China stock futures have tumbled...
© Bloomberg
Society's Child
Judging by the collapse in Chinese futures and the Offshore Yuan over the past week, China's key cash equity index - The Shanghai Composite - is set to plunge around 6-8% as the market re-opens for the first time since Lunar New Year (and the coronavorus chaos).
China stock futures have tumbled...
And Offshore Yuan is fighting at the 7.00/USD level...
China stock futures have tumbled...
© EPA-EFE
People wearing face masks in Beijing as China battles to control the coronavirus outbreak.
People wearing face masks in Beijing as China battles to control the coronavirus outbreak.
The Chinese foreign ministry made the accusation on Monday, as the number of deaths in mainland China attributed to the coronavirus overtook the Sars epidemic of 2003.
Mainland health officials also called on people to pay extra attention to personal hygiene after traces of the coronavirus were found on surfaces, including a door handle.
Chinese health authorities announced 361 fatalities and 17,205 cases attributable to the rapidly spreading illness, as of Sunday, with 2,829 new cases and 57 deaths. That compares with 2,590 new cases and 45 deaths, nationwide, on Saturday.
Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said in a written statement that many countries appreciated China's efforts to contain the spread of the coronavirus, with the exception of the US.
"But in the meantime, some countries, the US in particular, have inappropriately overreacted, which certainly runs counter to WHO advice," she said.
"The US government has not provided any substantial assistance to us, but it was the first to evacuate personnel from its consulate in Wuhan, the first to suggest partial withdrawal of its embassy staff, and the first to impose a travel ban on Chinese travellers. All it has done could only create and spread fear, which is a bad example."
Comment: Never let an opportunity to score political points pass you up! (This applies to both the U.S. and China.) Until the coronavirus is proven to have run its course, it's just common sense to implement a travel ban of one sort or another. Russia is doing something similar:
© Eugene Odinokov
A passenger wearing a protective mask walks past a train to Beijing at a railway station, in Moscow, Russia
A passenger wearing a protective mask walks past a train to Beijing at a railway station, in Moscow, Russia
The company, Russia's largest state-run transport operator, announced on Sunday that it is expanding the temporary suspension of passenger trains connecting China and Russia to include a direct link between the capitals of the two countries.
The measure came into effect at midnight on Monday, Moscow time [9:00pm GMT Sunday].
Trains that embarked on their journey from Moscow to Beijing on Saturday would go no further than Zabaykalsk, a city in Russia located on the Sino-China border, the operator said.
Comment: Although the coronavirus hasn't yet proven to be more deadly or virulent than the flu, countries worldwide are enforcing more stringent border controls, repatriating citizens and stopping flights:
- Coronavirus' deadliest day in China, WHO declares international health emergency, countries close borders - UPDATES
- Russia suspends visa-free tourist travel to and from China over coronavirus
© AP/Khaled Kandil
Al-Jazeera Arabic reported the apparent sabotage attack on Sunday evening, citing local sources. Follow-up reports suggested that the pipeline remained "functional."
The attack took place in the Bir al-Abd region of the Sinai area, where gas pipelines have been frequent targets before. In 2011, the Egypt-Israel pipeline was blown up on three separate occasions.
Egypt began supplying gas to Israel and Jordan in 2008, but the agreement was met with widespread public opposition, due to Israel's blockade of the Gaza Strip.
Comment: Sputnik reports that no group has claimed responsibility and that the new deal signed between Egypt and Israel involved Delek Drilling and a Houston-based company called Noble Energy.
One of the fields involved was the Leviathan gas field that is reported to be one of the largest recently-discovered gas reserves in the world. Another field supplying these countries is the Tamar gas field, located in Israel's exclusive economic zone, some 80 kilometers (50 miles) west of Haifa. It is considered to have proven reserves of 200 billion cubic meters.
The Sinai Peninsula remains a hotbed of terrorist activity.
See also:
- Trump's 'Deal of the Millennium' Shows The "Two State" Solution Was Always a Lie
- Assassination of Soleimani Just One Shot in Battle of The Ages to Stop Eurasian Integration
- The economic entrails at the heart of the 'deal of the century'
© Ernest Doroszuk/Toronto Sun/Postmedia Network
Three young men were killed and two others injured when gunfire erupted during a party at an Airbnb condo at 85 Queens Wharf Rd. in Toronto on Friday, Jan. 31, 2020.
Three young men were killed and two others injured when gunfire erupted during a party at an Airbnb condo at 85 Queens Wharf Rd. in Toronto on Friday, Jan. 31, 2020.
