1 Biggest-ever overhaul of China military (Kor Kian
Beng in Straits Times) China has launched its biggest-ever set of military
reforms, including the establishment of a new joint operational command, to
turn the People's Liberation Army (PLA) into a more combat-ready force. The
long-anticipated reforms come as tensions simmer over territorial disputes with
neighbours and to address the strategic rivalry with the US and Japan.
China unveiled them at the end of a three-day,
closed-door meeting chaired by President Xi Jinping and attended by 200
military officials. Other key reforms on target for implementation by 2020
include the rezoning of the existing seven military regions into new strategic
zones; strengthening the Central Military Commission (CMC) command structure
over the PLA; and reorganising the military headquarters.
The imposition of strict discipline on the army,
another reform pledge, will see the PLA setting up a new disciplinary structure
and a new legal and political committee to weed out graft and legal violations.
But details were scant on most reform pledges except on a promise by Mr Xi at a
military parade in September to downsize the 2.3-million strong PLA by 300,000
troops.
Retired PLA colonel Yue Gang said the latest reforms
constitute the biggest military overhaul since the 1950s, shortly after the
Communist Party took power in 1949. "The reform shakes the very
foundations of China's Soviet Union- style military system, and transferring to
a US-style joint command structure will transform China's PLA into a
specialised armed force that could pack more of a punch in the world," he said.
2 Portugal seems to going the Greece way (San
Francisco Chronicle) An anti-austerity alliance including radical leftist
parties takes power. A shaky economy and huge debts menace the national
economy. The rest of Europe watches with a wary eye. Sound familiar? It's not
Greece, but another eurozone country: Portugal.
A nation that just months ago was hailed as an
example of how to follow through with budget austerity measures has become a
new source of concern in Europe. A left-wing coalition has unseated a
center-right government that introduced the deep spending cuts and steep tax
hikes demanded since 2011 by creditors during Portugal's 78 billion-euro ($82.6
billion) bailout.
The developments echo what happened in Greece, whose
radical leaders this year almost crashed the nation out of the eurozone. Led by
the moderate Socialist Party, which took office Thursday, Portugal's new
administration will be backed in Parliament by the Communist Party and the
radical Left Bloc and Green Party.
Their rise and rhetoric bring to mind the radical
Syriza party in Greece and its dramatic clashes this year with its eurozone
creditors. Syriza initially refused to agree to more budget cuts and the
creditors responded by almost pushing Greece out of the euro. The new
government in Lisbon — the country's second-largest ever, with 17 ministers and
41 deputy ministers — is taking up a similar battle cry, vowing to "turn
the page" on austerity, which Germany has championed for years to reduce
high debts despite the economic hardship it can create.
Greece and Portugal each represent less than 2
percent of the eurozone's gross domestic product, but their troubles can
re-ignite market fears about the bloc's financial well-being. The people of
Portugal and Greece have both been hit hard by years of budget cutbacks.
Portugal's government debt, like Greece's, is still
very high. At 130 percent of gross domestic product it is the third-highest in
the European Union, and the three main ratings agencies still classify
Portuguese bonds as junk. Both countries, like the rest of the European Union,
must submit their spending plans to officials in Brussels for approval.
3 India gold demand may hit 8-year low (Rajendra
Jadhav in DNA) India's gold buying in the key December quarter is likely to
fall to the lowest level in eight years, hurt by poor investment demand and
back-to-back droughts that have slashed earnings for the country's millions of
farmers. The sluggish demand could halve imports by the world's second-biggest
gold consumer in US dollar terms in the final quarter, a retailer and two bank
dealers said.
December quarter demand could fall to 150 to 175
tonnes, said Bachhraj Bamalwa, a director with the All India Gems &
Jewellery Trade Federation, from 201.6 tonnes a year ago and a five-year
average for the quarter of 231 tonnes, according to World Gold Council data.
The December quarter usually accounts for about a third of India's gold sales
as it takes in the start of the wedding season as well as festivals like
Dhanteras and Diwali, when buying gold is considered auspicious.
Two-thirds of demand comes from rural areas, where
jewellery is a traditional store of wealth, but weak monsoon rainfall this year
has eroded farmers’ earnings and their purchasing capacity. A weak rupee has
also kept local gold prices relatively strong compared with a slump in US
dollar-denominated gold, further denting demand, while investment buying has
stalled as investors see little chance of a quick price recovery.
The Indian rupee has fallen over 5% this year,
restricting the drop in local gold prices to 5.5 percent, compared with a 9.3%
drop in US dollar denominated gold. India's gold imports, which account for
nearly all of its demand for the precious metal, could fall to around $5.7
billion in the December quarter, Bamalwa said.
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