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October
EU, UK made progress on resumed N.Ireland talks - Ireland's Coveney
Written by Nur Yasmin
Britain and the European Union made some progress last week on their long running post-Brexit trade row over Northern Ireland after talks resumed for the first time in over seven months, Irish Foreign Minister Simon Coveney said on Wednesday.
The two sides are deadlocked over the Northern Ireland protocol, the part of the Brexit deal that mandated checks on goods moving to Northern Ireland from the rest of the United Kingdom due to its open land border with EU member Ireland.
Britain wants to scrap checks on goods staying in Northern Ireland, while the European Union is prepared to ease them.
"Yes they have made some progress," Coveney told reporters, describing the past two weeks that included talks between senior Irish and British ministers as "the best two weeks of negotiation" this year.
"I think there is now in place the start of a process that I hope can deliver through negotiation, but it is just too early to tell whether that is going to be possible or not."
Coveney declined to say what major issues of disagreement remained but singled out the sharing of data around goods travelling into Northern Ireland and staying there as being one area where progress could be made.
Asked if it would be after Christmas before that happens, Coveney said no, that the EU was looking for a breakthrough on some of the issues over the next few weeks and to make "a step forward" on the contentious ones by the end of October.
"The next number of months are not going to be talking around in circles, like we have seen in the last number of years," Coveney said.
British Prime Minister Liz Truss said on Wednesday that her government would proceed with a planned law to override some parts of the protocol if a negotiated settlement cannot be reached. (Reuters)
October
India retail inflation picks up in Sept, suggesting further rate hikes
Written by Nur Yasmin
India's retail inflation accelerated in September to a five-month high of 7.41% year-on-year as food prices surged, raising fears of further interest-rate hikes when the central bank meets for its next policy review in December.
The data shows retail inflation remaining above the Reserve Bank of India's target for three quarters, implying it will have to report to the government why it failed to meet the target and what actions it will need to take.
The RBI's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), established in 2016, is mandated to keep inflation within 2 percentage points on either side of its 4% target.
RBI and Prime Minister Narendra Modi's administration agree that inflation was driven by external factors such as surging energy and food prices after Russia's Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine, officials say, and it would take a longer period to tame prices.
The MPC has raised rates by 190 basis points since May, and economists expect it to raise rates by at least 25 bps at its next meeting Dec. 5-7.
Garima Kapoor, an economist at Elara Capital, said retail inflation was likely to ease to an average of 6% only by January-March.
"We expect the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) to hike policy repo rate by another 40-50 bps this financial year," she said, and higher inflation could mean further rate hikes.
Annual retail inflation (INCPIY=ECI) in September was higher than the 7.3% forecast by economists in a Reuters poll, and above 7% the previous month, data released by the National Statistics Office on Wednesday showed.
Food inflation, which accounts for nearly 40% of the CPI basket, rose 8.60% in September, compared to 7.62% in August.
Over 10% depreciation of India's rupee against the dollar this year has made imports costlier for consumers and businesses.
STICKY MANUFACTURING INFLATION
Economists fret that despite rate hikes, inflation could remain sticky at least for a quarter as a pick-up in consumer demand during the festival season starting late September has encouraged companies to jack up prices.
Companies have also raised prices of other goods like smart televisions, mobiles, garments, and footwear to partly cover the rise in input costs earlier this year.
Core inflation, excluding volatile food and energy prices, was estimated at 6.07%-6.1% in September, compared with 5.84%-5.90% estimated in August, said three economists after the data release.
The International Monetary Fund on Tuesday cut its growth forecast for India to 6.8% for 2022/23. (Reuters)
October
Vaccine trials on Sudan Ebola strain to start in weeks - WHO chief
Written by Nur Yasmin
World Health Organization head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Wednesday a clinical trial of vaccines that could potentially combat the Sudan strain of Ebola driving an outbreak in Uganda could start within weeks.
The East African country declared an outbreak of Ebola on Sept. 20 and said infections were being caused by the Sudan strain. Uganda's health ministry has confirmed a total of 54 Ebola cases and 19 deaths.
There have been worries the spread of infection in the country could be difficult to control because currently there is no vaccine for the strain. For now, the infections are concentrated in a cluster of five districts in central Uganda.
In a virtual address to a meeting of Africa regional health officials in Uganda's capital Kampala, Tedros said several vaccines are currently being developed that could deal with the Sudan strain.
Two of those vaccines "could be put in clinical trial in Uganda in the coming weeks pending regulatory and other approvals from the Ugandan government," he said.
"Our primary focus now is to rapidly control and contain this outbreak to protect neighbouring districts as well as neighbouring countries."
Tedros did not give details of the vaccines due for trial including their names or which firms developed them.
