Foreign visitor entry, Go To Travel suspensions begin in Japan
Dec 29. 2020Few travelers are seen at the international terminal lobby of Haneda Airport in Tokyo on Monday morning. (The Yomiuri Shimbun)
By The Japan News/ANN
The suspensions of the entry of foreign visitors and the Go To Travel campaign began Monday.
The government is hoping to prevent the spread of infections with a new variant of the novel coronavirus from overseas by putting the entry ban into force through the end of January.
Furthermore, the government is asking people to refrain from travel during the year-end and New Year holidays by temporarily halting the tourism promotion campaign through Jan. 11.
Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga emphasized that the entry ban was an action he had taken at an early stage.
“I gave instructions on the policy on Saturday in order to deal with the situation ahead of time,” he said on Monday morning responding to questions from reporters at the Prime Minister’s Office. “I would like to ask the public to take thorough measures against infection such as washing their hands and wearing masks. I hope they have quiet year-end and New Year holidays.”
The government had allowed foreign students and expatriates to enter since October on an exceptional basis. After the spread of the new variant, the government had suspended entries from Britain and South Africa, and on Monday it extended the suspension to all countries.
Business personnel traffic with 11 countries and regions, including China and South Korea, will continue according with bilateral agreements. However, if the variant of the virus spreads, the government will consider suspending it.
On the other hand, the return of Japanese nationals from overseas and the reentry of foreign nationals with resident status will continue to be permitted. But travelers returning or reentering Japan from a short-term business trip are again being required to quarantine at home or elsewhere for 14 days again.
■ Domestic flight bookings
Due to the surge in domestic infection numbers, the Go To Travel campaign has been suspended for the first time since it started in July.
The suspension is scheduled to last for 15 days, until Jan. 11, but may be extended depending on the future infection situation.
There were few passengers returning to their hometowns or going on trips at the domestic terminal of Haneda Airport in Tokyo on Monday morning, despite the year-end holiday season. The electronic board was lined with announcements of flight cancellations.
The number of bookings for domestic flights from Dec. 25 to Jan. 3 fell sharply to 801,113 for All Nippon Airways, down 42.4% from the previous year, and 511,965 for Japan Airlines Group, down 51.5%, it was announced on Dec. 18.
There was no noticeable congestion on the Shinkansen bullet trains departing from Tokyo. As of 10 a.m. Monday, the occupancy rate of unreserved seats on the Tohoku, Yamagata, Joetsu and Hokuriku Shinkansen lines was between 10-30%, while that of the Tokaido Shinkansen was up to 30%.
The government will discuss what to do with the travel campaign after Jan. 12 at a meeting of the subcommittee on coronavirus countermeasures, which it plans to hold on or after Jan. 4. Depending on the infection situation, the suspension may be continued or only partially lifted.
■ Special measures law
In addition, the ruling and opposition parties will enact amendments to the special measures law for pandemic influenza prior to the enactment of the fiscal budget in the Diet session to be convened in January.
Hiroshi Moriyama, chairperson of the Liberal Democratic Party Diet Affairs Committee, and Jun Azumi, his counterpart of the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, talked in the Diet building and agreed on doing so Monday morning.
In order to strengthen measures against the novel coronavirus, the government is considering that the proposed amendment will include specified support measures for stores and other businesses that close or shorten their hours in response to requests, as well as penalties for those that do not.
Bosses in S’pore unlikely to mandate Covid-19 vaccination for staff: Experts
Dec 29. 2020The planned vaccination programme is voluntary and free for all Singaporeans and long-term residents here. ST PHOTO: DESMOND WEE
By Michelle Ng and Ang Qing The Straits Times/ANN
SINGAPORE – When the Covid-19 vaccines are rolled out from next year for most residents in Singapore, interior design firm Design 4 Space plans to dangle a trip to Japan to encourage its staff to get the shots.
Although the vaccination programme here is voluntary, the company’s chief executive Richard Yea is encouraging his more than 70 employees to get vaccinated.
“In this trade, we have to meet with home owners frequently. If our staff are vaccinated, home owners will feel more comfortable engaging and interacting with us,” he said, adding that company trips overseas were previously reserved only for the top performers.
Medical experts, human resource practitioners and business associations The Straits Times approached said employers in Singapore are unlikely to enforce the Covid-19 vaccine on their workforce.
