(CNN) -- Japan's finances may not be in great shape, but when it comes to fashion, there still aren't many places more cool.
Consumers from Asia, Europe and the United States might not be buying as many Japanese cars and TVs, but they continue to be influenced by Japan's culture. That means that when global brands are looking for the hottest new fashions, eyes almost inevitably turn eastward.
"Most of the time, most global trends start in Tokyo," trendspotter Loic Bizel told CNN. A Tokyo-based fashion expert who consults for labels like Timberland, Lacoste and Sonia Rykiel, Bizel also takes foreign fashionistas on tours of Tokyo to scout for street style trends to replicate in their home markets.
"People really started to look at Japan as a lab about seven or eight years ago," he added. "Trends are picked up really quickly in the streets."
That's why, according to Bizel, brands like Topshop from the UK and Sweden's H&M come: "They know they have time to produce what they have spotted in Tokyo for next season and it will be a hit."
"It's easy for big brands to come to Japan, and compete, and send [designs] to their home market," according to Bizel, because, crucially, hardly any Japanese fashion labels sell abroad.
But, says the Japanese government, things are set to change. It is proposing to pump just over ¥19 billion ($237 million) into the creative sector in 2011 to see if it can make more money from Japan's national cool.
Mika Takagi is the Deputy Director of the Creative Industries Promotion Office -- aka the "Cool Japan" Office -- the government body charged with making Japan's cultural industries (anime, graphic design, film, fashion and more) start paying.
"Japan has a lot of unique culture ... [but] if you compare it with other money-making industries, the creative industries don't make much money," Takagi told CNN.
"We want to try to invest more in these cultural issues and try to brand Japanese products with the uniqueness of Japanese culture," she added.
The aim, by 2020, is to increase profits by $85 billion (¥6.9 trillion) -- to $698 billion (¥56.6 trillion). Revenues in 2007 amounted to $613 billion (¥49.7 trillion), according to Cool Japan. Japan's GDP in 2007 was $4.4 trillion.
The office's figures include already-established sectors like food and drink and tourism, and Takagi says there are no specific figures for fashion. They also don't provide any breakdown of how much money Japan makes from fashion exports, Takagi says, because "it is hard to define."
Some experts aren't so sure the Japanese government can turn cool into a commodity. One skeptic is Charles Spreckley, the Tokyo-based co-founder of consumer research and trends company Five by Fifty, with customers like Unilever and Coca-Cola.
"I am incredibly skeptical that a bunch of bureaucrats can succeed in turning the nebulous concept of Cool Japan into something that makes the country money," he told CNN.
Spreckley says that Japan's uniqueness is one of the reasons it seems so cool, but this special brand of creativity may be tough to translate to the global stage.
"Japan is so out on its own and it's still a huge economy -- a massive market, 120 million people -- so there's a lot going on here and cities like Tokyo are overflowing with stores selling fashion, graphic design, comics. It's a very intense place and it's one that's got its own unique style," Spreckley told CNN.
According to Spreckley, the most creative individuals work on a very small scale. He fears that trying to commercialize Japan's creative cottage industries could kill their cachet.
"Part of what makes Japan cool is this innocence they have in the way they do things," Spreckley said. "They do things very well here, with sincerity and lack of ego and I think the very act of commercializing it will make it inherently uncool."
There is little opportunity for entrepreneurs to break out because big, old-fashioned conglomerates dominate Japan's economy, according to Spreckley.
And then there are the cultural blocks. "(These individuals) are generally not very globalized ... They don't speak languages like (they do in) Korea and China," Spreckley told CNN.
"They don't know how to go overseas and sell themselves and communicate with potential buyers," he added.
Takagi agrees that while Japan's fashion trends are very popular in Hong Kong, China and Korea, Japanese clothing companies have struggled to enter the wider Asian market.
Takagi told CNN, "Japan has lots of fashion magazines that are sold in China and they are very popular. The clothes that are shown in the magazines are made by small and medium-sized companies. They have no knowledge or networks or capital to be able to enter Asian markets."
