Plus Fukushimapocalypse Now!
The pace is picking up again, and major changes are on the way in China, where the regime seems intent on rapid conversion to the neoliberal regime. The Greek meltdown continues, Japan struggles, and much, much more.
We begin at home with the Los Angeles Times:
More anxious retailers will open earlier on Thanksgiving
Black Friday? Try Thursday. More retailers, fearful of slow sales, are opening earlier on Thanksgiving, but some analysts warn of a consumer backlash.
The Washington Post with an all-time record:
Congress’s approval rating hits new low: 9 percent
Congress is now in the single digits, according to Gallup. After seeing its approval rating fall to an all-time low of 10 percent in 2012, Congress has hit an even lower low: 9 percent.
Bloomberg Businessweek brings us too little, too late:
Student Loan Borrowers May Get Relief From For-Profit Colleges
The U.S. Department of Education has signaled it wants to be more aggressive in policing for-profit colleges by proposing rules that would make it easier to cut off funding to low-performing schools and, in some cases, force colleges to help borrowers who are stuck with large debts and low earnings.
From The Guardian, common sense in Obama’s own party:
Elizabeth Warren challenges Obama to break up ‘too-big-to-fail’ Wall St banks
Amid speculation that she might run against Hillary Clinton in 2016, firebrand senator attacks regulators for multiple failings
The Toronto Globe and Mail foresees an energy revolution:
U.S. to lead world in oil production by 2015, but OPEC to rise again: IEA
Expanding production of unconventional oil outside OPEC will diminish the importance of Middle East production over the next decade, but the region will reclaim its leverage over oil markets after 2020, the International Energy Agency said in a new report Tuesday.
Eyes on the Fed from the Economic Times:
Emerging economies to suffer more from US taper: Jim Yong Kim, World Bank
Emerging markets are likely to see considerably more impact from higher US interest rates when the when the Federal Reserve pulls back from its massive monetary stimulus, World Bank President Jim Yong Kim said on Tuesday.
Financial Post takes us north of the border:
Canada to emerge as the fourth-fastest growing oil player in the world: IEA
Canadian oil sands production could “easily” surge by an additional one million barrels per day if key pipeline projects are approved, according to the International Energy Agency.
From National Post, comic relief:
Buoyed Ford promises a ‘rumble in the jungle’ as council prepares a vote on forcing him out
The Rob Ford-crack cocaine sideshow will make it before city council Wednesday, with the beleaguered mayor promising a ‘rumble in the jungle’ vote
And the Financial Post sounds an alarm:
Canada headed for ‘huge economic crisis’ if no action taken to improve pensions, warns Ontario premier
Canada is headed for a “huge economic crisis” if the provinces and federal government don’t take action now to improve retirement incomes, Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne warned Tuesday.
Next, a story with a global focus from RT:
What crisis? Billionaires’ fortunes doubled since 2009
Amidst a sea of lost jobs, slashed wages and austerity measures, the super-rich seem super-resistant, with their wealth doubling since the financial crisis, adding $226 billion to their wealth in the last year alone.
International Business Times records the peculiar environment from which their wealth flows:
Global GDP Growth Will Likely Fall To 2.9 Percent In 2013
It isn’t just Europe that’s still suffering from the repercussions of the 2008-2009 recession. Global GDP growth slowed to 3.2 percent in 2012 and will likely fall further, to 2.9 percent, in 2013, according to estimates from the Conference Board Global Economic Outlook 2013.
Jiji Press bridges the Pacific:
Japan, U.S. Confirm Efforts to Conclude TPP Talks by Year-End
Japanese Finance Minister Taro Aso and visiting U.S. Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew on Tuesday agreed on the two countries’ continued cooperation to help conclude Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade negotiations by the end of this year.
