China

GE2020: New Yio Chu Kang SMC sees straight fight between PAP and PSP
30Jul By Desk TeamNo Comments
China, Singapore, World

GE2020: New Yio Chu Kang SMC sees straight fight between PAP and PSP

SINGAPORE: The new Yio Chu Kang SMC will see a straight fight between the People’s Action Party (PAP) and the Progress Singapore Party (PSP). After nomination papers were filed at Deyi Secondary School on Tuesday (Jun 30), it was confirmed that PAP’s Yip Hon Weng and PSP’s Kayla Low will challenge the seat. Mr Yip, 43, is a new PAP candidate. The former public servant was previously group chief of the Silver Generation Office at the Agency for Integrated Care. Ms Low is a chartered accountant and former prisons officer. The 43-year-old volunteers with lower-income families and the elderly. In his speech after the candidates were confirmed, Mr Yip pledged to do his very best to serve Yio Chu Kang residents "I will listen to your ... needs and concerns," said Mr Yip. ...
Read More
Hong Kong’s new tech index up 3.5% on the second day of trade
29Jul By Desk TeamNo Comments
China, World

Hong Kong’s new tech index up 3.5% on the second day of trade

From left, the flags of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, China and Hong Kong are seen flapping in the wind on May 6, 2019. Hong Kong's new tech index rose on its second day of trading as experts said its diverse list of constituents will be attractive for traders looking to invest across the sector. The Hang Seng Tech Index rose 3.51%, beating the broader Hang Seng index which traded up 0.69%. "It's a really good, I think, list of constituents across multiple slices of the tech sector," said Sam Le Cornu, CEO and co-founder of Stonehorn Global Partners. The tech index was launched on Monday and tracks the 30 largest technology companies listed in Hong Kong that pass the screening criteria. Tech shares are some of the top traded stocks in Hong Kong. The new index trades at about 45 times ...
Read More
GE2020: In Yio Chu Kang broadcast, PAP focuses on elderly support; PSP calls for a ‘compassionate government’
29Jul By Desk TeamNo Comments
China, Singapore, World

GE2020: In Yio Chu Kang broadcast, PAP focuses on elderly support; PSP calls for a ‘compassionate government’

SINGAPORE: Candidates from the People’s Action Party (PAP) and the Progress Singapore Party (PSP) delivered their constituency political broadcasts for the new Yio Chu Kang SMC on Wednesday (Jul 8). Mr Yip Hon Weng from the PAP spoke first in English and Mandarin. This was followed by PSP’s Kayla Low, who spoke in Mandarin and English. YIP HON WENG: FIRST-HAND EXPERIENCE IN UNDERSTANDING CONCERNS OF ELDERLY Mr Yip, a new face in the PAP, said that he wants to contribute in caring for seniors in Yio Chu Kang. Running the Silver Generation Office for “many years” gave him “first-hand experience (in) understanding the concerns and aspirations of the Pioneer and Merdeka generation seniors”, he said. Mr Yip, 43, said while many elderly people can access the help that they need, others ...
Read More
Canada to review $6.8 mn worth security equipment purchased from China
29Jul mmBy Mike TrudellNo Comments
China, World

Canada to review $6.8 mn worth security equipment purchased from China

In yet another fallout for China, Canada has sought to review $6.8 million worth of security equipment purchased from a Beijing-based company that has been found to have connections with the highest levels of the Chinese Communist Party.According to media reports, Canada posted details that Beijing-based Nuctech, a company owned by the Chinese government and founded by the son of former General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party, Hu Jintao, has been awarded a deal by Global Affairs Canada (GAC) to install X-ray scanning equipment and software systems to provide security for 170 Canadian embassies, consulates and high commissions worldwide.Foreign Minister Francois-Phillipe Champagne has promised to review "any possible issue relative to security or safety ... all appropriate actions ...
Read More
Jammu & Kashmir joins ‘Boycott China’ campaign
29Jul mmBy Joe RodriguezNo Comments
Asia, China

Jammu & Kashmir joins ‘Boycott China’ campaign

People in Jammu & Kashmir have now joined the rest of India in boycotting Chinese products and support ‘Make in India’ products after India lost 20 of its soldiers in Galwan valley clash with China on June 15.In Kashmir, people have donned ‘Boycott China face masks’ in protest against China’s expansionist policies. They also carried banners saying `let’s use Indian products’, `let’s Boycott China’ and `let’s build our nation’."China is a country, which has always cheated and backstabbed us. As per the direction of our government, we need to boycott all Chinese apps and other products. We should buy Make in India products," said Pritam Singh, local Corporator in Jammu.In support, Surinder Mahajan, president of Jammu's Rughnath Bazaar, said, "Boycott Chinese products is a good campaign. ...
Read More
Hong Kong’s competitive edge blunted by US-China storm
29Jul By Desk TeamNo Comments
China, Market, World