She says that Cool Japan will help companies like these with marketing abroad.
"Japan has a lot of unique culture which is very important to us. We have not utilized that very much until now because we could compete in (other) industries," she explained.
In fact, Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) sees the cultural industries as a strategic sector that could drive the nation's future economic growth.
"I think there's a lot of potential in the global market that we have not acquired," Takagi said.
Source: CNN
www.cnn.com
Saturday, November 20, 2010
Gold steady on Euro boost
Singapore, Nov. 19: Gold prices steadied on Friday, holding onto gains from the previous session, as a cure is seen imminent for Ireland’s debt crisis, which helped boost the euro.
Ireland insisted on Thursday its low rate of corporation tax was “non-negotiable” as it discusses an aid package worth tens of billions of euros from European partners and the IMF for its shattered banks.
Spot gold edged up 0.3 per cent to $1,357.30 an ounce by 0711 GMT, on course for a weekly decline of 0.7 per cent weekly decline. US gold futures were trading at $1,357.2.
Investors are closely watching China’s monetary policy manoeuvres, after talk of an imminent rate hike caused a sell-off in commodities this week.
Another rate hike might increase downward pressure on commodities, but the impact is not likely to be profound as the anticipation has been building and partly priced in, analysts and traders said.
“I think a rate hike, if materialised over the weekend, is likely to exert a bit of volatility for commodities, including precious metals,” said Mr Yingxi Yu, an analyst at Barclays Capital.
“But fundamentally it doesn’t change our views that China will continue to grow at a robust pace. It doesn’t change our view that fundamental demand for commodities from China is not going to be severely affected by a
rate hike” he said.
China’s government has pledged to tame inflation, China’s consumer inflation reading hit a 25-month peak in October.
Source: www.asianage.com
Ireland insisted on Thursday its low rate of corporation tax was “non-negotiable” as it discusses an aid package worth tens of billions of euros from European partners and the IMF for its shattered banks.
Spot gold edged up 0.3 per cent to $1,357.30 an ounce by 0711 GMT, on course for a weekly decline of 0.7 per cent weekly decline. US gold futures were trading at $1,357.2.
Investors are closely watching China’s monetary policy manoeuvres, after talk of an imminent rate hike caused a sell-off in commodities this week.
Another rate hike might increase downward pressure on commodities, but the impact is not likely to be profound as the anticipation has been building and partly priced in, analysts and traders said.
“I think a rate hike, if materialised over the weekend, is likely to exert a bit of volatility for commodities, including precious metals,” said Mr Yingxi Yu, an analyst at Barclays Capital.
“But fundamentally it doesn’t change our views that China will continue to grow at a robust pace. It doesn’t change our view that fundamental demand for commodities from China is not going to be severely affected by a
rate hike” he said.
China’s government has pledged to tame inflation, China’s consumer inflation reading hit a 25-month peak in October.
Source: www.asianage.com
Friday, November 19, 2010
Getting rich in China's frontier boomtown
Chongqing, China (CNN) -- Zhou Xunshu and Yan Qi both grew up in the mountains in southwestern China, but today their hometowns are worlds apart.
Zhou's home village in a remote corner of Guizhou province remains impoverished.
"Every time I go back, I feel saddened," said the 37-year-old professional golfer. "It was poor and it's getting poorer."
Yan's childhood town, on the other hand, is now a suburb of one of the world's fastest-growing cities, Chongqing.
"I started a small restaurant here in 1995 with five tables," the 43-year-old businesswoman told CNN. "We went from there to 10 tables and eventually to 90 restaurants nationwide."
"My restaurants expanded along with the city," she said.
Chongqing has expanded at a remarkable pace since 1997, when Chinese leaders awarded it special political status on par with Beijing and Shanghai.
A metropolis the size of Austria, Chongqing is now home to 32 million people. That's four times the entire population of London and 10 times that of Rome.
