World News: Covid Worries Keep Masks On in Asia --- Face coverings remain near universal, as U.S. drops rules; 'corona won't go extinct'

 

"TOKYO -- Chie Matsuda learned from a morning TV show here Wednesday that passengers on U.S. airplanes had just been allowed to take off their masks.

It was a moment of celebration for some Americans, but Ms. Matsuda didn't like the sound of it.

"I'd be uncomfortable if the person next to me on the plane was unmasked," said the 64-year-old retiree as she ate a sandwich outside a Tokyo shopping mall. "We haven't figured out yet how we could live with the coronavirus. At this phase, we'd better take a more conservative approach."

Pictures of maskless Americans packing sports stadiums, attending business meetings and now riding on airplanes look like they come from another planet for people in much of Asia, where masking is nearly universal and likely to stay that way for some time.

Japan in particular offers a counterpart to the U.S. trend: Mask requests are generally voluntary, yet compliance is widespread.

"I believe it's a product of peer pressure," said 22-year-old college student Ryo Takahashi, who was wearing a cloth mask Wednesday as he waited in line at a McDonald's restaurant. Mr. Takahashi said he wasn't worried much about getting infected because he is young and the current Omicron variant tends not to cause serious illness, but he said he was still wearing a mask so as not to stand out.

Major U.S. airlines quickly dropped the mask mandate after a federal judge in Florida on Monday said a federal mandate exceeded the authority of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Many people responded by removing their masks, some in midflight as news of the ruling spread.

Those scenes aren't likely to be repeated in East Asia soon. From Thailand to South Korea, either Japanese-style social pressure or government mandates have kept people masked.

In South Korea, where an Omicron wave has receded after peaking in March at a level that exceeded the worst U.S. outbreak, officials have lifted restrictions on the size of gatherings and business operating hours. But a mask mandate remains.

Jeon Hae-cheol, minister of interior and safety, said Wednesday that the mandate might be lifted for outdoor settings in May. Officials said masks will have to be worn indoors for a considerable time. "The importance of mask-wearing remains formidable," Mr. Jeon said.

Hong Kong is set to relax social-distancing rules Thursday after its own Omicron wave eased, but it too is keeping its mask mandate in public places -- even for those exercising outdoors. Violators are subject to a fine that is equivalent to more than $600.

In Japan, mask-wearing was reasonably common even before Covid-19 when people had colds or allergies.

Toshihiro Tajima, a 63-year-old engineer, said he planned to wear a mask for the rest of his life. "Given my age, I'm concerned, because corona won't go extinct," he said.

Infection levels in Japan, South Korea and some other parts of Asia remain higher than in the U.S. as the Omicron BA.2 subvariant continues spreading.

Shops, restaurants and event halls in Japan ask visitors to keep their face coverings on except when they are eating. At school, students wear masks most of the time and eat lunch quietly. Signs are ubiquitous in train stations.

A survey in March by Planet Inc., a Tokyo data-services company, found that more than a third of respondents intended to keep wearing a mask all the time even after the coronavirus is under control, while half said they would wear a mask sometimes.

After the U.S. ruling, Japanese airlines said they would continue asking passengers on both domestic and international flights to wear face coverings onboard and at airports.

Ms. Matsuda, the Tokyo retiree, said she was thinking of flying to Spain and Portugal after the pandemic dies down. After watching the news Wednesday, she said she might avoid U.S. carriers." [1]

 

Florida federal judge makes decisions on health of hundreds of millions of people? Isn’t that an angry joke?

 

1. World News: Covid Worries Keep Masks On in Asia --- Face coverings remain near universal, as U.S. drops rules; 'corona won't go extinct'
Inada, Miho.
Wall Street Journal, Eastern edition; New York, N.Y. [New York, N.Y]. 21 Apr 2022: A.16.

Pasaulio ekonominė tvarka

„Rusija „perbraižė pasaulio ekonomikos perspektyvos kontūrus“, – sakė iždo sekretorė Janet Yellen balandžio 13 d. kalboje. Ji rėmėsi 1944 m. Bretton Woods susitikimo precedentu, kuriame buvo sukurta dabartinė ekonominė sistema po Antrojo pasaulinio karo.