Ebola, a hemorrhagic fever, mainly spreads through contact with the bodily fluids of an infected person. Symptoms of the viral disease include intense weakness, muscle pain, headaches and a sore throat, vomiting, diarrhoea and rashes among others.
Although it has no vaccine, WHO has previously said the Sudan strain is less transmissible and has shown a lower fatality rate in previous outbreaks than Ebola Zaire. (Reuters)
October
Taiwan says war with China 'absolutely' not an option, but bolstering defences
Written by Nur Yasmin
War between Taiwan and China is "absolutely not an option", Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen said on Monday, as she reiterated her willingness to talk to Beijing and also pledged to boost the island's defences including with precision missiles.
China again rejected her latest overture, saying the island was an inseparable part of its territory.
Democratic Taiwan, which China claims as its own, has come under increasing military and political pressure from Beijing, especially after Chinese war games in early August following a Taipei visit by U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
Any conflict over Taiwan could drag in the United States, Japan and perhaps much of the world, as well as shatter the global economy, especially given Taiwan's dominant position as a maker of semiconductors used in everything from smartphones and tablets to fighter jets.
Tsai, in her national day speech outside the presidential office under a grey sky, said it was "regrettable" that China had escalated its intimidation and threatened peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and region.
China should not think there is room for compromise in the commitment of Taiwan's people to democracy and freedom, she said.
"I want to make clear to the Beijing authorities that armed confrontation is absolutely not an option for our two sides. Only by respecting the commitment of the Taiwanese people to our sovereignty, democracy, and freedom can there be a foundation for resuming constructive interaction across the Taiwan Strait."
Speaking in Beijing, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said Taiwan is part of China, "has no president and is not an independent country".
"The root cause of the current tensions in the Taiwan Strait lies in the Democratic Progressive Party authorities' stubborn insistence on Taiwan independence and secession," she said, referring to Taiwan's ruling party. "We are willing to create a broad space for peaceful reunification, but we will never leave any space for Taiwan independence and secession activities."
China calls Tsai - re-elected by a landslide in 2020 on a promise to stand up to Beijing - a separatist and refuses to speak to her.
Tsai's speech comes less than a week before China's ruling Communist Party's congress opens in Beijing, where President Xi Jinping is widely expected to win a precedent-breaking third five-year term.
An official familiar with Tsai's thinking, speaking on condition of anonymity, told reporters the president was looking to "clearly convey" her position to the world and Beijing.
"Standing firm on the status quo of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait is the main axis of Tsai's comments on cross-strait relations this year," the official said, adding this was the world's expectation and responsibility of both Taipei and Beijing.
'NO ROOM FOR COMPROMISE'
Tsai said, to applause, that her government looked forward to the gradual post-pandemic resumption of healthy and orderly people-to-people exchanges across the strait, which would ease tensions.
But the broad consensus in Taiwan is that its sovereignty and free and democratic way of life must be defended, she added.
"On this point, we have no room for compromise," she said.
Tsai has made strengthening Taiwan's defences a cornerstone of her administration to enable it to mount a more credible deterrence to China, which is ramping up an ambitious modernisation programme of its own military.
Taiwan will show the world it is taking responsibility for its own defence, Tsai said.
Taiwan is increasing mass production of precision missiles and high-performance naval vessels, and working to acquire small, highly mobile weapons that will ensure Taiwan is fully prepared to respond to "external military threats", she added.
The military tensions have raised concerns, especially in the United States, about the concentration of chip making in Taiwan.
"I want to specifically emphasise one point to my fellow citizens and the international community, which is that the concentration of the semiconductor sector in Taiwan is not a risk," she said.
"We will continue to maintain Taiwan's advantages and capacity in leading-edge semiconductor manufacturing processes, and will help optimise the worldwide restructuring of the semiconductor supply chain, giving our semiconductor firms an even more prominent global role," she added. (Reuters)
October
Vietnam economy seen growing 8% in 2022, beating official target - govt
Written by Nur Yasmin
Vietnam's economy is expected to grow 8% this year, beating an official target for an expansion of 6.0%-6.5%, the government said on Tuesday.
The country's exports are forecast to rise 9.5% to $368 billion in the year, the government said in a statement, adding that its foreign direct investment inflows are seen rising 6.4%-11.5% to $21 billion-$22 billion.
Vietnam, a regional manufacturing hub, has seen its economy rebounding from the pandemic, with gross domestic product in the third quarter growing 13.67% from a year earlier.
The government said it will pursue "a flexible and prudent" monetary policy during the rest of the year to ensure macroeconomic stability.
