Daily Archives: April 27, 2022

Australias annual inflation rate hit 5.1 per cent in the March quarter, the highest recorded since 2001, according to official data released Wednesday.

The CPI recorded its largest quarterly and annual rises since the introduction of the goods and services tax, said Michelle Marquardt of the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

The jump in the consumer price index powered by fuel and housing costs was even higher than analyst expectations and has increased speculation that Australias central bank may raise interest rates as early as next week.

It would be a bold move for the avowedly apolitical Reserve Bank of Australia, which would not want to be seen to be affecting the countrys current election campaign. The last time the RBA raised rates during an election period was in 2007.

But pressure is rising after the United States, New Zealand and Canada increased their rates.

The rising cost of living has been a key issue in the election campaign, with the conservative Liberal government Wednesday handing a one-off Aus$250 payment to millions of Australians.

The government also cut a tax on fuel after prices spiked in the wake of Russias invasion of Ukraine.

Similarly, unaffordable housing has become a hotly debated subject in Australia, with mean house prices hitting Aus$920,000 and Aus$1.2 million in the most populous state of New South Wales according to the statistics bureau.

Excerpt from:

Australian inflation hits 20-year high - Macau Business

At least 11 people including three minors were killed Wednesday after a temple chariot procession came into contact with a high-voltage wire in India, police said.

Initial indications suggested that the crowd used water to contain an initial fire after the top of the chariot touched the wire in the southern state of Tamil Nadu.

At least 15 other people were hospitalised after the incident at around 3:00 am (2130 GMT) in the city of Thanjavur.

The top of the chariot was heavily decorated and that is the part that hit the wire, senior police officer V Balakrishnan told AFP.

The victims were part of the team that was pulling the chariot. At least three people died on the spot.

Hundreds of devotees took part in the procession which has taken place annually for around 90 years.

A senior police official told broadcaster NDTV that the power line along the temple route is usually turned off but this time it was kept on.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted that he was pained by the accident and announced relief of approximately $2,600 to the families of the dead.

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11 electrocuted during temple procession in India - Macau Business

The formerCEOof Banco Esprito Santo Investimento (BESI), Jos Maria Ricciardi, said on Tuesdaythat a provisionhad beenmade to compensate BES victimsandhewaswilling to testifytothis in court.

I was a living witness that anintegral provision was made to pay you what was due to you, and that resulted from your trust in a name that, unfortunately, despite having been credible for many years, has been destroyed, he told the group ofvictimswho demonstrated today at the Campus da Justia in Lisbon.

I am a witness that the provision was set up, and I will testify at your side if you ever need me to, he stressed before entering the courtroom.

Jos Maria Ricciardi spoke briefly with the group ofvictimswhohadbeen demonstratingon Tuesdayafternoon and lamented the situation experienced by these people, considering it very sad and that it should be a priority for justice.

On a day when he was scheduled to be questioned as a witness at the start of the pre-trial phase of the BES/GES case, the cousin of the former leader of the Esprito Santo Group, Ricardo Salgado, ended up leaving a few minutes after arriving, his testimony having been delayed as the proceedings conducted by the investigating judge Ivo Rosa were postponed.

Stressing that he was also a witness for the Public Prosecutors Office (MP) in this case which does not call to testify in the pre-trial proceedings, a phase reserved only for defendants and assistants the former chairman of BESI admitted having been quite surprised when the indictment of the case was known, given its dimension.

I am no longer surprised. What happened and has been duly proven is that important facts had been hidden. When they came out, they came out. And some people knew and people who didnt know, people who reported it to the authorities and others who didnt report it. That was my case when I found out. It was my obligation, he said.

Jos Maria Ricciardi, who confirmed he had no relationship with Ricardo Salgado today, also reiterated to journalists his desire to create a banking institution.

It is complicated, but I will try to do it: first, to try to clear the name that was destroyed and that was 150 years old and made these gentlemen invest; second, if I have some success and if I can still help to compensate a part of what these gentlemen suffered, I will also do it, concluded the 67-year-old former member of the executive committee of BES.

The steps of the first session of the instruction included the hearing of four witnesses presented by the defendant Joo Martins Pereira (director of compliance of BES and accused of three crimes of qualified fraud), namely Carlos Calvrio, Ana Saraiva, Nelson Pita and Jos Maria Ricciardi.

However, the questioning of Carlos Calvrio went on longer than expected, and Judge Ivo Rosa eventually postponed the hearings of the last two witnesses, closing todays session with the testimony of Ana Saraiva.

The BES/GES case has 30 defendants (23 people and seven companies) in 361 crimes.

Considered one of the largest cases in the history of Portuguese justice, this case brings together in the main case 242 enquiries, which have been joined, and complaints from more than 300 people, individuals and legal entities living in Portugal and abroad. According to the Public Prosecutors Office (MP), whose indictment ran to around 4,000pages, the collapse of the Esprito Santo Group (GES) in 2014 caused losses of over 11.8 billion.

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Portugal: Former BESI boss willing to testify about compensation fund - Macau Business

At least 213 people were killed in three days of violence between Arab and non-Arab groups in Sudans West Darfur, the state governor said, giving the first official toll for recent clashes.