And New Europe takes us across the Atlantic and the machine at work:
Commission wants to promote trade deals with S.Africa, Cameroon and Ivory Coast
EU aims to promote FTA with African countries
From Deutsche Welle, reaffirming?:
EU leaders reaffirm resolve to boost youth employment
At a follow-up conference in Paris, top EU policy makers have renewed their pledge to bring down youth unemployment considerably in the bloc. Right now, one in four people under 25 is without work.
More from euronews:
EU youth jobless crisis – the human cost
Tepid economic growth in the European Union and people working longer as pension ages are raised means 5.6 million under the age of twenty five are without work in the region. And it is getting worse, in the last four years the overall employment rates for young people declined three times as much as for over twenty fives.
New Europe discerns division:
Homophobia splitting EU into West and (South) East
From Europe Online, at least something’s accomplished:
EU member states, parliament bury hatchet over 2014 budget
The European Union’s governments and parliament ended months of budget wrangling early Tuesday by agreeing on how much the cash-strapped bloc should spend in 2014.
Corporate Europe Observatory casts a critical eye:
A Year of Broken Promises
Big business still put in charge of EU Expert Groups, despite commitment to reform
Should speculators be given privileged access to dominate advice on financial regulation, beverage companies on alcohol policy, or fossil fuel companies on climate change?
The Associated Press conveys caution:
EU official: bank bailouts remain possible
The vice president of the European Commission said Tuesday that taxpayer-funded bank bailouts remain a possibility if the latest stress test of Europe’s biggest banks reveals significant capital shortfalls _ or if the debt crisis were to really flare up again.
From EUobserver, the odd coupling:
EU commission ups pressure on Germany, France
Germany’s trade surplus and France’s “unacceptably” high taxes are set to be at the heart of the European Commission’s economic policy recommendations on Wednesday (13 November).
Whilst on the subject of France and Germany, consider this from New Europe:
New poll finds many French voters would vote to leave the euro
Euroscepticism on the rise in France, waning in UK
And from the article, the graphic evidence. And note how much happier Germans have become with the status quo:
More evidence of the changing British views via Reuters:
Britain’s Cameron could persuade skeptical voters to stay in EU: poll
A majority of British voters would choose to stay in the European Union if Prime Minister David Cameron succeeds in renegotiating London’s ties with the 28-nation bloc, a poll found on Tuesday.
EUobserver covers a move with potentially momentous consequences:
German negotiators suggest EU referendums for major decisions
German government coalition negotiators have suggested that national referendums be held on decisions transferring major powers to Brussels, Reuters reports. “The population should be asked directly on European policy decisions of special importance,” says the document, drafted by a working group led by senior members of the centre-right and centre-left.
On to Old Blighty, with a downtick from BBC News:
UK inflation falls to 2.2% in October
The UK’s inflation rate, as measured by the consumer prices index (CPI), fell to 2.2% in October from 2.7% the month before.
The Independent counts another austerian cost:
Coalition cuts blamed for shortage of 20,000 NHS nurses
Spending cuts have created a shortage of 20,000 NHS nurses, the Government has been warned, as fears grow that hospital wards may struggle to cope as winter approaches.
From The Independent, an austerian declaration:
David Cameron insists that squeeze on public-sector spending is permanent
The squeeze on public spending should continue and result in a permanently slimmed-down public sector, David Cameron said on Monday night as he staked out economic battle-lines with Labour ahead of the election.
Contractors conspicuously demonstrating the neoliberal desideratum, from The Independent:
Atos and G4S pay no corporation tax despite profiting from billions pounds worth of public sector contracts, as auditors warn of ‘crisis of confidence’ over private contractors
Private contractors carrying out billions of pounds worth of Government work face a “crisis of confidence” from the public, the National Audit Office (NAO) said, as it emerged that two of them paid no corporation tax last year.
Criminalizing childhood, via RT:
Kids too annoying? UK bill seeks to criminalize children’s ‘nuisance’
The Anti-Social Behavior, Crime and Policing Bill will grant powers to police, local authorities, and even private security firms to restrict any activity deemed to have a “detrimental effect on the quality of life of those in the locality.”