But many will strongly encourage their staff to get the shots.
For some companies, this means offering incentives. It can include giving staff time off as well as support for flexible work arrangement, said Mr Ang Yuit, vice-president of the Association of Small and Medium Enterprises (ASME).
However, he added: “Most companies will unlikely be too forceful in having their staff receive vaccination unless there are some specific operational reasons internally.”
Singapore Business Federation chief executive Ho Meng Kit agreed, and said the management of the company can lead by example and be the first to take the shots.
The first batch of the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine arrived in Singapore on Dec 21, the first step in vaccinating the population.
The planned vaccination programme is voluntary and free for all Singaporeans and long-term residents here, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong had made clear on Dec 14.
Medical experts said there is no need for employers to push their staff to get the shots.
“At the moment, case numbers in Singapore are very low so there isn’t a pressing need to make vaccination compulsory,” said Associate Professor Hsu Li Yang, an infectious diseases expert at the National University of Singapore’s Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health.
Dr Leong Hoe Nam, an infectious diseases specialist from Mount Elizabeth Novena Hospital, said the risk of infection is “extremely low in public”.
“It will be unfair to force individuals to trade a low risk of infection with uncertainty about the long-term side effects of Covid-19 vaccines that are yet to be fully understood,” he added.
However, he said employees should still vaccinate since the risk of doing so is low.
“Vaccination is putting up defences against the virus. It’s not just the government’s role, but everyone plays a part.
“It’s only as strong as the participation from everyone… It allows us to be safe individually and for the country to have herd immunity, and for the country to open up economically,” added Dr Leong.
The first batch of the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine arrived in Singapore on Dec 21, 2020. PHOTO: ST FILE
Singapore entered phase three of its reopening on Monday (Dec 28), with plans to loosen some restrictions on workers returning to office.
Mr Calvin Lim, general manager of CDPL (Tuas) Dormitory, said the company will follow the Government’s directive on vaccinations and will let staff make their own decisions.
“But given that our jobs should be defined as front-liners, we are likely to get the vaccination regardless,” he said. The firm has around 30 staff.
PeopleWorldwide Consulting managing director David Leong said employees have the right to raise concerns about possible risks if they have colleagues who choose not to be vaccinated. But firms should not forbid those who do not receive the shots from entering the office.
“Technically, the risk of exposure is low when safe distancing practices are observed. It’s no different from today’s reality,” he said.
Mr David Calkins, regional managing principal of Asia- Pacific and Middle East at global architecture firm Gensler, believes that the majority of the 54 staff in the Singapore office are open to getting vaccinated.
“We suspect that we won’t have to provide much encouragement to those of us who are in client-facing roles and those who are hoping to be going on business travel in the future to take the vaccination,” he said.
“But even as the vaccine becomes more widely available around the globe, we are anticipating to continue a flexible work mode for much of next year,” he added.
Moderna to supply vaccines for 20m to S. Korea from Q2 2021: Cheong Wa Dae
Dec 29. 2020President Moon Jae-in (R) talks with Moderna CEO Stephane Bancel (on the monitor) via video conference at the presidential office in Seoul on Monday. (Presidential office)
By The Korea Herald/ANN
US biotech company Moderna will supply new coronavirus vaccine doses for 20 million people to South Korea starting in the second quarter of next year, Cheong Wa Dae announced Tuesday.
The deal was reached in a video conference between President Moon Jae-in and Moderna CEO Stephane Bancel held Monday, according to the South Korean presidential office. (Yonhap)
[China] Officials slam US sanctions on Xinjiang products
Dec 29. 2020Workers make down-filled coats at a factory in Jiashi county, Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, last month. WANG ZHUANGFEI/CHINA DAILY
By CUI JIA and MAO WEIHUA CHINA DAILY/ANN
The United States’ sanctions on the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps in the name of “forced labor” are groundless and won’t affect the healthy development of the corps, officials said.
“More than 70 percent of the XPCC’s cotton and 95 percent of its textile products have been sold domestically in the past two years,” Sun Huantao, deputy director of the XPCC’s Commerce Bureau, told China Daily in an exclusive interview at its headquarters in Urumqi, capital of the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region.
“We don’t have much direct trade volume with the US. The US’ latest sanctions on cotton and cotton products produced by the XPCC indeed have affected our businesses, but they have only had a limited impact,” Sun said.
