation!

Terri Jackson is a Queens graduate physicist, climatologist and formerly founder of the Energy Group at the Institute of Physics, London.

By Terri Jackson

索罗斯:全球仍处熊市 中国可能是例外

 国际著名投资者、量子基金创始人乔治·索罗斯昨日在上海接受媒体专访时表示,目前全球仍处于熊市,但中国可能是个例外,中国的经济复苏状况要好于其他国家,可能取代美国成为全球经济发展的引擎。

昨日,索罗斯在上海复旦大学发表演讲,对金融危机作出解读。

  在谈到近期A股强劲反弹时,索罗斯言语非常谨慎,没有明示A股是否已经进入牛市,仅用“例外”两个字来表达对中国股市的信心。他说,“全球股市 仍然处于熊市阶段,但是中国股市(A股)可能是个例外。”同时,他也看好印度市场。自年初以来,上证综合指数和印度股市敏感指数累计升幅均超过50%。而 同期的美国股市——道琼斯工业指数倒跌0.3%,标准普尔500指数微涨4.34%,表现最好的纳斯达克指数也仅上扬了17.31%。

  索罗斯在演讲中力挺中国经济,表示中国的经济数据显示中国的经济已经开始复苏,中国可能取代美国成为全球经济引擎。他说,中国经济将会比所有人 预期的还要更快地增长,而中国经济的复苏速度也会超越美国。目前中国也受到金融危机和出口衰退的影响,但中国政府已经推出并将继续推出一系列的经济刺激计 划,可以通过扩大信贷和投资来刺激出口。

  索罗斯还表示,中国经济在世界经济中将发挥重要作用,世界需要重建新的国际金融秩序,而中国应当拥有更多的发言权。

  当被问及对中国投资者的建议时,擅长投资的索罗斯则表示,不能给出任何投资意见,因为市场总在变动,今天是正确的,在明天或许就会是错误的。

Gold falls as dollar continues to strengthen; silver also down

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Gold futures fell Monday for a second session, moving below $950 an ounce for the first time in more than two weeks, as the U.S. dollar continued to strengthen against its major rivals, curbing gold's investment appeal.

Gold for June delivery fell $17.20, or 1.8%, to $944.50 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, falling below $950 for the first time since May 21. The more active August contract lost $16.70, or 1.7%, to $945.90 an ounce.

"The metal traded lower as the dollar staged a strong rally," said James Moore, an analyst at TheBullionDesk.com, in a note. "Given overbought chart indicators and the slight decline in SPDR holdings Friday, gold will continue to run into overhead resistance above the $980 level."

Holdings in the SPDR Gold Trust /quotes/comstock/13*!gld/quotes/nls/gld (GLD 93.20, -0.51, -0.54%) , the biggest exchange-traded fund backed by gold, stood at 1,132.15 metric tons Friday, down 0.35 metric tons from the previous day, according to latest data from the fund.

In currencies trading Monday, the greenback was higher versus the euro and other major rivals, extending gains scored following Friday's jobs data. See Currencies.

A stronger dollar tends to put downward pressures on dollar-denominated commodities prices. Crude oil, which is also denominated in the dollar, lost more than 1% Monday.

Other metals also moved lower. The July silver contract lost 51.8 cents, or 3.4%, to $14.87 an ounce. Holdings in the iShare Silver Trust /quotes/comstock/13*!slv/quotes/nls/slv (SLV 14.70, -0.31, -2.07%) , the biggest silver ETF, stood at 8,605.43 metric tons Friday, unchanged from a day ago.

July platinum declined $54.20, or 4.2%, to $1,232 an ounce, while the September contract for palladium sank $9.80, or 3.8%, to $250 an ounce.

July copper lost 3.4 cents, or 1.5%, to $2.25 a pound.

Gold and silver futures had fallen sharply Friday as a better-than-expected U.S. employment report boosted hopes for an economic recovery and made precious metals a less attractive investment.

Gold ended last week's trading down 1.8%, while silver lost 1.4%. Gold, however is still up nearly 8% this year, and silver is up more than 30%.