Ireland next, with some sad numbers from Independent.ie:
Less than half happy with how lives have turned out
THE VAST bulk of our 30-somethings are struggling to make ends meet, with 90pc revealing that coping with day-to-day living expenses is a key concern.
TheJournal.ie brings us another austerity cost:
Department of Health to increase cost of health insurance policies
The stamp duty for health insurance products providing ‘advanced’ cover will increase from €350 to €399 per adult and from €120 to €135 per child from 1 March
And the Independent.ie finds bubble blowhards building:
Economist warns that Dublin property prices are being ‘talked up’
EARLY signs of recovery in the Dublin property market are being exploited by those interested in talking up the market as a whole, it has been warned.
From the Reykjavík Grapevine, another kind of austerity:
Foreign Aid To Be Cut
Vísir reports that the previous government approved a measure that would pay 24 billion ISK to developing countries over the next four years – or about 1,500 ISK per Icelander, per month, for four years.
The Copenhagen Post takes us to Denmark:
OECD: Crisis had only modest impact on Denmark
Annual ‘How’s Life’ study shows that Danes weathered the storm with life satisfaction taking just a minor dip and work-life balance still on stop
And a pair of headaches from EUbusiness:
EU to hold France, Germany to account in push for growth
The EU will this week test a new system to ensure states toe economic rules when it decides whether to challenge eurozone giants Germany and France over their growth and deficit policies.
EurActiv aims for connections:
Commission claws back up to €200 million broadband funding in budget
The EU executive hailed victory in winning back vital funding for its European broadband funding rollout programme following trilogue talks last week that saw up to €200 million in spending secured over the 2014-2020 budget period.
From Capital.gr, a call for consumption:
EU’s Rehn: More Domestic Demand In Germany Would Aid Eurozone
European Commission Vice President Olli Rehn said Germany’s high trade surplus may warrant closer scrutiny and said boosting domestic demand would benefit the Eurozone and Germany itself.
RFI covers a French failure-in-progress:
Hollande under pressure to make changes amid mounting social discontent
The sight of protestors jeering at President François Hollande during the solemn Armistice Day Commemorations has stirred talk in France that the activities of various groups with different grievances are coalescing to form a more generalised revolt against the current government.
Spain next, and labor struggles from El País:
Spain’s great wage freeze reaches collective bargaining accords
Purchasing power on the slide for Spanish workers as even those with union protection join devaluation tendency
Business forum sees Spanish labor costs falling further
thinkSPAIN covers privatization of another commons by a Dutch firm with a booming business across the continent:
‘Themed’ and colourful toilets with their own souvenir shop cost 60 cents to use
‘FUN’ new public toilets have opened outside Madrid’s central Atocha station – which cost 60 cents to use.
Pay toilets were once ubiquitous in the U.S., but became victims of 1960′s activism. Addition of the pay pots reminds us of doggerel once spotted on a pay toilet wall:
Here I sit,
all broken-hearted.
Paid a quarter
and just farted.
From El País, another action:
Arrests made as Madrid garbage strike enters second week
Street cleaners facing personnel reduction plan accused of vandalism and failing to maintain minimum service
And thinkSPAIN covers an action to come:
Countrywide strike and protest marches next weekend ‘to save the people’
UNION bosses have called for as many residents as possible in Spain to join in protest marches and strikes on November 23 and 24 to ‘save the people’.
Off to Lisbon with the Portugal News:
Former finance minister criticises ‘socially unacceptable’ cuts
Portugal’s former finance minister, Manuela Ferreira Leite, has criticised the “socially unacceptable” measures imposed on pensioners and public sector workers on Monday, in exchange for “things that will not be reached”, meaning the deficit objectives for 2014.
