Nearly a decade after Japan's central bank first experimented with the policy, the country remains mired in deflation, a general decline in wages and prices that has crippled its economy.
And just as politicians in the U.S. are criticizing the Fed for veering beyond traditional monetary policy and are threatening to curtail the bank's independence as a result, lawmakers in Japan say they'll do the same to the BOJ as punishment for its failure to cure the scourge of falling prices.
Japan's experience offers a case study in the possibilities and limits of quantitative easing, in which a central bank effectively prints money to spur economic activity.
The BOJ began doing quantitative easing in 2001. It had become clear that pushing interest rates down near zero for an extended period had failed to get the economy moving. After five years of gradually expanding its bond purchases, the bank dropped the effort in 2006.
At first, it appeared the program had succeeded in stabilizing the economy and halting the slide in prices. But deflation returned with a vengeance over the past two years, putting the Bank of Japan back on the spot.
So why didn't quantitative easing work in Japan? Critics say the Japanese central bank wasn't aggressive enough in launching and expanding its bond-buying program─then dropped it too soon. In 2006, prices had just started rising, a sign that quantitative easing was beginning to work. But some indicators were already signaling a slowdown in the economy.
Others say Japan simply waited too long to resort to the policy. Tomoya Masanao, who oversees the Japanese portfolio for bond fund giant PIMCO, points out it took the BOJ two years after Japan's consumer prices started falling to launch its bond-buying program. What's important is to do it quickly and aggressively before inflation expectations start to diminish,' Mr. Masanao says. 'It's very clear other central banks have learned this lesson well' from what happened in Japan.
U.S. inflation is now below the Fed's informal target of just under 2%, and the American central bank is trying to respond early to protect the economy from falling into outright deflation.
BOJ officials also seemed half-hearted as they launched the policy, failing to explain it sufficiently or making a strong case for public support. Confidence also eroded as the bank started and stopped various programs over the years. In 2000, for instance, the bank ended a zero-interest-rate program, only to resume it several months later when it became clear they had halted it too soon.
In the U.S., by contrast, Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke and other top officials signaled for months their plans to launch another round of bond-buying. They also have publicly defended the policy against mounting criticism─from leaders abroad, some U.S. politicians and a few of their own central bank colleagues.
Trying to defend past policy choicesBOJ officials have said quantitative easing wasn't the right tool to fight Japan's deflation, which was rooted in structural problems such as a rigid employment system that obliges companies to cut salaries for all rather than eliminate unneeded jobs.
The governor of the Bank of Japan, Masaaki Shirakawa, in a speech in Washington in October, warned the U.S. and other developed countries that their circumstances may differ from Japan's. 'Japan's 'lost decade,' ' he said, 'was crucially attributed to the decline in population and productivity.' The U.S., in contrast, has a growing population and rising productivity.
If the lesson other countries draw from Japan's experience, he said, is that 'short-term stimulative policy measures' are the only cure, then 'they will face a risk of writing the wrong policy prescription.' Maintaining what he described as 'the flexibility of the economic structure' is just as important, he said, though hard to do in the aftermath of a burst bubble.
Mr. Shirakawa also cautioned that maintaining easy monetary policy 'for an extended period' will likely yield unwelcome unintended consequences.
The BOJ remains cautious about launching any major new programs aimed at boosting the economy, which has opened the door for politicians to step up pressure on the bank. 'Every policy has its side effect,' says Yoichi Kaneko, a ruling party lawmaker leading efforts to reduce the Bank of Japan's independence. 'That's why they need to decide what's really important and pursue it vigorously.' In this case, he says, the priority is beating deflation.
Thursday, November 25, 2010
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
China reacted with customary caution to North Korea's shelling of a South Korean island
China is the one country with leverage over North Korea, keeping the regime from collapse with shipments of food and energy. Yet, as one of the worst crises on the Korean peninsula since the 1950-53 Korean War unfolds, China has avoided taking sides.
Beijing even risked appearing to implicitly brush off the incident, with its state-run Xinhua news agency announcing just hours after the deadly North Korean attack that a Chinese government delegation visiting North Korea had signed a new deal on economic and trade cooperation with its neighbor.
China has already antagonized many of its Asian neighbors -- particularly Japan -- by making more assertive territorial claims in the South and East China Seas in recent months.
