China overtakes Japan

CHINA has overtaken Japan to become the world's second-largest economy, the fruit of three decades of rapid growth that has lifted hundreds of millions of people out of poverty.

Depending on how fast its exchange rate rises, China is on course to overtake the United States and vault into the No.1 spot sometime around 2025, according to projections by the World Bank, Goldman Sachs and others.

China came close to surpassing Japan in 2009 and the disclosure by a senior official that it had now done so comes as no surprise. Indeed, Yi Gang, China's chief currency regulator, mentioned the milestone in passing in remarks published on Friday.

'China, in fact, is now already the world's second-largest economy,' he said in an interview with China Reform magazine posted on the website (www.safe.gov.cn) of his agency, the State Administration of Foreign Exchange.

Cruising past Japan might give China bragging rights, but its per-capita income of about $3,800 a year is a fraction of Japan's or America's.

'China is still a developing country, and we should be wise enough to know ourselves,' Mr Yi said, when asked whether the time was ripe for the yuan to become an international currency.

Never retire

'WE'VE got to make old people productive and I don't think there should be a retirement age. You work as long as you can work and you'll be healthier and happier for it.

'You ask me to stop working all of a sudden, I think I'd just shrivel up, face the wall and that's that. But I'm still functioning, if not at the rate at which I was functioning, say, 20 years ago ... I have aches and pains, but nothing terminal and I can keep going.

'I think the Japanese solve it by giving the old people robots and gadgets to work with. So they are still productive. They take less pay.

'Now this is where, in Singapore, it becomes very painful. You are (a) superior, suddenly your junior overtakes your position and you have less pay and he is the boss. So they find the psychological switch unpleasant.

'I think we have to develop that approach to life: You've reached the maximum you can do at your age in that position, you move sideways and you take less pay and you move gradually to less and less pay because you are moving slower and slower, especially if you are doing physical work.

'But that's very hard to get across and many of our workers have preferred retirement and then they die early. If you keep doing what you were doing for almost the whole of your life, the chances are you will stay interested and engaged.

'There's something to do tomorrow and you keep going. If you start saying 'Oh, I'm old' and you start reading novels or playing golf or playing chess or Scrabble, you're on your way down.'

S'pore richest worth $62b

SINGAPORE'S rich just keep getting richer.

The latest Forbes list of the wealthiest individuals and families here shows that the 40 richest here are now worth US$45.7 billion (S$62 billion), up 17 per cent from US$39 billion last year. As in previous years, the list is made up of well-known entrepreneurs, philanthropists and business leaders.

Topping the rich list again this year is the family of Singapore's richest man and the late property tycoon Ng Teng Fong. Mr Ng, who died in February, has a net worth of US$7.8 billion, a slight dip from US$8 billion from 2009 after a stake in Hong Kong developer Tsim Sha Tsui Properties fell 18 per cent in the past one year.

The family's wealth is still largely derived from property developer Far East Organization.

The Khoo family, which owns the Goodwood Group of Hotels and has a minor stake in Orchard Parade Holdings, stays put at No. 2 with US$5.9 billion.

United Overseas Bank chairman Wee Cho Yaw is ranked third most wealthiest, and is worth US$3.6 billion. He was also among the two biggest gainers in dollar terms. Mr Wee added US$500 million to his wealth and regained the third position after dropping to No. 5 last year with US$3.1 billion.

According to Forbes Asia magazine, which publishes the annual Singapore Rich List, the increase in collective net worth reflects the country's economic resurgence. Singapore is set for record growth this year after shrinking by 1.3 per cent in 2009. The official growth forecast for the year was revised upwards last month from 7 to 9 per cent to 13 to 15 per cent.

The top 10 richest in Singapore are:

1) Ng family; US$7.8 billion
2) Khoo family; $5.9 billion
3) Wee Cho Yaw; $3.6 billion
4) Kuok Khoon Hong; $3.5 billion
5) Richard Chandler; $3.4 billion
6) Kwee brothers; $3.3 billion
7) Zhong Sheng Jian; $1.8 billion
8) Peter Lim; $1.6 billion
9) Kwek Leng Beng; $1.4 billion
10) Lee Seng Wee; $1.3 billion

Beijing's population surges near 20 million

Beijing municipal people's congress revealed this week that the Chinese capital now has 19.72 million inhabitants, growing by over 3% in the past 2 years.

Previous estimates had predicted that the city's population would swell to that level a decade later than it has. According to the guidelines regarding Beijing's development between 2004 and 2020 set by the State Council, the number of permanent residents living in capital should have been capped below 18 million until the end of 2020.