The Portugal News again, and another piece of the commons going, going. . .:
State Secretary reveals conditions for Salgados mega-development
Portugal’s State Secretary for the Environment has today (12 November) told The Portugal News that while a provisional green light has been given for a contentious tourism development to take shape in one of the Algarve’s most important nature spots, a number of conditioning factors including “100 measures of minimisation” have been imposed.
ANSAmed takes us to Italy and an emerging austerian plateau?:
Italy’s finances improving, central bank says
Moody’s improves outlook for GDP, OECD optimistic
From Europe Online, populist Beppe Grillo, Five Star Movement leader, goes hyperbolic:
Italy opposition leader says government is Germany’s puppet regime
Italy is in the hands of a “puppet government” controlled by Germany, the country’s opposition leader charged on Tuesday, comparing Prime Minister Enrico Letta to Vidkun Quisling, Norway’s wartime pro-Nazi leader.
After the jump, the Greke meltdown continues, Latin American alarms, India agonies, Chinese neoliberalism, and Fukushimapocalypse Now!. . .
Reuters takes us to Greece and a gap:
Greece, lenders at odds over how to close 2 billion euro 2014 budget gap
Greece and its international lenders remain at odds over how to close a 2 billion euro gap in Greece’s 2014 budget, and the issue could drag on into next year, delaying further loans to Athens, a senior euro zone official said.
Keep Talking Greece covers impunity:
Athens: member of the Troika causes traffic accident & gets away with it
Tuesday is not a good day for the representatives of Greece’s lenders – the Troika – to visit the Finance Ministry. While IMF’s Poul Thomsen became the target of a handful of angry coins on Tuesday, November 5th, another Troikan – a no-name representative this time, got involved in a traffic accident.
More from New Europe:
“Miles and billions” the gap between Troika and Athens, says EU official
A “light” Eurogroup to be expected, but not for Athens
Kathimerini English covers optimism from Yannis Stournaras Greek Minister of Finance and member of the IMF board:
Distance separating Greece and troika getting smaller, says Stournaras
Though it was not evident in comments made by officials from each side, the Greek government and the troika appeared a little closer on Tuesday to agreeing the size of Greece’s fiscal gap for 2014.
From EnetEnglish.gr, consolidation:
Govt may consider single pension fund
Under proposals, minimum national pension would be €360
Proposal to create a main pension fund has long been supported by the chairman of the Social Insurance Foundation (IKA) chairman, Rovertos Spyropoulos, who has submitted a memorandum to the government on the issue and will outline his proposals to a conference on Thursday
Neos Kosmos covers more austerian consequences:
Greeks pay most property levies in EU
Survey discovers that one in three real estate owners will not be able to afford the new tax next year
Real estate owners and buyers in Greece have to pay the highest property tax contributions in Europe, while one in three Greeks say that they will not be able to pay the new Single Property Tax to be imposed from January, amid reports of an amended bill that will raise the tax-free threshold against strong opposition by government MPs.
Whilst on the topic of inability to pay bills, consider this sad story from Greek Reporter about the dire straits of the country’s once-powerful socialist [sic] party:
PASOK’s Phone Cut Due to Unpaid Bills
PASOK’s members and employees, who work at the party’s political office in Charilaou Trikoupi street, encountered an unpleasant surprise on Monday morning.
ANSAmed covers the sale of the commons:
Privatizations: Greece; New Zealand group eyes Piraeus Port
While the Greek Piraeus Port Authority, known as OLP, is set to complete its agreement with Chinese giant Cosco concerning the extension of their existing contract in the next few days, a group from New Zealand has emerged as a credible suitor for the OLP stake that is set to go up for sale.
And a Chinese player busily beavers away, via ANA-MPA:
COSCO’s PCT to invest another 230 mln euro in Piraeus port, shipping ministry announces
The shipping ministry announced on Tuesday an agreement between Piraeus Port Organisation (OLP) and the Chinese-owned COSCO subsidiary Piraeus Container Terminal (PCT) for new investments amounting to 230 million euros in Piraeus’ port.