Among metals-sector equities, shares of Barrick Gold Corp. /quotes/comstock/13*!abx/quotes/nls/abx (ABX 35.52, -0.54, -1.48%) fell 1.9% to $35.34, while South Africa's Gold Fields Ltd. /quotes/comstock/13*!gfi/quotes/nls/gfi (GFI 11.70, -0.51, -4.18%) traded down 4.3% at $11.69 and Newmont Mining Corp. /quotes/comstock/13*!nem/quotes/nls/nem (NEM 43.72, -1.12, -2.50%) lost 2.4% to $43.72.

The Amex Gold Bugs Index /quotes/comstock/10t!hui.x (HUI 357.86, -9.71, -2.64%) , which tracks the share prices of major gold companies, dropped 3% to 356.79.

The iShares Gold Trust ETF /quotes/comstock/13*!iau/quotes/nls/iau (IAU 93.28, -0.47, -0.50%) declined 0.8% to $93.01.

Check this link : http://tinyurl.com/knypcb

US Stocks Decline As Commodities Sink From Rising Dollar

U.S. stocks declined on Monday as a rising dollar pushed down commodities, which in turn weighed on the basic-materials names from which the market has drawn much of its strength lately.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was off 114 points, or 1.3%, at 8759, marking a slight retreat from last week's 3.1% rise. Aluminum producer Alcoa helped to lead the way lower, trading down 3.7%.

The blue-chip measure also added two new components on Monday, replacing troubled Citigroup and General Motors. Cisco Systems traded down more than 1.5%, but insurer Travelers was less of a drag on the average, trading down 0.2%.

The U.S. Dollar Index was up 1.5%, helping to spur a broad-based commodity decline. The Dow Jones-UBS Commodity Index was off about 1%. Oil futures edged lower, off 29 cents at $68.15 a barrel in New York.

The Nasdaq Composite Index slipped 1.5%. Apple shares slid 2% as investors waited to see if Steve Jobs will appear at the company's developers conference. Palm shares declined 10% after its iPhone rival, the Pre, went on sale over the weekend.

The S&P 500 Index was off 1.1%. All its sectors traded lower, led by a nearly 2% slide in basic materials. The S&P's energy, technology, and consumer-discretionary sectors were close behind, off about 1.5%.

Commodity-related investments have been the main venue lately for investors to express their hope - or in some instances, skepticism - about a possible recovery in the U.S. economy. Monday's calendar included no major releases of economic data, but that issue continued to heavily influence trading.

Among the commodity-related names under pressure were US Steel and DryShips. Freeport McMoran Copper & Gold was down about 3%, Marathon Oil was off about 1% and Potash of Saskatchewan was down more than 2%.

Strategist Jim Paulsen, of Wells Capital Management, said that he remains optimistic about the chances of a second-half rebound in the U.S. But he is increasingly concerned about the recent strength in Treasury prices, which have rallied as some traders bet that inflation will rear its head before consumption and production have made a strong comeback.

"It's really hard to sustain a run in stocks when you have bond yields going up 15 basis points everyday," a trend that makes Treasurys more attractive to investors as an alternative to shares, said Paulsen.

Treasury prices were mixed on Monday. The two-year note was off 3/32, pushing its yield to 1.337%. But the 10-year note was up 6/32 to yield 3.816%..

Overseas, Japan's Nikkei 225 rose 1%. South Korea's Kospi Composite index slipped 0.1% and the Hang Seng Composite Index in Hong Kong closed down 2.3%. Stocks were weaker in Europe.

By Peter A. McKay

中国手握7679亿美国国债 继续增持别无选择?

当头号债主近一年 美财长又来推销, 手握7679亿美国国债,中国出路在哪?

尽管美国总统奥巴马5月14日已明确表示“不能总是从中国借钱”,但美国财长盖特纳5月31日启程访华,依然逃不脱“来中国借钱”的“嫌疑”。

“这次美国财长来华访问就是让中国来买国债的,要钱来了,这是很明白的事情。”美国问题资深研究专家、中国社会科学院美国经济研究中心主任肖炼向《中国经济周刊》直言。

  中国今年3月份再次增持237亿美元美国国债,目前总持有额达到7679亿美元,已“坐稳”美国最大债主交椅。相关资料显示,美国2009年和2010年发债规模将各达2.56万亿美元和1.14万亿美元,今年9月份前发债规模大约在7000亿左右。

  盖特纳这次能顺利地再从中国借到钱吗?

