China services PMI at five-month high, adds to signs of recovery

Growth in China's services sector hit a five-month high in August, underpinned by optimism over government policy measures, a private survey showed, the latest evidence that the world's second-largest economy may have avoided a sharp slowdown.

The Markit/HSBC Services Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) climbed to 52.8 in August, up from July's 51.3 and the highest since March, the survey showed on Wednesday. The data came on the heels of three other PMI surveys this week that pointed to a pick-up in activity at factories and service firms.

Source: Reuters

Japan's economy is bouncing back, offering a possible model for U.S.

After two decades of economic stagnation, once-mighty Japan is beginning to revive - under policies that some experts say could offer lessons to the still-struggling economies of the United States and Europe.

While the Eurozone tries to break out of recession and the U.S. economic recovery remains anemic, Japan has begun to grow at an encouraging rate.The shock-therapy policies of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe have helped Japan's economy expand for three straight quarters at a pace faster than that of the United States.
Its stock market has surged more than 50% in less than a year. Leading automakers and even long-struggling electronics firms such as Sony Corp., beaten down by Apple Inc. and Samsung Electronics Co., are reporting a jump in profits.
The combination of government and financial measures popularly know as Abenomics may finally be snapping Japan out of the doldrums, and that is drawing increasing attention from economists in the West.

"It may have quite a lot to teach us," Joseph Stiglitz, the Nobel laureate economist, wrote recently. "If Abenomics is even half as successful as its advocates hope, it will have still more to teach us."

Japan's central bank has begun to pump more cash into its economy, lifting the nation's exports by reducing the price of Japanese products in the global marketplace.

In addition to adopting strong monetary policy, Abe has boosted government spending to put more money into the pockets of Japan's citizens. The U.S. and Europe, by contrast, have largely emphasized cutbacks, an approach economic studies suggest have slowed job creation and overall growth.

And Abe is preparing a series of structural reforms, including changes in taxes and labor rules, in the hopes of sustaining the nation's growth long term.

Source: NewsOnJapan

Japan, Brazil agree on stronger economic ties

Japan will help Brazil develop an offshore oil field as part of an agreement to strengthen economic ties. Foreign ministers from both countries say they will cooperate in energy, infrastructure and various other fields.

Japan's Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida, now visiting Brazil, met his counterpart Luiz Alberto Figueiredo on Monday.Japan will also help the South American country develop a satellite for anti-disaster purposes, in addition to the ongoing oil project.
Kishida asked Brazil to create a new agency to speed up Brazil's approval for medicines and medical devices.

Japan will build wall of ice to stem Fukushima leak

It will take until March 2015 to build, cost $320 million and use enough power each day to run 3300 Japanese households. Yet the country's government this week decided a wall of ice is the best solution to stem the flow of radioactive water leaking from Fukushima Daiichi's four stricken nuclear reactors.

The wall is the centrepiece of a $470 million drive to stop 400 tonnes of groundwater being contaminated every day. It is currently being stored in an ever-increasing number of huge tanks.Kajima Corporation will build the 1.4-kilometre wall by sinking pipes carrying freezing fluids into the ground, gradually freezing it to form a barrier of permafrost 30 metres deep, down to the bedrock. This will force the water to drain into the sea instead.
Similar ice walls have been used in the US for years, in projects to secure mine shafts and contain contamination, for example.

Source: NewsOnJapan

Local debts not to drag China into a financial crisis

Economists feared the shadow banking nerves, together with massive local government debt, might trigger a financial crisis as China's economic growth slowed down to 7.5 percent in the second quarter, a rate much lower than the two-digit growth seen in the past three decades.

Shang Fulin, chairman of the China Banking Regulatory Commission, said most trust and wealth management products strictly regulated, and the risks of shadow banking were controllable.

Meanwhile, local government debt, though rising despite rigid curtailment, could be effectively resolved, some analysts claimed.

Chinese local governments had amassed 10.7 trillion yuan (1.7 trillion U.S. dollars) debt at the end of 2010. According to an audit of 36 local governments by the National Audit Office, their debt increased 12.9 percent from the end of 2010 to the end of 2012.

"Even though, there are not many bad debts among the massive government debt," said Lin Muxi, an economist at Liaoning University.

"Many debts are related to good assets, like transportation infrastructure and affordable housing projects. The terms may be long, but the debts are repayable," Lin said.

Song Li, vice director of the research center of economy at NDRC, said Chinese local governments were caught into a liquidity issue, but the issue would only be short-term.

Source: Xinhua

China, Turkmenistan agree to promote and deepen energy cooperation

 China and Turkmenistan pledged Tuesday to promote bilateral energy cooperation and push forward their natural gas pipeline project.