However, a recently released report from the population investigation and research team within the people's congress shows that by the end of 2009, approximately 12.46 million people in the capital held a Beijing "hukou" (permanent residence). An additional 7.26 million inhabitants were migrant workers who had been living in the city for more than half a year and who are therefore also classified as permanent residents.

After analyzing the change in population between 2006 and 2009, the team found that Beijing's population had undergone rapid growth during the first four years of the 11th Five-Year Development Plan, mainly as a result of an explosion in the floating population.

Natural birth contributed 482,000 extra people during the past four years while the jump in the floating population accounted for 1.52 million additional inhabitants.

Related readings: Beijing weighs what it takes to be world city Beijing population exceed 19 million Tax on vacant homes proposed Beijing's demand for talent growing

The report points out that now the total size of the floating population in the capital could have exceeded 10 million people, if members of the army deployed in Beijing, unregistered migrant workers and people on short visits are also added to the mix.

The massive growth in Beijing's population, which is mainly comprised of young adults, plays an important role in the booming development of the city. Unfortunately, say critics, it unavoidably brings more pressure on the city's natural resources.

Wang Jian, a water specialist with Green SOS, an NGO based in Beijing, told METRO that the current water reserves in Beijing can only support about half of its residents, and not the nearly 20 million people who now live in the city.

The population explosion not only burdens the environment but also the whole infrastructure, public service system and the management of society, say experts.

Wu Shoulun, a retired professor from Beihang University who is also a member of the congress's research team, said in a media report that every aspect of people's daily life can be influenced by the huge population, as it leads to high-priced-apartments, chaos on public transportation and challenges for the education system. Maya Reid, a 25-year-old woman from Canada, has noticed the sharp rise in the capital's population since she arrived in Beijing four years ago.

"My home country has a population of 30 million. It's not like we can find a seat in subway every time but it has never been so packed and you can always find a place to breathe," said Reid who, commutes to work each day on Beijing's subway.

Figures show that around 32.3 percent of commercial apartments were sold to people who did not have Beijing permanent residency papers between 2005 and 2009. In 2008, 40 percent of students in compulsory education in Beijing were from the floating population. Both facts suggest the floating population is growing massively.

"It is time for the government to take into consideration proper population control," Wu told the Beijing Daily on Wednesday.

His team suggested that the government changes the current industry structure in Beijing, opening more hi-tech companies and attracting more high-end people to Beijing instead of laborers.

However, Mu Guangzong, a professor from the Institute of Population Research with Peking University, had a different point of view.

"I believe the market can help with the adjustment of population. High-end people will also need someone to help them with housekeeping and other stuff," Mu told METRO on Thursday.

"People who are useful for society will stay and those who are not may leave gradually."

Mu said the reason why Beijing attracts more people than any other cities is because the capital is a better place to live than many other cities.

"The root lies in the huge different living standards between big cities and small villages. And the difference is still increasing," he said.

1-AP

An ad in UK says :

Toyota Estima Emina 2.4 Latest Edition.
5 Doors, Automatic, MPV, Petrol, 49,000 miles, Pearl White, 02 Reg year 2002, Air Conditioning, Anti-Lock Braking System, Central Locking, Compact Disc Player, 8 Seats, Electric Mirrors, Electric Windows, Adjustable Seat Height, Adjustable Steering Column, Air Bag, Alarm,

£8595

This car will sell for RM 160,000 in KL.
But £1 = RM 4.794
£ 8595 = RM 41,204.
So cheap? Cannot be!

OK. The pound took a dip. Lets use the old old rate of £1= RM 7
Then £ 8595 = RM 60,165
So cheap ? Really ? Why are we Malaysians paying RM 160,000?

The costing is :
Vehicle CIF — RM 60,000
Duty.Taxes/profit — RM 60,000

The other RM 40,000? Goes to the notorious AP.

If I sell 1 AP per month, my income is higher than the monthly salary of a CEO of a listed company. More than 1.5 times the annual salary of a fresh graduate.

If I sell 2 APs per month, I am a millionaire by definition : million dollar income.

Why do you want to go to U, struggle for 3-4 years, and get paid less than what they make with 1-AP?

Now I know why AP is extended again and again, and again ……

'No English, no job'

IN A bid to plug dwindling domestic consumption by tapping into overseas markets, some of Japan's big-name retailers are telling their employees to start speaking English - or find another job.

As Japan's population shrinks, the country's retailers are increasingly looking to boost sales by expanding abroad and some firms are waking up to the necessity of being able to speak the global language of business in order to succeed overseas.