  “坐稳”最大债主

  近一年来,中国增持美国国债的步伐从未停歇。

  据美国财政部去年底公布的国际资本流动报告(TIC)显示,截至2008年9月末,中国持有的美国国债达到5850亿美元。而日本当月的持有量从8月的5860亿美元减少到5732亿美元。自此,中国取代日本成为美国国债最大持有国。

  之后的半年,增持仍在延续。

  美国财政部公布的最新数据显示,中国今年3月份再次增持237亿美元美国国债,总持有额达到7679亿美元。延续了自去年9月份以来中国持有美国国债数居全球首位的地位。

  这也就意味着,近半年中国新增持美国国债1829亿美元。美国财政部公布的数据显示,除了中国大陆,3月份多个国家和地区也都对美国国债进行了增持。日本仍是美国国债的第二大持有者,其持有额为6867亿美元。俄罗斯和英国则超过了巴西,成为美国第三和第四大债主。

  但是,这些钱依然不能满足美国的需求。

  据中国社会科学院金融研究所中国经济评价中心提供的信息,至2009年5月7日止,账面上,美国国债余额是11.2万亿美金;美国政府5月11 日估计本年度累积财政赤字为1.84万亿美金,是上一年度财政赤字的4倍;美国政府估计2009年10月至2010年9月的财政赤字为1.26万亿美 金;2010年至2019年赤字总额则为7.1万亿美元;未来75年美国未作拨备的社会保障计划负债已上升至51万亿美元。

  难怪奥巴马也开始表示担心。5月14日他在新墨西哥州市民会议上讲话称:“美国长期债项的负担难以为继”,“不能永远这样向中国人借钱了”。

  然而,时隔半月,美国财长盖特纳又开始了他的访华之旅,坊间也开始猜测,这是否意味着美国政府仍在继续向中国这个最大的债主借更多的钱。

  中国被挟持了?

  金融危机爆发以来,随着美国经济持续下行,对中国应增持还是减持美国国债的争论也达到前所未有的高峰。有人士认为,美元的走弱将使得外汇资产缩水,因此抛售美国国债的声音一度高涨。

  在美国财长盖特纳访华之际,国内媒体和网络上关于是否该减持美国国债的讨论声再度响起。

  日前,《环球时报》专门就“你是否支持中国大幅减持美元国债”采访了23名中国著名经济专家,其中有8人支持大幅减持美国国债,15人表示反对。支持和反对的人数相差了近一倍。

  针对上述专家关于是否减持美国国债存在的分歧,国家外汇管理局国际收支司副司长管涛接受《中国经济周刊》采访时表示,“专家关于是否购买美国国 债的讨论都是立于自己想干什么就能干什么,但问题的关键,不是你愿不愿意、想不想做的问题,而是能不能做选择的问题,或者说有没有能力说不做这种选择。”

  而财政部财科所所长贾康关于此问题的表达更为直接,他向《中国经济周刊》表示:“大多数专家反对减持美国国债,我认为这是一个无可奈何的选择,因为除了购买美国国债,没有别的办法和出路。”

  其实,早在去年美元开始贬值时,银监会官员罗平就在公开场合发表了“没办法中国将继续购买美国国债”的无奈言论。

  中国央行数据显示,从期限结构来看,在中国持有的美国国债中,长期债券为5767亿美元,短期债券为1912亿美元。短债占比为24.9%。

  长期国债是指偿还期限在10年或10年以上的国债,可以使政府在更长时期内支配财力,但持有者的收益将受到币值和物价的影响。

  在金融危机爆发之初的2008年11月26日,10年期美国国债的收益率一路下滑,创造了新的历史里程碑:50年来首次降至3%以下——降至 2.98%的低点。近日美国国债收益略有好转,最新数据表明,日前已经突破3.50%的关键位水平,目前仍在该点位附近徘徊。中国社会科学院美国经济研究 中心主任肖炼向《中国经济周刊》介绍,目前美国长期国债和短期国债的平均收益率为3%,仅相当于人民币3年定期存款的利率(人民币3年定期存款利率为 3.33%)。

