- Japanese PM Suga announced a stimulus package over $ 700 billion
- China stays committed to phase 1 deal
- First mass vaccination started today in England
Japanese PM Suga Announced Stimulus Package Over $700 Billion
Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga, who lost popularity in the Japanese public because he did not sufficiently fight Covid-19 and the economic effects of the pandemic, signed an ambitious stimulus package.
Suga stated that an incentive package exceeding $ 700 billion will be implemented in order to prevent the negative effects of the country’s economy due to the coronavirus epidemic. The package, which includes financial support against the epidemic, will include loans, investments and expenses. Partial funding will be provided from a third additional budget for about 26 percent of the package.
“We have compiled the new measures to maintain employment, sustain business and restore the economy and open a way to achieve new growth in green and digital areas, so as to protect people’s lives and livelihoods,” Suga said at the meeting.
To help fund the stimulus, fiscal spending of around 30.6 trillion yen will be secured in a third supplementary budget for fiscal 2020 through next March and an initial budget for fiscal 2021. Both are expected to get Cabinet approval later this month, the officials said.
As the new stimulus package was announced in Japan, the latest growth data for the third quarter came as well. According to the revised data, the country’s economy grew by 22.9 percent in the third quarter of the year. The previously announced data was 21.4 percent. Thus, the fastest growth rate of the last 52 years was recorded in Japan.
China Stays Committed to Phase 1 deal
According to US-China Business Council Chairman Craig Allen, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi assured U.S. executives during a video conference on Sunday that Beijing remained committed to the Phase 1 trade deal with the United States.
“Wang definitely stated his commitment,” said Allen. This is how the system works on the Chinese side. They will keep their promises. ” he added.
While US President Donald Trump drafted regulations for Chinese companies on the grounds that he had ties to the military, and Elected President Joe Biden was tough on Beijing.
The US-China Business Council, which represents 240 companies that operate in China, said it was satisfied with the performance made by Beijing in implementing policy changes under the trade agreement signed in January. However, China had fallen short of targets for increased purchases of U.S. goods and services.
According to the Peterson Institute, Beijing’s purchases of U.S. goods and services, specified in the Phase 1 deal at $75.5 billion for 2020, were about half the level they should be.
“They are behind, but it’s a two-year agreement,” Allen said. “This has been a successful agreement in terms of changing China’s policies that prevented a level playing field. But it’s not complete. It’s not finished, that’s what Phase 2 is about.”
First Mass Vaccination Started Today in England
The largest vaccination campaign started today in the UK history. England became the first country to approve the Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine. The first batch of vaccine arrived at a hospital in south London over the weekend.
A 90-year-old woman named Margaret Keenan went down in world history. Keenan became the first person to get the approved vaccine.
Citizens and healthcare professionals over the age of 80 will be vaccinated for the first time in the country.
One employee said, “It is unbelievable. Frankly, I cannot hold it because they are at minus 70 degrees. But it is great to know that they are here, that we are the first place in the country to receive vaccines. I am proud.”
Vaccines stored at minus 70 degrees Celsius take several hours to dissolve. It also takes some time for the vaccine to be ready for administration. Vaccines should be administered within 3.5 days after dissolution.
The vaccine will be administered in 50 hospitals across the country. People over the age of 80 and nursing home staff will be vaccinated first.
However, a survey made by the University of Hamburg showed that around 40% of people across seven European countries are unwilling to get vaccinated. The speed of testing and development is one of the key factors that is making the public to be concerned about the safety of the vaccination.
