After South Korean President Moon Jae-in met Emirati Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum in Dubai, the countries signed a memorandum of understanding for the UAE's purchase of a South Korean mid-range missile defense system valued at some $3.5 billion, South Korea's Yonhap news agency reported.

There were no further details on the deal announced during the visit nor immediate comment from the UAE. But during Dubai's weeklong aviation trade show last November, the Emirati Ministry of Defense tweeted it planned to acquire South Korea's M-SAM, an advanced air defense system designed to intercept missiles at altitudes below 40 kilometers (25 miles), saying it would “constitute a qualitative addition to the capabilities of the national air defense."

Sheikh Mohammed posted photos of the meeting and said the UAE seeks “a comprehensive strategic economic partnership” with South Korea, one of the world’s top crude importers and financiers of energy projects.

The nations have strengthened their defense cooperation over the past decade, with South Korean elite special forces even traveling to the UAE to train Emirati troops in an unprecedented years-long deployment for the Asian country.

Meanwhile, the UAE has hosted hundreds of North Korean laborers in past years who provide a key revenue stream for Pyongyang. But under pressure to enforce U.S.-led sanctions over North Korea’s nuclear program, Abu Dhabi has recently moved to choke off the network and stopped renewing North Korean work visas.

From Dubai’s Expo 2020, where South Korea boasts a sprawling pavilion to showcase the country’s high-tech and cultural achievements, President Moon praised the world's fair and pledged the countries will “transcend generations and national borders to build back together and leap forward together.”

President Moon landed in the regional financial hub of Dubai on Saturday, and was greeted by UAE Energy Minister Suhail al-Mazrouei. The oil and gas-dependent South Korea imports fossil fuels from the Persian Gulf, including from oil-rich Abu Dhabi, to power its energy-intensive economy, dominated by manufacturing industries from cars to petrochemicals.

The UAE represents 8% of Seoul’s oil imports, according to 2019 data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

Not only does Seoul buy Emirati oil, but South Korean firms have participated in the development of Emirati oil fields to boost the Asian country’s self sufficiency and, significantly, have built the UAE’s Barakah nuclear power plant — the first on the Arabian Peninsula.

The group of four reactors at Barakah in Abu Dhabi’s far western desert, which marked the Korea Electric Power Corporation’s first international deal, are gradually coming online. As the UAE seeks to decrease its reliance on fossil fuels and diversify away from oil, it plans to draw a quarter of its electricity from the $20 billion reactors.

During the South Korean trade minister’s trip to the UAE late last year, the countries also began negotiations on a new bilateral trade deal, including agreements to develop sources of clean power. On Monday, Moon met with an Emirati business delegation about clean-burning hydrogen fuel, his press office said.

The Abu Dhabi National Oil Company has sharpened its focus on hydrogen in recent months, building facilities to produce large volumes of the fuel and shipping so-called blue ammonia to Japan.

“Carbon neutrality is obviously a difficult process, but if the two nations promote the hydrogen industry through solidarity and cooperation, they will have new opportunities,” Yonhap news agency quoted Moon as telling a business forum in Dubai, adding that Seoul has helped the UAE develop a hydrogen-powered public transport system.

A different South Korean export takes center stage later Sunday at Expo, as star K-pop bands including Psy, of the hit song “Gangnam Style," will perform catchy songs and dynamic dance moves to frenetic fans that braved rare desert rain to line up since early morning.

https://www.swoknews.com/ap/business/south-korean-president-visits-uae-showcasing-deep-ties/article_05f49382-fd4c-5209-8259-97183587dfd4.html