  毫无疑问,由美国导致的世界金融危机使得美国国债收益率已经处于历史低端,并且无论短期还是长期国债,其发行利率在美联储降息作用下一直走低。 用肖炼的话说,“买国债就是买了一大堆纸,或者连纸都没有,就是记账。但是现在中国处于一种极其难受的状况,卖不行,买不行,不买不卖也不行。”

  肖炼向《中国经济周刊》进一步分析,首先,如果卖出美国国债,结果是没有人接盘,国债就会跌。国债跌,受损失最大的是美国和中国。但是美国有挽 救措施——美国可以印钞票来买国债,中国也可以印钞票,但是中国印的人民币,国际上不认可。所以,中国“卖”国债,对中美双方都不利。

  其次是继续购买美国国债。但在美国经济复苏前景不明朗的前提下,继续购买,什么时候是个头呢。

  第三是既不买也不卖,保持现状。中国不卖不买并不能阻止欧洲和日本卖出国债,如果欧洲和日本卖出国债,没有人接盘,跟第一种假设——卖出国债是同一种结果。

  “从经济上讲,我们被挟持了。”肖炼告诉《中国经济周刊》,当初考虑购买美国国债并没有错,因为国债量大,在市场上进出都很方便,尤其是改革开放初期,把钱投到国债比较保险。问题是,现在购买美国国债的量太大,导致中国外汇储备中美元依存度更高,与美元更难分离。

  继续增持别无选择?

  争论归争论。中国央行数据显示,2009年3月末,国家外汇储备余额为19537亿美元,同比增长16.14%。近两万亿的外汇储备不买美国国债,还能购买什么?

  投资大师吉姆·罗杰斯今年4月初曾在香港表示,中国应当停止购买美国国债,同时应该把超过1万亿美元外汇储备的一部分用于购买棉花、小麦和原油等战略性资源,以备不时之需。

  对此,贾康向《中国经济周刊》表示:“ 很多事情只是一厢情愿,你到国际市场看看实际情况就知道,只要中国一买什么,什么就飞涨。”

  “现在找不到比买美国国债更好的项目。如果把外汇储备花在走出去的投资上,我们想出去,但是人家会限制我们,并不是我们想出去就能出得去的。因此,买战略资源和走出去投资,是要从长计议的事情,不是现在马上就可以大规模做的事情,得慢慢来。” 贾康说。

  据肖炼分析,尽管目前中国持有的美国国债超过了西方七个发达国家的总和,但是从目前的形势看,购买美国国债是有战略考虑的。

  “现在增持美国国债等于在托美国。因为美国垮了,中国也就完了;中国垮了,美国也完了。现在是‘两个蚂蚱’被捆到一起了,说得好听点叫同舟共 济。”肖炼向《中国经济周刊》分析,现在购买美国国债并不是中国想买,而是美国在“逼迫着”中国购买。“现在中美利益已经被捆在一起了,中国政府很难办。 ”

  “债转股”是否可行?

  面对难题,出于诸多无奈和目前的形势,中国似乎依然要继续增持美国国债;但现实的问题是,中国在增持新国债之前,如何把旧国债解套,以化解和降低风险。

  “我们准备再去美国跟美联储、财政部等相关发债人进行交流,看能否进行债转股转换。”肖炼告诉记者,现在美国股市跌得一塌糊涂,之前从 14000点跌到了6000点,现在回到8000点,而早晚要回到14000点。目前美国股票具有投资价值,如果在8000点能进去,到时也能翻近一倍。 而买国债充其量收益率5%不到。“毕竟美国股市自身也缺钱。”

  其实,在两个月前,肖炼已经以学者身份就此问题跟美国美联储、财政部相关人士交换过若干次意见,美国财政部官员认为他的建议很好,但前提是先把国债卖掉再买股票。

  “这能卖吗,一卖存量就跌了。现在我正在探寻一种方法,通过内部转换机制,不通过市场,把国债转换成美国的股票。”肖炼说,这个思路应该是对的,但是操作起来有些法律上的问题,有些规则需要修改。