The U.S. and many other Western countries are growing increasingly alarmed at China's more muscular diplomacy on a range of issues, including trade, climate change and human rights. China's unwillingness to go against North Korea, even as it escalates its military belligerence, is likely to further strain its relations in a region nervous about its strategic intentions.
Stephen Bosworth, special U.S. envoy for North Korea, arrived in Beijing for emergency talks Tuesday following the weekend's revelations about North Korea has dramatically expanded its nuclear program. The Chinese government also reserved judgement on the nuclear issue, calling only for a resumption of talks between North and South Korea, China, Russia, Japan and the U.S.
'China hopes that the relevant parties will do more to contribute to peace and stability in the region,' a spokesman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, Hong Lei, told reporters.
'It is imperative now to resume the six-party talks.'
There was a suggestion of partiality, however, when the evening news broadcast on China's main state-controlled television channel gave greater prominence to North Korea's official version of events on the shelling, which blamed South Korea for firing at it first.
Shortly afterward, Xinhua announced that a delegation led by Chinese Deputy Commerce Minister Wang Hemin had signed the new economic and trade pact in Pyongyang at the sixth meeting of the DPRK-China Intergovernmental Committee for Cooperation in Economy, Trade, Science and Technology.
The Xinhua report gave no details of the pact, and didn't mention the day's violence.
Mr. Bosworth's mission in Beijing, following talks in Seoul and Tokyo over the last two days, is to persuade China to use its clout to curb North Korea's increasingly provocative behavior.
China's political influence in the North derives mainly from the Korean War, when it sent hundreds of thousands of 'volunteers' to fight U.S.-led United Nations forces. Today, it provides much of the North's food and electricity, and is its main trading partner and military backer.
Emerging from a meeting with Yang Jiechi, China's Foreign Minister, Mr. Bosworth said he had held 'useful' talks and the two sides had agreed that a multilateral approach was needed.
However, China is unlikely to comply with any request of greater pressure on the North, according to Yang Xiyu, a former Chinese diplomat who represented China in the six-party talks in 2004-2005.
'The U.S. hopes China will put more pressure, like sanctions, on North Korea. But from China's point of view the best way to persuade North Korea is not through sanctions, but dialogue,' he said. 'The main obstacle is not the question of whether pressure is enough, but how to reduce the strategic mutual distrust between the North and South, and between North Korea and the U.S.'
Mr Yang, now a senior fellow at the state-run China Institute of International Studies, said North Korea's recent actions had 'complicated' China's efforts to restart the six-party talks.
'But that only reveals the need for patience,' he added.
China has long tried to maintain the appearance of impartiality as host of the six-party talks, which it sees as a way enhance its reputation as a responsible member of the international community.
But those efforts are now being undermined by its openly cozy relations with a North Korean government that is pushing the limits of tolerance in the South, according to many foreign diplomats and analysts. They cited China's refusal to accept the results of an international investigation which blamed North Korea for the sinking of the Cheonan, a South Korean ship, in March, with the loss of 46 lives.
This time, however, China may struggle to prevent the U.N. Security Council from censuring North Korea, as the artillery raid occurred in broad daylight, and was shown live on television.
'This is moving a lot faster than the Cheonan incident, so I would expect this goes quickly to the U.N. so China doesn't have the time to use the usual delay and water-down techniques,' said John Delury, assistant professor at Yonsei University's Graduate School of International Studies. 'Chinese diplomats are going to be looking for ways to finesse this back to negotiation in the days to come, and that's going to be hard,' he said.
An ailing Kim Jong Il, North Korea's leader, made a surprise visit to China in August -- his second this year -- to meet President Hu Jintao, who took the rare step of travelling to northeastern China, near the North Korean border, for the meeting. It was a piece of diplomatic theater that underlined the fraternal relationship between the neighbors that was forged in war and is sustained by close links between the ruling parties.
There were rumors -- never confirmed -- that Mr Kim was accompanied in China by his third and youngest son, Kim Jong Eun, who was anointed as North Korea's next leader in September.
China's primary concern isn't to prevent North Korea from developing a nuclear weapon, but to ensure that the regime there doesn't suddenly collapse, sending a flood of refugees over the border into northeastern China.
There is also a common view among Chinese experts that a strong, unified Korea represents a threat to China as it would bring to its border a key U.S. ally, and the People's Liberation Army would end up face-to-face with thousands of U.S. troops stationed in the South.
'China can't be seen as an honest broker in this process,' said Nicholas Eberstadt, an expert on North Korea at the American Enterprise Institute in Washington.