China's iron ore imports may reach 90 million tons in January, which would represent a 5 percent month-on-month increase, driven by stronger infrastructure investment, and Australia is likely to account for 60 percent of those imports, becoming the biggest beneficiary, industry insiders said on Sunday.
Domestic steel prices have gradually rebounded over the past two months, with the main contract for rebar futures up nearly 10 percent, driven by plans to increase infrastructure spending. That reflects rising steel demand in China and signals more iron ore imports.
While commodity prices generally reached low ebb at the end of the year, the market for iron ore was an outlier - prices bottomed out and started a slow rebound starting in November.
As of Thursday, the Platts iron ore price index was $128 per ton, an increase of $40.8 per ton or 46.8 percent from the low point in November 2021.
Industry analysts said that rising iron ore prices reflect an expected pick-up in China's infrastructure investment this year, especially as local government bond funds have become an important source of financing for infrastructure investment.
Recently, the Ministry of Finance announced a quota of 1.46 trillion yuan ($229.8 billion) for new special-purpose debts in 2022 in advance.
The early release of the new quota will allow "moderately advanced infrastructure investment" to obtain financial support, which will effectively play the role of infrastructure in underpinning the economy, according to the Beijing Lange Steel Information Research Center.
"The resumption of production in steel mills has driven the release of demand for raw materials… since December 2021... with the completion of production reduction work in many places, the trend of resumption of production in steel mills has emerged," Wang Guoqing, research director at the Beijing Lange Steel Information Research Center, told the Global Times on Sunday.
Other overlapping factors, including heavy rains in Brazil affecting Vale, one of the world's biggest iron ore miners, and the potential pandemic fallout in Western Australia on iron ore production, may also support iron ore prices, Wang said.
The steel price is about 4,600 yuan per ton on Sunday, and it may even hit a record high for winter storage, according to media reports.
While rising demand is expected to optimize iron ore imports in January, elevated prices won't last long, since the shipping and arrival volumes of imported iron ore remain fairly high, Wang said.
Expected production suspension amid the upcoming Winter Olympic Games will also curb demand. According to the Beijing Lange Steel Information Research Center, the implementation of staggered production measures to limit output by 30 percent in Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei and surrounding areas will be significantly strengthened.

https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202201/1246105.shtml

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Miners have been using digital technology in virtually all aspects of their operations for decades, but some of the uses to which it is now being put sound as if they belong in the realms of science fiction.

For example, ‘Digital Twinning’ is now being configured and installed in many mines, by many companies. This concept is of a computer-generated virtual model that mimics a mine’s physical operations, allowing operators to review the status of equipment, from the largest dump trucks down to the throughputs of the smallest valves.

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https://www.mining-technology.com/sponsored/digitalisation-and-its-impact-on-the-mining-industry/

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https://www.digitaljournal.com/pr/environmental-technology-market-is-likely-to-experience-a-tremendous-growth-in-near-future-abatement-technologies-veolia-waste-connections-total-s-a

TOP STORY

Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin (R) on Saturday issued an executive order to assess and ultimately sever the state’s RGGI-linked cap-and-trade regulation, though it is uncertain when or even if the new leader can end Old Dominion’s membership in the power sector carbon market without new legislation.

EMEA

EU member states should pursue emissions-cutting efforts in non-ETS sectors without resorting to flexibilities that may keep longer term targets out of reach, according to the lead parliamentarian for the bloc’s revised Effort-Sharing Regulation (ESR).

EUA prices fell in line with weaker gas and power markets on Monday amid forecasts for milder weather suggested gas supply is unlikely to be severely tested this winter, as demand for EUAs remained modest and trading activity was very limited.

ASIA PACIFIC

China’s domestic carbon price could rise 400% above current levels by 2030 and kick on from there as part of the country’s efforts to decarbonise by 2060, oil major Shell said in a report Monday.

The green energy arm of Australian iron ore mining giant Fortescue Metals Group, has added another green hydrogen deal to its list by signing a supply agreement with Covestro, a German chemicals company, FFI announced on Monday.

New Zealand carbon allowances hit a new record again on Monday, as the market continues to anticipate rising prices in the year ahead.

China’s thermal power generation rose 8.4% in 2021, government data showed Monday, with the nation’s Covid recovery causing a surge in carbon emissions.

INTERNATIONAL

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres told the World Economic Forum (WEF) on Monday that there is no sign that governments are planning to effectively manage climate risks, urging the private sector to step up efforts and avoid greenwashing well ahead of November’s COP27 UN climate talks in Egypt.

Fund manager Carbon Cap’s World Carbon Fund closed 2021 with a 59% annual gain, as allowances prices in the five main cap-and-trade systems rose to an average of $60/tonne, the company said on Monday.