The pace of growth in the city accelerated after the central government announced in 2000 its "Go West" strategy to develop the country's vast hinterland. Last year the economy of Chongqing -- long a major port on the Yangtze River -- grew 15 percent, almost double the already impressive national rate.
Now, the once rusty industrial city surrounded by mountains attracts thousands of new residents every year -- including Zhou, who moved here five years ago.
"Chongqing was growing and the golf industry was about to take off," Zhou explained. "This was the kind of city to settle in because I could build a career here."
Workers are busy at construction sites throughout the city, with the local government investing some $150 billion on infrastructure projects this year alone.
As expressways and skyscrapers fast replace farmland in its surrounding countryside, Chongqing has become the prime example of rapid urbanization in China, where experts say, by the end of 2015, more than half of the country's 1.3 billion people will live in cities for the first time.
That prospect has drawn property tycoons to prize markets like Chongqing. Hong Kong's Shui On Land is behind one of the city's glamor developments, turning a riverside district dotted with bankrupt factories and rundown houses to a glitzy residential, commercial and entertainment hub.
Called Chongqing Tiandi, Shui On's project blends the old and the new -- housing luxury boutiques and high-end restaurants in traditional gray-brick buildings with tiled roofs. Future plans call for a 105-story skyscraper but the current phase already includes an eye-catching centerpiece -- a bar-cum-nightclub featuring three live sharks flown in from New York.
"People have become rich here and their spending power is higher," said Tang Ka Wah, the Shui On executive in charge of Chongqing Tiandi. "That's why the growth rate for second-tier cities is now so fast."
Real estate prices are one barometer for such supercharged growth. Official statistics show a downtown apartment in Chongqing sells for about $1,000 per square meter, nearly triple the price from 2005. It's still a bargain compared to top cities like Beijing, where the prices are at least five times higher, making the potential return handsome with the right investment.
"In the next three to five years, making your money double is very achievable," said Eddie Ng, a real estate consultant with Jones Lang LaSalle.
Like elsewhere in China, Chongqing's breakneck economic growth has cost the environment and left many residents behind. The city's per capita GDP hovered just above $3,300 last year.
Long dubbed the "Foggy Capital," Chongqing is now often shrouded in heavy smog. A massive tree-planting campaign spearheaded by the local authorities has breathed new life into the city, but hasn't addressed the root cause of pollution.
Bo Xilai, the city's Communist Party chief and a rising national political star, has also waged a controversial battle on organized crime, earning him some praise but also strong criticism for his heavy-handed tactics.
Despite its problems, Chongqing continues to appeal to natives and newcomers alike.
From that five-table eatery known for its signature spicy river snail dish, Yan has since built a restaurant empire and amassed a fortune worth more than $200 million. Sitting in her office inside a sprawling hilltop dining and entertainment complex developed by her company, she sets her sights outside China.
"After I sort out my domestic business plans, I would love to expand overseas," she said. "My first stop would be the United States."
For Zhou, his life in Chongqing is already a far cry from his humble beginnings -- a farmer's son turned security guard on a golf course, where he first discovered the sport but didn't start practicing until the age of 28.
He now makes about $30,000 a year and lives with his wife and son in a spacious three-bedroom apartment he bought three years ago.
"My goal is not just for me, but for my family," he said. "I want my son to get a better education, to study abroad if he wants.
"If he likes golf, I want to make enough money to send him abroad," he added.
Zhou and Yan are the faces of success in the new Chongqing, where local officials have lofty goals for the megacity's future and already have an ambitious nickname for it to match: "Chicago on the Yangtze."
Zhou's home village in a remote corner of Guizhou province remains impoverished.
"Every time I go back, I feel saddened," said the 37-year-old professional golfer. "It was poor and it's getting poorer."
Yan's childhood town, on the other hand, is now a suburb of one of the world's fastest-growing cities, Chongqing.
"I started a small restaurant here in 1995 with five tables," the 43-year-old businesswoman told CNN. "We went from there to 10 tables and eventually to 90 restaurants nationwide."