  “债转股是化解国债危机的一个比较好的办法,关键是怎么操作,再晚了美国股市回到1万点了,那就不用转了,那时风险就来了。现在希望能坐下来讨论一下,双方都以诚相见,把事情给解决了。”肖炼说。

http://business.sohu.com/20090608/n264386007.shtml

新加坡‧居士林揭發忘本公眾‧吃免費餐還挑上等米

(新加坡)免費餐,還要挑上等米!

經濟不景氣,到居士林吃免費餐的公眾劇增,但有些人還挑三揀四,要吃AAA上等米。

據新加坡《新報》報導,居士林每年花費700萬元(約馬幣1600萬令吉)做善事,每天免費供應三餐給貧困公眾和客工。自經濟蕭條以來,週日(67日)來吃免費餐的公眾倍增,從之前的1100人增加到1600人,週末則從4000人增加到6000人。

居士林林長李木源指出,即使來吃免費餐的公眾不捐款也沒關係,最令他難過的是,些忘本的公眾,有得吃還要挑。“有些人甚至表示,他們吃AAA上等香米。”

他說,一些上了年紀的熱心公眾,為了表善心,遠道搭巴士到居士林,就為了捐一包米,所以當他發現有人拿了一整盤水果,吃了一半就把剩餘的水果扔掉時,感到很生氣。

李木源也說,居士林提供免費餐,間接惹惱了小販。“很人撥電來罵們,說我們提供免費餐影響了他們的生意,其中一名女士還非常兇。”

林冠英:承認中國大學學位‧13年來總是不了了之

(雪蘭莪‧八打靈再也)民主行黨秘書長林冠英表示,大馬政府應該儘承認中國大學學位,讓那些在中國求學的馬來西亞學生,早日回國,以解決大馬人才外流的問題。

他說,行動黨歡迎政府考慮在近期內承認中國間著名大學的學位。“們希望納吉言出必行,而不是像前首相敦阿都拉、敦馬哈迪或每次拜訪中國後,總是說會考慮承認中國學位,到頭來卻是不了了之。”

如何拒絕你不喜歡的追求者?

他發表文告說,經過了13年的作與交流,他相信政府已經瞭解到中國大學在師資、學術水平、研究實力的優秀素質。最近由在英國泰晤士報高等教育專刊―Quacquarelli Symonds(QS)首次公佈的亞洲100大學排行榜中,中國的大學排名比大馬五所入榜的大學更勝籌,即北京大學(10)、清華大學(15)、中國科學技術大學(24)、復旦大學(26)、南京大學(27)、上海交通大學(29)、浙江大學(32)。

他表示,既然中國大學辦得比大馬大學出色,為甚麼政府承認印尼、孟加拉及巴基斯坦大學,卻不承認早已被世界各國頂尖大學承認的中國頂尖大學?正如大馬獨中統考早已被世界各國的頂尖大學承認,大馬政府卻不承認。

他問馬華與民政黨的部長,是否敢在內閣中要求納吉公佈他甚麼時候才會承認中國大學學位的大藍圖?

China, Japan work for regional, global economic recovery via mutually beneficial co-op

TOKYO, June 7 (Xinhua) -- The second China-Japan high-level economic dialogue closed here Sunday, sending a clear message that the two sides will make continued efforts to forge strategic and mutually beneficial relations in trade and economy.

Chinese Vice Premier Wang Qishan (L) shakes hands with Japanese Foreign Minister Hirofumi Nakasone prior to the meeting in Tokyo, capital of Japan, June 7, 2009. The second China-Japan high-level economic dialogue, co-chaired by Wang Qishan and Hirofumi Nakasone, opened here Sunday. Chinese Vice Premier Wang Qishan (L) shakes hands with Japanese Foreign Minister Hirofumi Nakasone prior to the meeting in Tokyo, capital of Japan, June 7, 2009.