VOLUNTARY

Standardised nature-based voluntary emissions reductions (VER) prices found strength this week while technology-based CORSIA-eligible credits and others generally flatlined or sank.

https://carbon-pulse.com/148612/

The new US President Joe Biden asserted he was committed to rebuilding America’s alliances after years of neglect and disdain. Europeans, frustrated by former President Donald Trump’s treatment of them, were anxious for a new beginning. Throughout the year, significant breakthroughs were made resolving bilateral trade disputes, launching technological cooperation, and coordinating relations with China.

But 2021 was also a year marked by Washington’s failure to consult Europeans before the mishandled pullout from Afghanistan, growing US preoccupation with China, and European worries about the uncertain reliability of American democracy.

As 2022 dawns, transatlantic relations have clearly entered a new era. There is a deepening appreciation that Europe and the United States face shared challenges best addressed together. The Russian troops massed on the Ukraine border as the new year begins are only one immediate example. At the same time, there is a realization that the United States may be a less reliable partner in the future and that Europe must finally take on more responsibilities on its side of the Atlantic and around the world.

This appraisal of transatlantic relations in 2021 grew out of the German Marshall Fund-Bundeskanzler Helmut Schmidt Stiftung 2020 Task Force report on transatlantic relations. This current assessment is based on over 50 interviews that Bruce, who is lead author, conducted with US and European foreign policy, security, and economics experts. The interviewees gave their time freely and their input is much appreciated. To ensure candor, all conversations were on a not-for-attribution basis. Nonetheless, the judgement of developments in transatlantic relations in 2021 is the sole responsibility of the authors.

Significant Achievements

“This first year of the Biden administration went about as positively as I hoped it would on the day of his inauguration,” said a former German ambassador to the United States. “When Biden said in February ‘we are back,’ there was some doubt that he could do that, but generally there is an appreciation that the United States is still a European power.”

“There were lofty expectations, especially among [American] Europhiles, that Europe would be more of a priority in overall Biden foreign policy,” concluded a foreign policy analyst at a Washington think tank. “There was this sense we would see a new day in the partnership and that the United States and Europe would start writing the rules of the road.”

Europeans are broadly delighted to see Biden as president," observed a former adviser on Europe in the Obama administration. "The glass is three-quarters or four-fifths full.

The 2021 transatlantic accomplishments were, indeed, significant. The longstanding Airbus-Boeing dispute over government aircraft subsidies was shelved. US tariffs on European steel and aluminum were lowered, averting a trade war. Europe and the United States spearheaded an international accord committing nations to a minimum global corporate tax rate. Some progress was made in addressing climate change. Brussels and Washington created a Trade and Technology Council to coordinate supply chains and technology policy. And a shared perception of China as a “strategic competitor” drove transatlantic convergence on dealing with Beijing.

“Europeans are broadly delighted to see Biden as president,” observed a former adviser on Europe in the Obama administration. “The glass is three-quarters or four-fifths full.”

Jarring Discontinuities

But transatlantic relations have also been battered by jarring discontinuities and troubling uncertainties that cast a cloud over 2022.

The US pullout from Afghanistan in August followed by the September announcement of the sale of US nuclear-powered submarines to Australia as part of a trilateral security pact (dubbed AUKUS because it also involved the United Kingdom), which supplanted an existing deal Paris had with Canberra, further undermined European trust in the United States.

“We were not surprised by the [Afghanistan] decision,” said a French security expert. “The departure was foreseeable.” But Europeans who had readily joined the US invasion of Afghanistan in 2001, as a gesture of allied solidarity, felt they had simply been informed by Washington, not consulted, about the withdrawal.

“You have to know that you have no other friends than Europe,” warned a Polish foreign policy expert. “If you screw up talking with us, that undermines the US system of alliances and that is not useful for the United States.”

And, added the head of a Brussels-based think tank, “AUKUS confirmed France’s longstanding fears of the United States. A lot of trust was lost and that is a very difficult thing to pull back.” Moreover, to many in Paris, the involvement of the United Kingdom only added insult to injury.

Compounding these two high-profile episodes was the European realization that China, not Europe, now preoccupies White House officials. “Anxiety, skepticism, and bad juju around the pivot to Asia is prevalent everywhere in Europe,” said a Berlin-based analyst. “The fear is that it will lead to transatlantic decoupling.”