"My restaurants expanded along with the city," she said.
Chongqing has expanded at a remarkable pace since 1997, when Chinese leaders awarded it special political status on par with Beijing and Shanghai.
A metropolis the size of Austria, Chongqing is now home to 32 million people. That's four times the entire population of London and 10 times that of Rome.
The pace of growth in the city accelerated after the central government announced in 2000 its "Go West" strategy to develop the country's vast hinterland. Last year the economy of Chongqing -- long a major port on the Yangtze River -- grew 15 percent, almost double the already impressive national rate.
Now, the once rusty industrial city surrounded by mountains attracts thousands of new residents every year -- including Zhou, who moved here five years ago.
"Chongqing was growing and the golf industry was about to take off," Zhou explained. "This was the kind of city to settle in because I could build a career here."
Workers are busy at construction sites throughout the city, with the local government investing some $150 billion on infrastructure projects this year alone.
As expressways and skyscrapers fast replace farmland in its surrounding countryside, Chongqing has become the prime example of rapid urbanization in China, where experts say, by the end of 2015, more than half of the country's 1.3 billion people will live in cities for the first time.
That prospect has drawn property tycoons to prize markets like Chongqing. Hong Kong's Shui On Land is behind one of the city's glamor developments, turning a riverside district dotted with bankrupt factories and rundown houses to a glitzy residential, commercial and entertainment hub.
Called Chongqing Tiandi, Shui On's project blends the old and the new -- housing luxury boutiques and high-end restaurants in traditional gray-brick buildings with tiled roofs. Future plans call for a 105-story skyscraper but the current phase already includes an eye-catching centerpiece -- a bar-cum-nightclub featuring three live sharks flown in from New York.
"People have become rich here and their spending power is higher," said Tang Ka Wah, the Shui On executive in charge of Chongqing Tiandi. "That's why the growth rate for second-tier cities is now so fast."
Real estate prices are one barometer for such supercharged growth. Official statistics show a downtown apartment in Chongqing sells for about $1,000 per square meter, nearly triple the price from 2005. It's still a bargain compared to top cities like Beijing, where the prices are at least five times higher, making the potential return handsome with the right investment.
"In the next three to five years, making your money double is very achievable," said Eddie Ng, a real estate consultant with Jones Lang LaSalle.
Like elsewhere in China, Chongqing's breakneck economic growth has cost the environment and left many residents behind. The city's per capita GDP hovered just above $3,300 last year.
Long dubbed the "Foggy Capital," Chongqing is now often shrouded in heavy smog. A massive tree-planting campaign spearheaded by the local authorities has breathed new life into the city, but hasn't addressed the root cause of pollution.
Bo Xilai, the city's Communist Party chief and a rising national political star, has also waged a controversial battle on organized crime, earning him some praise but also strong criticism for his heavy-handed tactics.
Despite its problems, Chongqing continues to appeal to natives and newcomers alike.
From that five-table eatery known for its signature spicy river snail dish, Yan has since built a restaurant empire and amassed a fortune worth more than $200 million. Sitting in her office inside a sprawling hilltop dining and entertainment complex developed by her company, she sets her sights outside China.
"After I sort out my domestic business plans, I would love to expand overseas," she said. "My first stop would be the United States."
For Zhou, his life in Chongqing is already a far cry from his humble beginnings -- a farmer's son turned security guard on a golf course, where he first discovered the sport but didn't start practicing until the age of 28.
He now makes about $30,000 a year and lives with his wife and son in a spacious three-bedroom apartment he bought three years ago.
"My goal is not just for me, but for my family," he said. "I want my son to get a better education, to study abroad if he wants.
"If he likes golf, I want to make enough money to send him abroad," he added.
Zhou and Yan are the faces of success in the new Chongqing, where local officials have lofty goals for the megacity's future and already have an ambitious nickname for it to match: "Chicago on the Yangtze."