From Greek Reporter, a job action continues:
Chaos at Kapodistrian and Technical Universities of Athens
Chaos at Universities of AthensIncredible chaos prevails at both the Kapodistrian and Technical Universities of Athens, as administrators continue their strike in response to availability. The exact point of when the semester is considered as lost, is still unknown.
Kathimerini English brings the latest on the public elevision seized from staff occupiers by a SWAT raid:
Up to three years to recoup ERT costs
It will take the government up to three years to recoup the cost of shutting down public broadcaster ERT, Deputy Culture Minister Pantelis Kapsis said Tuesday, adding that new service would have two national TV stations.
From Keep Talking Greece, politics as usual:
Greek gov’t MPs deliver a sexist show against their colleagues in Parliament
The unfathomable complex of the sexist nomenklatura of the Greek Parliament came in the spotlight on the occasion of various events that took place last weekend. Three female lawmakers became the target of sexist verbal attacks staged by their male political opponents, members of Samaras’ coalition government, both from PASOK and Nea Dimokratia.
Kathimerini English brings an update on the survivor of the hit that claimed two fellow neo-fascists:
Golden Dawn member taken off life support, in a stable condition
Alexandros Gerontas the 29-year-old Golden Dawn member who has been in intensive care since sustaining serious injuries in a shooting outside the neofascist party’s offices in Neo Iraklio, northern Athens, has been taken off life support and is in a stable condition, doctors at the capital’s G. Gennimatas Hospital said on Tuesday.
Russia next, and downbeat numbers from Bloomberg:
Russian GDP Expands Less Than Forecast in Third Quarter
Russia’s economy grew less than estimated in the third quarter as a lack of investment kept the world’s largest energy exporter from reversing its worst slowdown since a 2009 recession.
The Moscow Times has one recovery plan:
Moscow Strives to Make Itself a Global Financial Center
Moscow is going full-out to transform itself into an international financial center, building business centers and overhauling its regulations to present an open face to investors, but the city’s hopes are undermined by the lack of a skilled workforce to do the job, foreign financial advisors said Tuesday.
From Mashable, all’s fair in fat and fares:
Russian Subways Now Accept Squats for Payment
If you live in Moscow, your morning commute can now include a brief fitness session. To promote the upcoming 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics, subway stations in Moscow have added these impressive new machines which allow passengers to do 30 squats for a train ticket.
Latin America next, and a Venezuelan measure from BBC News:
Venezuelan President Maduro ‘to expand price controls’
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro says he plans to extend price controls to all consumer goods, if he is given powers to govern by decree.
More from Reuters:
Venezuela bonds sink after Maduro moves against retailers
Venezuelan bonds dropped sharply on Tuesday after President Nicolas Maduro ordered a military takeover of an electronics chain and authorities arrested dozens of people for purported price gouging.
Reuters again, this time from Brazil:
Brazil’s president unlikely to change course despite fiscal storm
Worried about a rapid deterioration of Brazil’s finances, many investors are calling on President Dilma Rousseff to make sharp budget cuts. But their warnings are falling on deaf ears, at least for now.
While the Rio Times covers other numbers on the rise:
Murder Rate Up Nearly 8 Percent in Brazil
The latest figures released last week show that the number of homicides in Brazil rose steadily between 2011 and 2012, with a 7.8 percent increase in the number of murders registered last year.
From the Buenos Aires Herald, big ag loses one:
Spain confirms ban on Argentine biodiesel exports
Despite Argentina’s claims at the World Trade Organization, Spain has finally decided to ban the entry of Argentine biodiesel products. The CARBIO chamber of biofuels in Buenos Aires rapidly echoed the news accusing Madrid of an “arbitrary and discriminatory” measure based on “unjustified reasons.”