The XPCC, also known as Bingtuan, is a special provincial-level entity entrusted by the State to cultivate and guard China’s border areas in Xinjiang. It has administrative control of several cities as well as farms and industrial facilities.
In 2020, China produced 5.91 million metric tons of cotton, of which 87.3 percent came from Xinjiang, according to figures released by the National Bureau of Statistics in December. In 2019, the XPCC produced more than 2 million tons of cotton, making it the key cotton producer in China.
On Dec 2, US Customs and Border Protection issued a withhold release, or detention, order that applies to all cotton and cotton products produced by the XPCC and its subordinate and affiliated entities, along with all products made in whole or in part from XPCC cotton, such as apparel, garments and textiles, because of concerns about “the risks of forced labor”, the agency said.
In the days leading up to the withhold release order, Customs and Border Protection sent detailed questionnaires to US importers of apparel to obtain information on supply chains in Xinjiang.
“The sanctions have affected the exports of cotton and cotton products from the XPCC,” Sun said. “It means that many foreign businesses will be unable to use good－quality cotton from the XPCC.
“Global businesses and consumers, particularly those in the US, are the real victims of the sanctions. It’s a move of extreme trade protectionism and not in line with principles of a market－oriented economy. It will surely damage the international supply chain,” Sun added.
To cope with the sanctions, the XPCC will further explore the domestic market, which is strong enough to support the healthy development of the corps’ cotton industry, she said.
Han Yongjiang, a spokesman for the XPCC’s Human Resources and Social Security Bureau, said all workers’ rights are fully protected in accordance with the law, and not a single complaint about forced labor has been received in recent years.
About 46 percent of employees in the corps’ textile and apparel enterprises in 2020 are from ethnic minorities such as Uygurs.
It also employees many seasonal workers in the agricultural sector.
These seasonal workers can make an average of 6,000 yuan ($915) in two months, which is very competitive in Xinjiang, Han said, and such employment is at the free will of employers and workers.
“We have stepped up the inspections to ensure any action that violates the rights of employees of the XPCC is punished in a timely manner. Also, employees from all ethnic groups can complain about possible misconduct via multiple channels, such as online, social media and by phone,” he added.
“If we don’t treat our employees with a better attitude or pay them well, they will quit. Their absence will severely affect the enterprises’ operations. So accusing the XPCC of using forced labor doesn’t stand, either factually or logically.”
The US Customs and Border Protection’s order follows the announcement in July by the US Office of Foreign Assets Control that it had designated the XPCC as a “specially designated national”. This designation essentially prohibits people in the US from engaging in any transactions with the XPCC or any companies of which the XPCC owns more than 50 percent.
Xiao, the manager of a tomato sauce company in which the XPCC holds shares, felt the bite of the sanctions as early as mid-August, although the company doesn’t directly export to the US, but mainly to European markets.
“Because we are on the sanctions list, we started to experience problems in international bank transfers. Also, one of our international shipping partners clearly told us they will no longer provide services to us for fear of being sanctioned by the US for doing business with us,” said Xiao, who wished to give only her surname.
The company, established in 2008, is currently appealing the US decision because the XPCC owns only about 45 percent of the shares of the company.
Because of the quality of tomatoes grown in Xinjiang, more than 90 percent of tomato sauce exported to other countries from China is produced there. In September, US Customs and Border Protection considered a much broader import ban on all cotton and tomato products from Xinjiang.
Xiao said, “Our business partners in Europe have asked us about the sanctions. If the situation deteriorates, the business ties that we’ve built over the years may be cut and will be difficult to reestablish. If we lose our contracts, it’s the growers and employees who will suffer in the end.”
Of the more than 300 tomato growers for the company based in southern Xinjiang, about 40 percent are locals from ethnic minorities, including Uygurs. During the harvest season, the company also annually employs about 200 seasonal workers, mainly Uygurs.
“Many of them keep coming back to work for us, year after year, because we can provide them with a good working environment and good pay, as stated in their contracts. They even ask their families and friends to come along, so we have never had recruitment problems. I don’t think they will introduce us to their loved ones if the seasonal workers are ever forced to work,” Xiao said. “They will lose their income if the company cannot survive the sanctions.”
“All we can do is to continue to improve the quality of our products and make them irreplaceable in the global market,” she added.