But Europeans also acknowledge they share responsibility for lingering transatlantic discord. “I would have expected that Biden’s invitation to move beyond the Trump interlude and to team up would have been met by the European side with more enthusiasm,” observed a disappointed Green Party member of the European Parliament.

The Challenges that Lie Ahead

“America still acts as if it is the leader,” observed a disdainful Social Democrat member of the European Parliament. “But the preconditions for transatlantic leadership have changed fundamentally. America is not as sovereign as it used to be. America needs its allies as much as the allies need the United States.”

One of those allies is the new German government. American administrations have long relied on London to protect US interests on the continent. But, since Brexit, Washington has had to rely ever more on Berlin. In 2021, that meant a lame-duck Merkel government that was not enthusiastic about a tougher stance on China and did not want a new Cold War with Russia. “Most of the concessions that the Biden people have made—on tariffs, on minimum global tax rate, on Nord Stream 2—were all aimed at winning Germany over as a partner,” said a Berlin-based observer. “And, frankly, Berlin just pocketed all that.”

In 2022, with a new German government, there is an opportunity for greater cooperation. The new German Chancellor Olaf Scholz “considers Biden a like-minded leader,” said a Berlin foreign policy expert. “There is plenty of interest in working more with the United States on a whole range of issues.”

The Russian threat to invade Ukraine poses the most immediate test of transatlantic cooperation in 2022. How Europe and the United States respond—their ability to stay united in resisting Moscow’s demands for a sphere of influence in Eastern Europe and, if necessary, their steadfastness in maintaining joint economic sanctions against Russia that will prove more costly for Europe than for the United States—could be the most significant test of the security alliance since the Cold War.

No longer in Europe are they talking about who is the sick man in Europe," noted a worried New York-based foreign policy expert. "It’s America that is the sick man.

Going forward, there is also unprecedented European uncertainty about the trajectory of US democracy and what that means for transatlantic relations. The International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance, based in Stockholm, has judged the United States a “backsliding democracy.” And a median of only 18% of the publics in nine European nations believes that US democracy is a good example for other countries to follow. “No longer in Europe are they talking about who is the sick man in Europe,” noted a worried New York-based foreign policy expert. “It’s America that is the sick man.”

The upcoming 2022 US Congressional elections and Biden’s fading public opinion poll numbers have Europeans quite worried.

“There is panic on what will happen in the United States,” said a Washington-based veteran of transatlantic relations. “Europeans hear that the Republicans may win the House and Senate in 2022 and the White House in 2024.”

“The Biden administration is working in a very narrow window of opportunity,” noted a US expert at a British think tank. “We may only have 10–11 months,” added a worried Social Democratic member of the European Parliament, “because after the midterm elections, things may be different.” And then the question will be, observed a former high-ranking EU official, “will Biden have any political capital to expend on things that are important for Europe?”

In February 2021, Biden told the Munich Security Conference that “America is back.” But in transatlantic relations, there is no return to the status quo ante. The domestic and international challenges facing both Europe and the United States have changed. The Trump experience, Afghanistan, and the US pivot to Asia have left Europeans wondering if they can count on the United States. Moreover, Washington’s slowness to move on lifting the steel tariffs, its inability to deliver more meaningful commitments on climate change, and the worsening partisanship of US domestic politics “has fed a conclusion in Europe that the relationship with the United States will never go back to 2016,” said a former US ambassador to NATO. “Domestic US politics will make it more difficult for the United States to lead in the traditional way, to provide public goods, even if Trump does not come back.”

“A fundamental trust has been broken,” he concluded. “The challenge is to find a new purpose for the relationship.”

The accomplishments, and the shortcomings, of the transatlantic relationship in 2021 provide a cautionary roadmap of what that new relationship can be in 2022 and beyond.

Trade Cooperation Promising

Cooperation on trade issues has been a very positive development in transatlantic relations in 2021, both symbolically and politically, even if it took some time to develop.

Burned by their frustrating efforts to negotiate the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership during the Obama years and mindful of the Biden administration’s wariness of protectionist sentiment among its voting base, neither Brussels nor Washington has evidenced any interest in a bilateral trade agreement. Similarly, London’s entreaties for a UK-US free trade deal have fallen on deaf ears in Washington.