 

    Bideno administracija linkusi per daug tikėti daugiašaliais pasaulinių problemų sprendimais, tačiau ponia Yellen pasiūlė vieną aiškią ir veržlią idėją, kurią pareigūnai turėtų rimtai apsvarstyti: naują prekybos architektūrą „sąlygomis, kurios labiau tinka Amerikos darbuotojams“. Atkreipdama dėmesį ypač į Kiniją dėl jos paramos Rusijai, ji tvirtino, kad naująją sistemą turėtų organizuoti „šalys, apie kurias žinome, kad galime pasikliauti“.

 

    Atsižvelgiant į tai, kad Kinija nesilaiko prekybos taisyklių, dėl kurių ji sutiko, kai ji 2001 m. įstojo į Pasaulio prekybos organizaciją, kartu su Kinijos parama Rusijai ir Xi Jinpingo ryžtu sukurti ekonominę nepriklausomybę ir pasaulinį dominavimą, prekybos reforma turėtų padėti sukurti naują sistemą, kuri neapima Kinijos.

 

    Kaip turėtų atrodyti ši nauja architektūra ir ar PPO gali padėti formuoti naują tvarką?

 

    Liūdna realybė yra tokia, kad PPO tebėra paralyžiuota dėl ilgalaikių skirtumų. Ketverius metus JAV, Europos Sąjunga ir Japonija bandė sukurti geresnes subsidijavimo taisykles, siekdamos drausminti Kinijos praktiką, tačiau Pekinas ir kitos, valstybės dominuojamos, ekonomikos gali lengvai užblokuoti bet kokį esminį patobulinimą, nes dideliems pokyčiams daugumoje sričių reikia visiško sutarimo.

 

    Be to, pandemija sustiprino tokių šalių, kaip Indija ir Pietų Afrika reikalavimus susilpninti intelektinės nuosavybės apsaugą, kurią, atrodo, palaiko Bideno administracija. Indija geriausiu atveju yra selektyvi PPO taisyklių šalininkė, daugiausia toleruojanti tas, kurios leidžia jai ekonominę autonomiją ir protekcionistinius tarifų lygius.

 

    Rusija sustiprino Šiaurės ir Pietų skirtumus tarpvyriausybinėse organizacijose. Brazilija, Indija, Indonezija, Meksika, Vietnamas ir daugelis Afrikos valstybių susilaikė nuo Jungtinių Tautų Generalinės Asamblėjos balsavimo, kuriuo siekiama sustabdyti Rusiją nuo Žmogaus teisių tarybos narystės, baiminantis, kad Rusija ir Kinija jas nubaus, paramos Vakarams atveju.

 

    Kaip teigia ponia Yellen, geriausias kelias į priekį, kuriant naują prekybos architektūrą prasideda „daugiašaliais prekybos susitarimais“ tarp Amerikos sąjungininkų. Pirmasis žingsnis būtų JAV vėl prisijungti prie to, kas prasidėjo kaip Trans-Pacific partnerystė. Tą susitarimą suformavo Obamos administracija ir jame yra geros subsidijų ir skaitmeninės prekybos taisyklės, o pastarąją sritį konkrečiai paminėjo ponia Yellen. Dvipartinė opozicija 2016 m. prezidento rinkimuose pasmerkė JAV narystę TPP. Tarp 11 tolesnio susitarimo narių yra JAV sąjungininkės Japonija, Australija, Kanada ir kylančios ekonomikos galios Pietryčių Azijoje, tokios kaip Vietnamas ir Malaizija, kurioms gresia Kinijos vadovaujama ekonominė tvarka. Prisidedant kai kurioms taisyklėms uždrausti importuoti gaminius, pagamintus iš daugiausia iš Kinijos tiekiamų dalių, JAV turėtų vėl prisijungti prie šios partnerystės ir padėti įdarbinti kitas šalis, ypač Indoneziją ir technologijų jėgaines Pietų Korėją ir Taivaną.

