Africa-Press – Gambia. Welcome to Your Week in Asia.
There will be two presidential debates in South Korea this week, as the election campaign enters its final stage. Australia is reopening its borders to fully vaccinated visa holders, starting Monday. Hong Kong will mandate vaccination against COVID-19 in public places from Thursday, as the territory grapples with its worst outbreak since the start of the pandemic.MONDAY
Australia opens up to visa holders
Australia reopens to fully vaccinated tourists, business travelers and other visa holders after about two years of tight border controls. The change marks the end of the “Fortress Australia” policy of shutting out the world to control COVID-19. The shift will “give certainty” for the vital tourism industry, the government said.
South Korea presidential debate on economic issues
South Korea’s four presidential candidates will hold a televised debate on economic policy ahead of election day on March 9. Yoon Suk-yeol of the opposition People Power Party is slightly ahead of the governing Democratic Party’s Lee Jae-myung in opinion polls, but the race too close to call. The candidates will debate politics on Friday.
ICJ hearings on Rohingya genocide
The United Nations’ top court will hold public hearings in a case against Myanmar alleging genocide against the Muslim minority Rohingya Muslims. Gambia launched the legal action at the International Court of Justice in The Hague, Netherlands, in November 2019. It claims that Myanmar’s military operations in Rohingya areas since October 2016 violate the U.N. anti-genocide treaty. Myanmar denies its forces have committed genocide. The hearings are due to run through Feb. 28.
New Oriental financial results
New Oriental Education & Technology Group will release its earnings for the six months ended Nov. 30, 2021. The Chinese company has not said whether there will be a conference call with analysts.
Earlier this year, Chairman Yu Minhong said New Oriental laid off 60,000 people, or 60% of its employees, in 2021. The group has pivoted toward livestream sales and other new businesses amid a regulatory crackdown in China. Over half the group’s employees are teachers. In a filing to the U.S. SEC last month, New Oriental estimated the group recorded a net loss of between $800 million and $900 million for the period. That compares with a net profit of $228.6 million for the six months ended Nov. 30, 2020.
Thailand GDP
TUESDAY
EU/Indo-Pacific foreign ministers meeting
France, which currently holds the EU’s rotating presidency, will host talks in Paris with foreign ministers from member states and Indo-Pacific countries. The officials will discuss defense and security, as well as digital matters, connectivity and climate change. The agenda reflects the “Global Gateway” infrastructure investment initiative the EU launched in December. The European bloc set out its Indo-Pacific strategy last year and is keen to step up engagement with the region.
Sentencing in Hong Kong sedition case
A Hong Kong court will rule whether Tam Tak-chi, a democracy activist and former politician, is guilty of “uttering seditious words” and publishing seditious texts. He denies the 14 charges he faces, including disorderly conduct, convening an unauthorized assembly and refusing to obey police orders.
The 49-year-old has been in custody since he was arrested in September 2020. Prosecutors and lawyers for the defense last year debated the meaning of the protest slogan “Liberate Hong Kong, revolution of our times.”
In another case, singer Tommy Yuen was charged on Thursday with making seditious posts on social media. The list of people awaiting trial under the colonial-era sedition law has grown to more than 20.
Company earnings: HSBC
WEDNESDAY
Hong Kong budget
Hong Kong unveils its 2022-23 budget as the city grapples with the latest coronavirus outbreak. Harsh social distancing restrictions have killed off local businesses and employers are looking to the government for financial relief. Economists have downgraded growth forecasts for the financial hub, citing uncertainty over plans to reopen the territory to the Chinese mainland and the rest of the world. Financial Secretary Paul Chan is expected to report a deficit for the past financial year.
India’s top court hears Amazon’s case
India’s Supreme Court is due to hear Amazon’s challenge to the sale of retailer Future Group’s sale to Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries. Amazon has launched a case at the Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC), citing the terms of its own investment in a Future Group subsidiary in 2019. The Delhi High Court in January had stayed the proceedings at the SIAC, a month after India’s antitrust regulator suspended its earlier approval of Amazon’s investment in the Future Group company. Now India’s top court will hear Amazon’s challenge to that lower court order.
New Zealand monetary policy announcement
Company earnings: OCBC (FY2021), Galaxy Entertainment, Lenovo
THURSDAY
South Korea central bank meeting
The Bank of Korea hosts a monetary policy meeting to decide its key interest rate, after raising it in November and January. The central bank is expected to freeze its rate at 1.25% as the country’s presidential election draws near. However, the U.S. Federal Reserve’s tightening policy has put pressure on the BOK to take action sooner rather than later.
Hong Kong enforces vaccine passport
New rules will come into force requiring Hong Kong residents to have had at least one COVID-19 shot to enter restaurants, shopping malls and grocery stores. At least 85% of the population has had a first dose, but vaccination rates among the elderly have remained sluggish. Last week, a man filed for a judicial review of the rules, arguing the “vaccine pass” is discriminatory and an infringement of people’s rights.
Oppo flagship phone launch
Oppo, the world’s No. 4 smartphone maker, is set to launch its flagship Find handset series ahead of the Mobile World Congress, one of the most important industry trade shows of the year. Oppo ended last year with more than 20% growth in its worldwide smartphone shipments, climbing two notches in global rankings. It gained ground partly at the expense of rival Huawei Technologies, which is under U.S. sanctions, research agency IDC’s data showed. .
Company earnings: Singapore Airlines (Q3), Alibaba, NetEase, HKEX
FRIDAY
Kissinger looks to next 50 years of U.S.-China relations
It has been 50 years since U.S. President Richard Nixon and Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai signed the Shanghai Communique that marked the beginning of the U.S.-China rapprochement. Henry Kissinger, who negotiated that deal for the U.S., will address several groups focused on the bilateral relationship. Zhou’s niece and former U.S. Ambassador Gary Locke will also speak about the future of the two nations’ increasingly fraught relationship.
Screening of documentary on Hong Kong protests in Taiwan
Movie theaters in Taiwan will begin showing an award-winning documentary on the Hong Kong pro-democracy protests in 2019. “Revolution of Our Times,” which tells the story of the monthslong demonstrations against the Hong Kong government, was named best documentary at the Golden Horse Awards in Taiwan last year.
Director Kiwi Chow sold the rights to the film overseas to avoid Hong Kong’s sweeping censorship of the film industry and the new national security law imposed by Beijing. Tickets for four screenings of the movie in Vancouver sold out within minutes.
Company earnings: New World Development, Li Auto
WEEKEND
Philippine presidential debate
Candidates in the Philippine presidential election will hold their first major debate, hosted by TV network CNN Philippines. Representatives of Ferdinand Macros Jr., son of the country’s late dictator, say he will skip the event due to a scheduling conflict. Marcos is the front-runner among the 10 candidates participating in the May 9 election.
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