Nevertheless, important progress has been made on the trade front. At the beginning of Biden’s term, the transatlantic landscape was littered with both longstanding and more recent trade disputes. The two sides have been fighting over aircraft subsidies to Boeing and Airbus for 17 years, with the United States winning and exercising the right to retaliate in 2019 and the European Union getting the green light to strike back in October 2020. In June 2021, at the US-EU summit in Brussels, officials agreed on a five-year suspension of retaliatory tariffs in this dispute. And a working group was established to discuss subsidy limits in the face of prospective commercial aircraft competition from China. (They also agreed to establish the Trade and Technology Council, but that is covered in the next section of our review.)

Past victims of these tit-for-tat tariffs could not have been more pleased. “Ask a French wine exporter if he thinks Biden is no better than Trump,” said a senior French trade official, underscoring the importance of this agreement.

On the margins of the G20 Summit in October, Washington and Brussels agreed to end prohibitive tariffs imposed by the Trump administration on European shipments of steel and aluminum with a quota that will allow these European products to enter US markets duty-free. In return, the EU dropped retaliatory duties on high-profile US exports. Washington and Brussels also agreed to revive multilateral efforts to reduce global overcapacity in steel production, a three-decade-old ambition that is even more urgent today thanks to China’s massive production levels.

Although trade economists complained that the deal was “managed trade,” a former European business lobbyist praised the progress: “I am impressed by the pragmatism on both sides, especially with regard to steel and aluminum. Biden needed a deal to sell to his electorate and the European steel industry is suffering. It was a pragmatic solution that I did not expect at the beginning of the year.”

Biden needed a deal to sell to his electorate and the European steel industry is suffering. It was a pragmatic solution that I did not expect at the beginning of the year.

As a means of slowing global warming, the EU plans to impose a “carbon border adjustment mechanism,” a fee on CO2 emission-intensive imports, such as steel and cement. This tax is meant to ensure that European producers are not disadvantaged by Brussels’ efforts to curb such emissions, which will raise domestic production costs. With the United States unlikely to impose its own border tax, new transatlantic trade friction would be inevitable. To head this off, Washington and Brussels say they will develop a plan by 2024 to favor the imports of low-carbon steel and aluminum. In itself, commented a former high-ranking EU trade official, “this ‘green steel’ deal is not meaningful, it’s spinning something with very little content. But it could lead to sectoral carbon deals” that might help avoid an inevitable trade fight over how best to slow climate change.

In the G20, European governments and the United States spearheaded an agreement on a 15 percent minimum global corporate tax rate on the profits of large multinationals, while allocating a portion of those revenues to the countries to which those companies export. The agreement is aimed at minimizing decades-old tax competition between nations. If implemented, this minimum tax could provide a major curb on corporate tax avoidance using tax havens. It should also roll back the threat of digital services taxes that several European nations have imposed or plan to implement, which the US government has deemed unfair (but suspended retaliation pending multilateral solutions).

There has been one significant exception to closer transatlantic relations on trade: a lack of progress on reform of the World Trade Organization (WTO). The WTO is dysfunctional, both as a negotiating forum—where it has failed to produce major trade liberalization—and as a dispute settlement mechanism—because the United States, frustrated by decisions it disagreed with, has refused to assent to the appointment of members of the appellate body created to settle disputes. So far, the Biden administration has blocked resolution of this impasse due to “systematic concerns” about the dispute body overstepping its mandate.

Before Biden’s inauguration, incoming senior US officials vowed that WTO reform would be their top trade priority. The administration did end the standoff that had prevented the appointment of Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala as WTO Director-General. But other than that, one year into Biden’s term there is no tangible evidence of any US effort toward progress at the WTO.

“The United States is absent in Geneva,” complained a former senior WTO official, who ominously speculated: “Does the United States still need the WTO if it wants to weaponize trade against China? To do that, you need to get rid of the WTO.”

