China central bank cuts two key interest ratesAFP, BEIJINGChina’s central bank yesterday said it had cut two key interest rates to historic lows, in the latest move by Beijing to boost sluggish spending and kickstart the world’s second-largest economy. The economy grew 4.6 percent year-on-year in the third quarter, its slowest rate in a year and a half, Chinese government data released on Friday showed. The country’s top banks on Friday cut interest rates on yuan-denominated deposits for the second time this year in another potential boost to spending. Months of sluggish spending have raised fears that China would dip back into deflation after it ended a months-long stretch of falling prices early this year. The real interest rate in China is too high,” he said.

India is testing its friends’ trust over killing of Sikh activistBy Mihir Sharma / Bloomberg OpinionIndia’s friends and partners are clearly feeling a growing sense of disquiet right now. First, separatist activists that India views as dangerous extremists are allowed to thrive in Canada, and even given space within the formal political spectrum. The problem for New Delhi is that its official denials have only imperfectly distanced the nation from Nijjar’s killing. If India is doing things like that, the West would think, then this is a relationship without trust. As disquiet about India grows, trust in India dies.

G7 defense chiefs criticize China drillsTROUBLED WATERS: The ministers also said they opposed China’s obstruction of freedom of navigation in the South China Sea and the militarization of disputed featuresBy Lin Che-yuan and Lee I-chia / Staff reportersG7 defense ministers in a joint statement on Saturday singled out China over a number of concerns, including its “provocative actions” near Taiwan. The defense ministers of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the UK and the US gathered in Naples, Italy, from Friday to yesterday for the group’s first ministerial meeting dedicated to defense. In the joint declaration, they stressed “enduring unity and common determination to address, in a cohesive and concrete manner, security challenges, at a time in history marked by great instability.”Italian Minister of Defense Guido Crosetto, back row, center, speaks during a morning roundtable as part of the G7 defense ministers summit in Naples, Italy, on Saturday. The declaration also expressed concern about the situation in the South China Sea. “There is no legal basis for China’s expansive maritime claims in the South China Sea, and we are strongly opposed to China’s repeated obstruction of freedom of navigation, militarization of disputed features, and coercive and intimidating activities, as well as the dangerous use of coast guard and maritime militia vessels in the South China Sea,” it said.

Asian IPOs set for blockbuster weekBloombergAsia’s stock markets are gearing up for their busiest week of listings in more than two years, offering a crucial test of demand as companies rush to raise money before the US presidential election next month. Signage for Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Ltd is pictured at the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on Sept. 17. Their success might spark a broader revival of Chinese share sales in Hong Kong, once a busy — and lucrative — segment of the IPO market. The stakes are also high in India, with a trading debut on Tuesday for Hyundai Motor India Ltd’s US$3.3 billion listing, the country’s biggest-ever IPO. In Japan, Tokyo Metro Co’s US$2.3 billion listing is scheduled for Wednesday.

Investments in nature will decide our futureThe banking sector plays a key role in financing necessary climate projectsBy Ambroise FayolleIt is easy to think of humans as existing separately from nature. However, the greatest threats to humanity come from crises affecting nature, not least climate change, biodiversity loss and rampant pollution. Moreover, such investments not only improve our resilience to climate change, but they also would help to prevent future pandemics. This would help de-risk investments, prepare projects, and deliver impact at scale for climate, nature and inclusive economic development. In Ivory Coast, we are gearing up to support sustainable cocoa farming, in which forests are preserved rather than cut down.

Musk promises US$1m each day to signers of petitionReuters, HARRISBURG, PennsylvaniaBillionaire Elon Musk on Saturday promised to give away US$1 million each day until the US presidential election on Nov. 5 to someone who signs his online petition supporting the US Constitution. Elon Musk speaks at Life Center Church in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, on Saturday. Musk started America PAC, a political action organization he founded in support of Trump’s presidential campaign. The petition Musk is asking people to sign reads: “The First and Second Amendments guarantee freedom of speech and the right to bear arms. Trump in turn has said that if elected he would appoint Musk to head a government efficiency commission.

Japanese workers turn to resignation agencies to quit jobsBy Justin McCurry / The GuardianMari was just two months into her new job when she decided she had had enough. The Tokyo-based agency Momuri reports soaring demand since it started offering proxy resignation services two-and-a-half years ago. Some force workers to find their own replacements before accepting their resignations or rip up their resignation letters in front of them. One in six workers in Japan used resignation agencies to change their jobs in the 12 months to June this year, said Mynavi, an employment information provider. “The job was way more physically demanding than I’d been told, so I decided to quit,” said Iida, who is now in between jobs.

An exploration of ‘ROC aesthetic’By Cheng Mu-Chun 鄭睦群The Double Ten National Day celebrations again brought up the question of the display of uniquely Taiwanese elements compared with the “Republic of China [ROC] aesthetic.”Any discussion on how we are to understand the ROC aesthetic requires clarification on several points. Third, what were the factors behind constructing the “ROC aesthetic?” Finally, does a refined “ROC aesthetic” exist? What we call the “ROC aesthetic” never really existed in China; it gradually formed only after the ROC forces relocated to Taiwan after World War II. As a result, we have to conclude that a “Republican era aesthetic” is not the same as the “ROC aesthetic,” as it was developed only after the relocation to Taiwan. Aesthetic beauty was beside the point, the focus was the expression of an ideology, and for this reason we should probably not talk about the “ROC aesthetic,” but the “ROC ideological aesthetic.”Cheng Mu-Chun is the executive director of the Lee Teng-hui Foundation.

