China factories struggle, policy action seen ahead

BEIJING | Sat Dec 31, 2011 10:07pm EST

BEIJING

(Reuters) - China's big manufacturers narrowly avoided a contraction in December a survey showed on Sunday, but downward risks persist and suggest the world's second's second-largest economy will need fresh policy support to counter a slowdown in growth.

The official purchasing managers' index (PMI), complied by the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing (CFLP) on behalf of the National Bureau of Statistics, rose to 50.3 in December from 49 in November.

That indicated a slight expansion in business activity in China's vast factory sector, but the reading was barely above the flatline of 50 that demarcates expansion from contraction which the index fell below in November for the first time since early 2009.

Analysts had expected the official PMI to be at 49.1 in December.

"The rebound in the December PMI shows that there will be no big slowdown in the Chinese economy," Zhang Liqun, a researcher with the Development Research Centre of the State Council, wrote in the CFLP statement.

The economy faces downward pressure but there are positive elements that could underpin growth, Zhang sid.

The new orders sub-index rose to 49.8 in December from 47.8 in November while the sub-index for new export orders rose to 48.6 from November's 45.6.

A similar survey on Friday by HSBC and UK-based data provider, Markit, which captures data from smaller factories, inched up to 48.7 in December from a 32-month low of 47.7 in November but still signaled a modest contraction in activity on the month, reinforcing the case for pro-growth policies.

Economists at Citi believe a policy response is growing ever more likely to combat what the bank believes is a tangible slowing of economic activity.

"Accumulating evidence of economic weakness would herald more policy easing in the months ahead, starting with another RRR cut by the Chinese New Year," they wrote in a client note, citing risks to growth from the euro zone, property prices, industrial production (IP) and fixed asset investment (FAI).

"Although domestic consumption held up steadily, its contribution may have been more than offset by weakened investment activity and deteriorating foreign trade conditions. We estimate that GDP has grown by 8.5 percent year on year during Q4 and 9.1 percent for the entire year," they wrote.

IN THE SPOTLIGHT

China's central bank is in the spotlight with widespread speculation in financial markets that it will soon unveil a cut in the required ratio of reserves (RRR) it demands commercial lenders hold, after cutting it by 50 basis points on November 30 from a record high of 21.5 percent.

Such a move would free up funds that could be used for lending to support growth, but China's leaders remain wary of relaxing their grip too soon on inflation, the annual rate of which remained stubbornly above the 4 percent target through 2011 and hit a three year of 6.5 percent in July.

The official survey showed that a significant drop in price pressures in November did not follow through to December. The prices sub-index of the official PMI rose to 47.1 from 44.4 in November.

Still, Chinese officials have warned that demand-destroying effects of Europe's debt crisis and weakness in U.S. consumption could put more pressure on Chinese exporters in coming months and have pledged to fine-tune economic policy settings in response.

Analysts expect Beijing to ease monetary policy and step up fiscal spending to bolster the vast factory sector which supports an estimated 220 million Chinese jobs.

"Overall, the economy is weakening and it's still too early to tell any clear signs of recovery at this stage," said Hua Zhongwei, senior economist at Huachuang Securities in Beijing.

He said the central bank could still cut the amount of cash that banks must hold as reserves to underpin growth. Analysts expect the next cut in RRR could come early this month.

Despite the uptick for the official PMI, both it and the HSBC index are stuck near their weakest levels since early 2009, when China took a blow from the global financial crisis.

China's economy is on track to slow for a fourth successive quarter, easing further from the first quarter's 9.7 percent annual growth rate with economists expecting the final three months of the year to have slipped below 9 percent.

Economists polled by Reuters earlier this month forecast the PBOC will deliver 200 bps of RRR cuts by the end of 2012, but refrain from an outright cut in interest rates unless quarterly GDP growth dips below 8 percent.

Economists typically view growth of 7 to 8 percent as the bare minimum needed to generate enough jobs to help China absorb the urban influx of rural migrants and maintain social harmony.

(Reporting by Kevin Yao; Editing by Nick Edwards)

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/01/01/us-china-economy-pmi-idUSTRE80001K20120101?feedType=RSS&feedName=businessNews

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Can Web-savvy activist moms change Japan? (AP)

TOKYO ? Japan's nuclear crisis has turned Mizuho Nakayama into one of a small but growing number of Internet-savvy activist moms.