Thursday, November 18, 2010
Report: Chinese company 'hijacked' U.S. web traffic
Washingtom (CNN) -- Internet traffic from several U.S. government agency sites was briefly diverted through servers in China in April, congressional investigators reported Wednesday.
For 18 minutes, about 15 percent of all web traffic was redirected through China, including traffic to and from the sites of the U.S. Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, the office of the Secretary of Defense, the Senate and NASA, according to a report delivered to Congress by the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission.
Investigators say the web traffic was diverted by China Telecom, a state-owned enterprise.
They do not know whether the diversion was intentional, whether the government of China played any role, or whether any sensitive data was compromised.
The report says that the irregular routing could have allowed the surveillance of users or sites, the disruption or diversion of communications and the compromising of supposedly secure encrypted sessions.
Cyber warfare, corporate espionage
Pentagon spokeswoman Lt. Col. April Cunningham said the Defense Department "is concerned about any Internet traffic being intentionally rerouted outside of the usual operations." But, she said, "the security of Department of Defense information is not affected by misdirection of internet traffic." The Pentagon had no information to confirm whether the incident occurred, she said.
The Pentagon is in the process of establishing procedures "to address any potential current and future vulnerability," Cunningham told CNN.
Larry Wortzel, a member of the commission, said that given access to a stream of military traffic for 18 minutes, it might be possible "with really good computers" to get "a little information."
But another risk, he said, was that it could create an opening for spyware infiltration. "If you were a pretty knowledgeable intelligence service, you would get the internet addresses of everybody that communicated. And then you could essentially engineer a fake e-mail," he said, "and if someone opened an attachment, you would then insert a virus into the whole system."
The report alleges that the diversion was caused when China Telecom briefly offered a false electronic notification to internet traffic on the web, causing some traffic to mistakenly conclude that the quickest way to reach its destination was to travel through the company's servers in China.
A spokesman for the Chinese embassy in Washington rejected the claim.
"The commission's specious and unwarranted allegations against China and its enterprises are irresponsible," said Wang Baodong. "China will never do anything to harm other countries' national security, either in real or virtual worlds."
He also pointed out that China Telecom, in a statement to Reuters, has denied any hijacking of internet traffic.
Source: CNN
www.cnn.com
For 18 minutes, about 15 percent of all web traffic was redirected through China, including traffic to and from the sites of the U.S. Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, the office of the Secretary of Defense, the Senate and NASA, according to a report delivered to Congress by the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission.
Investigators say the web traffic was diverted by China Telecom, a state-owned enterprise.
They do not know whether the diversion was intentional, whether the government of China played any role, or whether any sensitive data was compromised.
The report says that the irregular routing could have allowed the surveillance of users or sites, the disruption or diversion of communications and the compromising of supposedly secure encrypted sessions.
Cyber warfare, corporate espionage
Pentagon spokeswoman Lt. Col. April Cunningham said the Defense Department "is concerned about any Internet traffic being intentionally rerouted outside of the usual operations." But, she said, "the security of Department of Defense information is not affected by misdirection of internet traffic." The Pentagon had no information to confirm whether the incident occurred, she said.
The Pentagon is in the process of establishing procedures "to address any potential current and future vulnerability," Cunningham told CNN.
Larry Wortzel, a member of the commission, said that given access to a stream of military traffic for 18 minutes, it might be possible "with really good computers" to get "a little information."
But another risk, he said, was that it could create an opening for spyware infiltration. "If you were a pretty knowledgeable intelligence service, you would get the internet addresses of everybody that communicated. And then you could essentially engineer a fake e-mail," he said, "and if someone opened an attachment, you would then insert a virus into the whole system."
The report alleges that the diversion was caused when China Telecom briefly offered a false electronic notification to internet traffic on the web, causing some traffic to mistakenly conclude that the quickest way to reach its destination was to travel through the company's servers in China.
A spokesman for the Chinese embassy in Washington rejected the claim.