The one-day dialogue, co-chaired by Chinese Vice Premier Wang Qishan and Japanese Foreign Minister Hirofumi Nakasone, focused on a wide range of topics including energy conservation, environmental protection, finance, trade and investment and intellectual property as well as regional and international economic issues.

Profound changes have taken place in the international economic and financial sectors since the first China-Japan high-level economic dialogue in December 2007. Coping with the ongoing global financial crisis has become the major concern for both countries.

Faced with the grave challenges posed by the crisis, the two countries agreed that they should implement the consensus reached at G20 Washington and London summits and adopt more effective measures to ensure stability in financial markets and promote their own economic growth and contribute to the early recovery of the world economy.

As each other's major trade partner, the two nations have become increasingly interdependent in economy and trade. Notably, the current dialogue highlighted potential cooperation in energy conservation and environmental protection.

As the world's second largest economy, Japan is also a leader in energy conservation and environmental protection technologies, whereas China is the world's largest developing country with huge market demands. The two countries are highly complementary economically.

Both sides have agreed to expand cooperation in environmental protection. Meanwhile, they expressed readiness to further remove barriers of various kinds, and enhance cooperation in such areas as technology trade, small and medium-sized businesses, quality control and food safety.

During the current economic dialogue, the two sides signed eight important documents, including the MOU for International Property Protection Exchanges and Cooperation, Meeting Minutes on Agriculture Cooperation between China and Japan, and the MOU on Strengthening Science and Technology Cooperation in the Field of Seismology.

As Japan and China are the two largest economies in East Asia, the advancement of their cooperation is of great importance in maintaining the region's economic stability, tackling the global financial crisis and boosting cooperation between developing and developed countries.

During the talks, both sides also reached consensus on tackling regional and global economic issues, and reiterated their will to take responsible approach and strive to enhance regional and international economic and financial cooperation.

Such consensus and endeavors will undoubtedly play a constructive role in the development of both regional and global economies.

The success of the second China-Japan high-level economic dialogue once again proved that such a mechanism is playing an important role in advancing bilateral ties.

Under this mechanism, the two sides discussed strategies on economic growth and macroeconomic policies, coordinated cross-sector economic cooperation, and enhanced policy exchanges on major regional and international economic issues.

The mechanism is expected to elevate bilateral cooperation in economy and trade to a new high and have even greater positive impact on the economic stability and prosperity of Asia and the world at large.

Global airline losses to hit $9 bln in 2009: IATA

KUALA LUMPUR, June 8, 2009 (Reuters) — Global airlines are likely to lose $9 billion this year, the International Air Transport Association said on Monday, nearly double its estimate of just three months ago, as rising fuel prices and weak demand create an unprecedented crisis for the industry.

"This is the most difficult situation the industry has faced," Giovanni Bisignani, IATA's director general and CEO, told the aviation body's annual meeting in the Malaysian capital.

"I am a realist. I don't see facts to support optimism."

However, there was some optimism. John Leahy, the commercial director at European aircraft manufacturer Airbus said 2009 would be tough, but plans by United Airlines to order as many as 150 new planes from Airbus or rival Boeing Co showed the market was starting to turn.

"Cancellations are not as much of an issue as deferrals. I don't think we'll have that many more cancellations," he said.

Speaking on the sidelines of the meeting earlier, the chairman of state-owned Air India said his company was considering delaying planes on order from Boeing.

"We are looking at options including rescheduling," Arvind Jadhav told reporters. "I don't have cash, what do you expect me to do?"

Air India has over $8 billion worth of planes on order from Boeing, including 27 B787 Dreamliners.

Cathay Pacific <0293.hk>, Hong Kong's largest carrier, said it was also looking to further delay deliveries of new planes as it had seen no signs of recovery in its business.

One note of optimism, however, came from Qatar Airways, which has about $27 billion worth of planes on order and wanted deliveries speeded up, its chief executive said.

FUEL COSTS

Globally, about 4,000 aircraft are scheduled for delivery in the next three years, which is 17 percent of the current fleet, IATA's Bisignani said.

"Once again, aircraft ordered in good times are being delivered in recession. Finding customers to fill them will be a challenge," he said.