Rakuten, Japan's biggest online retailer, plans to make English the firm's official language, while Fast Retailing, operator of the Uniqlo apparel chain, wants to make English more common in its offices by 2012 and plans to test its employees for proficiency.

'It's about stopping being a Japanese company. We will become a world company,' Rakuten CEO Hiroshi Mikitani said last week at a news conference in Tokyo - conducted almost entirely in English. Employees at Rakuten, which hopes overseas sales will eventually account for 70 per cent of all transactions made through its websites, will need to master English by 2012 to avoid facing the sack.

'No English, no job,' Mr Mikitani told the Asahi newspaper. Other high-profile Japanese companies, including automakers Toyota Motor and Nissan Motor, have announced moves to make the use of English more common in the workplace. Some experts say the switch to English is healthy but just one of the changes companies need to make to go global.

'What's interesting is that these companies really stand out as pioneers,' Jeff Kingston, director of Asian Studies at Temple University's Japan campus. 'They have a relatively new outlook. They realise that Japan is going to need to strike into foreign markets given the dormant state of its economy,' he said.

Temasek's assets hit $186b

TEMASEK Holdings' net portfolio climbed 43 per cent to a new record high of $186 billion in the 12 months to March this year, reflecting its dramatic recovery from the impact of the global financial crisis.

The portfolio beat the previous high of $185 billion set in 2008 and far exceeds the $130 billion last March, according to its annual report, which was released on Thursday.

Temasek's executive director Simon Israel told a media briefing on Thursday that the record portfolio valuation was a 'number obviously that we are pleased with'.

'Through the roller coaster of a massive correction, from the market peak of 2007, to a near meltdown in 2008 and early 2009, and a mixed recovery in the second half of 2009, we kept our cool, and focused on what we needed to do as a long-term investor,' Mr Israel said.

'We maintained a liquid posture, kept our powder dry, made sure the home base was secure, and invested and divested steadily, taking advantage of opportunities which came along. Some investments had not turned out as expected, while most other investments did well. Where we thought the risks were not acceptable, or when we had other better opportunities, we were ready to do what we thought was best for the long term, despite any short-term pain.'

Ms Ho Ching, Temasek's chief executive, was not at the briefing as she is travelling with her husband Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong in the United States.

Net profit fell 26 per cent to $4.6 billion from $6.2 billion a year earlier due to lower profit contributions from its portfolio companies which were impacted by the financial crisis.

Temasek Chairman S. Dhanabalan said in the report that the company's portfolio has 'delivered consistently through market cycles,' giving a shareholder return of 17 per cent compounded annually since the fund began.

Looking ahead, the report said the European sovereign debt crisis points to the 'underlying structural imbalances and the bumpy re-adjustments ahead. Downside risks include inflation in the medium term, as well as political, policy and regulatory risks in the near term, as well as potential cracks in the global credit system.

Said Mr Dhanabalan in the report: 'Protectionism may rear its head as developed markets struggle to cope with high unemployment, weak fiscal positions and mounting debt burdens. On the other hand, developing markets risk asset bubbles, and loose lending may haunt their banking system down the road.'

Ms Ho expects global growth to slow in the medium term with Asia maintaining its secular long-term growth. 'Our focus on Asia will continue,' she said.

Western food fuelling SE Asia diabetes boom

The growing popularity of Western junk food is fuelling a diabetes boom across Southeast Asia, Australian researchers warned on Wednesday.

Studies found about 11 per cent of men and 12 per cent of women in Vietnam's Ho Chi Minh City had type 2 diabetes without knowing it, on top of the four percent of people who are diagnosed sufferers.

"Dietary patterns have been changing dramatically in Vietnam in recent years, particularly in the cities as they become more Westernised," said Tuan Nguyen of Sydney's Garvan Institute of Medical Research.

"There are fast food outlets everywhere."

He said the findings, based on testing a random sample of 721 men and 1,421 women, mirrored the results of a similar study carried out in Thailand.

"Because of that, we feel very confident that we can extrapolate our findings to other parts of Southeast Asia including Malaysia, Singapore, Cambodia and Laos," he said.

Type 2, the most common form of diabetes, is caused by high levels of fat and sugar in the diet and a lack of exercise, and can lead to heart disease, vision loss, limb amputation and kidney failure.

Co-author Lesley Campbell said developing countries were facing a "sad story" where they are affected by Western lifestyle diseases alongside hunger and poverty, but without the health resources to treat them.

"Unfortunately, we are watching, in just over a generation, a very rapid increase in diabetes" in developing nations, she said.