Beijing even risked appearing to implicitly brush off the incident, with its state-run Xinhua news agency announcing just hours after the deadly North Korean attack that a Chinese government delegation visiting North Korea had signed a new deal on economic and trade cooperation with its neighbor.
China has already antagonized many of its Asian neighbors -- particularly Japan -- by making more assertive territorial claims in the South and East China Seas in recent months.
The U.S. and many other Western countries are growing increasingly alarmed at China's more muscular diplomacy on a range of issues, including trade, climate change and human rights. China's unwillingness to go against North Korea, even as it escalates its military belligerence, is likely to further strain its relations in a region nervous about its strategic intentions.
Stephen Bosworth, special U.S. envoy for North Korea, arrived in Beijing for emergency talks Tuesday following the weekend's revelations about North Korea has dramatically expanded its nuclear program. The Chinese government also reserved judgement on the nuclear issue, calling only for a resumption of talks between North and South Korea, China, Russia, Japan and the U.S.
'China hopes that the relevant parties will do more to contribute to peace and stability in the region,' a spokesman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, Hong Lei, told reporters.
'It is imperative now to resume the six-party talks.'
There was a suggestion of partiality, however, when the evening news broadcast on China's main state-controlled television channel gave greater prominence to North Korea's official version of events on the shelling, which blamed South Korea for firing at it first.
Shortly afterward, Xinhua announced that a delegation led by Chinese Deputy Commerce Minister Wang Hemin had signed the new economic and trade pact in Pyongyang at the sixth meeting of the DPRK-China Intergovernmental Committee for Cooperation in Economy, Trade, Science and Technology.
The Xinhua report gave no details of the pact, and didn't mention the day's violence.
Mr. Bosworth's mission in Beijing, following talks in Seoul and Tokyo over the last two days, is to persuade China to use its clout to curb North Korea's increasingly provocative behavior.
China's political influence in the North derives mainly from the Korean War, when it sent hundreds of thousands of 'volunteers' to fight U.S.-led United Nations forces. Today, it provides much of the North's food and electricity, and is its main trading partner and military backer.
Emerging from a meeting with Yang Jiechi, China's Foreign Minister, Mr. Bosworth said he had held 'useful' talks and the two sides had agreed that a multilateral approach was needed.
However, China is unlikely to comply with any request of greater pressure on the North, according to Yang Xiyu, a former Chinese diplomat who represented China in the six-party talks in 2004-2005.
'The U.S. hopes China will put more pressure, like sanctions, on North Korea. But from China's point of view the best way to persuade North Korea is not through sanctions, but dialogue,' he said. 'The main obstacle is not the question of whether pressure is enough, but how to reduce the strategic mutual distrust between the North and South, and between North Korea and the U.S.'
Mr Yang, now a senior fellow at the state-run China Institute of International Studies, said North Korea's recent actions had 'complicated' China's efforts to restart the six-party talks.
'But that only reveals the need for patience,' he added.
China has long tried to maintain the appearance of impartiality as host of the six-party talks, which it sees as a way enhance its reputation as a responsible member of the international community.
But those efforts are now being undermined by its openly cozy relations with a North Korean government that is pushing the limits of tolerance in the South, according to many foreign diplomats and analysts. They cited China's refusal to accept the results of an international investigation which blamed North Korea for the sinking of the Cheonan, a South Korean ship, in March, with the loss of 46 lives.
This time, however, China may struggle to prevent the U.N. Security Council from censuring North Korea, as the artillery raid occurred in broad daylight, and was shown live on television.
'This is moving a lot faster than the Cheonan incident, so I would expect this goes quickly to the U.N. so China doesn't have the time to use the usual delay and water-down techniques,' said John Delury, assistant professor at Yonsei University's Graduate School of International Studies. 'Chinese diplomats are going to be looking for ways to finesse this back to negotiation in the days to come, and that's going to be hard,' he said.
An ailing Kim Jong Il, North Korea's leader, made a surprise visit to China in August -- his second this year -- to meet President Hu Jintao, who took the rare step of travelling to northeastern China, near the North Korean border, for the meeting. It was a piece of diplomatic theater that underlined the fraternal relationship between the neighbors that was forged in war and is sustained by close links between the ruling parties.
There were rumors -- never confirmed -- that Mr Kim was accompanied in China by his third and youngest son, Kim Jong Eun, who was anointed as North Korea's next leader in September.