Worried about her 2-year-old son and distrustful of government and TV reports that seemed to play down radiation risks, she scoured the Web for information and started connecting with other mothers through Twitter and Facebook, many using social media for the first time.

The 41-year-old mother joined a parents group ? one of dozens that have sprung up since the crisis ? that petitioned local officials in June to test lunches at schools and day care centers for radiation and avoid using products from around the troubled nuclear plant.

"It's the first time for anyone in our group to be involved in this type of activism," said Nakayama, who now carries a Geiger counter with her wherever she goes.

Public dismay with the government's response to this year's triple disaster ? earthquake, tsunami and nuclear meltdown ? is driving some Japanese to become more politically engaged, helped by social and alternative media. While still fledgling, it's the kind of grass-roots activism that some say Japan needs to shake up a political system that has allowed the country's problems to fester for years.

Nakayama's group has had mixed success: Officials in Tokyo's Setagaya Ward immediately started posting radiation levels in milk, but they say they won't start testing lunch foods until April. Still, Nakayama feels she and others in what she calls the "silent majority" are making a difference.

"Women in their 30s and 40s are busy raising children, and many also work," she said. "We're normally too busy to really raise our voices. But this time we felt compelled to speak up."

Many Japanese have been content to let politicians and bureaucrats run the country as they see fit. Quite a few of the mothers in the newly formed parents groups didn't even vote regularly.

But the handling of the nuclear crisis ? perceived as slow, confused and less than forthright, a perception reinforced by a critical government report this week ? has deepened distrust of both government and mainstream media. That has given rise to a sense that the government isn't as reliable as once thought, and that people need to take action themselves to get things done.

"People used to think of the government as something like a father figure," said Tatsuya Yoshioka, founder and director of Peace Boat, a volunteer group involved in recovery efforts in the tsunami-hit northeast. "But people are graduating from that. We are moving toward a more active kind of democracy in which people realize they are the primary actors, not the government."

Japan still has a long way to go. The activism is small-scale, and powerful forces ? a culture that frowns on nonconformists, an affluent society ? stand in the way of lasting change.

In the weeks following the March 11 tsunami, frustration over the sketchy information coming from the government about the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant drove many Japanese to Twitter and alternative media webcasts.

OurPlanet-TV, for example, relayed footage two days after the disaster from a freelance reporter near the Fukushima plant who reported the radiation level was quite high, said director Hajime Shiraishi. Within weeks, the number of viewers jumped to more than 100,000 per day from 1,000 to 3,000 before the tsunami, she said. It has since fallen back to the 20,000-30,000 range.

University student Gohei Kogure said he generally trusted TV news before the disaster, but accessing Twitter and webcasts gave him a different perspective that's made him more informed and critical.

Before the crisis there was "too much reliance on the government," he said. "These days, you need to take more responsibility for yourself."

A nationwide network of more than 200 parents groups has popped up to urge authorities to protect children from radiation, said Emiko Itoh, a 48-year-old Tokyo mother who is helping spearhead the movement.

Most are pressing local officials to test radiation levels in school lunches and provide more detailed checks of school grounds, but Itoh and others have also lobbied senior government officials. Mothers make up the bulk of the membership, but fathers are getting involved, too.

"We're still small, but some of the mothers involved didn't even go to vote. It's these mothers who are submitting petitions and making calls and gathering signatures," Itoh said. "I believe this will be a factor in changing the direction of our country."

She said the Internet has been invaluable in connecting parents, partly because Japan has few forums for citizens to exchange ideas. The crisis has changed perceptions of the Internet among mothers, many who previously considered it a dubious source of information.

Separately, individuals and loosely formed community groups are going around their neighborhoods checking radiation levels or sending soil samples to laboratories for testing.

The Radiation Defense Project, which grew out of a blog and then a Facebook page, says its testing has revealed several "hot spots" in Tokyo with trace amounts of radioactive cesium that it believes came from Fukushima, said group founder Kouta Kinoshita, a former TV journalist.

Another group is collecting signatures for a petition to hold a referendum in Osaka and Tokyo on whether Japan should use nuclear power. The vote would not be legally binding but could send a message to policymakers.

