Rise in Covid-19 cases, anti-govt protests to pressure SET Index
The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) Index rose by 6.25 points or 0.40 per cent to 1,550.47 on Wednesday morning.
Krungsri Securities forecast the day’s index would fluctuate between 1,535 and 1,550 points amid signs of a technical rebound and mass buy-ups of shares that gained positive sentiment.
However, it said the index would be under pressure from a rise in Covid-19 cases both in Thailand and abroad as well as ongoing anti-government protests in the country.
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It recommended selective buying of the following companies’ shares as an investment strategy:
▪︎ Hana, KCE, TU, CPF, GFPT, Asian, EPG and NER, which benefit from a weakening baht.
▪︎ PSL and TTA, which would benefit from a rise in the freight rate.
▪︎ BCH, CHG, BDMS, Advanc, Intuch, BGrim, GPSC and CKP, which are able to escape the impact from market volatility.
The SET Index closed at 1,544.22 on Tuesday, up 12.98 points or 0.85 per cent. Transactions totalled THB83.14 billion with an index high of 1,545.95 and a low of 1,533.32.
The price of gold in Thailand dropped by THB150 in morning trade on Wednesday.
AGold Traders Association report at 9.29am showed the buying price of a gold bar was THB28,000 per baht weight and selling price THB28,100, while gold ornaments cost THB27,500.24 and THB28,600, respectively.
At close on Tuesday, the buying price of a gold bar was THB28,150 per baht weight and selling price THB28,250, while gold ornaments cost THB27,636.68 and THB28,750, respectively.
The spot gold price on Wednesday morning was moving around US$1,789 (THB59,323) per ounce after Comex gold at close on Tuesday dropped by $2 to $1,788.80 per ounce amid pressure from appreciation of the US dollar and sales of the precious metal as a safe-haven asset after US industrial production numbers showed strong growth in July.
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The Hong Kong gold price meanwhile dropped by HK$50 to $16,600 (THB70,685) per tael, the Chinese Gold and Silver Exchange Society reported.
The baht opened at 33.36 to the US dollar on Wednesday, weakening from Tuesday’s closing rate of 33.27.
The Thai currency is likely to move between 33.25 and 33.40 during the day, Krungthai Bank market strategist Poon Panichpibool said.
He said the baht was likely to fluctuate and weaken due to the Covid-19 crisis and the rising dollar.
He expected the US currency to receive support in the short term from demand for safe-haven assets due to the Covid-19 situation worldwide. But this would happen only if the situation in the US worsens.
A factor that could affect support for the dollar is the Federal Reserve’s decision to reduce quantitative easing this year, Poon pointed out.
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Poon said the baht’s resistance level would be 33.50 to the dollar, as exporters continued to sell the US currency.
If the situation in Thailand gets worse, along with the strengthening of the dollar, the baht could weaken past this resistance level, Poon added.
After a year without rowdy tourists, European cities want to keep it that way
On a warm Friday night in July, the sun seemed to linger behind Amsterdams low, 16th century skyline. In the red light district, the crush of tourists that was common before the pandemic had long since vanished, making it easy for a delivery worker to cycle past a handful of gawkers around the old towns notorious storefronts.
While six German men in matching T-shirts ignored signs warning of a €95 ($112) fine as they swilled beers on a nearby footbridge, they were the exception. Mostly, only small groups of sedate strollers were about on this midsummer evening.
Centuries before its more lurid attractions took hold, Amsterdam was already a tourist draw. As far back as 1345, when a communion wafer at a local church apparently proved indestructible, pilgrims flocked to see the miracle host. In modern times, decidedly less spiritual activities have drawn millions to the city’s quaint, canal-lined quarters. And the noise, garbage and violence followed.
The city was already scrambling to find ways to restrain the tourist trade before the coronavirus struck. Hefty fines for public drinking, tight restrictions on short-term rentals and outright bans on certain types of shops were implemented. But more visitors kept coming. By 2019, their numbers approached 9 million-more than 10 per resident.