The two sides made the pledge in a joint declaration issued following talks between visiting Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Turkmenian counterpart, Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov.

In the document, the two sides agreed to take measures to guarantee a safe and stable operation of Line A and Line B of the Turkmenistan-China natural gas pipeline, as well as a sound implementation of their natural gas project on the right bank of Amu Darya, a major river in Central Asia.

Meanwhile, they vowed to work together to complete the construction of Line C and make it ready for gas transmission at an early date, and to make sure that Line D will be completed and ready for gas transmission in 2016.

Eventually, according to the document, they will achieve the target of transmitting 65 billion cubic meters of natural gas annually.

Prior to his visit, Xi said in an interview that China, a major energy consumer, and Turkmenistan, a major energy producer, enjoy a natural advantage and huge potential in energy cooperation.

The two countries have already carried out major cooperation projects, such as the China-Central Asia gas pipeline, he said, noting that the pipeline has linked up with the second line of China's west-to-east gas transmission project to form the longest natural gas pipeline in the world.
Source: Xinhua

Li Keqiang vows China-ASEAN "diamond decade"

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said on Tuesday China will work Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries to build a community of "common destiny" to share peace and prosperity.

"China's good-neighborly policy toward the ASEAN is absolutely not a matter of expediency, but a long-term strategic option of China," said Li.

China is the largest trading partner of the ASEAN, while the ASEAN ranks as China's third-largest trading partner.

This year's expo attracted more than 2,300 companies from China and the ASEAN, consolidating its place as an important platform to promote bilateral trade and relationships between China and the ASEAN.

To deepen pragmatic economic cooperation, Li proposed "an upgraded version" of the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area (CAFTA), adding that the Chinese side will strive to expand bilateral trade to 1 trillion U.S. dollars by 2020 and increase bilateral investment by 150 billion dollars during the next eight years.

Launched in 2010, the CAFTA has become the world's largest free trade area among developing countries, covering a total population of 1.9 billion.

The expo has successfully facilitated the construction of the CAFTA under the framework of strategic partnership, and created various bilateral trade and economic opportunities, added ASEAN Secretary-General Le Luong Minh.

Bilateral trade between China and the ASEAN amounted to 400.1 billion U.S. dollars last year, nearly six times that of 10 years ago. In the first half of 2013, the bilateral trade surged to 210.56 billion U.S. dollars, representing a 12.2-percent increase year on year.

On Tuesday, Li said that China and the ASEAN could consider holding discussions on further lowering tariffs, and the Chinese side is willing to expand imports from the ASEAN and boost free trade and investment.

China is willing to join hands with the ASEAN to advance talks of Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), and discuss exchanges and interactions with frameworks such as Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) Agreement, so as to create an open, inclusive and mutually beneficial climate to "make the two wheels of regional and global trade roll together," according to the premier.

Li said that China will firmly prioritize ASEAN member countries in the country's peripheral diplomacy, firmly deepen the strategic partnership with the ASEAN, and cooperate with the ASEAN to jointly safeguard peace and stability in the region, including the South China Sea.

China, Turkmenistan lift bilateral ties to strategic partnership

 Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Turkmenian counterpart, Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov, signed a joint declaration here Tuesday to lift bilateral ties to a strategic partnership.

The document, inked following talks between the two presidents, marks a new phase in the development of China-Turkmenistan relations and heralds a better future for bilateral cooperation.

The two sides stressed that, no matter how the global and regional situations change, their relationship will remain a priority in both countries' foreign policy.

Xi is in Turkmenistan for an ongoing Central Asia tour, which will also take him to Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan. He will also attend a Group of Twenty summit in the Russian city of St. Petersburg and a Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit in Kyrgyzstan.

Upon his arrival in Ashkhabad, the Chinese president said the timing and conditions are ripe for a strategic upgrade of bilateral ties.
Source: Xinhua

Turkmenistan: International Exhibition " Oil and Gas-2013"

Turkmenistan is a country with a rapidly growing economy, which has, since gaining independence 20 years ago, achieved exceptional results. The oil and gas industry is a key contributor to this economic success. Together with the development of a stable legal foundation, in line with international standards, Turkmenistan has established the necessary conditions for attracting investment to oil and gas sector.

Advancement of the oil and gas industry is one of the main policy priorities for the country. Sustainable development of Turkmenistan's natural resources, investment in infrastructure and the petrochemical industry are vital to the continued growth of economy. For this purpose Turkmenistan requires large-scale capital investment in existing fields and prospective reserves. It is necessary to highlight one reserve, Gelkynish, the second largest gas deposit in the world. According to the latest audit data, Gelkynish contains 26.2 trillion cubic meters of gas, making Turkmenistan one of the world's leading hydrocarbon powers. Viable development of Gelkynish is conditional upon attracting global cutting edge technology and know-how in order to secure the field's significance for the future of Turkmenistan and its people.