Police were called to the area of 85 Queens Wharf Rd., located near Lake Shore Boulevard and Bathurst Street, shortly before 10:30 p.m. for a report of gunshots.
Officers arrived to find multiple people shot inside a condo complex.
Comment: Yet more evidence that Toronto is unraveling.
See also:
- 'Many injuries' reported following shooting at Ottawa Airbnb
- Someone is going around throwing feces on students at Toronto universities UPDATE: Suspect arrested
- Woman from viral video who threw chair from Toronto balcony onto busy expressway wanted by police
- Police arrest man swinging axe in Toronto subway station
- Two dead and 12 hurt in Toronto as gunman opens fire in street before being killed in shootout with police
- More human remains found near property used by alleged Toronto serial killer
© REUTERS/Eloisa Lopez
A long queue is formed outside a medical supply store that sells face masks in Manila, Philippines, January 31, 2020.
A long queue is formed outside a medical supply store that sells face masks in Manila, Philippines, January 31, 2020.
The 44-year-old man died on Saturday after losing his battle with the deadly virus, which has claimed the lives of 304 people in China. The man, a resident of Wuhan, was admitted to a local hospital after displaying flu-like symptoms such as a cough and sore throat, the World Health Organization said.
Dr Rabi Abeyasinghe, WHO representative in the Philippines, confirmed at a press briefing on Saturday that the man's demise was the first caused by the coronavirus outside China.
"This is the first reported case outside of China. However, we need to keep in mind that he came from Wuhan, China."
© Flickr / Adrian Snood
A police officer pictured at London's LGBT Community Pride parade in 2015
A police officer pictured at London's LGBT Community Pride parade in 2015
PCSO Connor Freel was born a woman, but now identifies as a man. A transgender activist and police officer, Freel was on foot patrol in the northern Welsh town of Mold last October when he was heckled by 19-year-old Declan Armstrong, who shouted "Is it a boy or is it a girl?" at him.
Insulting? Yes. Insensitive? Yes. A hate crime? Yes, Mold Magistrates' Court decided this week.
The court heard how Freel was left "vulnerable, distressed and embarrassed" by the incident. Armstrong was found guilty of violating the Welsh Public Order Act 1986 by "using abusive or insulting words with intent to cause harassment." The teen was ordered to pay £590, including £200 in compensation to PCSO Freel, and was slapped with a curfew order for 12 weeks.
According to the judge, the "transphobic" nature of Armstrong's comments was an aggravating factor, and elevated his punishment from a low-level one to a medium.
© WPTV
Police in Riviera Beach, FL respond to church shooting
Police in Riviera Beach, FL respond to church shooting
Three people were shot, two of them fatally, following a funeral Saturday afternoon at a church in Riviera Beach, Florida, police said.
The shooting was reported just after 2:30 p.m. outside Victory City Church.
A 15-year-old boy and a man were pronounced dead at the scene. A woman was treated for a non-life threatening injuries, Riviera Beach police said in a press release. The dead man was later identified as 47-year-old Royce Freeman. Police said they were not identifying the other victims.
© RT/screencapture
The incident happened amid the so-called 'days of rage' — a series of protests against Donald Trump's proposal to resolve the Arab-Israeli conflict. One of the demonstrations against the plan was held on Saturday outside of Ramallah, near the city of Al-Bireh in the West Bank.
The confrontation between Palestinians and Israeli soldiers was quite intensive. The demonstrators pelted the Israeli side with stones and burned tires, as the soldiers fired tear gas grenades. At one moment, a barrage of gas canisters landed right next to where a group of journalists covering the event stood, sending them fleeing and scurrying for gas masks.
Mary Lou McDonald and her party are heading for government, and soon, if not this time around.
It was on December 14, 1918, that old Sinn Féin swept the board across Ireland and consigned the Irish Parliamentary Party to oblivion. That was, ironically, the last time a general election was held on a Saturday in Ireland.
The poll, carried out by Panelbase for The Times, puts Sinn Féin in second place on 21 per cent support; the very stuff of Republican dreams. It emulates a previous 21 per cent rating found by an Irish Times poll last month.
But sweeter still is consigning their bitter enemies in Fine Gael to an embarrassing third place, meaning that the Sinn Féin day — always coming, according to their Irish-language slogan — has more or less arrived.
Comment: This news comes on the heels of the biggest January loss in oil prices in 30 years with those writers speculating this is related to the travel restrictions following the coronavirus.
That said, the US also took part in a massive injection of cash recently to prop up its staggering economy: See also: IMF warns of new 'Great Depression', Russia ahead of the curve due to increased cash & gold reserves