TSMC plans more Europe fabs: officialAI AIM: The chipmaker wants joint research and development programs with the Czech Republic, and the government is considering supporting investments in a Czech location Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) is planning to build more plants in Europe with a focus on the market for artificial intelligence (AI) chips as the chipmaker expands its global footprint, a senior Taiwanese official said. “They have started construction of the first fab in Dresden; they are already planning the next few fabs in the future for different market sectors as well,” National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) Minister Wu Cheng-wen (吳誠文) told Bloomberg TV in an interview that aired yesterday. Wu did not specify a timeline for TSMC’s further expansion in Europe. TSMC in an e-mailed statement said it

China’s economy grows at weakest pace since last year as more stimulus urgedReuters, BEIJINGChina’s economy grew at the slowest pace since early last year in the third quarter, and although consumption and factory output figures beat forecasts last month a tumbling property sector remains a major challenge for Beijing as it races to revitalize growth. The world’s second-largest economy grew 4.6 percent in the third quarter, official data showed, a touch above a 4.5 percent forecast in a Reuters poll, but below the 4.7 percent pace in the second quarter. “Based on our comprehensive assessment, the economy in the fourth quarter is expected to continue the stabilization and recovery trend that occurred in September. “The recently announced stimulus measures could cushion the downside risks to next year’s growth, but are unlikely to reverse the structural downturn,” she said. A Reuters poll showed China’s economy is likely to expand 4.8 percent this year, undershooting Beijing’s target, and growth could cool further to 4.5 percent next year.

India’s space strategy: data and tiny satellitesBy leveraging its tech start-up culture, India can become a key player in outer spaceBy Nivedita Bhattacharjee / Reuters, BENGALURUIndia has a plan to carve out a beachhead in the battle for commercial space, officials say: crunching space data, building small satellites and launching them cheaply into orbit, rather than challenging heavyweights such as SpaceX head-on. Illustration: Mountain People“The world has gone from satellites the size of a Boeing plane to the size of a laptop,” Indian Space Association director-general Anil Kumar Bhatt said. Indian companies such as Bellatrix Aerospace, Pixxel, Agnikul Cosmos, Dhruva Space and others are already building, or have launched, small satellites or satellite components. India’s space agency, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), last month completed the third and final developmental flight for its Small Satellite Launch Vehicle. The space downstream market is, at the end of the day, a software play,” Terrawatch Space founder Aravind Ravichandran said.

India cooperation beyond chipsBy Uma ChinnannanThe relationship between India and Taiwan is evolving, driven by a shared understanding of the need for enhanced cooperation across various sectors. The India Semiconductor Mission is a government initiative that allocates US$10 billion to build a robust semiconductor ecosystem in India. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of “Make in India” and “Design in India” has driven government incentives across various facets of semiconductor production, underscoring the momentum behind recent semiconductor ties. While economic cooperation remains crucial, it is equally vital to focus on other forms of collaboration, and address the existing ties between India and Taiwan. By diversifying economic cooperation, fostering people-to-people relations and addressing common geopolitical challenges, India and Taiwan can strengthen their strategic partnership and unlock new avenues for mutual prosperity.

Team to track N Korea’s violations of sanctionsAFP, SEOULEleven countries, including South Korea, the US and Japan, are launching a new joint mechanism to monitor North Korea sanctions violations, the South Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs said yesterday. The decision follows Russia’s decision to veto the renewal of a panel of UN experts monitoring international sanctions on North Korea in March, effectively ending official oversight of sanctions imposed for the North’s banned nuclear and weapons programs. Russia’s veto was met with great criticism, with the US calling it a “self-interested effort to bury the panel’s reporting on its own collusion” with North Korea. Photo: EPA-EFEAlongside South Korea, the US and Japan, eight other countries — France, the UK, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Canada, Australia and New Zealand — are to participate in the multilateral sanctions monitoring team (MSMT). The MSMT would “monitor and report violations and evasions of the sanction measures” of the UN Security Council resolutions, it said.

India is finally becoming a clean energy superpowerBy David Fickling / Bloomberg OpinionIt is better to under promise and over deliver. India’s clean power industry is finally making good on that dictum. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi promised to connect 500 gigawatts (GW) of clean energy by 2030, equivalent to all the generators in France, Germany and Italy put together. Ill-advised tariffs on solar panels, combined with contractual and political support for fossil fuels and constant changes to the rules of renewable power auctions, made matters worse. Projects already in train would bring the total to 430GW, Indian Minister of New and Renewable Energy Pralhad Joshi told the Indian parliament in August.

The Quad leaders unequivocally expressed their commitment to the shared vision of a free and open Indo-Pacific region. Although it is not a security grouping, the Quad addressed emerging maritime security challenges. For example, the Quad launched the Indo-Pacific Partnership for Maritime Domain Awareness to ensure freedom of navigation in the Indo-Pacific region. The Quad also announced the first-ever Quad-at-Sea Ship Observer Mission next year in the Indo-Pacific region to improve interoperability. That puts a big question mark on the Quad countries’ shared idea about economic integration in the Indo-Pacific region.