Secretary for Health Lo Chung-mau said the supply of paracetamol is stable but "[the possibility of] regulating the trading of these medicines will not be ruled out." He said the SAR has enough paracetamol for six months and will reserve them for the underprivileged. On Covid testing, Lo said people can pay for PCR tests at 85 community centers or take them at private hospitals and laboratories, with prices capped at HK$150. Meanwhile, deputy chief secretary for administration Warner Cheuk Wing-hing said the government will monitor parallel trading activities after the border reopens. The Immigration Department will set up a list of "suspected parallel importers" and may ban visitors with suspected purposes.

60% of workers quietly quitting, study revealsMANILA, Philippines — Sixty percent of employees in the Philippines have engaged in quiet quitting due to the low salary they receive and the lack of opportunities to move up in the company, according to a study by consumer and data analytics company Milieu Insight. Quiet quitting, which was popularized last year, refers to doing just what is required and not going above and beyond at work. The study showed that 23 percent of the surveyed employees in the Philippines started quiet quitting a long time ago, while 37 percent only got into it recently. When asked why they engage in quiet quitting, having a low salary (53 percent) emerged as the top reason. The study showed that employees in the Philippines see benefits in quiet quitting such as having less stress (67 percent), better mental health (54 percent) and work-life balance (48 percent).

The government may regulate the sales of medicines containing paracetamol, said Secretary for Health Lo Chung-mau on Thursday but stressed that there is a steady supply of the medication and a sufficient stockpile at hospitals. Lo stated that apart from regional shortages for specific brands of fever medicines and painkillers, the supply of paracetamol medication is still stable. The current stock level of the medicine in the public healthcare system is enough for normal daily use for 5 to 6 months, he added. And the authorities are purchasing more relevant medication to bolster the existing reserves. Lo said the authorities have also urged the manufacturers to maximise the productivity of fever medicine and painkillers, with half of the factories increasing their production ranging from 13 percent to 100 percent in the past two months.

So in fact many were surprised by it, and I hadnot projected it, but I was convinced that the world order had becomeincreasingly unstable. GT: Which country will contributemore to global stability in 2023 and be the anchor of stability, the US orChina? Fahmy: These global challenges areinsurmountable significantly if the major powers don't significantly andstrategically take the lead. Fahmy: It was a source of confidencefor the Arab world, because it reflected Arab readiness and capacity todiversify. The Global Times is an English-language Chinese tabloidunder the People's Daily, the flagship newspaper of China's rulingCommunist Party.

Numerous flights were canceled earlier due to a technical glitch and the power outage at the Air Traffic Management Center of the NAIA. Tuazon pointed this out as he expressed surprise over recent pronouncements of Tamayo that there was a need to procure a new CNS-ATM system for the country in the aftermath of the Jan. 1 fiasco. Previously, CAAP only used three radars to manage the Philippines’ air traffic. The technical issues at the NAIA air traffic system delayed several flights on New Year’s Day, two days before Marcos left for China. Why, of all things that they have requested, why the main air traffic management system, how come we failed here?” he added.

Post-pandemic PRThe pandemic years have brought about several realization for reputation managers, communicators, marketers, and PR professionals. Whether producing brand journalism, a good old fashioned press release, a presentation pitch or even just writing an email, PR professionals need to be word wizards. It shapes and will continue to shape communal expectations and PR professionals should take full cognizance. So they are less forgiving and PR and marketing professionals should be prepared. Thus, PR and marketing professionals need to understand how the metaverse, which affords the convergence of virtual, augmented, and physical realities, can impact brands.

The current Covid wave has seen drug stores stripped of supplies, as people snap up cold and fever treatments. The person said they had access to stocks of Paxlovid -- a Beijing-approved Covid treatment developed by US drug giant Pfizer -- and could mail some from the semi-autonomous city into mainland China. Despite those risks, the black market remains a common last resort for people like Xiao, whose elderly grandfather fell ill in December. They included a variant of Paxlovid sold under the brand name Paxista, and two generics for pharmaceutical giant Merck's treatment called Movfor and Molaz. Beijing gave conditional emergency approval last week to Merck's antiviral -- sold internationally as Lagevrio -- for use on vulnerable adults with Covid.