Developments in 2022 could well foreshadow the WTO’s fate. The United States, Europe, and Japan have revived their plurilateral talks on new subsidy disciplines, which they then want to multilateralize through the WTO. Success would help revive the Geneva-based institution. Failure, coupled with a continued stalemate on dispute settlement, may mean Europe and the United States will need other venues to develop new trade rules and resolve disputes.

https://www.gmfus.org/news/transatlantic-rating-bidens-first-year-office

https://www.ft.com/content/13702f42-a923-4cd8-a6c7-03f775a0742b

INTRODUCTION

(RTTNews) - Asian stock markets are trading mixed on Thursday, following broadly negative cues overnight from Wall Street, as traders pick up stocks at reduced levels following the recent sell-off and on a continued spike in crude oil prices. Traders also remain concerned about the raging spread of the coronavirus omicron variant across the globe and its impact on the pace of economic recovery from the pandemic. Asian markets closed mostly lower on Wednesday.

Concerns also remain amid rising Treasury yields and worries over inflation and looming interest rate hikes after U.S. Treasury yields hit fresh two-year highs on Fed rate hike expectations. Most analysts believe a rate hike of at least 25 basis points from the FOMC is imminent, although some are now starting to think it may be a 50 bps boost.

The Australian stock market is modestly lower in choppy trading on Thursday, extending the losses in the previous two sessions, with the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 just above the 7,300 level, following the broadly negative cues overnight from Wall Street, as traders are worried over inflation and looming interest rate hikes after U.S. Treasury yields hit fresh two-year highs amid Fed rate hike expectations.

Trades also remain concerned about the sharp spike in domestic new coronavirus infections, though off record highs. New South Wales records 30,825 new cases and 25 deaths on Wednesday. Victoria reported 21,966 new cases and 15 deaths, Queensland recorded 16,812 new cases and nine deaths, and ACT reported 892 new cases.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is losing 16.50 points or 0.23 percent to 7,316.00, after hitting a low of 7,298.50 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is down 13.40 points or 0.18 percent to 7,643.20. Australian markets ended significantly lower on Wednesday.

Among major miners, BHP Group is gaining almost 3 percent, OZ Minerals is up almost 2 percent and Mineral Resources is rising 3.5 percent, while Rio Tinto and Fortescue Metals are advancing 2.5 percent each. Oil stocks are mostly higher. Woodside Petroleum is edging up 0.2 percent and Origin Energy is gaining almost 2 percent, while Beach Energy is edging down 0.3 percent. Santos is flat.

Among the big four banks, Commonwealth Bank and National Australia Bank are losing 1.5 percent each, while ANZ Banking is edging down 0.3 percent and Westpac is down almost 1 percent.

In the tech space, Xero is losing more than 1 percent, Appen is slipping almost 2 percent, WiseTech Global is down more than 1 percent and Zip is declining more than 2 percent. Gold miners are all strongly higher as gold prices spiked overnight. Newcrest Mining and Resolute Mining are gaining more than 4 percent each, while Northern Star Resources is surging more than 8 percent, Evolution Mining is soaring more than 9 percent and Gold Road Resources is advancing more than 5 percent.

In economic news, the unemployment rate in Australia came in at a seasonally adjusted 4.2 percent in December, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said on Thursday - beating handily expectations for 4.5 percent and down from 4.6 percent in November. The participation rate was 66.1 percent - unchanged from the previous month but shy of expectations for 66.2 percent.

In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.723 on Thursday.

The Japanese stock market is slightly higher in choppy trading on Thursday, recouping some of the sharp losses in the previous two sessions, with the benchmark Nikkei 225 staying above the 27,500 level, despite the broadly negative cues overnight from Wall Street, as traders picked up stocks at a bargain after the recent selloff amid the raging spread of the coronavirus omicron variant in the country, with new daily cases breaching the 40,000 mark for the first time on Wednesday.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index closed the morning session at 27,594.29, down 127.06 points or 0.46 percent, after touching a high of 27,726.52 and a low of 27,217.59 earlier. Japanese shares ended sharply lower on Wednesday.

Market heavyweight SoftBank Group is edging down 0.3 percent, while Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing is edging up 0.3 percent. Among automakers, Toyota is adding more than 1 percent, while Honda is edging down 0.5 percent. In the tech space, Advantest and Tokyo Electron are losing almost 2 percent each, while Screen Holdings is declining almost 3 percent.

In the banking sector, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial is losing almost 1 percent and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial is edging down 0.3 percent, while Mizuho Financial is flat.

The major exporters are lower. Sony is gaining almost 4 percent and Canon is adding almost 1 percent, while Panasonic is losing more than 1 percent. Mitsubishi Electric is flat.

