In Monday's Asia papers

A summary of political, economic, trade, business and product news affecting the chemical and related industries.

 

 

 

 

 

China is developing a variety of "credible military options" to prevent Taiwan from achieving independence, including tools to discourage the US from coming to the island's aid in a conflict with the mainland, the US Department of Defense warned in a new report.  Cross-strait tensions have waxed and waned since 2000, when independence-leaning politician Chen Shui-bian became Taiwanese president. They have been fueled lately by Chen's plans to revise the island's constitution, which have been characterised by some analysts in mainland China as a backhanded attempt to introduce a timeline for achieving Taiwan's independence. Beijing's arsenal arrayed against Taiwan includes approximately 500 short-range ballistic missiles deployed in the Nanjing military region. If equipped with adequate guidance systems, those missiles could destroy key Taiwanese leadership facilities, military bases and communication and transportation nodes with minimal advanced warning, Pentagon analysts point out. Some of those weapons are believed to be capable of hitting US military bases in Okinawa, Japan.  Taiwan still maintains a qualitative edge over the mainland in air power, boasting three times as many modern so-called "fourth-generation" fighter jets as China.  But Beijing is working hard to close the gap. Over the next several years, given current trends, China most likely will be able to cause significant damage to all of Taiwan's airfields and quickly degrade Taiwan's ground-based air defenses and associated command and control, the document warned.

 

Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao and visiting Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi on Friday (28 May) pledged to work together more closely as they commemorated the 30th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries this year.  Wen described the relationship as the best it has ever been with great political trust, expanding common interests, closer economic ties, and increased consultation and coordination in the international arena. During their talks, Wen made a five-point proposal to further expand bilateral relations. Malaysia was the first Asean member to establish diplomatic ties with China on 31 May, 1974. Wen said they should promote cooperation in key areas such as agricultural, high technology, exploration of resources, infrastructure construction and tourism to increase trade volume. Badawi said China's progress in building a market economy had offered Malaysia important opportunities. He said Malaysia hopes that it could work more closely with China in science and technology, infrastructure construction, agriculture, information technology, education and tourism. Badawi reiterated that his country will continue to stick to the one-China policy. Both Wen and Badawi pledged to work together to promote cooperation among developing countries and dialogue between developed and developing countries.

China Daily, China (online edition)

S'pore's political change after Nat'l Day rally

It is already clear that  Deputy Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong will be Singapore's next prime minister. But exactly when is the question that many Singaporeans have been asking and Lee kept the suspense going at a community event on Sunday (30 May). He finally hinted to reports hinted that the succession may take place after the National Day Rally in August. Lee urges everyone to be patient and let the process of political succession take its course.

Channel News Asia, Singapore (online edition)

Energy

China's hydropower resources tops world

China's exploitable hydroelectric resources stands at 378m kilowatts, equivalent to annual power supply of 1.92trn kwh, topping the world and making up 16.7% of the world's total, a seminar was told last week. Addressing an international seminar on hydropower, Suo Lisheng, vice-minister of water resources, said the exploitable hydropower is equivalent to 50.7bn tonnes of standard coal.  Describing hydropower resources as the country's only renewable energy that could be tapped on a large scale, the official said China's overall generating capacity of hydroelectric power plants reached 92.17m kilowatts by the end of 2003, about 24% of the country's total power generating capacity. China's hydroelectric output totaled 283bn kwh last year, 15% of the country's total power output. China has been increasing investment in hydroelectric projects as part of its sustainable growth strategy to reduce pollution. Coal remains the country's primary source of energy, causing serious air pollution throughout the country, including acid rain.

China Daily, China (online edition)

Thailand may face power shortages 

Thailand might face power shortages in the near future since the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (Egat) has admitted that it is unlikely to complete its plan to extend the life spans of its four existing electricity production plants under its 2004 power development plan. Egat had planned to extend the life spans of its four power plants in South Bangkok, North Bangkok, Songkhla and Bangpakong by building new natural gas-fuelled plants on the same premises. An informed source at Egat said the projects might be delayed because Egat has yet to conduct studies on environmental impact assessments (EIAs) and social impact assessments (SIAs) and hold a public hearing as required by the new constitution. Moreover Egat is unable to acquire loans to finance the project by itself. Under the current law, a loan of more than Baht50.0m ($1.2m/Euro1.0m) must be guaranteed by the Ministry of Finance. The source said that in order to have Egat's power projects completed on time as planned, the government should relax some of the legal requirements, such as conducting EIAs and SIAs to help ennsure timely completion of the projects. Otherwise, the government should permit private firms to produce and sell electricity to Egat as several companies have the capability to expand their electricity production capacity, the source added. If the government fails to do so, there is a possibility that the electricity supply shortage problem in the country's energy security system will occur. That is because from 2005, the demand for electricity will substantially increase, while only a few new power plants will be built, the source added.