West Darfur has been gripped by days of deadly fighting largely centred in Krink, a locality of nearly 500,000 people and mostly inhabited by the African Massalit tribe.

This massive crime left around 201 killed and 103 wounded on Sunday alone, said West Darfur governor Khamees Abkar in a video published late Tuesday.

The violence first broke out on Friday and escalated when armed men attacked villages of the non-Arab Massalit in retaliation for the killing of two tribesmen, according to the General Coordination for Refugees and Displaced in Darfur, an independent aid group.

At least eight people were killed on Friday, Abkar said, confirming a death toll for that day already reported by the aid group.

The state governor blamed government forces tasked with securing Krink and its environs for withdrawing without any justification as the main attacks began early Sunday.

Krink town was completely destroyed including government institutions, Abkar said. It is a crime against humanity.

The fighting on Monday spread to Geneina, the provincial capital of West Darfur.

Witnesses have accused the Janjaweed militia of orchestrating the violence.

The Janjaweed was an Arab militia which gained notoriety for its role in the repression of an ethnic minority rebellion in Darfur in the early 2000s under then autocrat Omar al-Bashir.

According to rights groups, many of its members were later integrated into the feared paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, commanded by General Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, now de facto deputy leader of Sudan.

The General Coordination for Refugees and Displaced in Darfur on Monday reported a combined death toll of 180 for the fighting around Krink and in Geneina, including four killed in the state capital on Monday.

Abkar on Wednesday confirmed to AFP that four were killed on Monday, taking the total toll to at least 213.

On Tuesday, Doctors Without Borders, known by the French acronym MSF, said several medical workers were killed in the fighting as hospitals were attacked.

Consequently, MSF teams have not been able to reach the health facilities we support nor conduct mobile clinic activities in Geneina and cannot return to Krink, the aid group said in a statement.

The conflict in Darfur that began in 2003killed more than 300,000 people and displaced 2.5 million, according to the UN.

The region remains awash with weapons and has seen a renewed spike in deadly violence in recent months triggered by disputes mainly over land, livestock and access to water and grazing.

The latest violence comes as Sudan grapples with fallout from a coup in October last year led by army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan.

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Clashes in Sudan's West Darfur killed over 210: governor - Macau Business

A dramatic drop in testing for Covid-19 has left the world blind to the viruss continuing rampage and its potentially dangerous mutations, the World Health Organization warned Tuesday.

The UN health agency said that reported Covid cases and deaths had been dropping dramatically.

Last week, just over 15 thousand deaths were reported to WHO the lowest weekly total since March 2020, WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told reporters.

While this is a very welcome trend, he warned that the declining numbers could also be a result of significant cuts in testing for the virus.

This makes us increasingly blind to patterns of transmission and evolution, Tedros said.

When it comes to a deadly virus, ignorance is not bliss.

William Rodriguez, who heads the global diagnostics alliance FIND, also decried that many governments in recent months simply stopped looking for Covid cases.

Speaking at the press conference hosted by WHO, he pointed out that in the past four months, amid surging Covid cases from the Omicron variant, testing rates have plummeted by 70 to 90 percent worldwide.

The plunging testing rates came despite the fact that there is now more access to accurate testing than ever before.

We have an unprecedented ability to know what is happening, Rodriguez pointed out.

And yet today because testing has been the first casualty of a global decision to let down our guard, were becoming blind to what is happening with this virus.

The Covid-19 pandemic has officially caused more than six million deaths since the virus first surfaced in China in late 2019, but the true toll is believed to be at least three times that high.

While many countries have been removing measures and trying to move back to a semblance of normality, the WHO stresses that the pandemic is still not over.

This virus wont go away just because countries stop looking for it, Tedros said, pointing out that it is still spreading, it is still changing, and it is still killing.

He cautioned that the threat of a dangerous new variant remains very real.

And although deaths are declining, we still dont understand the long-term consequences of infection in those who survive.

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Testing cuts leave world 'increasingly blind' to Covid spread: WHO - Macau Business

HONG KONG SAR Media OutReach 27 April 2022 Two years into the pandemic, owners of small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) in South and Southeast Asia are optimistic about their future economic and business growth prospects and plan to expand this year. But many highlight a gap between how well protected they are and the risks they currently face, according to the Sun Life Asia Business Growth and Resilience Index.

The index is based on a Sun Life survey of around 2,400 SME business owners in seven Asian markets: Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Vietnam in late 2021, which found:

The pandemic has created tremendous challenges for businesses over the past two years, so we are glad that business owners now see a more positive outlook for 2022, said Jay Sala, Head of Strategy, Investment Management & Client Impact, Sun Life Asia. We produced the Sun Life Business Growth and Resilience Index to better understand how confident business owners feel about their growth prospects and how resilient their business is in this highly uncertain environment. It shows that SME business owners have a healthy level of optimism for improved growth prospects this year, but this is counterbalanced with the knowledge that they are still more vulnerable to some risks than they would like, particularly the impacts of the pandemic. Successfully navigating the turbulence requires equal measures of planning for growth and building resilience.

