World Economic News
G-7 Accepts Weakened Dollar
An article in La Tribune on Oct. 1, one of two major financial dailies in France, says that the U.S. dollar is currently in a free fall. Isabelle Croizard states that while, "At the Dubai meeting, the partners of Uncle Sam within the Group of Seven accepted the final communique, calling for bigger flexibility in the exchange rates, [it was] only in return for assurances that a weakend dollar would help the U.S. recover its role of locomotive of the world economy. The problem however, is not only that the dollar continues to fall, but its reflux is beginning to get out of control." We are not exactly undergoing a "soft landing" as the monetary gendarmes of the world had wished would happen.
Croizard further worries about the fact that the Japanese situation is also out of control; in spite of the fact that they used $40 billion to defend the yen in September, they were not able to stop the fall. Only the rumors that the Federal Reserve intervened in favor of the Bank of Japan, buying dollars, was able to stop the trend, says La Tribune, reporting however that the Fed has refused to confirm the news.
German Economy Needs More Domestic Investments
If there were more domestic investments, German industry could have the full benefit of machine innovations, Hans Joerg Bullinger, president of the Fraunhofer Society, said Sept. 30. Although the German economy is in a downward spiral, there are sectors that show an upward potential, like the machine-builders: with more than 4,000 new patents listed in 2002, Germany has the absolute lead there, on a global scale. The share of almost 20% of the entire global market for machines, which Germany gained in 2002, reflects the attractiveness abroad of that sector's production, Bullinger said. However, domestic German industry investments are too low, generally, and Germany's industry thus cannot benefit from the innovative powers of the machine-building sector, he said.
India To Give $1 Billion for Asia Bond Fund
India has offered $1 billion to set up the Asia Bond Fund, according to Thai Foreign Minister Surakiart Sathirathai, speaking in New York, the Bangkok Post reported Sept. 30. The proposal, in the form of a technical paper, would be considered by finance ministers under the Asian Cooperation Dialogue (ACD) framework, Sukariart said during a speech at an ACD meeting in New York. The Asia Bond scheme, proposed by Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, would enable any surplus capital in Asia to be used for investment in the region's poorer nations, and defend against speculators. ACD now has 22 member nations. Four new membersKazakhstan, Oman, Kuwait and Sri Lankaattended the ACD talks for the first time. It was also the first ACD forum to be attended by ministers from India and Pakistan.
Nigeria, Euro Space Agency Launch Moon Mission
Europe's first mission to the Moon blasted off on Sept. 27 from Kourou, French Guiana, aboard an Ariane 5 rocket, the New York Times reported Sept. 28. The mission was the Smart-1 Moon exploration probe, which will take 15 months to reach lunar orbit, and remain there for up to 30 months.
On the same day, Nigeria achieved the launching of its first space satellite, which was launched aboard a Russian rocket from the Plesetsk cosmodrome in Russia. The government plans to use the Landsat-type satellite to monitor water resources, soil erosion, deforestation, and potentially to monitor natural disasters, said space agency spokesman Solomon Olaniyi to Associated Press. AP quoted a security guard in Lagos, "It makes me proud to be a Nigerian. It shows our nation is progressing. We've joined the space age."
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