"The commission's specious and unwarranted allegations against China and its enterprises are irresponsible," said Wang Baodong. "China will never do anything to harm other countries' national security, either in real or virtual worlds."
He also pointed out that China Telecom, in a statement to Reuters, has denied any hijacking of internet traffic.
Source: CNN
www.cnn.com
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
China takes steps against surging inflation
Hong Kong, China (CNN) -- Surging inflation in China has the government worried enough that it's adopting new measures, state media said Wednesday.
Government actions might include food subsidies, price limits, reinforced punishment for speculating on food, and steps to prevent hoarding, China Daily said. Mayors also might be forced to account for insufficient vegetable supplies and volatile prices.
Inflation in China is rising so quickly that it's sending shoppers across the border, to Hong Kong. Mainland Chinese are returning with necessities such as meat and produce, as much as they can carry on a train ride.
While in Hong Kong, which is a day trip from parts of mainland China, shoppers also can save by grabbing a meal at McDonald's. The fast-food chain is raising menu prices in China by as much as 1 yuan [15 cents US] per item because of rising food costs. McDonald's is keeping prices in check in Hong Kong.
The chain, with more than 1,000 outlets in China, is raising prices there for the first time this year, Xinhua said.
In 36 Chinese cities, the average wholesale prices for 18 kinds of vegetables have surged by 62.4 percent from a year earlier, the Ministry of Commerce said.
Chinese doing marketing in Hong Kong also are loading up on necessities such as toilet paper, diapers and shampoo. With their hands full, they shop busily at supermarkets, sundry stores and produce markets, especially near train stations.
One woman described significant savings, such as oranges selling for about twice the price in China, as compared with Hong Kong.
Last week, the state-run Xinhua news agency said that China's consumer price index had hit a 25-month high of 4.4 percent in October. The government's full-year inflation target is 3 percent.
China's Ministry of Commerce has sold 62,400 tons of pork and 210,000 tons of sugar from reserves since the end of September, in an attempt to stabilize food prices.
The ministry also says it will work with other government agencies to try to cool inflation, according to China Daily.
China is under pressure as capital flows into the economically vibrant country, the newspaper said, citing Central Bank Governor Zhou Xiaochuan.
The country drew about $7.7 billion in foreign direct investment in October, up 7.9 percent from a year earlier, China Daily said.
Hong Kong is a special administrative region of China, which generally governs itself. The Hong Kong dollar is pegged to the U.S. dollar, unlike China's yuan, or renminbi.
Source: CNN
www.cnn.com
Government actions might include food subsidies, price limits, reinforced punishment for speculating on food, and steps to prevent hoarding, China Daily said. Mayors also might be forced to account for insufficient vegetable supplies and volatile prices.
Inflation in China is rising so quickly that it's sending shoppers across the border, to Hong Kong. Mainland Chinese are returning with necessities such as meat and produce, as much as they can carry on a train ride.
While in Hong Kong, which is a day trip from parts of mainland China, shoppers also can save by grabbing a meal at McDonald's. The fast-food chain is raising menu prices in China by as much as 1 yuan [15 cents US] per item because of rising food costs. McDonald's is keeping prices in check in Hong Kong.
The chain, with more than 1,000 outlets in China, is raising prices there for the first time this year, Xinhua said.
In 36 Chinese cities, the average wholesale prices for 18 kinds of vegetables have surged by 62.4 percent from a year earlier, the Ministry of Commerce said.
Chinese doing marketing in Hong Kong also are loading up on necessities such as toilet paper, diapers and shampoo. With their hands full, they shop busily at supermarkets, sundry stores and produce markets, especially near train stations.
One woman described significant savings, such as oranges selling for about twice the price in China, as compared with Hong Kong.
Last week, the state-run Xinhua news agency said that China's consumer price index had hit a 25-month high of 4.4 percent in October. The government's full-year inflation target is 3 percent.
China's Ministry of Commerce has sold 62,400 tons of pork and 210,000 tons of sugar from reserves since the end of September, in an attempt to stabilize food prices.