Among the other major gainers, Konami Holdings is gaining more than 5 percent, while Isetan Mitsukoshi and Ricoh are adding almost 4 percent each. Nexon, Itochu, Olympus and Unitika are advancing more than 3 percent each.

Conversely, Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha is plunging almost 10 percent and Mitsui O.S.K. Lines is sliding more than 9 percent, Nippon Yusen K.K. is losing almost 6 percent and T&D Holdings is down almost 4 percent, while Dai-ichi Life, Taiyo Yuden and Subaru are declining almost 3 percent each.

In economic news, Japan posted a merchandise trade deficit of 582.2 billion yen in December, the Ministry of Finance said on Thursday. That beat forecasts for a shortfall of 784.1 billion yen following the downwardly revised deficit of 955.6 billion yen in November (originally -954.8 billion yen). Exports climbed 17.5 percent on year, exceeding expectation for a gain of 16.0 percent following the 20.5 percent increase in the previous month. Imports were up 41.1 percent on year versus expectations for 42.8 percent and down from 43.8 percent a month earlier. For all of 2021, imports rose 24.3 percent and exports gained 21.5 percent for a trade deficit of 1.472 trillion yen.

In the currency market, the U.S. dollar is trading in the lower 114 yen-range on Thursday.

Elsewhere in Asia, New Zealand, China and Taiwan are lower by between 0.4 and 0.7 percent each. Hong Kong is surging 1.7 percent, while Singapore and Indonesia are up 0.1 and 0.3 percent, respectively. South Korea and Malaysia are relatively flat with a negative bias.

On Wall Street, stocks were unable to hold on to early gains on Wednesday, bouncing back and forth across the unchanged line before finishing in the red for the second straight session.

For the day, the Dow tumbled 339.82 points or 0.96 percent to finish at 35,028.65, while the NASDAQ dropped 166.64 points or 1.15 percent to close at 14,340.25 and the S&P 500 sank 44.35 points or 0.97 percent to end at 4.532.76.

Meanwhile, the major European markets moved higher on the day. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index added 0.35 percent, while the German DAX Index and the French CAC 40 Index rose by 0.24 percent and 0.55 percent, respectively.

Crude oil prices continued their recent upward surge on Wednesday, rising for the fifth straight day to a fresh seven-year high following supply issues in the Middle East. West Texas Intermediate for February contract jumped $1.22 or 1.43 percent to $86.65 per barrel.

https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/asian-markets-show-mixed-trend-5

Communiqué of the 6th Plenary Session of the 19th Central Commission for Discipline Inspection of the Communist Party of China

(Adopted at the sixth plenary meeting of the 19th Central Commission for Discipline Inspection of the Communist Party of China on January 20, 2022)

The sixth plenary meeting of the 19th Central Commission for Discipline Inspection of the Communist Party of China will be held in Beijing from January 18 to 20, 2022. There were 125 members of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and 242 people attended the plenary meeting.

General Secretary of the CPC Central Committee, President of the State, and Chairman of the Central Military Commission Xi Jinping attended the plenary session and delivered an important speech. Party and state leaders including Li Keqiang, Li Zhanshu, Wang Yang, Wang Huning, Zhao Leji and Han Zheng attended the meeting.

The plenary session is chaired by the Standing Committee of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection. Guided by Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, the plenary session fully implemented the spirit of the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China and the previous 19th plenary sessions, summarized the inspection and supervision work in 2021, deployed tasks for 2022, and reviewed and approved Comrade Zhao Leji on behalf of the Standing Committee of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection The work report on "Using the Party's Hundred Years of Struggle History to Promote the High-quality Development of Discipline Inspection and Supervision to Welcome the Party's Twenty Victories".