IATA had predicted in March that 2009 losses for the airline industry would total $4.7 billion. It also revised its estimate of 2008 losses to $10.4 billion from $8.5 billion.

In an effort to ride out the crisis, made worse by the recent outbreak of the H1N1 flu virus, airlines have been looking to reduce costs elsewhere too.

Japan Airlines Corp <9205.t>, Asia's biggest carrier by revenues, said it planned to cut capacity on international routes by 10 percent in the year to March 2010.

Another major problem was rising fuel costs, a problem it would be "irresponsible" of governments not to act on, Bisignani said.

"The risk that we have seen in recent weeks is that even the slightest glimmer of economic hope sends oil prices higher. Greedy speculation must not hold the global economy hostage."

At Monday's formal opening of the IATA conference, which ends on Tuesday, Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak drew laughter when he noted that he had walked over from an oil and gas conference being held next door.

"I was discussing what should be the price of oil which seems to be something we are all grappling with," Najib said.

Prices for jet fuel in Singapore have jumped almost 60 percent since bottoming out around $46 a barrel in March.

IATA estimates the industry fuel bill will decline by $59 billion to $106 billion in 2009, or 25 percent of costs versus 31 percent in 2008.

Bisignani said the aviation industry's 2009 revenues would fall by $80 billion to $448 billion because of the global economic crisis.

http://www.newsdaily.com/stories/tre5570hz-us-airlines/

CCB reportedly to explore yuan to finance trade

HONG KONG (MarketWatch) -- China Construction Bank is considering the introduction of using the Chinese yuan to finance cross-border trade, adding to the growing talk among government officials in support of the expanded use of the currency internationally, according to report Monday.

Check the link below :
http://tinyurl.com/l3nwol

新加坡‧被當普通流感‧救護車又拒載‧病患被迫搭地鐵求醫

(新加坡)18歲男子染上A(H1N1)型流感2度被家庭醫生當普通流感治療,又被救護車拒載,被迫搭地鐵去求醫。

被確認為A型流感病例前曾搭地鐵的新加坡18歲男子,被民炮轟“自私”和“不負責任”,他的家人首度開腔,怪家庭醫生和救護服務把他當般流感病患看待,沒有馬上為他治療。

這名男子是當地的第12起確診病例。他是在516日到墨爾本,6月1日回國。

他被確認前,曾從實龍崗乘搭2分鐘的東北線地鐵到高文地鐵站。

他的姐姐接受報章訪問時解釋,男子向醫生求診和傳召救護服務時,都被當一般流感病患看待,因此他才覺得搭地鐵沒有不妥。

2次把男子當成一般病人的家庭醫生則說,雖然他承認曾告訴男子他可能患上一般流感,但他也調若情況惡化,男子應傳召救護車而不是回來找他。

男子被確診過程
他回國前,家人已撥衛生部熱線詢問是否可帶他前往做檢查,但卻被告知應先在家觀察。

‧6月1日︰男子抵新後出現輕微流感症狀,於是住進酒店以防萬一。

‧6月2日︰搭德士去看家庭醫生,醫生說他患上季節性流感。

‧6月3日︰男子發高燒後撥993要求救護車送他去醫院,卻被告知應再去找家庭醫生。男子截不到德士,就搭地鐵去看第一名醫生,結果醫生還是說他得了季節性流感。

‧6月4日︰男子在中午12時被993救護車送往陳篤生醫院急診室,當天傍晚7時25分左右,化驗報告證實他感染A型流感病毒,隨後被送入傳染病中心。

More bodies recovered from Brazil crash

Brazilian military authorities say search boats scouring the Atlantic Ocean have now recovered 17 bodies of passengers on a doomed Air France flight that crashed a week ago.

Air Force Colonel Henry Munhoz says four of the bodies were men and four were women. He did not immediately provide information about the gender of the other bodies. The flight was carrying 228 people when it crashed the night of May 31.

Munhoz also told reporters on Sunday night that several structural parts of the Airbus 330 were recovered at the location from which Flight 447 sent a burst of messages saying it was having electrical problems and loss of cabin pressure.


To watch this please check the link below :
http://tinyurl.com/lz2gkf