China's primary concern isn't to prevent North Korea from developing a nuclear weapon, but to ensure that the regime there doesn't suddenly collapse, sending a flood of refugees over the border into northeastern China.
There is also a common view among Chinese experts that a strong, unified Korea represents a threat to China as it would bring to its border a key U.S. ally, and the People's Liberation Army would end up face-to-face with thousands of U.S. troops stationed in the South.
'China can't be seen as an honest broker in this process,' said Nicholas Eberstadt, an expert on North Korea at the American Enterprise Institute in Washington.
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
There is much self-congratulation in India over how well the country survived the financial crisis
Shashi Ruia, chairman of Essar Group, the oil-to-outsourcing conglomerate, is rarely seen on the public stage. But he delivered a refreshing balloon pop to, well, basically all of the above when he stood before the Hindustan Times Leadership Summit in New Delhi Friday.
India will only become a truly global country─and reap the rewards of globalization─when it is able to sell its own goods in the world marketplace, as opposed to just buying up companies worldwide.
It is not enough to produce and sell in India, he said, because “the Indian market alone won’t be enough to sustain India’s growth; we need to reach out to other markets.”
He noted that China is now the dominant foreign player in the U.S., the Nafta trade region, Australia and Japan─places east of its eastern border.
India’s opportunity to mimic that lies in the Middle East, Africa, Europe and Russia “where India has to go to occupy its rightful place,” Mr. Ruia said.
But to get there, Indian entrepreneurship won’t be enough─the nation needs to become a leader in manufacturing and infrastructure, two areas where it can learn from China.
He then rattled off a series of annualized comparisons that should be essential reading for anyone who believes India and China belong in the same class of emerging economies. Here they are:
India makes 65 million tons of steel, China makes 650 million.
China makes 11 million cars a year. India makes two million.
India-U.S. trade totals $50 billion. China-U.S. trade totals $450 billion.
Mr. Ruia found a positive spin: “It just reflects the potential for India’s growth.”
But he also complained of a lack of “national vision” needed for the industrialization that India requires.
“We need a national commitment, national management, a national resolve, a national strategy, a national belief we could do it,” he said.
India will only become a truly global country─and reap the rewards of globalization─when it is able to sell its own goods in the world marketplace, as opposed to just buying up companies worldwide.
It is not enough to produce and sell in India, he said, because “the Indian market alone won’t be enough to sustain India’s growth; we need to reach out to other markets.”
He noted that China is now the dominant foreign player in the U.S., the Nafta trade region, Australia and Japan─places east of its eastern border.
India’s opportunity to mimic that lies in the Middle East, Africa, Europe and Russia “where India has to go to occupy its rightful place,” Mr. Ruia said.
But to get there, Indian entrepreneurship won’t be enough─the nation needs to become a leader in manufacturing and infrastructure, two areas where it can learn from China.
He then rattled off a series of annualized comparisons that should be essential reading for anyone who believes India and China belong in the same class of emerging economies. Here they are:
India makes 65 million tons of steel, China makes 650 million.
China makes 11 million cars a year. India makes two million.
India-U.S. trade totals $50 billion. China-U.S. trade totals $450 billion.
Mr. Ruia found a positive spin: “It just reflects the potential for India’s growth.”
But he also complained of a lack of “national vision” needed for the industrialization that India requires.
“We need a national commitment, national management, a national resolve, a national strategy, a national belief we could do it,” he said.
Monday, November 22, 2010
Thousands of people gathered outside the charred remains of a high-rise apartment building in Shanghai
Sunday to mourn the 58 people who died last week in a fire that has triggered public criticism and resulted in a dozen arrests.
Relatives of the victims began arriving at dawn to lay flowers before portraits of the dead at an entrance to the block. By the end of the day, an estimated 10,000 people had come to pay their respects, witnesses said.
The fire swept through the 28-story building last Monday after sparks from welding equipment set alight nylon construction netting and bamboo scaffolding. Officials have blamed unlicensed welders who were fixing insulation material to meet energy-efficiency targets.
Most of the victims died inside their own homes, overcome by smoke, toxic fumes and heat. Another 71 were injured, and an unknown number of people are still unaccounted for.
Local authorities had prepared for the crowds by setting up barricades around the building and deploying dozens of volunteers as well as uniformed and plainclothes police.