Business Day, Thailand (online edition)

 

Asia faces a weighty new problem 

Millions across Asia are being stalked by a silent killer -- obesity. A steady rise in living standards over the past two decades has lifted millions out of poverty in Asia but also brought with it a new problem. Throughout the region, people are getting fatter. At a meeting in Geneva last weekend, World Health Organisation (WHO) experts adopted new policies aimed at tackling what was once seen as primarily an American problem.  Today, it has gone global and many Asian governments are only now starting to grasp the full impact it is having on their health services and societies. Gauden Galea, an adviser on chronic diseases with the WHO's regional headquarters in Manila, said the gradual way that obesity had developed in societies was the reason nothing had been done before. The WHO says more than 1bn adults worldwide are overweight and at least 300m of them are considered obese.  Associated with obesity has been a dramatic rise in heart disease and diabetes, especially in the Asia-Pacific region.  According to WHO data, 120m people worldwide have insulin resistant Type 2 diabetes of which 30m are in the Asia-Pacific. By 2010 that figure is expected to be a staggering 130m out of 216m worldwide. Galea said one of the biggest concerns is the rapid spread among Asian children of Type 2 diabetes, what was once known as 'adult-onset diabetes'. One of the biggest problems facing governments is the staggering cost of treating diseases related to obesity. Asian delegates to the WHO meeting in Geneva agreed an anti-obesity drive that calls on governments and industry to promote better diets and more exercise, by advocating less fat, sugar and salt in food, as well as 30 minutes of moderate daily exercise.

 

 

The Ministry of Health, Welfare and Labor estimates that annual medical expenses, including those shouldered by patients, will reach about Yen69trn ($627bn/Euro512bn) in fiscal 2025, up 110% from the projected amount for fiscal 2004, largely because of the growing elderly population. Medical expenses incurred by senior citizens are expected to balloon by about 200% during the period, accounting for about half the nation's total medical spending in fiscal 2025. The estimate is based on the fiscal 2004 government budget as well as the recent growth in per capita medical expenses and future demographic trends. In the fiscal 2004 government budget, allocations to cover medical expenses for the elderly stood at Yen11.50trn, 36% of the Yen32.10trn total. In fiscal 2025, medical expenses for senior citizens will likely reach Yen34trn, 49% of the expected total of Yen69trn. Medical expenses are covered largely by taxes, insurance premiums and money paid by the patients themselves. The portion of medical expenses covered by taxes is expected to grow by a disproportionate amount in the years to come, hitting Yen28trn in fiscal 2025, up 180% from Yen10trn in fiscal 2004.

 

 

 

 

Saudi Arabia was tightly guarding its vast energy network, still running as normal after a militant attack in Khobar, as its oil minister on Sunday (30 May) reassured Western executives over security. World oil markets were already on edge over the possibility of a militant strike in the top crude exporter now pumping more than 9m barrels daily in a bid to cool scorching prices.  The latest strike at another oil company compound, following a similar attack on 1 May in the western Saudi town of Yanbu, seemed clearly intended as a new attempt to start an exodus of the thousands of workers on whom Saudi Arabia depends to keep its oil industry running. Saudi Arabia relies heavily on 6m expatriate workers, including about 30 000 Americans, to run its oil industry and other sectors. The attack on Saturday hit at the core of the relationship between the West and the Saudi kingdom. Most of the oil production and the American and other Western technicians who keep it flowing are based in and around the urban centres of Khobar, Dammam and Dhahran, clustered together near the shores of the Persian Gulf, just across from Bahrain. A purported statement from Al-Qaeda claiming the attack will heighten concern on world markets about supply security in the Middle East.  No Saudi Aramco facilities or personnel were affected by the incidents in Khobar. Despite the fresh violence, Western oil majors said they were unlikely to pull out of the oil-rich kingdom.

 

 

 

 

Major Japanese pharmaceutical firms are stepping up efforts to expand sales by seeking approval for additional indications and offering them in different forms for easier administration.