The government's management of the nuclear crisis did little to instill confidence that it will be able to tackle looming problems, including a rapidly aging population and a public debt that is twice the nation's GDP ? both of which will burden the younger generation.

Still, the growing dissatisfaction may not be enough to bring about fundamental change.

Japan's affluence is an obstacle. Most people live comfortably and are reluctant to make too big a fuss, even if they're unhappy with the political leadership. Culturally, it's considered better to adjust to one's surroundings than to try to change them, said Ken Matsuda, a sociologist at Kansai Gaidai University in Osaka.

"Most people aren't hungry or angry," he said. "People need a clear enemy, and there's no clear enemy in Japan. Public anger needs to hit a critical mass. It's not anywhere near that."

Historically, Japan has undergone major change only when it was thrust upon the country from outside ? after its defeat in World War II, and after the arrival of U.S. Commodore Matthew Perry's warships in 1853 essentially forced the country to open up to the rest of the world.

Grass-roots activism has had only limited success. It took nearly 50 years to win compensation for most victims of a chemical plant in Minamata that dumped mercury into the water, causing a rare neurological disorder.

Some Japanese wonder if the stoicism and perseverance that were widely praised in the aftermath of the tsunami could also be a liability. Perhaps we need to be more impatient for change, some say.

"The disasters didn't stimulate a real sense of urgency," said Ichiro Asahina, who quit his job as a bureaucrat in the economic ministry last year after 14 years to establish a think tank and leadership institute in Tokyo.

He faults a risk-averse political culture, a reluctance to take personal responsibility and a diffuse leadership system that spreads out responsibility among too many people or departments.

"To stimulate change," he said, "we may need to confront even more severe crises."

___

Associated Press writer Mari Yamaguchi contributed to this report.

___

Online: http://www.ourplanet-tv.org/

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/topstories/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111229/ap_on_re_as/as_japan_new_activism

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CrunchDeals: Get Yourself A Thing-O-Matic For $999

Screen Shot 2011-12-28 at 5.04.42 PM Makerbot's Thing-O-Matic is pretty pricey - $1,299 for the kit and $2,500 for the assembled kit - but (and this is my professional opinion) it is amazing and everyone in the world should own one. That said, Fab.com has a special deal on Thing-O-Matics this week - $999 for the kit and $2,000 for the assembled device - one of the first and biggest discounts ever on the entire system.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/6tWI4Rzj0-k/

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niqbailey: @JacobBrwr You should check either Tumblr or Facebook

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ASUS Eee PC 1225B proves netbooks will still be kicking around in 2012

The death of the netbook has been greatly exaggerated -- at least that's what ASUS is praying holds true for next year. Its latest addition, the Eee PC 1225B, refreshes the spec sheet seen on the 1215B. You'll find it's still based on AMD's Brazos chipset -- thus the B -- and will apparently arrive on two different gear speeds; one with an AMD C60 dual-core 1GHz processor and another toting AMD's dual-core 1.65GHz E450 APU. Up to 4GBs of DDR3 RAM and storage options starting at 320GB should ensure a respectable bang for your buck. On top of that, there's an 11.6-inch 1,366 x 768 display, integrated webcam, a smattering of USB ports (both 2.0 and 3.0) and the same VGA and HDMI outputs found on its predecessor. Notebook Italia reckons that these new netbooks will start at €349 ($455). If you're not ready just yet for the heady specs (and prices) of an Ultrabook, you can visit ASUS' official site at the source for the full spec breakdown.

[Thanks Marco]

ASUS Eee PC 1225B proves netbooks will still be kicking around in 2012 originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 27 Dec 2011 08:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink NoteBook Italia (translated)  |  sourceASUS  | Email this | Comments


Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/68J-22dvwVg/

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E&Y audit panel says no violations in Olympus handover (Reuters)

TOKYO (Reuters) ? A panel reviewing the auditing of Olympus Corp after its $1.7 billion accounting scandal said it had so far not found any problems with the work of Ernst & Young's Japanese arm and questioned the accuracy of a separate investigation critical of auditors.

But the panel, set up by Ernst & Young ShinNihon LLC earlier this month, acknowledged that its powers of investigation were limited. The hurdles include an inability to question prior auditor, KMPG AZSA LLC, which does not want to participate in the probe.