And MercoPress covers a longing unfulfilled:
Majority of Chileans, 83% support nationalizing copper, but it’s not an issue of the presidential campaign
In an annual poll released last month, 83% of Chileans voted positively when asked “Are you in favor or against the proposal to nationalize copper?” — registering overwhelming support for a prospective reform that, while radical, remains relatively low on the list of campaign hot topics the November 17 presidential election.
From Spiegel, a worrisome sign from a Western-backed war:
Black Market in Lebanon: Syrian Refugees Selling Organs to Survive
In the shadow of the Syrian civil war, a growing number of refugees are surviving in Lebanon by illegally selling their own organs. But the exchange comes at a huge cost.
Channel NewsAsia Singapore takes us to Asia and bank move:
Indonesia in surprise rate rise to curb deficit
Indonesia’s central bank unexpectedly raised its key interest rate on Tuesday to rein in a widening current account deficit blamed for exacerbating recent turmoil in Southeast Asia’s top economy.
India next, with Economic Times covering the latest fallout from the collapse of a major national commodities exchange:
NSEL scam: Lotus Refineries chief sent in police custody
An arrested borrower of the NSEL was today remanded in police custody for four days by a local court which accepted Mumbai Police’s plea to interrogate him to unearth “the larger conspiracy” behind the scam at the crippled spot exchange.
The Financial Express weighs in with worrisome numbers:
Retail inflation back in double digits with Oct figure at 10.09%
Costlier vegetables and fruits, such as onions and tomatoes, drove retail inflation to 10.09 per cent in October, entering double digits after seven months.
More from the Times of India:
At 10%, retail inflation bad news for govt
The key driver for the surge were vegetable prices which shot up 45.67%
Retail inflation returned to double digits in October after a gap of seven months following a surge in vegetable prices and other food items, posing fresh worry for the government facing elections in key states and national polls next year.
And the Economic Times covers more selloffs of the commons:
Private players should be allowed in coal mining: B K Chaturvedi
Government should allow private players to take up coal mining, Planning Commission Member B K Chaturvedi said today.
China next, with Bloomberg Businessweek covering unfunny comedic consequences:
Disney Needs to Worry About the Jimmy Kimmel Controversy in China
With big plans for China, the Walt Disney Co. (DIS) can’t afford a long fight over the now-infamous segment on Disney-owned ABC last month in which a little blond-haired boy told Jimmy Kimmel that the U.S. should fix its financial problems by killing all the people in China. Gee, don’t kids say the darndest things? The comedian didn’t help matters by following up the tot’s comment by asking the other children on the panel, “Should we allow the Chinese to live?” Chinese-Americans are understandably upset and have demanded apologies from Kimmel and ABC.
Here’s am animated report from those Taiwanese animators at NWA World:
Anti-Jimmy Kimmel protests sweep US after Kids Table ‘Kill Chinese’ comment
Program notes:
If you weren’t sure what a regurgitating squatty potty looks like, one look at the reaction to Jimmy Kimmel’s apology for his Kid’s Table segment should give you a pretty good idea. Not since Aryan Nation kid on Bill Cosby’s Kids Say the Darndest Things has there been such fury over one kid’s ignorant comment. Apparently the humor was lost on some people, as protests cropped up in a highly coordinated fashion all over the United States on Saturday. Was this really a spontaneous outpouring of rage of over the single most egregious offense ever dealt to the Chinese American community? Or is there a hand inside the glove holding the sign with a picture of Jimmy Kimmel dressed as Hitler?
Massive nationwide public protests are usually not the first strategy of the Chinese American community. The whole affair reeks mightily of PRC intervention. Even choice phrases from China’s frequent rebukes of other enemies have cropped up. Protest signs mention “Hurt Feelings,” one of the Communist Party’s strongest expressions of anger. But the irony is that Jimmy Kimmel might have made the situation worse by apologizing. Anybody who knows China knows that everyone who has ever apologized to the Communists goes on their permanent-punching bag list. A better strategy would be to apologize to Taiwan, as the rightful government of China in exile, and Taiwan would be all like: “Don’t worry about it. It was funny! Kids say the darndest things! Also, $1 trillion dollars in debt? Forgiven! Go crazy!” Because while idiots in China are painting Jimmy Kimmel’s head atop Hitler’s body, we know that if they painted their own leaders’ head there, suddenly these public protests would go out of fashion, and quick.