 

    Kitas ankstyvas pertvarkytos prekybos sistemos tikslas turėtų būti laisvosios prekybos susitarimas su JK. Platesnis variantas galėtų būti toks susitarimas tarp „penkių akių“ grupės – JAV, JK, Australijos, Kanados ir Naujosios Zelandijos. ar net stengtis įtraukti šiuos tradicinius sąjungininkus į JAV, Meksikos ir Kanados susitarimą. Tokia iniciatyva sukurtų zoną tam, ką M. Yellen vadina „draugų susirašinėjimu“.

 

    Kadangi JAV bando sukurti atsparesnes tiekimo grandines, Kanados ir Australijos mineraliniai ištekliai ir specializuotos JK technologijos gali būti labai svarbūs faktoriai.

 

     Šie ištekliai leistų JAV nepasikliauti vien subsidijuojama retųjų žemių metalų, ekologiškų technologijų ar puslaidininkių gamyba JAV viduje.

 

    Siekiamas JAV tikslas turėtų būti laisvosios prekybos susitarimas su ES. Tačiau kol ES nenuspręs, kad jai reikia tvirtai rinktis tarp JAV ir Kinijos ir permąstyti savo siekius tapti nepriklausoma technologijų ir reguliavimo supervalstybe, bet koks toks transatlantinis susitarimas negali būti svarstomas.

 

    Pasaulio ekonomikos lyderiai, šią savaitę susirinkę į Tarptautinio valiutos fondo ir Pasaulio banko metinius susitikimus Vašingtone, turėtų sutelkti dėmesį į galimybę, kurią suteikia platus Rusijos ir Kinijos antentės pasmerkimas, ir pradėti svarstyti pakeistą prekybos tvarką. Kai kurios kitos M. Yellen idėjos, ypač TVF ir Pasaulio banko finansavimo didinimas ir valdymo modernizavimas, gali padidinti Kinijos įtaką. Valdymo reforma reiškia – ir Kinija to reikalaus – užtikrinti, kad Kinijos balsavimo teisės atitiktų jos dalį pasaulio ekonomikoje. Kinijos įtakos Pasaulio sveikatos organizacijoje patirtis turėtų tam prieštarauti. Amerikos ir jos demokratinių sąjungininkų interesus geriau atitiktų nauja ekonominė tvarka be Kinijos dalyvavimo. 

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     P. Duesterbergas yra Hadsono instituto vyresnysis bendradarbis. 1989–1993 m. dirbo komercijos sekretoriaus padėjėju." [1]

 

Ir pagal šį pasiūlymą, be ES dalyvavimo. Ar tokiu atveju užteks rinkos dydžio, kad atsverti Kinijos suvienijamos pasaulio dalies ekonomikos svorį? Kaip Indonezija, Vietnamas ir Malaizija padės mums išsaugoti Vakaruose įgūdžius, kurie reikalingi, kad suderinti aukštąsias technologijas su masine gamyba, kas geriausiai gaunasi visa tai turint vienoje šalyje, kaip parodė Kinijos metodo pasisekimai?  Kaip Indonezija, Vietnamas ir Malaizija padės mums išsaugoti Vakaruose gerai apmokamas darbo vietas? 

1. What Janet Yellen Gets Right About the World Economic Order
Duesterberg, Thomas J.
Wall Street Journal, Eastern edition; New York, N.Y. [New York, N.Y]. 21 Apr 2022: A.15.

World Economic Order

"Russia "has redrawn the contours of the world economic outlook," Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said in an April 13 speech. She invoked the precedent of the Bretton Woods meeting in 1944, which designed the current economic system following World War II.

The Biden administration tends to place undue faith in multilateral solutions to global problems, but Ms. Yellen offered one clear and pathbreaking idea that officials should seriously consider: a new trade architecture "on terms that work better for American workers." Calling out especially China for its support of Russia, she asserted that the new system should be organized by "countries we know we can count on."