"We face certain limitations," Nobuo Gohara, a lawyer and leading member of the panel, told a briefing to give an update on an investigation it is aiming to complete by February. "We are not at the stage where everything is clear."

Ernst & Young formed the panel to respond to criticism of auditors in a separate investigation by an Olympus-appointed panel this month that outlined how a handful of Olympus executives orchestrated the decades-long accounting scam.

The Olympus-appointed panel highlighted two issues in the auditing process. It questioned whether the handoff from KPMG to Ernst & Young in 2009 was thorough and whether it was appropriate for Olympus to book as goodwill preferred shares used to pay a massive M&A advisory fee now known to be central to the scandal.

The Ernst & Young-appointed panel said the handover was handled in accordance with accounting regulations that stipulate what questions must be asked and answered about why the switch is taking place. But it has not determined if Ernst & Young did enough to follow up on red flags.

"We have found no problems with the handover in terms of the guidelines," said Toshifumi Takada, an auditing professor at Tohoku University and panel member. "But we need to make further checks to see if more should have been done."

Gohara raised questions about the thoroughness and accuracy of the Olympus-appointed panel's report. Among other things he said Ernst & Young was questioned only twice for two-hour sessions each and he could not verify that a meeting between the two auditors detailed in the report took place.

"I have doubts about the accuracy of certain parts of the report," said Gohara, who grabbed headlines earlier this year when he led an investigation into a scandal at Kyushu Electric and publicly challenged the utility for revising his report.

Ernst & Young and KPMG both face possible sanctions by the country's accounting industry body and financial regulator, which have launched probes into the matter.

In a statement, KPMG AZSA said it handled the handover with Ernst & Young in accordance with regulations and that it was cooperating with an investigation by the Japanese Institute of Certified Public Accountants announced by the industry body last month.

A severe penalty would deal a heavy blow to the industry, which is still reeling from a series of scandals that led to a two-month suspension of ChuoAoyama Pricewaterhouse Coopers in 2006 and the disbanding of its successor firm in 2007.

(Reporting by Nathan Layne; Editing by Michael Watson, Matt Driskill and Vinu Pilakkott)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/business/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111227/bs_nm/us_olympus_auditors

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Server-side code not called after client-side javascript on Windows 7 machine

Hi - I have an ASP.Net 4.0 solution that runs fine
on a Windows 2008 server. However, I've just been given a new Windows 7 64-bit
machine to use as my development machine and I'm having a problem with one of my
aspx pages. This page has some javascript on it, which runs fine, but then it
gets to the following code:
<script type="text/javascript">
//<![CDATA[var theForm = document.forms['aspnetForm'];
if (!theForm) {
theForm = document.aspnetForm;}
function __doPostBack(eventTarget, eventArgument) {
if (!theForm.onsubmit || (theForm.onsubmit() != false)) {
theForm.__EVENTTARGET.value = eventTarget;
theForm.__EVENTARGUMENT.value = eventArgument;
theForm.submit();
}}//]]></script>
This not code that I've written; it's code that's
generated client-side that I see as I'm debugging my app in Visual Studio 2010
(trying to figure out what the $^#$ is going on). At any rate, once this code
completes, the app does?a post back, but then??does nothing. The debugger should take me to some server-side
code called by the button click that calls the client-side javascript, but it doesn't. It just sits there. The result is that the page doesn't do
what it's supposed to do (no inserts to databases, no success messages, no
nothing).

As I said, this problem is restricted to my W7 64-bit machine;
it runs fine on W2008. Other pages with javascript in the same solution work
fine on my W7 machine. I found a post (http://dopostback.net/index.php/net-...anel-problems/) that
discusses a similar issue within an UpdatePanel, but I'm not using UpdatePanel.
My page does have hidden controls on it, but so do other pages that work just
fine. Does anyone know what could be causing this?

Thanks!

Source: http://forums.asp.net/p/1751556/4741314.aspx/1?Server+side+code+not+called+after+client+side+javascript+on+Windows+7+machine

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Oil price above $101 as consumer confidence rises (AP)

The price of oil climbed above $101 a barrel in light holiday trading on growing U.S. consumer confidence and tension in the Middle East.