Effective implementation of this policy is closely correlated to regional and international cooperation as well as establishment of mutually-beneficial partnerships between the public and private sectors.

 Source:  The International Exhibition " Oil and Gas-2013"

Precious Metals Prices 03.09.13 9.45 p.m. Eastern Time

Gold Price Futures     3 months      US$ 1,412.86

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Iran:Arab League position on Syria "politically-motivated"

The Arab League (AL) latest position on Syria crisis is "politically-motivated," Iranian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Marzieh Afkham said on Monday.

"The Arab League position before the official announcement of the United Nations inspectors' report shows that it (the decision) is politically-motivated and is a pre-determined judgment," Afkham was quoted as saying.

The final resolution of an AL meeting in Cairo urged the UN and the international community to assume their responsibilities in line with the UN charter and the international law by "taking deterrent and necessary measures against the Syrian regime."

Such a position has been adopted to exert more pressure on the Syrian government, Afkham said, warning that provocation to and encouragement for the use of force would be "dangerous."

Any possible military offensive against Syria would engulf the entire Middle East region, she reiterated earlier remarks by a number of Iranian officials.

Source: Xinhua

No retreat on Egyptian transitional roadmap

There can be no retreat on the political transitional roadmap in Egypt, Egyptian interim President Adly Mansour said Tuesday in his first TV interview aired by the State TV.

Implementing the transitional roadmap is among the priorities of the interim government, said Mansour.The interim president reviewed some of governmental plans to improve the economic situation, stressing that security, economy and education are on the list of the government's top priorities.According to Mansour, imposing state of emergency and curfew was an exceptional measure, which the government had to take to protect the country against dangerous threats. He expressed his hopes to end the curfew soon as security situation is improving. There will be no exclusion to any political faction from the political process, adding that disbanding Muslim Brotherhood is a matter for judiciary to decide.

While hailing the stances of Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates concerning the Egyptian "revolution," Mansour indicated disapproval toward Qatar, saying "Our patience is about to run out. "

Mansour also expressed Egypt's rejection to military intervention in Syria outside international legitimacy, calling for a political solution to the Syrian crisis.

Putin backs direct talks between Russian, U.S. lawmakers over Syria

An initiative to send a delegation of Russian lawmakers for direct talks with their U.S. colleagues on Syrian problem is timely and correct, President Vladimir Putin said Monday.

"Indeed, in order to better understand each other, there is no other way but a direct and open dialogue with arguments and with the presentation of positions," Putin told the heads of the Parliament's Upper House, or the Federation Council, Valentina Matviyenko and Lower House, or the State Duma, Sergei Naryshkin.

Putin expressed his belief that U.S. lawmakers would better understand Moscow's stances over Syria after listening to the Russia's arguments.

"Sure, our U.S. colleagues could better understand and feel what the Russian position is. It would not be useless to listen to our American partners as well," he said.

Putin added that a dialogue between the lawmakers would be also a significant element for the development of Russian-U.S. relations.

U.S. President Barack Obama on Saturday announced that he has decided to take military action against Syrian government targets. He sent Congress a draft resolution that authorizes a U.S. military strike over the alleged use of chemical weapons by Syrian government near Damascus on Aug. 21.

"We expect the U.S. Congress will not support the offer to stage a provocation against Syria," Matviyenko said.

She also asked Putin to invite a delegation of the U.S. Congress to Russia.

The U.S. Congress reconvenes on Sept. 9 after the summer recess.

Source: Xinhua

On Syria events,interview to Chairman CCCP G.Zyuganov

Interview to Chairman of the Central Committee of the Communist Party, Gennady Zyuganov

"What do you think about the actions of our country in the Syrian conflict?"

"Russia still takes a principled position. It is shared by many countries, the UN Security Council (UN) the modern superpower - China. In the last 150 years, mankind has seen 12 crises of capitalism. There are three ways out of these crises: revolution, dictatorship and war. Modern capitalism looks for ways out of difficult situations with the help of military adventures. It was so in Iraq, in Afghanistan. In Libya, the French and the British  are zealous, taking into consideration the fact that they have their own interests there." 

"How do you assess the probability of military intervention of the West in the Syrian conflict?"

