Page 2 n THE ASIAN REPORTER
ASIA / PACIFIC
October 4, 2021
World Bank cuts Asia growth outlook, calls for virus action
BEIJING (AP) — The World Bank last week cut its economic growth forecast
for developing countries in East Asia due to the impact of the coronavirus’s delta
variant and called on governments to help poor people and small businesses
avoid long-term damage. Excluding China’s unexpectedly strong growth,
developing countries in East Asia should grow by 2.5% this year, down from a
forecast of 4.4% in April, the Washington-based lender said in a report. It said
China, the region’s biggest economy, should expand by 8.5%. The region is
“suffering a reversal of fortune” after China, Vietnam, and other governments
contained coronavirus outbreaks last year, the bank said. It said business
activity in Vietnam, Thailand, the Philippines, and other economies was
improving but now is “showing signs of slowing down.” “The region is being hit
hard by the COVID-19 Delta variant while many advanced economies are on a
path to economic recovery,” the World Bank said. “COVID-19 will reduce growth
and increase inequality unless the scars are addressed and the opportunities
grasped.” The region must increase vaccine production due to the unreliability
of imports and high demand, the bank said. It said governments also need to use
testing, tracing, and isolation to contain infections and strengthen their health
systems. To prevent long-term economic damage, the bank said governments
need to support productive companies, encourage new competitors, promote
technology development, and reduce trade barriers. Countries also need to
improve “social protection” by expanding access to “need-based assistance” for
the poor, the bank said.
Review of ban on eating dog meat in S. Korea welcomed
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Animal-rights groups welcomed the South
Korean president’s offer to look into banning the consumption of dog meat. Dog
meat is neither legal nor explicitly banned in South Korea. Restaurants that
serve it are a dwindling business here as younger people find dog meat a less
appetizing dining option. But some people oppose a ban as a surrender to
western pressure. During a meeting with his prime minister, President Moon
Jae-in asked “if it’s time to carefully consider” a ban, according to his office. It’s
unclear when a review would take place and when or whether a ban would be
realized. A few activists gathered in central Seoul to call for the government and
parliament to work out steps to officially prohibit dog meat consumption. They
placed a big placard on the street that read, “Legislate law banning the
slaughters of dogs and cats!” “We actively welcome President Moon Jae-in’s
comments instructing a review of the dog meat consumption ban and hope there
would be substantial progress on that,” animal-rights organizations said in a
joint statement. Activists later visited Moon’s presidential office and parliament
to convey their calls for swift action to ban dog meat consumption, said Lee Won
Bok, head of the Korea Association of Animal Protection. A public survey in 2018
indicated about 80% of South Koreans had not eaten dog meat in the previous
year. Lee said an estimated about 1 million dogs are still killed each year in
South Korea for food. Some older people in South Korea believe dog meat
enhances sexual stamina.
China applies to join Pacific trade pact Trump abandoned
BEIJING (AP) — China has applied to join an 11-nation Asia-Pacific free
trade group in an effort to increase its influence over international policies.
Commerce minister Wang Wentao submitted an application to the trade
minister of New Zealand as a representative of the Comprehensive and Progress
Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), the Commerce Ministry
announced in September. The CPTPP originally was the Trans-Pacific
Partnership (TPP), a group promoted by then-President Barack Obama as part
of Washington’s increased emphasis on relations with Asia. China was not
included in the initial group and Obama’s successor, Donald Trump, pulled out
in 2017. President Joe Biden has not rejoined the group. An official Chinese
newspaper, Global Times, said the application cements Beijing’s “leadership in
global trade” and leaves the United States “increasingly isolated.” The CPTPP,
which took effect in 2018, includes agreements on market access, movement of
labor, and government procurement. Other members include Canada,
Australia, Brunei, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Peru, Singapore, and Viet-
nam. Britain is negotiating to join. If China joins, that would quadruple the total
population within the group to some 2 billion people. China’s government has
promised to increase imports of goods but faces complaints it is failing to carry
out promises made when it joined the World Trade Organization in 2001 to open
finance and other service industries. China is also a member of various other
trading arrangements, including the Regional Comprehensive Economic Part-
nership, which includes many nations in Asia that are not part of the CPTPP.
Guangzhou FC coach steps down
GUANGZHOU, China (AP) — Fabio Cannavaro has left his position as coach
of troubled Chinese powerhouse Guangzhou FC, the club announced in late
September. Cannavaro, who was captain of Italy’s World Cup winning team in
2006, started his second spell in charge of Guangzhou in 2017 and delivered the
Chinese Super League title two years later. But the 48-year-old former Juventus
and Real Madrid defender did not return to China last week, leading to
speculation about his future with the club, which is owned by Evergrande. The
embattled real estate company is struggling to avoid a default on billions of
dollars of debt. “We would like to thank Fabio Cannavaro for all of his effort and
contribution to Guangzhou and wish him all the best in the future,” the club said
in a statement on its website. Cannavaro coached the team to second-place
finishes in 2018 and 2020.