Then it all stopped. For months, tourists where nowhere to be found as borders were sealed tight. Later, as infection waves receded, only a trickle returned. Overall, Amsterdam’s commercial establishments have seen almost 25% fewer visitors since Covid-19 first arrived.
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After a year without rowdy tourists, European cities want to keep it that way
Even in the red light district, the lack of drunken revelers remains apparent despite many restrictions having been lifted. Locals wander wide-eyed through a part of town they rarely visit, amazed at its architectural beauty. Among city officials, this tiny silver lining to a global health catastrophe planted a seed. While Amsterdam arguably needs tourism to survive, maybe this once-in-a-century pandemic could be used to remake how the city embraces it.
As it turned out, local officials in other tourist hotspots across Europe had the same idea.
Cities across the continent want to mold visits into shapes less onerous for residents, and perhaps more lucrative for business. Optimally, a virtuous circle can be created where loud partiers are supplanted by museum-goers with more money to spend-or so the thinking goes.
Call it curated tourism.
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“We met with representatives from Amsterdam, Barcelona and Florence during the pandemic, and all of us were thinking the same thing,” said Hana Třeštíková, Prague’s councilor of tourism. “Before Covid, over-tourism had become almost unbearable, and Covid gave a pause to try and make some changes in what our cities represent, how we promote ourselves and how we must focus on quality of visits-not quantity.”
Not so long ago, these cities marketed themselves to everyone. But Amsterdam’s widely available cannabis and legal prostitution, Barcelona’s urban beaches and Prague’s famous beer halls increasingly attracted tourists who brought what Geerte Udo, director of amsterdam&partners, diplomatically called “negative effects.”
When much of Europe shut down last year, the medieval center of Amsterdam-a UNESCO World Heritage Site-took on “a breathtaking beauty,” said Udo, whose nonprofit serves as a civic booster. The emptiness also revealed how few locals actually live there, she said. “You feel it’s not more than a theater backdrop.”
But the pandemic also made clear how important tourist euros are to the livelihood of these cities. About 13% of Barcelona’s economy and 11% of Amsterdam’s jobs can be tied to visitors.
Lénia Marques, assistant professor of cultural organization and management at Erasmus University in Rotterdam, said cities are thinking, “‘who is the tourist we’re inviting?’ Do we want this mass needing more hotels, or do we seek tourists more interested in our culture, a tourist who will appreciate more of what we have-and be able to spend more?'”
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In recent years, Prague’s tourist problem started to resemble Amsterdam’s, Třeštíková said. The Czech capital was getting 8 million visitors a year, almost doubling between 2012 and 2019. And like Amsterdam, most headed to the same neighborhoods, she said. In Prague’s case, they clog the Old Town Square and Charles Bridge.
“The city center is not a residential locality anymore, Třeštíková said. “There are not many apartments, and those are largely occupied by expats or converted to hotels and short-term rentals. We need to focus on what residents need and show a city that’s not a film set but alive with people from Prague.”
But reshaping a city’s tourist trade is harder than just changing marketing firms. Třeštíková said the biggest factors behind “low-quality” visits aren’t in the city’s control. The cost of tickets on budget airlines, the number of Airbnb units and even the price of beer can only be changed at the national level, she said.
A spokesperson for the Czech Ministry of Regional Development acknowledged that taxes on alcohol and air travel are determined by Parliament, but noted Prague’s city council can submit legislative proposals. A bill from the city that would provide municipalities with more power to regulate short-term rentals is currently under consideration, he said.
Situated in the most-visited part of the second most-visited country in the world (after France), Barcelona faces a unique challenge when it comes to transforming tourism. While the Spanish city’s “negative effects” are less extreme than those endured by Amsterdam or Prague, Xavier Marcé, councilor for tourism and creative industries, said he wants to attract tourists interested in more than just its seaside location.
“When I visit New York, I am interested in what New Yorkers do,” he said. “It’s much better to have a tourist model linked to culture or science, because it means that there is a connection with the resident.”