The researchers have developed a simple risk assessment for diabetes, using only blood pressure and waist-to-hip ratio, which they hope will help doctors detect those most likely to have the disease.

Colonoscopy could save 32,000

AROUND 32,000 lives could be saved each year if people over 50 got regular colorectal cancer screening as recommended, the US Centers for Disease Control said on Tuesday.

The disease is the second leading cause of deaths in the United States after lung cancer, but millions of people 'still have not had recommended screening,' according to the new CDC report.

'Tragically, one in three people who should be screened for colorectal cancer have not yet done so; and rates are even lower among Hispanics and blacks,' said CDC director Thomas Frieden in a statement.

'Each year about 12,000 lives are saved as a result of mammography, and an additional 32,000 lives could be saved if every adult aged 50 years or older got tested regularly for colorectal cancer,' he said.

Comparing the rates to screening for breast cancer - the second leading cause of cancer deaths among US women, but also the most commonly found - the CDC noted that 'more than 22 million men and women have not had a potentially life-saving screening test for colorectal cancer.' In 2008, adult Americans who have health insurance had the highest rate of people receiving a colonoscopy, at 66 per cent, compared to just 36 per cent for those without insurance.

Junk food fuels diabetes boom

THE growing popularity of Western junk food is fuelling a diabetes boom across South-east Asia, Australian researchers warned on Wednesday.

Studies found about 11 per cent of men and 12 per cent of women in Vietnam's Ho Chi Minh City had type 2 diabetes without knowing it, on top of the four per cent of people who are diagnosed sufferers.

'Dietary patterns have been changing dramatically in Vietnam in recent years, particularly in the cities as they become more Westernised,' said Tuan Nguyen of Sydney's Garvan Institute of Medical Research. 'There are fast food outlets everywhere.' He said the findings, based on testing a random sample of 721 men and 1,421 women, mirrored the results of a similar study carried out in Thailand.

'Because of that, we feel very confident that we can extrapolate our findings to other parts of South-east Asia including Malaysia, Singapore, Cambodia and Laos,' he said. Type 2, the most common form of diabetes, is caused by high levels of fat and sugar in the diet and a lack of exercise, and can lead to heart disease, vision loss, limb amputation and kidney failure.

Co-author Lesley Campbell said developing countries were facing a 'sad story' where they are affected by Western lifestyle diseases alongside hunger and poverty, but without the health resources to treat them. 'Unfortunately, we are watching, in just over a generation, a very rapid increase in diabetes' in developing nations, she said.

The researchers have developed a simple risk assessment for diabetes, using only blood pressure and waist-to-hip ratio, which they hope will help doctors detect those most likely to have the disease.

Raise retirement age to 70

EUROPEAN governments have been told bluntly to raise their retirement age, to prevent the collapse of their pension systems.

In a paper to be published on Wednesday, the European Commission says four workers' contributions to state pensions currently help support two retirees.

The growing number of older people would require the average retirement age to rise to 67 in 2040 and 70 by 2060 to maintain the current pension system, it says.

Lower birth rates and longer life expectancy mean that retiring earlier will not be sustainable.

Germany will raise the retirement age to 67 in 2029. Spain is considering a similar hike and Britain is discussing increasing it to 68.

But other countries are moving far more slowly. French President Nicolas Sarkozy is facing fierce opposition to his plans for people to retire at 62, instead of 60. Pension reform is a key part of reducing future costs and tackling mounting government debt burdens.

China on heatwave alert

CHINA issued a fresh heatwave alert on Wednesday as soaring temperatures - some of them record highs - were again forecast for large swathes of the nation, sparking concerns about power shortages.

The National Meteorological Centre warned that large parts of northern and central China would again be hit by 'sweltering heat and very little rain', with temperatures set to hit 40 deg C.

It set the heat alert at 'orange' - the second-highest rating on a four-colour scale. The extreme heat, which began at the weekend in most areas, has led to hospital wards packed with people suffering from heat-related illnesses, a surge in air conditioner sales and even a plague of locusts in Inner Mongolia.

Zookeepers used giant ice blocks to keep animals cool, the Xinhua news agency reported. In several cities including Beijing, where the temperature hit 40.6 deg Celsius on Monday, authorities reported that overheated vehicles had caught fire, state media said.

The heatwave comes after torrential rains in June, mainly in southern parts of the nation, caused massive floods and landslides that killed at least 266 people. The soaring temperatures have led to fears of power shortages in several provinces due to high demand for air conditioning, the state-run Global Times reported.

In the southern city of Guangzhou, authorities had opened nearly 500 shelters equipped with air conditioning units and water for people to escape the heat, the report said. Water demand has also soared along with the high temperatures.