"I do not exclude any version of events. But this is a great excuse to destabilize a huge region. It will lead to most serious consequences. The Americans feel uncomfortable to go there - they have not finished with two other bloody conflicts yet. They  are looking for an excuse. The effrontery, with which they are trying to portray that it was the Syrian government that used chemical weapons, simply amazes me. Back in the days, the Americans were about to find  Saddam Hussein's weapons in his palace, under the bed. Chemical, nuclear and biological weapons require highly professional handling, storage and use. When they say that there were biological weapons used, it is difficult to take it as justification. But, nevertheless, they did it in Iraq. Now it can be the same in Syria."

"Which line should Russia follow, in your opinion?"

"We must remember that in today's world, the strong, smart and successful are respected. In the Mediterranean Sea, at the time when there was a war between Israel and Egypt, the Soviet government decided to prepare for a military action. The Americans called five hours later and said - take it back, and the war will stop. The war ended.

"Now we can and we must protect. We must help, support and protect Syria; we must constantly keep it in mind that we will be next after Syria. It may be too bold a statement, but not that long ago, we could not even imagine that NATO would be the master in the Baltic, that SS legionaries would march on the streets of Riga. Nobody thought that there would be such a mess in Central Asia, and no one thought that in North Africa, where Egypt was the leader, all would turn into a bloody drama. Today it has become a reality."

Source: Pravda

Pravda's version of Syria: The predictable and false "chemical" attack

"So, in an area where there has been fighting until recently but where the Syrian Arab Army (Government) has been making steady progress and where the terrorist opposition forces have been getting hammered, it does not make sense for the Government forces to use nerve gas, and it makes no sense at all to use it against large numbers of civilians, including children, who appear to comprise the majority of the victims"

 "And let us observe this from another angle: does the presence of the UN team in Syria to investigate use of weapons of mass destruction favour the Government? Yes, because it will discover the Government has not used any. Will it favour the terrorists? No, because they have used chemical weapons before and everyone knows so, that is why the west went silent about previous attacks after accusing the Government. After all, in May the UN investigation team leader, Carla del Ponte, stated there was evidence the "opposition" had used chemical agents, including Sarin gas. This came after two Syrian "opposition" leaders were caught on an audio recording of a phone conversation discussing attacks with chemical weapons and let us not forget the "opposition" laboratories last year filmed gassing rabbits with nerve agents. In this column I predicted today's event at the time.

The Syrian authorities strongly deny today's claim as being completely untrue. For the Government, these wild and absurd allegations denote the hysteria and demoralized state the "opposition" is in, as it is pressed back on all fronts".

 Timothy Bancroft-Hinchey 21.08.13

 Pravda

Obama wins the backing of Congress Leaders for Syria strike

 President Barack Obama won the backing of key figures in the U.S. Congress, including Republicans, in his call for limited U.S. strikes on Syria to punish President Bashar al-Assad for his suspected use of chemical weapons against civilians.

Speaking after the United Nations said two million Syrians had fled a conflict that posed the greatest threat to world peace since the Vietnam war, Obama said the United States also has a broader plan to help rebels defeat Assad's forces.

In remarks that appeared to question the legality of U.S. plans to strike Syria without U.N. backing, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said the use of force is only legal when it is in self-defence or with Security Council authorization.

If U.N. inspectors confirm the use of chemical weapons in Syria, the Security Council, which has been deadlocked on the 2-1/2-year Syrian civil war, should overcome its differences and take action, Ban said.

Having startled friends and foes alike by delaying a punitive attack on Assad until Congress reconvenes and agrees, Obama met congressional leaders at the White House to urge a prompt decision and assure them it did not mean another long war like Iraq or Afghanistan.

John Boehner, the Republican speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, and House Majority Leader Eric Cantor both pledged their support for military action after the meeting.

Votes are expected to be held in the Senate and House next week, with the Republican-led House presenting the tougher challenge for Obama.

China:Land seizures an ugly side of the urbanization drive

When Xu Haifeng's home was razed three years ago, she went to China's capital Beijing to complain about the city and county governments that ordered the demolition.

Since then, she says family members have been kidnapped at least 18 times, typically having black bags thrust over their heads before being taken to a hotel-turned-illegal jail in the eastern city of Wuxi and locked for weeks in a tiny, windowless room.

Our Wuxi is now steep in debt," said Xu. "The Wuxi city today relies on drawing from residents' financial wealth and stealing residents' land to survive."

Her 74-year-old mother, she says, has been abducted nearly a dozen times and held illegally for almost a year in a campaign to silence the family's demands for proper compensation.

Land seizures rank as among the biggest causes of social tension in China, spotlighting an ugly side of the urbanization drive that has raised it to the world's second-biggest economy.

Source: Reuters

Precious Metals Prices 03.09.13 at 8.36 a. m. Eastern Time

Gold Price Futures     3 months      US$   1,401.99

Silver Price Futures    3 months     US$        24.40