Toward this end, Barcelona designed a network of bus stops to spread visitors more evenly around the city while also freezing new licenses for short-term rentals-the abuse of which has been a key cause of over-tourism, Marcé said.
Airbnb advertises “apartments, but they don’t check the legal status of those apartments,” Marcé said. “It’s when we let them know that the apartment is illegal when they remove it immediately.” Andreu Castellano, an Airbnb spokesperson, said the company has worked with Barcelona officials since 2018 to drop operators “who don’t respect the rules.” He added that “more than 7,000 bad actors have been removed as a result.”
In Italy, some Venetians want to do the opposite of what Barcelona is trying. “Spread out tourism? That’s worse,” said Melissa Conn, director of the nonprofit Save Venice. Conn said she prefers visitors stick to Piazza San Marco so residents can have the rest of the city to themselves. Save Venice Vice President Alberto Nardi agreed, but warned that tourism is critical to the city’s survival. The owner of a jewelry shop on the piazza, Nardi said Venice’s population has been declining, its cost of living rising and non-tourism jobs vanishing.
Venice must “develop businesses that are different from tourism,” Nardi said.
For cities looking to change who comes calling, any effort requires an advertising campaign. Amsterdam has launched such an effort, spending €160,000 to “stimulate desired behavior” by tourists-namely by attracting different ones. Deputy Mayor for Economic Affairs Victor Everhardt announced the initiative in June, which includes ads geared to urban residents in nearby countries such as France, Belgium and the U.K.
“We’re focusing on people who have interest in culture in the broadest sense of the word,” he said. “We try to persuade them to visit all these other beautiful parts of the city.”
Even before Covid, Prague officials hired an agency that sought to persuade tourists “to come for more than two nights.” During the short-lived summer 2020 reopening, the city introduced “Prague Unlocked,” a campaign aimed at a Czech audience, since foreign travelers were still rare. It was a success. Usually just 15% of Prague’s tourists are domestic (compared with 20% in Vienna and almost 50% in Paris). But in 2020, the number of Czech visitors rose by 16%, with many staying in three- and four-star hotels, Třeštíková said.
Then there’s the other side of the equation. Udo of amsterdam&partners said her group is lobbying the Dutch government to impose a minimum price on plane tickets, while others want to ban Airbnb from the city altogether. Barcelona last month instituted a new tax on stays in tourist establishments that goes to the municipal government. It could raise as much as €16.5 million annually with the revenue used to promote less-visited neighborhoods, such as Poblenou and Gràcia.
Technology is also being leveraged to redirect tourist flows. “Amsterdam works with phone companies to know how many people are in certain areas, then they can take measures to stop more people coming in,” said Marques of Erasmus University. As areas become too crowded, visitors will receive a text message with an offer for an attraction in a different part of town. If things get really bad, stanchions will be erected to stop more people from entering and overcrowded area, she said.
But any plan that risks cutting tourist dollars-even for a short time-is likely to run into trouble with businesses already deeply hurt by the pandemic. For curated tourism to have a chance, said Barcelona’s Marcé, a city’s hospitality sector must be on board.
“Barcelona’s hospitality sector is very strong,” he said. “You can’t suddenly say there will be half as many tourists.”
Published : August 18, 2021
By : Syndication Washington Post, Bloomberg · Paul Tullis
Yuan global use faces test as Xi reforms rattle markets
The Chinese yuan has been making inroads in the world of cross-border payments in recent years, but a pair of data points due this week will reveal whether the countrys sudden industry crackdowns have dented international trust in the currency.
The Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication, also known as Swift, and China’s foreign-exchange regulator will both announce figures this week that together paint a picture of the yuan’s role in international trade and investment. Previous data through June showed a steady increase in its use but that was before a regulatory crackdown escalated in July.