Benchmark crude rose $1.66 on Tuesday to end at $101.34 per barrel in New York. Brent crude rose $1.31 to finish at $109.27 per barrel in London.

Prices have risen in the past week as encouraging U.S. economic news pointed to stronger future demand. The New York-based Conference Board said its Consumer Confidence Index jumped almost 10 points from November, to 64.5. That level hasn't been seen since April and was near a post-recession peak.

Higher confidence is in line with retail reports of a decent holiday shopping season. Retailers saw a surge of shopping the week before Christmas, and the National Retail Federation now expects a 3.8 percent increase in holiday sales, up from its a forecast of 2.8 percent in September.

Consumer spending accounts for about 70 percent of the U.S. economy, so more spending could boost growth and demand for oil. Consumers have cut back in recent years because of uncertainty about the economy, fed by a weak jobs market and a stagnant housing sector. Gasoline demand has been steadily declining since spring.

Tensions in the Middle East also boosted oil prices. Iran has threatened to block oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, one of the busiest routes for crude shipments, if the West tries to embargo Iran's oil exports. The Iranian navy currently is conducting exercises in the region. About a third of the world's oil passes through the narrow strait. The U.S., The U.K. and other nations have talked about more sanctions against Iran as part of an effort to clamp down on its nuclear program.

Iran is the world's fourth largest oil producer, according to the Energy Department. Much of its oil is sold to customers in Asia. If tankers could not use the Strait of Hormuz, they would have to take longer, more expensive routes to their destinations.

Meanwhile, average retail gasoline prices in the U.S. were unchanged from Monday at a national average of $3.23 per gallon.

In other energy trading in New York, natural gas was virtually unchanged at $3.1120 per 1,000 cubic feet. Heating oil rose 2 cents to finish at $2.9085 a gallon, and gasoline futures were flat at $2.6888 a gallon.

.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/energy/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111227/ap_on_bi_ge/oil_prices

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Careers In Finance | Ework In Europe

Finance can easily be defined as ?assets along with culpability management?. It is a substantial discipline that handle numerous areas of offers or even dealings involving income. It isn?t really a new area because it has been in existence for millennia, because the moment gentleman began trading; earlier it absolutely was the barter method or perhaps items in exchange of goods after which came your financial system. Even so, basic principles of this industry possess continued to be pretty much exactly the same though it offers progressed within the age range. We?ve complicated fiscal constructions in small along with macro ranges and so there are plenty of chances for individuals that have to get into financing professions right after college.

For like a part of fund careers, one would have to have a diploma that will provides graduated pupils with the information as well as required resources to develop a prosperous job inside fiscal industry. Instruction plans usually concentrate on constructing a complete comprehension of controlling financial situation, regulations linked to the idea, sociable abilities and skilled understanding of the niche.

A level throughout financing would make somebody to deal with, assess and also plan different monetary or even economic factors associated with efficiency of the corporation; these kinds of organizations could be in the area of That, consumer banking, real estate, manufacturing and also asking companies and so on. This system makes an hard work to educate people within sales rules, fiscal equipment, planning of money money order, resource or even managing debt, budgeting, inspecting financials and purchases along with collection management.

The courses on the basic or perhaps graduate level typically deal with areas such as financial, data, overall costs, economic plan and accounting treatments, analysis, fiscal companies and cash strategy strategies.

Graduates which has a 4-year college level in financing meet the requirements for any number of finance-related occupations throughout private organizations, community bodies as well as non-profit organizations. Many people on this industry be employed in regions such as business banks, companies as well as MNCs, investment bank, management of your capital, insurance policy and real estate.

Tasks as well as activities linked to this specific occupation:

1) Creating along with operating procedures and operations regarding companies.

2) Having selections around the detailed money of the business, making certain every one of their sections contain the economic indicates needed for that to perform correctly.

3) Analyzing home based business options and their fiscal feasibility.

4) Managing the procedure for getting money for brand spanking new projects.

Thus finance careers might be each demanding and gratifying and a lot of people find it as being the lucrative alternative. It could also be the important thing to economic steadiness since experts within this field are generally paid out well.

from your own site.

Source: http://www.ework-in-europe.com/2011/12/careers-in-finance/

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