China consumed about 3.6 billion tons of standard coal equivalent (TCE) in 2012, and accounted for one fifth of the global energy consumption. China's energy consumption, if it increases by 200 million every year, will probably rise to eight or nine billion TCE in the future

The China International Energy Cooperation Report 2012/2013,
released in Beijing outlines China's energy development, current
problems & future international cooperation. [Photo/China.org.cn]

Said : Wu Zongxin, a professor at Tsinghua University, said in his keynote speech at an event organised to launch "The China International Energy Cooperation Report 2012/2013" in Beijing, reported China's national online news service on September 27, 2013. 

The event was jointly hosted by Renmin University of China, the Center for International Energy and Environment Strategy Studies of Renmin University (CIEESS), Energy Outlook Magazine and the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT).

Wu Zongxin feels that China - in order to meet its energy demand and cut carbon emissions - needs to look for international energy cooperation. China has become the largest energy consumer in the world and as a result overtaken the United States as the world's top annual emitter of carbon dioxide. Approximately 70 percent of China's total energy comes from coal based resources. According to Wu, China's dependency of foreign oil has exceeded 55 percent. Natural gas currently only accounts for about five percent of China's primary energy consumption whereas Nuclear power currently accounts for only two percent of China's electricity output. The global average of Natural gas use in energy consumption is almost 24 percent whereas nuclear power accounts for 16 percent. There is mounting pressure on China for switching to clean energy sources in order to reduce carbon emissions and avoid carbon tax.

China's National Energy Administration (NEA) is responsible for formulating and implementing energy development plans and industrial policies; promoting institutional reform in the energy sector; administering energy sectors including coal, oil, natural gas, power (including nuclear power), new and renewable energy etc.

iPhone 5c is selling at a discount in China. China has turned out to be the least interested in Apple's cheaper version of iPhone. iPhone 5S is outselling iPhone 5c by a factor of four to one.

Said : a Chinese website 'caijing' in a report of September 26, 2013.

(Source : Apple)

Apple's 'so-called' cheaper iPhone 5c, is reported to be selling at discounts due to disappointing demand and buyers' craze for the premier model iPhone 5s. Apple has acknowledged that the company will never go for cheap product and will just remain a high-end phone maker. Some analysts have, therefore, started believing that the introduction of 5c model could be the company's deliberate sales strategy to attract potential customers to its 5s model. Appel's gold colored 5s has already become a hit with buyers as it distinctly differentiates them with those who possess old models. Apple might have had the same 'differentiation' theory in mind while introducing 5c plastic model in various colors. The gold-model iPhone 5s is commanding a huge premium particularly in Asian markets and prices are pushed to over 10,000 yuan ($1634) at some re-sellers stores in China amid a mania for the color. Some grey market sellers have claimed they have sold this model for more than INR 1,50000 which comes to more than $2400!

The word 'c' neither stands for cheap nor for color. It might be for 'coequal' because of very narrow price difference and a very carefully thought out marketing strategy.

Caijing report has a very appropriate title "Apple may never have had any intention of selling a budget Smartphone but its iPhone 5c is already on its way to becoming one in China". According to this report China’s largest business-to-consumer retail platform has slashed the price of the 5c from 4488 yuan (or around USD $733) to 3699 Yuan (USD $604). Caijing says that despite all the talk about the iPhone 5C being Apple’s great multi-hued hope, reports so far indicate that the marginally more expensive iPhone 5S is outselling it by a factor of four to one. Similar trend has been reported from the UK, Australia and other global markets.

I checked the price of iPhone 5c on tmall.com, China's largest retail website, only a short while ago. The screen shots are given above along with Apple's official prices. I could find the price reduction in the 16GB model but there was no drop in the 32GB model 5c.

To do good, we must first understand and be understood well. I have a conviction that the Intellectual Property is extremely important. More than a third of jobs in Europe (76 million!) depend, either directly or indirectly, on industries that use intensively the intellectual property rights. And these jobs are quality jobs, the pay is 40% higher than other jobs.

Michel Barnier

Said : Michel Barnier, Member of the EC in charge of Internal Market and Services, in his opening remarks at the release function of the first study on EU's "Intellectual property rights intensive industries" in Brussels, according to a press release from European Commission on September 30, 2013.

"What this study shows us is that the use of intellectual property rights in the economy is ubiquitous: from high-tech industries to manufacturers of sports goods, toys and computer games, all are making intensive use of not just one, but often several types of intellectual property rights,” Michel Barnier added.

The findings of the study are brought out as "Intellectual property rights intensive industries: contribution to economic performance and employment in the European Union Industry-Level Analysis Report, September 2013" under a joint project between the European Patent Office and the Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market - the two highest level institutions that are most important for the protection of intellectual property Europe. The report is available here.

The report is aimed at providing the first broad, credible assessment of the combined contribution of industries that make intensive use of the various types of Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) to the economies of the EU as a whole and of the individual Member States. The analysis was conducted in autumn 2012 and spring 2013. It only includes the 27 pre‑July 2013 Member States. Thus, Croatia, which became the EU’s 28th Member State on 1 July 2013, was not included.