By Syndication Washington Post, Bloomberg · Vildana Hajric
U.S. equities rallied to records after President Donald Trump backed away from earlier threats and signed a coronavirus aid package.
The S&P 500 Index, Dow Jones industrial average and Nasdaq Composite closed at all-time highs following Trump’s surprise approval of the combined $2.3 trillion covid-19 relief and government funding package. Germany’s DAX Index also rose to a record. Treasuries dipped and the dollar strengthened.
Bitcoin retreated after a rally over the holiday pushed it past $28,000 for the first time.
U.S. investors cheered the U.S. aid package, restoring some of the optimism that drove global stocks to a record this month even as the pandemic escalated. In approving the bill, Trump also demanded a vote in Congress to replace the $600 in direct stimulus payments with $2,000 — a nonbinding request that is unlikely to pass both chambers. Still, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. upgraded its first-quarter U.S. economic growth forecast because of the measure.
“The new law is large enough to make a significant difference for individuals,” Dennis DeBusschere, head of portfolio strategy at Evercore ISI, said in a note to clients. “Ignore the noise about the ‘disappointing’ checks and focus on the setup for a robust economic recovery in 2021, particularly in the services sector.”
Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. tumbled in Hong Kong despite boosting its share buyback program to $10 billion, amid ongoing concern over China’s inquiry into alleged monopolistic practices. Regulators over the weekend ordered affiliate Ant Group Co. to return to its roots as a provider of payments services, a development that threatens to clip its growth.
On the coronavirus front, more restrictions are being imposed to fight the spread of the new, more infectious strain. Indonesia imposed a temporary ban on all foreigners from visiting the country, while Taiwan will increase the quarantine period for flight crews to seven days. Meanwhile, the European Union kicked off a continentwide vaccination campaign less than a week after clearing a shot developed by Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE.
Elsewhere, the pound weakened after the U.K. last week clinched a historic Brexit trade deal with the European Union.
These are the main moves in markets:
Stocks
– The S&P 500 Index rose 0.9% as of 4 p.m. EST.
– The Stoxx Europe 600 Index rose 0.7%.
– The MSCI Asia Pacific Index gained 0.1%.
– The MSCI Emerging Market Index slipped 0.2%.
Currencies
– The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rose 0.1%.
– The euro rose 0.1% to $1.2208.
– The British pound decreased 0.8% to $1.3449.
– The Japanese yen weakened 0.4% to 103.86 per dollar.
Bonds
– The yield on 10-year Treasuries increased less than one basis point to 0.93%.
– Germany’s 10-year yield declined two basis points to -0.57%.
– Britain’s 10-year yield was unchanged at 0.25%.
Commodities
– West Texas Intermediate crude fell 1.2% to $47.66 a barrel.
The Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives (BAAC) will conduct a new round of evaluation of clients dealing with the impact of the fresh Covid-19 outbreak, said senior executive vice president Kasarb Ngernruang.
Prior to the new outbreak, the bank evaluated 87 per cent of its total 7.5 million customers. It found 23 per cent were able to repay debts as usual, 61 per cent had been unable to make payments for the past 15 months, while debts of the remaining 16 per cent had been written off by the bank.
Kasarb added that the outbreak in Samut Sakhon would only have a small impact on the BAAC since the bank has few customers in the province.
The Office of Small and Medium Enterprise Promotion (OSMEP) will push for SMEs nationwide to get Bt400 billion of the total Bt1.3 trillion annual state spending on procurement of products and services next year.
The office board approved the target on Monday, said OSMEP director-general Veerapong Malai.
The state agency will also urge at least 100,000 SMEs to register with the Comptroller General’s Department, up from its current of around 1,000.
Revenue of SMEs currently accounts for 35 per cent of GDP – close to the pre-pandemic level.
Few travelers are seen at the international terminal lobby of Haneda Airport in Tokyo on Monday morning. (The Yomiuri Shimbun)
The planned vaccination programme is voluntary and free for all Singaporeans and long-term residents here. ST PHOTO: DESMOND WEE
President Moon Jae-in (R) talks with Moderna CEO Stephane Bancel (on the monitor) via video conference at the presidential office in Seoul on Monday. (Presidential office)
Workers make down-filled coats at a factory in Jiashi county, Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, last month. WANG ZHUANGFEI/CHINA DAILY
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