Now on with the major news, the latest from the reluling Party’s secret meeting via China Daily:
Key CPC meeting rolls out reform agenda
Top leaders of the Communist Party of China (CPC) on Tuesday approved a decision on “major issues concerning comprehensively deepening reforms”.
Reform: To set up central leading team
Security: To establish state committee
Economy: Market to be ‘decisive’
Economy: To diverse forms of ownership
Finance: To set up modern financial system
Justice: To overhaul judicial system
Urbanization: Urban-rural relations to change
More from BBC News:
China Third Plenum: Leaders unveil key reforms
China’s leaders have unveiled a series of reforms aimed at overhauling its economy over the next decade. In a statement issued after a closed-door summit, they promised the free market would play a bigger role.
Still more from Reuters:
China vows ‘decisive’ role for markets, results by 2020
The self-imposed deadline for progress – rare for Beijing to lay out in such clear terms – together with the creation of a top-level working group and an emphasis on “top-level design”, suggest a more decisive reform push by the administration of President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang than under the previous leadership.
And still more from the Global Times:
Market will play ‘decisive’ role
The Communist Party of China (CPC) pledged to let markets play a “decisive” role in resource allocation as it seeks to deepen reform to steer the economy to a more sustainable growth model, according to a reform blueprint for the next decade released on Tuesday.
But the Associated Press scents a different story:
A look at China’s reform promises
Communist Party leaders issued a report Tuesday that pledged to promote market forces in the country’s state-dominated economy. But their four-day policymaking meeting, which was shrouded in secrecy, failed to produce dramatic reforms to overhaul a worn-out growth model. That suggested party leaders failed to agree on politically difficult changes required to curb the dominance of state industry and promote competition.
From People’s Daily, another face of Chinese phenomenon:
Chinese workers just not engaged
China has one of the world’s lowest levels of employee engagement at just 6 percent, a Gallup survey has found. The survey also found only 13 percent of employees worldwide feel engaged at work.
And another one from China Daily:
Real-estate bubble seen bursting in China, US: Experts
Gloomy warning comes as Chinese investors pour money into overseas commercial property deals
The Global Times covers another symptom:
New loans at 10-month low
China’s new bank loans in October were at their lowest point in 10 months as a broad measure of credit fell, and the central bank is expected to tighten liquidity slightly amid rising inflation pressure, analysts said Monday.
And South China Morning Post reports on the graying fringes of Hong Kong:
Satellite towns face struggle to cope with elderly populations
Government urged to plan ahead as areas with fastest-growing number of residents over 65 face a shortage of homes and welfare facilities
Japan next, with Jiji Press:
Economists Cut Japan Growth Forecast Further
Private-sector economists now see even weaker Japanese economic growth for July-September due to a downturn in exports as well as slower personal consumption and business investment, a Japan Center for Economic Research survey showed Tuesday
And the Japan Daily Press finds a winner:
Apple continues to find growth in Japan against negative trends
Most companies would find it very unlikely to find growth in Japan’s struggling economy, but Apple – makers of the globally iconic iPhone – is finding positive growth in the area amid the country’s economic uncertainty. In the past two years, Japan has emerged as Apple’s fastest-growing region, outpacing growth in the United States and the booming economies of Greater China. Japan is also home to Apple’s biggest profit margins, and the only one of Apple’s five regions where operating profit grew in the past fiscal year.
And on to Fukushimapocalypse Now!