The study covers a broad range of IP rights – trade marks, patents, designs, copyright and Geographical Indications (GIs) – and considers a variety of economic indicators, in particular Gross Domestic Product (GDP), employment, external trade and wages. 

Some of the key findings of the report are :

• IPR-intensive industries contribute 26% of employment and 39% of GDP in the EU.
• IPR‑intensive industries also pay significantly higher wages than other industries, with a wage premium of more than 40%. This is consistent with the fact that the value added per worker is higher in IPR‑intensive industries than elsewhere in the economy. The average weekly wage in IPR‑intensive industries is € 715, compared with € 507 in non‑IPR‑intensive industries – a difference of 41%. This “wage premium” is 31% in design‑intensive industries, 42% in trade mark‑intensive industries, 46% in GI‑intensive industries, 64% in patent‑intensive industries and 69% in copyright‑intensive industries.
• In absolute terms, Germany ranks first for patents, trade marks and designs. The other top spots are occupied by the UK, France, Spain and Italy. There is some variation among the Member States; for example, while Spain is in the top 5 for trade marks and designs, it is only in 11th place for patents. The group of the largest economies is followed by a group of smaller northern European countries, including the Netherlands, Austria, Denmark and Sweden. The highest placed among the 12 countries that joined the EU in 2004 or 2007 is Poland, which is also the largest of these countries.

In the course of the preparation of this report, useful input was received from the UK Intellectual Property Office (UK IPO), the Organisation for Economic Co‑operation and Development (OECD) and the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) – whose earlier report on US IPR‑intensive industries was the first study of this type.

I believe the greatest threat to Muslims today comes not from the outside world, but from within. The conflict between Sunni and Shia threatens the lives and livelihoods of millions of Muslims. Across the Islamic world, extremists are wrapping their perverse agenda in religious cloth; tearing families, countries and the ummah (ummah - the Muslim community throughout the world) apart.

Dato’ Sri Mohd Najib Bin Tun Haji Abdul Razak,
Prime Minister of Malaysia. UN Photo/Ryan Brown

Said Dato’ Sri Mohd Najib Bin Tun Haji Abdul Razak, Prime Minister of Malaysia, in his speech at the 68th session of the UN General Assembly in New York on September 28, 2013.

The Malaysian Prime Minister said : "As authoritarian regimes have fallen, and governments have been swept away by political change, extremists have tried to fill the space that remains. Around the world, extremism is taking lives and crushing opportunity. The corrosive influence of extremism cannot be easily countered. But we are not powerless to act. I believe moderation in religion and the political process can stem the loss of life and liberty in the Muslim world". He expressed his anguish at the violent situation prevailing in Syria, Lebanon, Iraq and Pakistan. He stressed the need to find the vision and the political will to commit to a just solution for Palestine. 

The Prime Minister quoted several verses from Quran to illustrated that Islam was the religion of peace, of moderation, of tolerance. "The Quran not only condemns suicide, unjust war, and retribution by force; it also makes clear the Prophet’s desire for Muslims to live in peace with one another and their neighbours", he added.

He concluded by saying : "Finally, we should continue to focus on building stronger and more prosperous societies, predicated on the rule of law and the practice of democracy. The Arab Spring showed that the Muslim world is crying out for change. Governments must answer that call. We must provide good governance to fight corruption, create jobs to tackle poverty, and deliver sustainable growth that builds a world of opportunity for our citizens. We must create economies in which people can fulfil their own aspirations, not those of extremists. Muslim leaders should speak up and condemn such violence, lest their silence is mistaken for acceptance.  

Rouhani's speech was nice but it was based on a false reality as Iranian centrifuges, at this very moment, continue to work and produce enriched uranium for a nuclear bomb

President Peres at the International Court of Justice 

in The Hague (Copyright: GPO/Amos Ben Gershom)

Said Shimon Peres - President of Israel and Nobel Peace Prize winner for 1994 - during his meeting with the president and judges of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague on Monday, 30 September 2013, according to a press release from the Office of the President.

President Peres visited the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague (Netherlands) and held a rare meeting with the judges of the court including President Peter Tomka. He updated the judges about the status of the negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians and said: "The negotiations with the Palestinians opened not long ago and we hope that they will bear fruit for the two sides who want to live side by side in peace and security. Completing the negotiations is of the utmost importance – it is perhaps the last and most significant conflict between us and the Arab world."

In the press conference which followed the meeting, President Peres addressed the speech by the President of Iran at the United Nations and said: "Rouhani's speech was nice but it was based on a false reality as Iranian centrifuges, at this very moment, continue to work and produce enriched uranium for a nuclear bomb, the program to develop long range missiles which can carry nuclear warheads is being expanded and the Revolutionary Guards continue to support terror organizations. We listen to the speeches at the United Nations, but the only way to test Iran's intentions is by deeds and not just words. The Iranian nuclear threat is not just an Israeli problem but for the whole world which doesn't want to be threatened by one country." 

​Benjamin
Netanyahu

According to The Times of Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has made his way to Washington on Monday (30 September) for a marathon of meetings with US President Barack Obama and other top officials, with Iran the major focus. On Tuesday, Netanyahu will travel to New York, as the final speaker at this year’s UN General Assembly, where he has promised to “tell the truth about Iran” following Tehran’s recent moves toward detente with the West. 