Vietnam will aim for a growth of 6.5% and will consider an inflation target of 4.5% next year, the government said. (Reuters)
October
Bali bombings survivor looks ahead as Australia marks 20th anniversary
Written by Nur Yasmin
Australian Hanabeth Luke remembers like yesterday crawling through burning rubble and thick acrid black smoke after a bomb exploded at a nightclub in Indonesia's tourist hotspot of Bali 20 years ago.
A total of 202 people, including 88 Australians, were killed when a car bomb exploded on Oct 12, 2002 outside the Sari Club and from another blast less than a minute earlier at Paddy's Bar across the road.
It remains the single largest lost of life from an act of terror in Australian history. The country will remember the victims on Wednesday with the government hosting a memorial service at the parliament house in Canberra.
"We can't bring those people back, but we can live the most, the best versions of our lives," Luke told Reuters.
Luke, then 22 years old, escaped the burning building through the collapsed roof and scaled a three metre (10 foot) wall over electrical wires to jump to safety, frantically searching for her then partner, Marc Gajado, amongst the chaos outside.
Gajado, who did not survive the blast, was walking towards the front of the building when the bomb exploded.
As she searched for Gajado, Luke came across badly injured 17-year-old Tom Singer, helping lift him to his feet.
"I said, mate I don't care if both of your legs are broken, you're going to get up and we're going to use both of our strengths and get you out of here," Luke said.
A photo of Luke helping the severely burnt Singer, who died one month later in hospital, was splashed across newspapers globally after the tragedy, with some calling her the "Angel of Bali".
"The nightmare is that, still 20 years later, Marc's never going to come back," said Luke, who now lives in Evans Head, 700 km (435 miles) north of Sydney, with her partner, Kieran, and two children.
"(Marc's) parents will never see him again. Tom Singer's parents, they're the most wonderful people, their whole family, they've been rocked." (reuters)
October
Malaysia's Mahathir fears Najib would walk free if graft-tainted party wins polls
Written by Nur Yasmin
Malaysia's veteran politician and opposition leader Mahathir Mohamad predicted on Tuesday that disgraced former prime minister Najib Razak would be released from jail if his graft-tainted ruling party wins an upcoming general election.
Najib began a 12-year jail term in August after being convicted in the first of several cases related to the looting of billions of dollars from state fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB).
Malaysia is set to hold a general election in the coming weeks after Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob dissolved parliament on Monday, buckling to pressure from factions in the ruling United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) that remain loyal to Najib and others charged with corruption.
Speaking a day later, Mahathir warned that UMNO would rush to get Najib released from prison through a royal pardon as well as drop dozens of other corruption charges if it wins the election.
"Should they be able to win and form the government, that is the first objective, not about the welfare of the people," Mahathir, who had two stints as prime minister, told a news conference.
Criminal prosecution of UMNO president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, who is facing 47 graft charges in a case unrelated to 1MDB, will also be dropped, Mahathir said.
Najib and Zahid have both pleaded not guilty, saying they are victims of a political vendetta.
They were both prosecuted, along with other party leaders, after UMNO lost the 2018 election for the first time in Malaysia's history as voters punished the party for 1MDB and other corruption scandals.
Having led the country for 22 years until 2003, Mahathir came out of retirement to forge a coalition to defeat Najib, his former protege, but that alliance fell apart in 2020, ending Mahathir's second stint as prime minister and allowing UMNO to make its way back into power.
Now aged 97, Mahathir said he will defend his parliamentary seat in the election, and that he was willing to work with anyone to defeat UMNO.
UMNO is hoping to win a big enough mandate in the upcoming polls to form the government on its own, without the coalition partners it had under Ismail's administration.
Despite Najib's claim of political vengeance, the far ranging 1MDB scandal has implicated financial institutions and high-ranking officials globally. At least six countries opened investigations.
Investigators have said some $4.5 billion was stolen from 1MDB - co-founded by Najib during his first year as prime minister in 2009 - and that over $1 billion went to accounts linked to Najib.
The U.S. Department of Justice has called it their biggest kleptocracy investigation.
Najib has said he was misled by 1MDB officials.
Other opposition leaders have also slammed UMNO for pushing for early elections at a time when the economy is slowing down.
"One of the explicit or implicit objectives of UMNO in the general election is to free Najib and the other protagonists of the 1MDB scandal from criminal liability," Lim Kit Siang, a leader of the opposition Democratic Action Party, said in a statement. (Reuters)
October
Philippines' Nobel laureate Ressa to fight conviction at Supreme Court
Written by Nur Yasmin
Philippine Nobel laureate Maria Ressa plans to appeal her cyber libel conviction at the country's Supreme Court, her lawyer said on Tuesday, after losing her legal battle and having months added to her sentence.