The authorities scaled up their anti-monopoly attacks against the nation’s largest technology companies, banned profits in the after-school tutoring industry, and launched a critique of online gaming. The unexpected onslaught pummeled stocks and bonds, and fueled concern global investors will trim back yuan assets in their portfolios and step back from adopting the use of yuan in international trade.
“The outflows last month could have dented renminbi usage,” said Xing Zhaopeng, senior China strategist at Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd., using the official name for the yuan. At the same time, “the renminbi’s share in global payments should still reach a new high before year-end as index inclusion brings new inflows and China adopts more renminbi usage in trade,” he said.
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The share of yuan payments via Swift increased to 2.46% in June, just under the peak reached in March that was the highest level since a shock devaluation in August 2015. The percentage of cross-border transactions that were conducted in the currency increased to 42.3% in the same month, close to January’s record high of 43.8%, according to Bloomberg calculations based on data from the State Administration of Foreign Exchange.
Since the devaluation, China has since worked to revive the yuan’s popularity, urging greater use of the currency in trade and easing exchange-rate controls and intervention. A rapid flood of capital flowing into its markets has helped too. The yuan has advanced 6.9% over the past 12 months, the third-best performing major currencies tracked by Bloomberg, trailing only the South African rand and the Mexican peso.
Global funds boosted holdings of Chinese government bonds to a record in July despite that month’s market turmoil, and inflows are expected to continue as some of the securities will be included in FTSE Russell’s flagship global index this October. About 30% of central banks are planning to increase exposure to the yuan in the next 12 to 24 months, three times the proportion reported last year, according to a survey by Official Monetary and Financial Institutions Forum, a London-based think tank.
“Although China’s crackdown may not be over, global demand for its Treasurys may be intact,” said Stephen Chiu, Asia currency and rates strategist at Bloomberg Intelligence. “The allure of China’s Treasuries may not be hurt by such local, idiosyncratic events given their relatively high yields compared to the bonds of other major governments.”
Proof of the yuan’s increasing adoption is emerging across a broad swath of industries, notably commodities.
While the dollar remains the key currency for the trade of raw materials, more firms are turning to the yuan to cater to clients based in China, which is the world’s largest importer of commodities. Rio Tinto, the world’s biggest iron-ore producer, says it has conducted 12 seaborne transactions in yuan within the past two years. Vale SA, the second-biggest miner, conducts spot sales at Chinese ports in the domestic currency.
International foreign-exchange services firm Ebury says yuan use is rising across its client base. Payments into China using the currency increased by 20% in the past year, Sydney-based corporate dealer Patrick Idquival said. The shift has been so pronounced the company set up a desk for “renminbi relations.”
Though yuan internationalization has been growing, there’s a long way to go as the currency’s share of global payments via Swift and central bank reserves still pales in comparison to the greenback.
“The improvements in secondary liquidity for both the yuan and Chinese securities including bonds and equities have made it a much better investment currency,” said Becky Liu, head of China macro strategy at Standard Chartered in Hong Kong. “We need more breakthrough of renminbi-denominated pricing of commodities in the next stage.”
Microsoft invests in Rubrik, partners to protect customers from ransomware
Microsoft is investing in software startup Rubrik Inc. and the two companies will combine on products that will help customers hit by ransomware recover their critical data without paying hackers.
The companies declined to specify the size of the investment. The funding totaled in the low tens of millions and valued Rubrik at about $4 billion, according to a person familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified discussing private terms. Rubrik was started with the idea of modernizing the market for data-backup software, taking on a previous generation of vendors like EMC, now part of Dell Technologies, and Veritas, now owned by the Carlyle Group.
The two companies will jointly sell software based on Microsoft’s Azure cloud to prevent, find and recover from ransomware attacks. The products also make sure backup copies of customer data and cloud software haven’t been compromised by the hackers, said Rubrik Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder Bipul Sinha. The companies currently share 2,000 customers.