The ministry also says it will work with other government agencies to try to cool inflation, according to China Daily.
China is under pressure as capital flows into the economically vibrant country, the newspaper said, citing Central Bank Governor Zhou Xiaochuan.
The country drew about $7.7 billion in foreign direct investment in October, up 7.9 percent from a year earlier, China Daily said.
Hong Kong is a special administrative region of China, which generally governs itself. The Hong Kong dollar is pegged to the U.S. dollar, unlike China's yuan, or renminbi.
Source: CNN
www.cnn.com
Sunday, November 14, 2010
APEC leaders to work toward free trade area
Yokohama, Japan (CNN) -- World leaders at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit on Sunday pledged to work toward a free trade area in the Asia-Pacific region.
"We reaffirm our unwavering commitment to achieving free and open trade and investment in the region," the leaders said in a joint statement at the end of their two-day summit in Yokohama, Japan.
The summit brought together 21 leaders from countries around the Pacific Rim.
But the group acknowledged challenges in the global economy and the environment.
"The Asia-Pacific regional economy is recovering from the recent economic and financial crisis, but uncertainty still remains," the leaders said. "We also face heightened challenges with regard to the protection of our environment and natural resources, including the necessity to jointly address climate change."
The summit also included the first formal talks between the Japanese prime minister Naoto Kan and the Chinese president Hu Jintao since a territorial dispute in September strained relations between the two.
This weekend marks the end of Obama's 10-day trip to Asia aimed at opening "new markets for American products in this fast-growing part of the world," according to his weekly address. He headed back to the United States on Sunday.
At the summit, Obama added, "In the 21st century, there is no need to view trade, commerce or economic growth as zero-sum games, where one country always has to prosper at the expense of another. If we work together and act together, strengthening our economic ties can be a win-win for all of our nations."
Obama has also pushed the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which is seen as a building block in trying to create a free-trade area in the Pacific Rim. The TPP would cut import tariffs for several countries.
The United States is scheduled to host next year's APEC summit in Hawaii.
Source: CNN
www.cnn.com
"We reaffirm our unwavering commitment to achieving free and open trade and investment in the region," the leaders said in a joint statement at the end of their two-day summit in Yokohama, Japan.
The summit brought together 21 leaders from countries around the Pacific Rim.
But the group acknowledged challenges in the global economy and the environment.
"The Asia-Pacific regional economy is recovering from the recent economic and financial crisis, but uncertainty still remains," the leaders said. "We also face heightened challenges with regard to the protection of our environment and natural resources, including the necessity to jointly address climate change."
The summit also included the first formal talks between the Japanese prime minister Naoto Kan and the Chinese president Hu Jintao since a territorial dispute in September strained relations between the two.
This weekend marks the end of Obama's 10-day trip to Asia aimed at opening "new markets for American products in this fast-growing part of the world," according to his weekly address. He headed back to the United States on Sunday.
At the summit, Obama added, "In the 21st century, there is no need to view trade, commerce or economic growth as zero-sum games, where one country always has to prosper at the expense of another. If we work together and act together, strengthening our economic ties can be a win-win for all of our nations."
Obama has also pushed the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which is seen as a building block in trying to create a free-trade area in the Pacific Rim. The TPP would cut import tariffs for several countries.
The United States is scheduled to host next year's APEC summit in Hawaii.
Source: CNN
www.cnn.com
The recession was made in China
Editor's note: David Frum writes a weekly column for CNN.com. A special assistant for President George W. Bush from 2001-02, Frum is the author of six books, including "Comeback: Conservatism That Can Win Again," and the editor of FrumForum.
Washington (CNN) -- The Financial Times reported Sunday that "global economic co-operation is in disarray and further battles in the currency war look likely after the weekend's meetings of finance ministers and central bankers end with no resolution."
The rancorous meeting took place here in Washington, in the sleek headquarters of the International Monetary Fund. The ministers and bankers had gathered to settle a big dispute over interest rates and currency between the United States and China.
