Torbjørn Færøvik's Blog, page 396

Singapore may see 2,000 Covid-19 deaths each year, minister says

Singapore could see as many 2,000 Covid-19 deaths annually over time, a minister said on Monday as the country battles its biggest surge in infections. At 0.2% Singapore's Covid-19 case fatality rate is similar to the rate of deaths from pneumonia before the pandemic struck, said Janil Puthucheary, a senior minister of state in parliament. It is also lower than other countries where cases surged

Xi Jinping makes no major climate pledges in written Cop26 address

China’s president, Xi Jinping, has called on developed countries to “provide support to help developing countries do better” in dealing with the climate crisis, in a written statement to the Cop26 climate conference that fails to make any new significant pledges.The Chinese leader also urged all parties to take stronger actions to “jointly tackle the climate challenge”, and said his country would

Is There A War Brewing In The South China Sea?

Tensions in the South China Sea have been percolating for years now. Even in relatively calm times when the battling claimants of the contested waters manage to stay out of the headlines, the reality out on the sea is rarely tranquil. In fact, a recent report from the South China Morning Post has revealed that Chinese boats have been harassing Civilian vessels in the Malaysian and Vietnamese

The US has a chance to put China in the economic rearview mirror because of Xi's 'awkward regime shift,' BofA says

President Xi Jinping's plans to overhaul China's economy could give the US a fighting chance in a race it's been losing for decades. Since the late 1970s, China has consistently outpaced the US in economic growth. While the US remains a larger economy by gross domestic product, China is expected to become the world's largest economy in the early 2030s, according to International Monetary Fund

East China Sea: What will drive China to War?

President Xi Jinping declared in July that those who get in the way of China’s ascent will have their “heads bashed bloody against a Great Wall of steel.” The People’s Liberation Army Navy is churning out ships at a rate not seen since World War II, as Beijing issues threats against Taiwan and other neighbors. Top Pentagon officials have warned that China could start a military conflict in the

Hong Kong: Jimmy Lai goes on trial over Tiananmen vigil

The trial of eight pro-democracy activists, including Apple Daily newspaper founder Jimmy Lai, who were charged over their roles in an unauthorised Tiananmen vigil last year began on Monday. Lai and the seven others, including Lee Cheuk-yan, the former chairman of the now defunct Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China, face charges of organising, participating

COP26: India PM Narendra Modi pledges net zero by 2070

India has promised to cut its emissions to net zero by 2070 - missing a key goal of the COP26 summit for countries to commit to reach that target by 2050. Prime Minister Narendra Modi made the pledge, the first time India has set a net zero target, at the Glasgow summit. Net zero, or becoming carbon neutral, means not adding to the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. China has announced

China grows more isolated as Asia Pacific neighbors start living with Covid-19

From Australia to South Korea and across Asia Pacific, the final bastions of "zero-Covid" are easing restrictions and opening borders as the region prepares to live with the virus -- except for one major holdout. China, the country where Covid-19 was first detected nearly two years ago, remains determined to eliminate the virus inside its borders, with officials there showing no signs of backing

China's factories are still struggling with the energy crunch and supply woes

China's big factories just had their worst month since the Covid-19 pandemic began, underscoring the scale of the slowdown in the world's second largest economy and the supply challenges facing their customers. A government survey of manufacturing activity released over the weekend fell for a second straight month, down to 49.2 in October from September's 49.6. Any reading below 50 indicates

COP26: What’s at stake in the UN climate talks in Glasgow and how will the US-China rivalry affect negotiations?

After witnessing the ups and downs of climate negotiations over the past decade, Li Shuo sometimes feels frustrated. As a veteran climate campaigner with Greenpeace East Asia, he has seen a “complete circle” – from the catastrophic 2009 Copenhagen summit, through the landmark 2015 Paris climate accord to this year’s pivotal conference in Glasgow.“The global climate momentum depends on many