Dr. Norman A. Bailey - an adjunct Professor of Economic Statecraft at The Institute of World Politics, Washington, DC, and a researcher at the Center for National Security Studies, University of Haifa - in a letter published in globes online on September 29, 2013 conveying greetings to the Jewish people on the occasion of Rosh Hashanah  (Jewish New Year) has warned that no-one should be taken in by the Iranian president's charm offensive, but the West has strong cards to play. President Rouhani spreads the honey. His "honey" may indeed work as he intends. If so, it will be to the detriment of the West, the United States, the Gulf States. Saudi Arabia, and Israel. Keep all fingers crossed. Dr. Bailey says Rouhani is not a "moderate reformer" but the fact is that he is terrified about the economic/financial situation that Iran is in, and which he inherited from Ahmadinejad without knowing the severity of the problems.

The International Court of Justice (ICJ) is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations (UN). It was established in June 1945 by the Charter of the United Nations and began work in April 1946. The seat of the Court is at the Peace Palace in The Hague (Netherlands). Of the six principal organs of the United Nations, it is the only one not located in New York (United States of America). The Court’s role is to settle, in accordance with international law, legal disputes submitted to it by States and to give advisory opinions on legal questions referred to it by authorized United Nations organs and specialized agencies. The Court is composed of 15 judges, who are elected for terms of office of nine years by the United Nations General Assembly and the Security Council. It is assisted by a Registry, its administrative organ. Its official languages are English and French.

If you want to get young people to better learn about the risks associated with their choices, you might want to focus on the benefits that a positive change would bring rather than hounding them with horror stories

Dr Tali Sharot

Said Dr Tali Sharot, the senior author and a Wellcome Trust Research Fellow, commenting on the findings of researchers at UCL that young people have greater difficulty in learning from bad news to interpret their risk of future events. 

According to a press release issued by The Wellcome Trust - a global charitable foundation dedicated to achieving extraordinary improvements in human and animal health - the study suggests that campaigns to get young people to stop smoking may be more successful by focusing on the positive benefits, such as having more money and better skin, rather than emphasising negative outcomes like increased disease risk.

Dr Christina Moutsiana

Dr Christina Moutsiana, leading author said : "The findings could help to explain the limited impact of campaigns targeted at young people to highlight the dangers of careless driving, unprotected sex, alcohol and drug abuse, and other risky behaviours." The researchers suggest that reframing information to highlight beneficial outcomes of desired behaviours, such as the positive effect of reduced alcohol consumption on sports performance, rather than the dangers of undesired ones, could have a greater impact.

Dr John Williams, Head of Neuroscience and Mental Health at the Wellcome Trust, said: "It’s important that we understand how young people interpret risk to make lifestyle choices that will impact on their future health if we are to stem the rise in preventable diseases."


Researchers feel that the findings might partly explain why displaying health warnings and graphic images of diseased lungs on cigarette packaging has had little effect in reducing the number of teens taking up smoking.

The setting of the Poverty Line shows Hong Kong’s determination of tackling the poverty problem

Mr C Y Leung

Said Hong Kong's Chief Executive, Mr C Y Leung, while chairing the first Commission on Poverty (CoP) Summit on September 28, 2013. Setting a poverty line has been one of the priorities of the CoP. After ten months of consultations and analysis the CoP eventually agreed to adopt the concept of relative poverty and set the poverty line at 50 per cent of the median monthly household income before tax and welfare transfers (i.e. pre-government intervention). 

The poverty line for 2012 in accordance with household size is as follows :

One-person households                                   $3,600
Two-person households                                   $7,700
Three-person households                              $11,500
Four-person households                                $14,300
Five-person households                                 $14,800
Households with six persons or more           $15,800

The analysis of the poverty situation in Hong Kong in 2012 showed that before policy intervention, there were 541 000 poor households, involving 1 312 000 persons, and the poverty rate was 19.6 per cent. The administration has worked out various policy interventions such as Comprehensive Social Security Assistance (CSSA), the Old Age Allowance and financial assistance for students which can effectively alleviate poverty, bringing down the number of households in poverty to 403 000 and involving 1 018 000 persons, resulting in a poverty rate of 15.2 per cent. 

The Chief Executive, Mr C Y Leung, chaired the
Commission on Poverty Summit to discuss the
poverty situation in Hong Kong and the way forward.
Photo shows Mr Leung addressing the summit. (September 28)

The Societal Engagement Task Force (SETF), set up by the administration, has launched a three-year poverty alleviation program. Three projects have been identified by the SETF which will start rolling out towards the end of 2013 or in early 2014. The SETF is expecting to receive financial contributions from chambers of commerce and other bodies by establishing a tripartite partnership among the community, the business sector and the Government.

The Chief Executive has set up CoP to serve as the major policy platform for the Government's work in poverty alleviation. It will take into account the needs of poor households and public views to explore appropriate measures and initiatives to help the needy.

A detailed presentation on "Analysis of the Poverty Situation" during the Summit can be found here.