China thinks U.S. interest rates are too low, and the U.S. dollar too cheap. America argues the contrary: It is China's currency that is out of line.
Many influential Americans share the Chinese point of view: Thomas Hoenig, head of the Kansas City Federal Reserve, has strongly argued for higher U.S. rates to prevent future inflation. The Hoenig view is endorsed by prominent financial commentators, such as CNBC's Larry Kudlow and the editorial page of The Wall Street Journal.
But this is one case where the conventional wisdom in America is right. In fact, the conventional wisdom does not go nearly far enough.
Editor's note: David Frum writes a weekly column for CNN.com. A special assistant for President George W. Bush from 2001-02, Frum is the author of six books, including "Comeback: Conservatism That Can Win Again," and the editor of FrumForum.
Washington (CNN) -- The Financial Times reported Sunday that "global economic co-operation is in disarray and further battles in the currency war look likely after the weekend's meetings of finance ministers and central bankers end with no resolution."
The rancorous meeting took place here in Washington, in the sleek headquarters of the International Monetary Fund. The ministers and bankers had gathered to settle a big dispute over interest rates and currency between the United States and China.
China thinks U.S. interest rates are too low, and the U.S. dollar too cheap. America argues the contrary: It is China's currency that is out of line.
Many influential Americans share the Chinese point of view: Thomas Hoenig, head of the Kansas City Federal Reserve, has strongly argued for higher U.S. rates to prevent future inflation. The Hoenig view is endorsed by prominent financial commentators, such as CNBC's Larry Kudlow and the editorial page of The Wall Street Journal.
But this is one case where the conventional wisdom in America is right. In fact, the conventional wisdom does not go nearly far enough.
By David Frum, CNN Contributor
Source: CNN
www.cnn.com
Washington (CNN) -- The Financial Times reported Sunday that "global economic co-operation is in disarray and further battles in the currency war look likely after the weekend's meetings of finance ministers and central bankers end with no resolution."
The rancorous meeting took place here in Washington, in the sleek headquarters of the International Monetary Fund. The ministers and bankers had gathered to settle a big dispute over interest rates and currency between the United States and China.
China thinks U.S. interest rates are too low, and the U.S. dollar too cheap. America argues the contrary: It is China's currency that is out of line.
Many influential Americans share the Chinese point of view: Thomas Hoenig, head of the Kansas City Federal Reserve, has strongly argued for higher U.S. rates to prevent future inflation. The Hoenig view is endorsed by prominent financial commentators, such as CNBC's Larry Kudlow and the editorial page of The Wall Street Journal.
But this is one case where the conventional wisdom in America is right. In fact, the conventional wisdom does not go nearly far enough.
Editor's note: David Frum writes a weekly column for CNN.com. A special assistant for President George W. Bush from 2001-02, Frum is the author of six books, including "Comeback: Conservatism That Can Win Again," and the editor of FrumForum.
Washington (CNN) -- The Financial Times reported Sunday that "global economic co-operation is in disarray and further battles in the currency war look likely after the weekend's meetings of finance ministers and central bankers end with no resolution."
The rancorous meeting took place here in Washington, in the sleek headquarters of the International Monetary Fund. The ministers and bankers had gathered to settle a big dispute over interest rates and currency between the United States and China.
China thinks U.S. interest rates are too low, and the U.S. dollar too cheap. America argues the contrary: It is China's currency that is out of line.
Many influential Americans share the Chinese point of view: Thomas Hoenig, head of the Kansas City Federal Reserve, has strongly argued for higher U.S. rates to prevent future inflation. The Hoenig view is endorsed by prominent financial commentators, such as CNBC's Larry Kudlow and the editorial page of The Wall Street Journal.
But this is one case where the conventional wisdom in America is right. In fact, the conventional wisdom does not go nearly far enough.
By David Frum, CNN Contributor
Source: CNN
www.cnn.com
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