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China’s textile and clothing manufacturing suffered losses last year as US consumers and businesses moved away from Chinese labor. The apparel market in the US dropped -23% in 2020, marking a ten-year low. Asian competitors such as Bangladesh, India, Vietnam, and Cambodia saw a 42% rise in this sector last year as suppliers look to move beyond China. The US still has restrictions placed on cotton products produced in the Xinjiang Uygur region due to the clothing allegedly being made with forced labor, causing cotton-related imports to the US to drop by nearly -40%.
A South Korean intelligence agency has reported that North Korean hackers have attempted to steal the formula for coronavirus vaccines. The hackers specifically targeted Pfizer, but some experts are stating the hackers were motivated by selling the data on the black market rather than using it to develop a vaccine for North Koreans. The “hermit kingdom” has not released data on its infection
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The Bank of Japan kept monetary policy steady on Thursday and revised its economic forecast for the next fiscal year, signaling that it has delivered sufficient stimulus, for now, to cushion the blow from the COVID-19 pandemic, Reuters reported. As widely expected, the central bank kept unchanged its target for short-term interest rates at -0.1% and that for 10-year government bond yields around 0% in a two-day rate review. In a quarterly review of its projections, the BOJ trimmed its economic forecast for the current year ending in March to a 5.6% contraction from the previous forecast for a 5.5% decline. But it revised up its growth projection for the next fiscal year to a 3.9% expansion from a 3.6% increase forecast in October.
1/22/2021 5:29:39 AM GMT
ASIA
The Bank of Japan kept monetary policy steady on Thursday and revised its economic forecast for the next fiscal year, signaling that it has delivered sufficient stimulus, for now, to cushion the blow from the COVID-19 pandemic, Reuters reported. As widely expected, the central bank kept unchanged its target for short-term interest rates at -0.1% and that for 10-year government bond yields around 0% in a two-day rate review. In a quarterly review of its projections, the BOJ trimmed its economic forecast for the current year ending in March to a 5.6% contraction from the previous forecast for a 5.5% decline. But it revised up its growth projection for the next fiscal year to a 3.9% expansion from a 3.6% increase forecast in October.
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Despite claims of an economic recovery, Chinese state-owned companies are defaulting on their debts. A string of missed debt repayments by major firms has shaken local as well as global markets. State firms defaulted on a record $6.1 billion worth of bonds between January and October, according to Fitch Ratings. That’s about as much as the last two years combined. The development has rattled China’s nearly $4 trillion corporate debt market, of which state-owned enterprises are estimated to account for more than half. At least 20 firms suspended plans for new debt issues totaling $2.4 billion, all citing recent market turmoil. The mounting non-payment of debt payments is getting worse in recent weeks. A slew of major companies, including German automaker BMW’s Chinese partner Brilliance Auto Group, top smartphone chipmaker Tsinghua Unigroup, and Yongcheng Coal and Electricity declared bankruptcy or defaulted on their loans in November. According to Reuter