'Miscomm': Malacañang clears ex-agriculture execs in sugar import messMANILA, Philippines — What was once called an “illegal” order to bring in sugar from abroad has been ruled a simple case of miscommunication as Malacañang absolved former agriculture officials involved in the botched importation plan. While the Office of the President absolved the former officials from any charges related to the sugar importation mess, it still "admonished" them "to be more prudent and circumspect in the performance of their duties." These duties are no longer theirs as most of them quit their posts in the middle of the mess. According to News5, the Office of the President has ruled that the issuance of the controversial Sugar Order No. RELATED: Trixie Cruz-Angeles, Vic Rodriguez out from MalacañangFormer Agriculture Undersecretary Leocadio Sebastian previously justified his signing of SO No.

Players in action during the CCE MLBB tournament. The Collegiate Center for Esports (CCE) could expand to a bigger cast as early as next edition after the roaring success of its first two seasons. CCE, the country’s fastest-growing collegiate Esports league, said it has received a slew of inquiries and interests from more colleges and universities on the possibility of joining Season 3, which will fire off midway through this year. That’s a welcome development and definitely, a possibility moving forward,” said CCE president Stanley Lao. We are open and willing to lend that hand,” added CCE commissioner Waiyip Chong.

Converge is not yet done wheeling and dealing after shipping Allyn Bulanadi to NorthPort in exchange of two-way guard Jerrick Balanza. Allyn Bulanadi (left) and Jerrick Balanza are switching places as Converge and NorthPort agree to a one-on-one trade. (PBA Images)The deal, which was approved by the PBA office on Wednesday, Jan. 4, will have Converge head coach Aldin Ayo reunited with Balanza, a former soldier back in his time in the collegiate ranks with the Letran Knights. The trade is now the second transaction approved by PBA involving Converge. Last Tuesday, Jan. 3, Converge shipped Mike DiGregorio, RK Ilagan and Tyrus Hill to Blackwater for Barkley Ebona and a first round pick for this year’s draft.

In his remarks to Tsai, Rasmussen said Taiwan had the "right to exist in freedom and peace," as well as the right to decide its own future. China opposes any official exchange between other countries and Taiwan and has reacted with increasing anger over visits by Western politicians. Rasmussen's foundation, which invited Tsai to address its annual democracy summit for three consecutive years from 2020, was sanctioned by Beijing in 2021. In a New Year speech on Sunday, Tsai said ramped-up Chinese military activities around Taiwan were "unhelpful" for maintaining relations between the two. Only dialogue, cooperation and the common goal of promoting regional stability and development can make more people feel safe and happy," she added.

THE mark of good writers is their ability to set their ideas in parallel, not simply the richness of their thoughts and the depth of their grammar knowhow. How scrupulously the parallelism rule is applied greatly determines the readability and persuasiveness of sentences. A very basic application of the parallelism rule is the proper use of the article "the" for the serial elements of sentences. In sentences that use "yet," this parallel construction is preferable: "You can take the train; better yet take the plane." Next week, Jan. 12, 2023: Parallelism as a mark of good writing - 2Visit Jose Carillo's English Forum, http://josecarilloforum.com.

China is ready to resume oil and gas talks and manage maritime issues "cordially" with the Philippines, China President Xi Jinping said on Wednesday, according to Chinese state television. Xi was speaking to his Philippines counterpart Ferdinand Marcos Jr, who was on a three-day visit to Beijing. Beijing territorial claims in the South China Sea, which is rich in oil, gas and fish and where about $3 trillion in ship-borne trade passes annually, had been a source of tension between it and some Southeast Asian countries, including the Philippines. The Philippines had previously raised concerns over reported Chinese construction activities and the "swarming" of Beijing's vessels in disputed waters of the South China Sea. While the Philippines is a defence ally of the United States, under previous leader Rodrigo Duterte it set aside a territorial spat over the South China Sea in exchange for Chinese investment.

Woman nearly hit by stray bulletMANILA, Philippines — A woman cheated death after she was nearly hit by a stray bullet in Quezon City on Sunday, police reported yesterday. Yu told probers that he and other members of his family were celebrating when a stray bullet landed in the room of his cousin, Donna Lui-Gocor. The incident shocked Lui-Gokor as the bullet, which pierced the glass window, landed in front of her. Yu turned over the bullet from a handgun of an unknown caliber to the La Loma police station for ballistics examination. Police said an investigation is underway to determine where the bullet came from.

‘The economy in 2023’The national economy in 2023 will follow a growth path that is predicted in part by the country’s development program. Global economic conditions, however, are not bullish in 2023. East Asian countries have shown much greater economic growth performance than the rest of the global economy. It is quite fortunate that the new administration can reap the benefits from major economic reforms undertaken in the previous government. For one, we should hurry up being part of the global economy.