Bilingual ability a 'life skill'

A HIGHLY-popular online quiz, along the lines of a Trivial Pursuit game, will be the hallmark again of this year's Speak Mandarin Campaign, which was launched yesterday.

The weekly quiz, posted online on Tuesday, is among a host of activities being held to encourage especially English-speaking Singaporeans to master the language and, in turn, reap the benefits from a fast-growing Chinese economy.

The need, plus benefits, for Singaporeans to be effectively bilingual in English and Mandarin was a key theme of Manpower Minister Gan Kim Yong's address yesterday when he launched the year-long campaign.

Being effectively bilingual is no longer just a national education requirement, he said. 'It is now a life skill that we should all make an effort to acquire.'

Mr Gan also explained the need to hold the campaign yearly, saying that mastering a language needed constant practice for a person to remain current.

'As a new generation of Singaporeans grow up, we need to continue to encourage them and to provide the environment for them to not only learn but also to use the language,' he told reporters after the launch at the Asian Civilisations Museum in Empress Place.

China's forex reserves account for 30% of world total

China's foreign exchange reserves hit $2.4 trillion, accounting for 30.7 percent of the world's forex reserves, according to foreign media.

It's said that with the recovery of the global economy in 2009, the national foreign exchange reserves will also see a significant rise. According to statistics, China's foreign reserve occupied 30.7 percent of total global reserves. BRIC countries (China, Russia, Brazil and India) are very much at the forefront, with $3.31 trillion reserves, accounting for 42.3 percent; while the G7 have only account $1.24 trillion.

It's also understood that China's foreign reserve in 2009 increased by more than 23 percent, equaling nearly 2 times the forex reserves of the G7. As a G7 member, Japan's reserves are about $1 trillion, ranking the second largest country in forex reserves.

According to the survey, among the world's ten largest reserves countries, there are seven countries from Asia. As for the United States, with its $45.4 billion foreign exchange reserves, it is only $2.4 billion more than Nigeria ($43 billion).

Overseas Chinese top the world at 45 million

The number of overseas Chinese has reached 45 million, becoming the world's largest overseas group, according to the Overseas Chinese Affairs Office of the State Council cited in Guangzhou Daily.

Many of the new emigrants are choosing to live in Europe, according to the office's deputy director Xu Yousheng.

When asked about attitudes towards citizens moving abroad, Xu said, "With the precondition of legality, we respect their right and choice, protect their legitimate rights abroad, and will guide them to assimilate with local society, to make due economic contributions."

Some 1.4b Chinese by 2015

CHINA'S population will near 1.4 billion by 2015, when over half of the nation will be considered urban dwellers, state press said on Sunday.

China's urban population will rise to over 700 million people by 2015 when city dwellers outstrip the rural population for the first time, Xinhua news agency said, citing Li Bin, head of the nation's population planning agency.

Over the next five-years, as the rural population leaves the countryside for the urban industrial centres, China's population will undergo several other major changes as it surpasses 1.39 billion people, Ms Li said.

During the period, China will witness its first ageing-population boom, with an average of about eight million people turning 60 each year, up from an average of around 4.8 million from 2006-2010, she said. By 2015, China will have 200 million people over 60 years of age, Li told a population symposium in Nanjing city.

Meanwhile, the proportion of the population aged between 15 and 59 - the working age group - will peak and then slowly begin to fall, the report said. According to official statistics, China's population stood at 1.32 billion at the end of 2008, about 2.5 times the number in 1949. when the People's Republic of China was founded, Xinhua said.

China implemented a strict population control policy in 1979, generally limiting families to one child, with some exceptions for rural farmers, ethnic minorities and other groups. The government maintains that the policy has averted 400 million births and has vowed to enforce it until at least 2033, when the population is expected to peak at 1.5 billion people.

Money 'can' buy happiness

Some say money can't buy you love, but a new global survey says it can buy you some happiness.

'Yes, money makes you happy - we see the effect of income on life satisfaction is very strong and virtually ubiquitous and universal around the world,' said psychology professor Ed Diener of the University of Illinois, who led the study.

'But it makes you more satisfied than it makes you feel good. Positive feelings are less affected by money and more affected by the things people are doing.'

Both positive and negative feelings are more likely to be linked to being respected, being in control of your life and having friends and family to rely on.

Prof Diener said the study found a few very unhappy people among the rich, and pretty happy people among the poor.

'But the poor who are highly satisfied with their lives are rarer than the poor who enjoy life, because this depends on social relationships, and poor people can be well-off in these,' he said. -- WASHINGTON POST