The Japan Times covers a call:
Pro-reactor incumbent’s political capital high; public in right mood
Koizumi calls on Abe to ditch nuclear power
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has abundant political capital and should declare an end to nuclear power, as the public mood for such a decision couldn’t be better, predecessor Junichiro Koizumi said Tuesday.
From RT, spare change?:
Japan plans to borrow $30 billion for Fukushima cleanup – report
Japan’s government is allegedly finalizing plans to borrow some $30 billion for the cumbersome cleanup of the Fukushima nuclear power plant and the surrounding region, as well as compensating evacuees, Reuters reports citing sources.
And the Asahi Shimbun covers the latest, hottest news:
Record radioactivity level found at Fukushima plant well
A record high level of 710,000 becquerels of beta-ray sources, such as radioactive strontium, was detected per liter of water in an observation well at the crippled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant.
From the Japan Times, suspicious number-tweaking:
Plan to lower radiation readings OK’d
To facilitate the return of evacuees, the Nuclear Regulation Authority has approved a change in the way radiation doses are monitored around the crippled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power station that will effectively result in lower readings, but observers warn this could raise public mistrust.
And the Asahi Shimbun covers rising anger:
Fukushima evacuees express anger, resignation at government policy shift
More than two-and-a-half years since the Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami triggered the crisis at the Fukushima nuclear plant, the government effectively reversed its stated goal of eventually allowing all Fukushima evacuees to return to their homes.
More from the Japan Daily Press:
Fukushima evacuees want the truth on whether or not they will ever go home
Two years after the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant became the site of the world’s worst nuclear accident since Chernobyl, thousands of evacuees are still unsure as to whether or not they will be able to go home anytime soon. All they want to know from the Japanese government is if it will be able to deliver on its clean-up goals or if they have to look to other places now to be able to rebuild their lives.
The Japan Times reports a payout:
Tepco pays nuke-related damages to Narita airport
Narita International Airport Corp. said Tuesday that it has received ¥3.2 billion from Tokyo Electric Power Co. as compensation for the negative impact of the March 2011 accident at its Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant.
And NHK WORLD focuses on aquatic blowback:
Japan, S.Korea discuss ban on fisheries products
South Korea imposed an embargo in September on fisheries products from 8 Japanese prefectures. Leaders made the decision after reports of radioactive water leaks from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant.
While CBC News brings it closer to home:
Radiation from Japan nuclear plant arrives on Alaska coast
Scientists concerned about lack of monitoring plan
And on to other energy sources/other problems, first with the Associated Press:
Europe needs more environment study on shale gas
European shale gas experts say more environmental studies are needed to address public concern about the security of extraction of the fossil fuel.
The same concerns, closer to home. From Inside Bay Area:
Top climate scientists call for fracking ban in letter to Gov. Jerry Brown
Twenty of the nation’s top climate scientists have sent a letter to Gov. Jerry Brown, telling him that his plans supporting increased use of the controversial practice of hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking,” will increase pollution and run counter to his efforts to cut California’s global warming emissions.
Yet another fuel and another set of problems from Al Jazeera America:
Report: Obama’s ethanol policy has ravaged the environment
Boost in corn grown for ethanol has wiped out 5m acres of conservation land, polluted water, finds AP investigation
And Biofuels Digest with still another example:
US company seeking permission to import ethanol from Sudan
In Washington, an unidentified company is negotiating with the US Office of Foreign Assets Control to get permission for imports of ethanol produced by Kenana Sugar in Sudan. Sudan has been on a list of banned countries since 1997 due to alleged links with terrorists.
And for our final item, another species in peril from the Costa Rica Star:
Surviving Sea Turtle in Costa Rica Might Swim Again
Fishermen and maritime tour operators in the Guanacaste province found more than 40 dead sea turtles on Tuesday, November 5th, and immediately alerted nature conservation officials. Marine biologists are still looking into the possible causes for these massive deaths, which extend throughout the Pacific coast of Central America.