“When an attacker tells you they have control to the keys to your data and you can’t get it back without paying a ransom, this allows us to have an alternative source for that data in real time to be able to bring that company back to operational control,” Tyler Bryson, a Microsoft vice president, said in an interview. “There’s a lot of backup solutions out there, but even those are vulnerable to having been compromised. If you didn’t design with the modern cloud architecture in mind, you may find you’ve just recovered to something already compromised.”
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A spate of damaging ransomware attacks have occurred this year in which a hacker takes over networks and demands payment in order for a company or government agency to regain its data and control of its systems. In July, Miami-based Kaseya Ltd. was targeted. Because Kaseya provides software to managed service providers, who in turn offer information technology services to small- and medium-sized companies, the attackers were able to spread the infection to 1,500 businesses. The notorious ransomware gang REvil claimed credit and asked for $70 million to unlock the computers it infected. The attack followed others against Colonial Pipeline Co. and meatpacker JBS.
Ransomware attacks have accelerated during the pandemic as more companies use the cloud and their own corporate networks to deal with workforces split between home and an office, Sinha said. Microsoft and Rubrik have been working on combined products for a few years, but the need has become more critical.
“If somebody makes a mistake like clicking on an offer for a free cruise and ransomware gets in, we have the full assessment and mitigation solution,” he said. “What we are saying is you don’t have to pay the bad guys.”
Rubrik, founded in 2014, has raised a total of $553 million. The company’s last funding round was in 2019 at a valuation of $3.3 billion. Among the early investors was Microsoft board member and former chairman John Thompson. Thompson is also a Rubrik director.
Published : August 18, 2021
By : Syndication Washington Post, Bloomberg · Dina Bass
China port congestion worsens as Ningbo shuts for seventh day
The partial closure of the worlds third-busiest container port is worsening congestion at other major Chinese ports, as ships divert away from Ningbo amid uncertainty over how long virus control measures in the city will last.
In nearby Shanghai and in Hong Kong, congestion is once again increasing after dropping due to the reopening of Yantian port in Shenzhen, which shut in May for a seperate outbreak. The number of container ships anchored off Xiamen on China’s southeast coast rose to 24 from 6 at the start of the month, according to shipping data compiled by Bloomberg.
The Meishan terminal at Ningbo port was shut last week after a dock worker became infected with the delta variant of Covid-19. The terminal accounts for about a quarter of the port’s capacity, and it was still closed Tuesday, according to a worker in the press office, who declined to give their name or any other information.
The world’s biggest shipping lines including AP Moller-Maersk and CMA CGM are skipping Ningbo port after the closure, according to Simon Heaney, senior manager of container research at Drewry Shipping Consultants Ltd. The companies prefer to divert shipments to other ports rather than wait outside Ningbo for an unknown length of time while the Covid-19 outbreak continues, he said.
Some other ships are willing to wait, with 141 ships at a shared anchorage for the Shanghai and Ningbo ports Tuesday, 60 more than the median number from April to August.
“We hear the backlog is getting bigger and the congestion is getting worse,” said Dawn Tiura, CEO of logistics industry association Sourcing Industry Group. “The disruption across ports is absolutely related. If you are buying goods that originate or move through China, you need to increase lead times or find another source of supply.”
The shipping industry has been plagued by disruptions this year that have created delays in global shipping chains and driven freight rates to record highs. Snarls have ranged from a mega-ship stuck in the Suez Canal in March to virus outbreaks in Southeast Asia and China reducing productivity at ports.
The backlog has stretched across the Pacific Ocean to Long Beach port in Los Angeles, where more than 30 ships were waiting to get into port to offload, Bloomberg’s data shows. Elsewhere in Southeast Asia, anchored ships off Vietnam’s two largest ports rose to six above the median.
“Most ports are already experiencing congestion or delays, so any additional and uncatered for volumes will heap on more pressure,” said Drewry’s Heaney.
Published : August 18, 2021
By : Syndication Washington Post, Bloomberg · Kevin Varley, Ann Koh
Stocks suffer worst drop in a month; dollar climbs
Stocks posted their biggest decline in a month amid concern that the global economic recovery will lose momentum with further shutdowns to contain a coronavirus resurgence.