SENIOR SISTERS. This combination of two undated photos released by Guinness World Records show sisters
Umeno Sumiyama, left, and Koume Kodama at separate nursing homes in Shodoshima island, left, and Oita prefecture,
Japan. The two Japanese twin sisters were certified by Guinness World Records as the world’s oldest living identical twins,
at 107 years and 300 days old, as of September 1, 2021, the organization said. (Guinness World Records via AP)
Japanese sisters certified as
world’s oldest twins at 107
By Mari Yamaguchi
The Associated Press
OKYO — Guinness World Records has
certified two Japanese sisters as the
world’s oldest living identical twins at
age 107, in an announcement coinciding with
Respect for the Aged Day, a national holiday in
Japan.
Umeno Sumiyama and Koume Kodama
were born the third and fourth of 11 siblings on
Shodoshima island in western Japan on
November 5, 1913.
They were separated after elementary
school, when Kodama was sent to work as a
maid in Oita on Japan’s southern main island
of Kyushu. She later married there, while
Sumiyama remained on the island where they
grew up and had her own family.
The sisters later recalled their difficult
younger days. Growing up, they said they were
bullied because of prejudice against children of
multiple births in Japan.
Busy with their own lives for decades, the
sisters rarely met until they turned 70, when
T
they started making pilgrimages together to
some of the 88 Shikoku temples and enjoyed
being reconnected.
Sumiyama and Kodama were 107 years and
300 days old as of September 1, breaking the
previous record set by famous Japanese sisters
Kin Narita and Gin Kanie at 107 years and 175
days, Guinness World Records Ltd. said in a
statement.
Their families told Guinness that the sisters
often joked about outliving the earlier record
holders, affectionately known as “Kin-san,
Gin-san,” who attained idol-like status in the
late 1990s for both their age and humor.
About 29% of the population of 125 million in
Japan, the world’s fastest aging nation, are 65
years or older, according to the health and
welfare ministry. About 86,510 of them are
centenarians — half of whom turned 100 this
year.
Due to coronavirus precautions, the
certificates for their record were mailed to the
separate nursing homes where they now live,
and Sumiyama accepted hers with tears of
happiness, according to Guinness.
Turkmenistan marks 30th independence anniversary
ASHGABAT, Turkmenistan (AP) —
Turkmenistan marked the 30th anniversary
of its independence after the collapse of the
Soviet Union with a military parade that
involved thousands of people and featured the
country’s leader mounting a horse to greet the
participants.
The pomp-filled parade took place in
Ashgabat, the capital of the gas-rich former
Soviet republic in Central Asia. President
Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov personally
saluted the parade — first from an open-top
car and then from a horse he rode across the
square.
The event was organized with strict
precautions. All foreign guests, including
foreign diplomats stationed in Turkmenistan,
had to undergo coronavirus testing to attend
and watched the parade from socially
distanced seats. Neither Berdymukhamedov
nor those marching in the parade wore masks,
however.
Turkmenistan has not reported any
coronavirus cases, but has introduced a series
of restrictive measures to prevent the infection
and made vaccination mandatory for all
starting from age 18.
Aside from troops and military equipment,
the parade featured employees of state
Continued on page 13
Asian Currency
Exchange Rates
Units per U.S. dollar as of 10/01
Bangladesh Taka· ·
Cambodian Riel · ·
China Renminbi · ·
Fijian Dollar · · · ·
Hong Kong Dollar ·
Indian Rupee · · · ·
Indonesian Rupiah ·
Iranian Rial · · · ·
Japanese Yen · · ·
Laos New Kip · · ·
Malaysian Ringgit ·
Nepal Rupee · · · ·
Pakistani Rupee · ·
Papua N.G. Kina · ·
Philippine Peso· · ·
Russian Ruble · · ·
Saudi Riyal· · · · ·
Singapore Dollar · ·
South Korean Won ·
Sri Lankan Rupee ·
Taiwan Dollar · · ·
Thai Baht · · · · ·
Vietnam Dong · · ·
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85.43
4.095
6.4452
2.0947
7.7855
74.195
14259
42025
111.05
9970.9
4.178
119.2
169.75
3.51
50.74
72.74
3.7503
1.356
1182.0
199.78
27.82
33.64
22759