Given China's failure to abide by the trade rules it agreed to when it joined the World Trade Organization in 2001, combined with China's support of Russia and Xi Jinping's determination to establish economic independence and global dominance, trade reform ought to work toward a new system that excludes China. 

What should this new architecture look like, and can the WTO help shape the new order?

The unfortunate reality is that the WTO remains paralyzed by longstanding differences. For four years, the U.S., European Union and Japan have tried to craft better subsidy rules to discipline Chinese practices, but Beijing and other state-dominated economies can easily block any substantive improvement, as major changes in most areas require full consensus.

Additionally, the pandemic reinforced demands by countries such as India and South Africa to weaken intellectual-property protections, which the Biden administration appears to support in some formulation. India is at best a selective supporter of WTO rules, tolerating mostly those that allow it economic autonomy and protectionist levels of tariffs.

Russia has enhanced North-South differences in intergovernmental organizations. Brazil, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Vietnam and many African nations abstained from a United Nations General Assembly vote to suspend Russia from the Human Rights Council, fearing backlash from Russia and China for siding with the West.

As Ms. Yellen suggests, the best way forward on a new trade architecture starts with "plurilateral trade agreements" among American allies. A first step would be for the U.S. to rejoin what started out as the Trans-Pacific Partnership. That agreement was shaped by the Obama administration and includes good rules on subsidies and digital trade, the latter an area Ms. Yellen specifically mentioned. Bipartisan opposition in the 2016 presidential race doomed U.S. membership in the TPP. The 11 members of the successor agreement include U.S. allies Japan, Australia, Canada and emerging economic powers in southeast Asia such as Vietnam and Malaysia, which are at risk of being subsumed into a Chinese-led economic order. With some work on rules to prohibit imports of products made with parts largely sourced in China, the U.S. ought to rejoin this partnership and help recruit other countries, especially Indonesia and technology powerhouses South Korea and Taiwan.

Another early goal of a reworked trade framework ought to be a free-trade agreement with the U.K. A more ambitious variation might be such an agreement between the "five eyes" group -- the U.S., U.K., Australia, Canada and New Zealand -- or even working to include these traditional allies in the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement. Such an initiative would create a zone for what Ms. Yellen calls "friend-shoring." 

As the U.S. tries to establish more resilient supply chains, the mineral resources of Canada and Australia and specialized technologies of the U.K. could be crucial.

 These resources would allow the U.S. to avoid relying solely on subsidized domestic production of rare-earth metals, green technologies or semiconductors.

An aspirational goal for the U.S. should be a free-trade agreement with the EU. But until the EU decides that it needs to choose firmly between the U.S. and China and rethink its ambitions to become an independent technology and regulatory superpower, any such trans-Atlantic agreement is out of the question.

World economic leaders gathering this week for the International Monetary Fund and World Bank annual meetings in Washington should focus on the opportunity presented by widespread condemnation of the Russia-China entente and begin considering a revised trade order. Some of Ms. Yellen's other ideas, especially funding increases and governance modernization for the IMF and World Bank, risk increasing Chinese influence. Governance reform implies -- and China will insist on this -- making China's voting rights commensurate with its proportion of the global economy. The experience of Chinese influence at the World Health Organization ought to counsel against this. America's interests, and those of its democratic allies, would be better served by a new economic order without Chinese participation.

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Mr. Duesterberg is a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute. He served as an assistant secretary of commerce, 1989-93." [1]

 

And under this proposal, without EU involvement. In that case, will market size be enough to offset the economic weight of China's unifyied part of the world? How will Indonesia, Vietnam and Malaysia help us to preserve in the West the skills needed to combine high technology with mass production, since it  is best having it all in one country, as the success of the Chinese approach has shown? How will Indonesia, Vietnam and Malaysia help us keep well-paid jobs in the West?

 

1. What Janet Yellen Gets Right About the World Economic Order
Duesterberg, Thomas J.
Wall Street Journal, Eastern edition; New York, N.Y. [New York, N.Y]. 21 Apr 2022: A.15.