Traders watched closely Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s remarks during a town hall with educators and students, where he noted the central bank’s “powerful tools” have limitations. Powell also said that covid-19 will likely stay “for a while,” and we’re not going back to a pre-pandemic economy. Policymakers will gather next week for the Jackson Hole symposium, the Fed’s most-prominent annual conference.
“We’re essentially in a bit of a holding period ahead of Jackson Hole,” wrote Craig Erlam, senior market analyst at Oanda Europe. “While there is a fair amount of data releases this week, some of which may carry a little more weight than others, it’s all about the Fed in these markets at the minute, and that’s unlikely to change unless the delta situation gets dramatically worse.”
The S&P 500 snapped a five-day rally. Giants Tesla Inc. and Facebook Inc. slid at least 2.2%, while Home Depot Inc. tumbled after the retailer posted weaker-than-expected results. Chinese stocks listed in the U.S. such as Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., Baidu Inc. and JD.com Inc. faced another wave of selling as authorities in Beijing ramped up their crackdown on some of the nation’s largest companies.
American home builder sentiment sank to a 13-month low in August amid high costs as well as continuing supply shortages. U.S. retail sales fell in July by more than forecast, reflecting a steady shift in spending toward services and indicating consumers may be growing more price conscious as inflation picks up. While factory production strengthened the most in four months, manufacturers continued to face higher input prices and a near record number of job vacancies.
The U.S. government is poised to offer coronavirus booster shots as soon as next month, with the country facing a renewed wave of infections fueled by the delta variant. New Zealand will enter a lockdown after reporting its first community transmission since February. Switzerland recorded its biggest jump in infections in months, while South Africa expects a fourth wave to start in early December.
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Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
– The S&P 500 fell 0.7% as of 4 p.m. EDT
– The Nasdaq 100 fell 0.9%
– The Dow Jones industrial average fell 0.8%
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– The MSCI World index fell 0.8%
Currencies
– The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rose 0.5%
– The euro fell 0.6% to $1.1713
– The British pound fell 0.8% to $1.3738
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– The Japanese yen fell 0.3% to 109.58 per dollar
Bonds
– The yield on 10-year Treasurys was little changed at 1.26%
– Germany’s 10-year yield was little changed at -0.47%
– Britain’s 10-year yield declined one basis point to 0.56%
Commodities
– West Texas Intermediate crude fell 0.8% to $66.76 a barrel
– Gold futures fell 0.1% to $1,787.30 an ounce
Published : August 18, 2021
By : Syndication Washington Post, Bloomberg · Rita Nazareth
The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) Index closed at 1,544.22 on Tuesday, up 12.98 points or 0.85 per cent. Transactions totalled THB83.14 billion with an index high of 1,545.95 and a low of 1,533.32.
In the morning session, Krungsri Securities forecast the index on Tuesday would fluctuate between 1,520 and 1,540 points amid signs of a technical rebound and mass buy-ups of shares that gained positive sentiment.
However, it said the index would be under pressure from the rise in Covid-19 cases both here and abroad and ongoing anti-government protests in Thailand.
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The 10 stocks with the highest trade value today were PTT, KCE, KBANK, BCH, INTUCH, MEGA, IVL, BANPU, CPALL and PTTGC.
Other Asian indices were on the fall:
Japan’s Nikkei Index closed at 27,424.47, down 98.72 points or 0.36 per cent.
China’s Shanghai SE Composite Index closed at 3,446.98, down 70.37 points or 2.00 per cent, while the Shenzhen SE Component Index closed at 14,350.65, down 343.09 points or 2.33 per cent.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index closed at 25,745.87, down 435.59 points or 1.66 per cent.
South Korea’s KOSPI Index closed at 3,143.09, down 28.20 points or 0.89 per cent.
Taiwan’s TAIEX closed at 16,661.36, down 197.41 points or 1.17 per cent.