Growth Index shows optimism for the future

The Sun Life Business Growth Index analyzes the sentiment of business owners towards the general economic situation, their financial position and growth plans in 2022. It found Asian business owners are optimistic about growth prospects in 2022, with a score of 65 out of 100 for Asia overall.

Business owners in Indonesia (76) and India (74) are most optimistic about the outlook, while entrepreneurs in Singapore (62) and Hong Kong (51) are more cautious. Manufacturing industries including automotive (75), chemical & petroleum (74) and mining (72) are highlighted are particularly positive compared to others.

Resilience Index shows resilience is borderline

The Sun Life Resilience Index is based on business owners perceptions of the severity of 15 business risks and their preparedness for managing them. It shows Asian business owners feel they sit on the borderline of resilience with a score of 55 out of 100 for Asia overall.

Business owners in Indonesia (60), Philippines (56) and Malaysia (56) feel they are somewhat better prepared for business risks than those in other markets such as India (53) and Hong Kong (52).

According to the survey, pandemic and health-related risks are the most severe challenge for business owners, however less than half of respondents were using risk mitigation tools to build resilience to health risks. Only 46% of respondents have personal health and accident insurance, 34% had employee health and accident insurance, and just 20% had key man insurance in place.

Sala said, Many SME businesses still face a health risk protection gap. Proactively taking action to mitigate the impact of these health risks can build greater resilience in business operations and provide owners and employees with greater security and ultimately peace of mind. Sun Life can help business owners to build greater resilience so they can navigate the uncertain environment and achieve their growth ambitions. We partner with our Clients for impact, helping them to secure their financial future and build a legacy that will last for generations.

The study found the Covid 19 pandemic has had a disparate impact on SME businesses. While almost half (46%) report their business suffered a negative impact in the pandemic, one fifth reported a positive change in performance. Owners who experienced a positive impact were more likely to have innovated and adapted their strategies such as by adding new distribution methods, virtualizing the business and offering new products. By contrast, owners who experienced negative performance often used price and workforce reductions and delayed investments to overcome challenges.

In the Philippines, 33% of owners experiencing a positive impact from the pandemic had adopted new distribution methods, compared to 22% of owners suffering negative effects. In Singapore, 27% of owners who experienced a positive impact had virtualized aspects of their business, compared to 14% who experienced a negative impact. In Malaysia, 21% of owners with a positive performance had adapted and offered new products, compared to 11% of those whose businesses were negatively affected.

Sala said, The results show that adaptation and innovation have played a decisive role in helping businesses capture new opportunities in a rapidly changing environment, and digitalization is at the core of many successful SME strategies.

To know more about the index details, please click here.

Sun Life is a leading international financial services organization providing insurance, wealth and asset management solutions to individual and corporate Clients. Sun Life has operations in a number of markets worldwide, including Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Hong Kong, the Philippines, Japan, Indonesia, India, China, Australia, Singapore, Vietnam, Malaysia and Bermuda. As of December 31, 2021, Sun Life had total assets under management of $1.44 trillion. For more information please visit http://www.sunlife.com.

Sun Life Financial Inc. trades on the Toronto (TSX), New York (NYSE) and Philippine (PSE) stock exchanges under the ticker symbol SLF.

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The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

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SME Businesses seek growth and greater resilience in 2022: Sun Life - Macau Business

The United States said Tuesday it remained committed to talks with North Korea despite its provocations even as it seeks through the United Nations to tighten sanctions.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, overseeing a military parade following recent tests, vowed to accelerate his nuclear program rapidly as he watched tanks, rocket launchers and intercontinental ballistic missiles pass by late Monday.

We do remain open to engaging in diplomacy and dialogue with the DPRK on ending its nuclear program, State Department spokesman Ned Price said, referring to the North by its official name, the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea.

But we also have an obligation to address the recent provocations that weve seen from the DPRK including its two recent ICBM launches, he told reporters.

Price said that Kims statement confirms our assessment that the DPRK constitutes a threat to international peace and security and to the global non-proliferation regime.

President Joe Bidens administration has repeatedly offered dialogue with North Korea, which has shown little interest in working-level talks after Kims three high-profile meetings with Bidens predecessor Donald Trump.

But diplomats say that the United States has also looked at seeking a cost on North Korea for its actions including its test-fire last month of an ICBM, its first since 2017.

A draft Security Council resolution presented earlier this month by the United States and seen by AFP would tighten sanctions including by reducing from four million to two million barrels the amount of crude oil North Korea would be allowed to import each year for civilian purposes.

The resolution, presented to all 15 Security Council members, would also impose restrictions on new exports by North Korea including of mineral fuels and clocks.

But a diplomat said that China, North Koreas closest ally, and Russia, whose relations with the West have rapidly deteriorated over the Ukraine invasion, have so far refused any discussion on the draft resolution.

China and Russia both wield veto power on the Security Council although the two countries have agreed to some past UN sanctions after growing exasperated with North Korea.

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US says still open to N.Korea talks but eyes action - Macau Business