The appeals court in its Oct. 10 decision upheld its earlier ruling that affirmed a lower court's conviction, and added eight months to her six-year jail sentence. Ressa remains free during her appeals process.
Lawyer Theodore Te called the outcome "disappointing", adding it "ignored...the evidence presented."
Ressa along with former Rappler researcher and writer, Reynaldo Santos were convicted in June 2020 in a cyber libel case brought by a businessman over an online article in 2012 by Rappler that linked him to illegal activities.
The court at the time ruled Rappler, a news site which is known for its investigative journalism, had not given the businessman a chance to refute the allegations mentioned in its story, despite him contacting Rappler asking to give his side.
Ressa, a dual U.S.-Filipino citizen, is head of Rappler, which earned a reputation for its in-depth reporting and tough scrutiny of then President Rodrigo Duterte. She said the case is an attempt to harass her.
Ressa and Rappler have been fighting numerous legal battles, including alleged tax offences and violation of foreign ownership rules on domestic media.
"The ongoing campaign of harassment and intimidation against me and Rappler continues, and the Philippines legal system is not doing enough to stop it," Ressa said in a statement after losing her appeal.
The plight of Ressa, who was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize alongside Russian journalist Dmitry Muratov in 2021, has raised international awareness about treatment of media in the Philippines, which is one of Asia's most dangerous places for journalists.
Last week, a radio journalist was shot dead, among scores killed in the past decade. (Reuters)
October
North Korea's Kim touts new large greenhouse farm built on ex-missile test site
Written by Nur Yasmin
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has attended the opening ceremony of a new massive greenhouse farm built on a former air base where the country had test-fired missiles until last year, state media said on Tuesday.
The launch on Monday of the Ryonpho Greenhouse Farm, located in the eastern county of Hamju, was to mark the anniversary of the founding of the ruling Workers' Party, a major holiday in North Korea.
Kim attended the event after guiding nuclear tactical exercises targeting South Korea over the past two weeks, which state media said were designed to counter recent joint naval drills by South Korean and U.S. forces involving an aircraft carrier.
The North's ruling party unveiled the project to transform the Ryonpho air base into a "highly automated farm" and a model for rural civilisation, calling it a "top priority task" to help achieve its goal of improving people's lives set at its key policy meeting last December.
The isolated country had used the area for several launches of short-range ballistic missile, including the KN-25s in November 2019 and the suspected KN-23s in March 2021.
The farm has more than 850 blocks of modern greenhouses covering 280 hectares, to be harmonised with some 1,000 houses, schools and cultural and service facilities, the official KCNA news agency said.
Kim has spearheaded the farm initiative to boost vegetable supplies and praised soldiers and workers for completing the construction in just a few months, KCNA said.
The party plans to "more dynamically and confidently push forward the overall rural development of the country with the Ryonpho Greenhouse Farm as a model," Kim was quoted as saying at the ceremony.
He called for building more large farms, increasing the variety of vegetables to be supplied and ensuring scientific, industrialised production and management at those farms.
North Korea first introduced the similar but slightly smaller Jungphyong Greenhouse Farm in the northeast county of Kyongsong in late 2019 as it pushed for self-reliance amid tightening international sanctions over its nuclear and missile programmes. (Reuters)
October
Lavrov says Russia open to talks with West, awaiting serious proposal
Written by Nur Yasmin
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Tuesday that Moscow was open to talks with the West on the Ukraine war but had yet to receive any serious proposal to negotiate.
In an interview on state TV, Lavrov said Russia was willing to engage with the United States or with Turkey on ways to end the war, now in its eight month.
His emphasis on Russia's receptiveness to talks came after a series of stinging defeats since the start of September that have swung the momentum of the conflict in favour of Ukraine.
Lavrov said officials including White House national security spokesman John Kirby had said the United States was open to talks but that Russia had refused.
"This is a lie," Lavrov said. "We have not received any serious offers to make contact."
He also said Russia would not turn down a meeting between President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Joe Biden at a mid-November summit of the Group of 20 in Indonesia, and would consider the proposal if it receives one.
"We have repeatedly said that we never refuse meetings. If there is a proposal, then we will consider it," Lavrov said.
Commenting on the possibility that Turkey could host talks between Russia and the West, Lavrov said Moscow would be willing to listen to any suggestions but could not say in advance whether this would lead to results.
He said Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan would have an opportunity to put proposals to Russian President Vladimir Putin when both visit Kazakhstan this week.
Lavrov noted that direct talks between Russia and Ukraine had broken down at the end of March. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has ruled out talking to Putin after Russia claimed the annexation last month of four Ukrainian regions that it partly occupies. (Reuters)