The plenary session earnestly studied and deeply understood the important speech of General Secretary Xi Jinping. They agreed that the speech profoundly summed up the successful practice of the party's self-revolution in the new era, profoundly expounded the historic and pioneering achievements of comprehensively and strictly governing the party, and the all-round and deep-level influence it has produced. Make strategic arrangements to advance in depth and welcome the victory of the Party's 20th National Congress. The speech is lofty, profound and rich in connotation, which fully reflects the firm belief, selflessness and fearlessness of the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core, the political courage to face up to the problem, to turn the blade inward, and the mission of not forgetting the original intention and moving forward bravely. , has a strong political, instructive, and pertinent nature, is the basic principle to promote the new great project of party building in the new era, and is an action guide for the high-quality development of discipline inspection and supervision work. General Secretary Xi Jinping placed high expectations on the team of discipline inspection and supervision cadres and put forward clear requirements. It is necessary to thoroughly study and implement General Secretary Xi Jinping's strategic thinking on the party's self-revolution, continuously improve political judgment, political comprehension, and political execution, and continue to fight the tough and protracted battle for the construction of party conduct and clean government and the fight against corruption, in order to maintain stability and health. The economic environment of the country, the social environment of Guotai and the people's security, and the political environment with a clean air will make due contributions.

The plenary session pointed out that 2021 is a landmark year in the history of the party and the country. The Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core united and led the whole Party and the people of all ethnic groups in the country to solemnly celebrate the centenary of the founding of the Communist Party of China, successfully convened the Sixth Plenary Session of the 19th Central Committee of the Party, formulated the Party's third historical resolution, and comprehensively summarized the Party's The major achievements and historical experience of the century-old struggle, carry out the study and education of the party history, win the battle against poverty as scheduled, build a moderately prosperous society in an all-round way, realize the goal of the first century of struggle, and start building a modern socialist country in an all-round way, and march toward the goal of the second century of struggle. In the new journey, the party and the country have made new major achievements in various undertakings, and the "14th Five-Year Plan" has achieved a good start. Under the strong leadership of the CPC Central Committee, the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, the State Supervision Commission and the discipline inspection and supervision organs at all levels have thoroughly studied and comprehended Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, deeply understood the decisive significance of the "two establishments", and consciously assumed the major political responsibility of the "two maintenances". Responsibility, deeply grasp the responsibilities and tasks of discipline inspection and supervision in promoting the party's self-revolution, seek progress in stability, be firm and steady, seek truth from facts, keep upright and innovative, maintain comprehensive and strict governance of the party, sober and firm on the road forever, maintain upright conduct and discipline, The strategic determination of anti-corruption and punishing evil, focusing on the overall situation of modernization, has played a role in supervising and guaranteeing implementation and promoting perfect development, and new achievements have been made in the high-quality development of discipline inspection and supervision. In-depth study of the spirit of the Sixth Plenary Session of the 19th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the important exposition of General Secretary Xi Jinping on the history of the party, and the important speech at the celebration of the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China, enhance historical confidence, practice fighting skills, and be firm, comprehensive and strict. Party political consciousness. Closely focus on the "14th Five-Year Plan" and strengthen political supervision, strengthen the daily supervision of the "top leaders" and leading groups, and correct the political deviations in the implementation of the Party Central Committee's policies and work arrangements. Resolutely investigate and deal with major corruption cases, seriously investigate and deal with corruption cases intertwined with political and economic problems, increase anti-corruption efforts in the fields of state-owned enterprises, finance, politics and law, grain purchase and sales, development zone construction, etc., and implement cases to promote reform and governance. We will constantly promote the implementation of the spirit of the eight central regulations, deepen the rectification of formalism, bureaucracy, hedonism and extravagance, and strengthen the supervision of the disciplinary atmosphere of the change of office. Continue to deepen political inspections and give full play to the comprehensive supervision role of inspections and inspections. Adhere to regulations, disciplines and laws, deepen the use of the "four forms", and implement accountability in a precise and standardized manner. Focusing on consolidating and expanding the achievements of poverty alleviation and effectively connecting rural revitalization, we will carry out special supervision during the transition period, deepen the special governance of corruption and work style issues in the field of people's livelihood, solidly promote the "I do practical things for the people" practice activity, and resolutely punish corruption and "protective umbrellas" involving gangsterism and evil. . Deepen the reform of the discipline inspection and supervision system, strengthen the legal The construction of regulations and systems, strictly supervise and restrain the power to enforce discipline and law enforcement, and resolutely prevent "darkness under the lights". The plenary session summed up the understanding and experience formed in the practice of the past year. While affirming the achievements, it also analyzed the problems existing in the discipline inspection and supervision work and the construction of the cadre team in a realistic manner, requiring great attention and practical solutions.