Hong Kong’s competitive edge blunted by US-China storm

HONG KONG: Beijing's tough new security law and President Donald Trump's order to rescind special trading privileges have blunted Hong Kong's competitive edge and risk turning the finance hub into just another Chinese city, analysts warn. Once lauded as an oasis of predictability in Asia, Hong Kong has been plunged into crisis over the past year, threatening its status as a reliable world-class business centre. As 2019 came to a close, the city was already deep in recession because of spiralling US-China trade tensions and months of huge, often violent protests. And the jolts to business sentiment have not let up. Late last month Beijing blanketed the city in a game-changing anti-subversion law aimed at ending protests against its increasingly authoritarian rule. Then on Tuesd...
Read More
China continues to be largest coal producer while making speeches about clean environment
20Jul mmBy Walter ParezNo Comments
China

China continues to be largest coal producer while making speeches about clean environment

Over the years China has received much applause for its clean environmental speeches at climate change and environmental events. However, the data released by China Coal Transport and Distribution Association's (CCTDA) shows that the coal used by coastal power plants at five major Chinese utilities hit 488,800 tonnes during the last week of March, more than double from a record low seen on February 10.The Chinese government, despite making speeches about the road to have a clean environment, reportedly plans to add coal storage facilities in 2020 to ensure stockpiles at or above 15 days' normal supply for coal-driven power plants.In 2019, the country's coal consumption was up by 1 per cent over the previous year, marking the third consecutive annual rise in coal use.China is also permittin...
Read More
Stocks wobble as investors assess risks of second wave
8Jul By Desk TeamNo Comments
China, World

Stocks wobble as investors assess risks of second wave

Asian stocks were set for gains on Friday although trade was likely to be choppy after a mixed Wall Street session with investor focus swinging between concerns about a second pandemic wave and more upbeat hopes about an economic recovery. TOKYO/WASHINGTON: Asian shares and U.S. stock futures teetered in choppy trade on Friday as lingering concerns about an fresh spike in coronavirus cases offset growing hopes for a quick economic recovery. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.1per cent. U.S. S&P 500 e-minis moved in and out of the red, and were last up 0.21per cent. Shares in China rose 1.15per cent, led by gains in financials and the health care sector, but South Korean stocks fell 0.25per cent due to concern about diplomatic tension with North Korea. ...
Read More
Singapore reports 202 new COVID-19 cases; 6 infections in community
7Jul By Desk TeamNo Comments
China, Singapore, World

Singapore reports 202 new COVID-19 cases; 6 infections in community

SINGAPORE: Singapore reported 202 new COVID-19 cases on Monday (Jun 29), including six cases in the community, said the Ministry of Health (MOH). The community cases involve four Singaporeans and two work permit holders. Among the Singaporeans, one had already been quarantined as he had been in contact with a previous case linked to the Leo dormitory cluster. Another two cases were detected as part of MOH's screening of people working at dormitories or frontline COVID-19 operations. "Epidemiological investigations are ongoing for the remaining (Singaporean) case," said MOH. The tally of COVID-19 cases in Singapore stands at 43,661. Most of the new cases daily are work permit holders residing in foreign worker dormitories, with 196 infections reported on Monday. Three ne...
Read More
Greece is ‘ready to welcome tourists’, says prime minister
7Jul By Desk TeamNo Comments
China, World

Greece is ‘ready to welcome tourists’, says prime minister

FIRA: From the emblematic island of Santorini, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said on Saturday (Jun 13) that Greece is "ready to welcome tourists" in complete safety after the coronavirus lockdown, whose impact on tourism will be "significant". "Greek tourism is back," said Mitsotakis, two days before the reopening of the tourist season. The return of tourists to Greece from around 30 countries by air, sea and land, begins on Monday. "Everything is ready in terms of making sure that we ensure the proper social distancing guidelines, said Mitsotakis, adding that safety and health is "our number 1 priority". "We want visitors to feel safe. I am not interested in making Greece the number one destination in Europe. I am interested in making Greece the safest destination in Eu...
Read More