Apec report forecasts 6.4% growth in 2021 after strong Q1
The Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) region posted a 6.1 per cent increase in economic growth in the first quarter of 2021, bouncing back strongly from a 2 per cent decline in the first quarter of 2020, according to an updated report by the Apec Policy Support Unit.
This number comfortably puts the region on track to achieve growth expectations for the year, which is now estimated at 6.4 per cent, slightly higher than the earlier prediction.
High growth in the first quarter of 2021 is due to a combination of factors, including the low comparison point following substantial economic contraction a year ago as well as higher government spending given the sustained impact of the pandemic on economic activities, while domestic consumption grew considerably during this period.
In the near term, the Apec Policy Support Unit still sees sustained stimulus measures from governments driving the region’s economic growth.
Private consumption will also get a boost of confidence as consumers are expected to draw on their accumulated savings, bolstered in part due to cash transfers and wide-ranging subsidies to households.
“Vaccination programmes and rollout still drive economic growth and the recovery progress in the region,” said Denis Hew, director of the Apec Policy Support Unit.
“We are still seeing a disparity in access to vaccination coverage across Apec; economies with faster rollouts and sustained fiscal support will recover faster and stronger, while economies that struggle with vaccine access and have limited fiscal space will take more time to recover due to these uncertainties,” explained Hew.
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Vaccination coverage across Apec is noticeably diverse, ranging from 148 doses per 100 residents to a low of only one dose per 100 residents. As a result, the rate of fully vaccinated people across economies varies greatly, from as low as 0.2 per cent to as high as 72 per cent of the population as of mid-August.
“The race to vaccinate as many people as possible in the shortest amount of time is extremely crucial,” said Rhea C Hernando, an Apec Policy Support Unit researcher who updated the report. “Economies cannot afford to keep imposing restrictions, close borders and indefinitely provide wide-ranging fiscal and monetary support.”
Hernando explained that multilateral cooperation is key in facilitating the free flow of vaccine components and related supplies, as this will significantly contribute to the accessibility and affordability of vaccines, especially for low- and middle-income economies.
“It is now clear that for economic recovery to be on firmer footing, health must be safeguarded, which in turn necessitates access to vaccines to protect as many people as possible, as soon as possible,” she added.
In terms of trade, the region performed positively in the first quarter of 2021, with the value of merchandise exports and imports growing at a higher rate of 16.8 per cent and 16.2 per cent, respectively, from a contraction of 6.1 for exports and 4.1 per cent for imports during the same period last year. This improved performance is brought mainly by pharmaceuticals and office and communications equipment, while the agrifood, apparel, metals and minerals sectors also added to the trade boost.
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The impact of Covid-19 on the transport and travel sectors continues to drag Apec’s commercial services performance.
For the period January to March 2021, commercial services declined further to 12 per cent for exports and 15.2 per cent for imports, compared to a decline of 9.5 per cent for exports and 9.2 per cent for imports for the same period in 2020.
The updated report also notes an increase in inflation during the first half of 2021 to 2.3 per cent, compared to 1.6 per cent in the first half of 2020, due to the gradual normalisation of prices. Inflation is expected to revert to its pre-pandemic levels globally once prices factor in pandemic-related supply-side disruptions.
The whole-year forecast of inflation for the Apec region is 2 per cent while it could increase to 2.2 per cent in 2022. There is a risk that the upward trend in inflation could persist as consumption activity strengthens following successive quarters of pent-up demand. The report notes that price pressures require continued monitoring and clear communication from monetary policy authorities to guide inflation expectations.
“Addressing the ongoing health crisis, primarily through rapid vaccination rollouts even as appropriate health measures continue to be observed, remains paramount to strengthen economic recovery,” Hernando said.
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“When people feel safe, they are more confident to go out, work and spend accumulated savings, while business could resume investment activity, supporting a gradual but uninterrupted economic reopening towards a stronger recovery.”
After a year without rowdy tourists, European cities want to keep it that way
SootinClaimon.Com 