'Shanghai Don't Cry: Mourn the Victims of Shanghai's Jiaozhou Road Fire,' said small black-and-white posters being handed out by young people wearing badges that identified them as volunteers.
There were no signs of protests, but many victims' relatives and others have criticized the government for responding too slowly to the fire, and failing to enforce safety standards during construction work in China's wealthiest commercial metropolis.
Criticism has been particularly intense among Chinese Internet users, especially on microblogging sites like Sina Weibo.
Central and local authorities have tried to act fast to quell public anger over the fire, which highlights the lax government oversight and poor work practices that are still rife across China's booming construction industry, despite some improvement in recent years.
The fire has raised particular concern over China's efforts to meet energy-efficiency targets by adding insulation to the outside of buildings, as the welders were doing when the fire broke out. The insulating material is supposed to be treated with fire retardant, but it is still flammable. Local authorities in Beijing, the capital, have ordered a halt to such projects, pending reviews and 'rectification' of any problems.
Luo Lin, head of the State Administration of Work Safety, has blamed the tragedy on unlicensed welders, illegal subcontracting and poor management.
Shanghai authorities have ordered fire and safety inspections throughout the city, while the central government has promised a crackdown on lax safety practices at construction sites and public areas in major cities.
Shanghai police have also detained 12 people in connection with the blaze, including four unlicensed welders, as well as project supervisors and building construction managers, according to the state-run Xinhua news agency.
In another move to appease the public, Shanghai's Communist Party chief Yu Zhengsheng, mayor Han Zheng and other senior officials joined the mourners Sunday, offering white chrysanthemums--a traditional symbol of mourning--and bowing three times before the building.
Relatives of the victims began arriving at dawn to lay flowers before portraits of the dead at an entrance to the block. By the end of the day, an estimated 10,000 people had come to pay their respects, witnesses said.
The fire swept through the 28-story building last Monday after sparks from welding equipment set alight nylon construction netting and bamboo scaffolding. Officials have blamed unlicensed welders who were fixing insulation material to meet energy-efficiency targets.
Most of the victims died inside their own homes, overcome by smoke, toxic fumes and heat. Another 71 were injured, and an unknown number of people are still unaccounted for.
Local authorities had prepared for the crowds by setting up barricades around the building and deploying dozens of volunteers as well as uniformed and plainclothes police.
'Shanghai Don't Cry: Mourn the Victims of Shanghai's Jiaozhou Road Fire,' said small black-and-white posters being handed out by young people wearing badges that identified them as volunteers.
There were no signs of protests, but many victims' relatives and others have criticized the government for responding too slowly to the fire, and failing to enforce safety standards during construction work in China's wealthiest commercial metropolis.
Criticism has been particularly intense among Chinese Internet users, especially on microblogging sites like Sina Weibo.
Central and local authorities have tried to act fast to quell public anger over the fire, which highlights the lax government oversight and poor work practices that are still rife across China's booming construction industry, despite some improvement in recent years.
The fire has raised particular concern over China's efforts to meet energy-efficiency targets by adding insulation to the outside of buildings, as the welders were doing when the fire broke out. The insulating material is supposed to be treated with fire retardant, but it is still flammable. Local authorities in Beijing, the capital, have ordered a halt to such projects, pending reviews and 'rectification' of any problems.
Luo Lin, head of the State Administration of Work Safety, has blamed the tragedy on unlicensed welders, illegal subcontracting and poor management.
Shanghai authorities have ordered fire and safety inspections throughout the city, while the central government has promised a crackdown on lax safety practices at construction sites and public areas in major cities.
Shanghai police have also detained 12 people in connection with the blaze, including four unlicensed welders, as well as project supervisors and building construction managers, according to the state-run Xinhua news agency.
In another move to appease the public, Shanghai's Communist Party chief Yu Zhengsheng, mayor Han Zheng and other senior officials joined the mourners Sunday, offering white chrysanthemums--a traditional symbol of mourning--and bowing three times before the building.
Saturday, November 20, 2010
Does Beyonce’s new perfume commercial go too far?
The spot recently aired on British TV, but has since been restricted to airings after 7:30 p.m. in the wake of complaints about its sexual imagery. (It reportedly drew 14 objections, which doesn’t sound like a whole lot to Speakeasy. It’s also unclear how many of those complaints were from disgruntled former members of Destiny’s Child.) In the commercial, for “Heat” fragrance, a glistening Beyonce who looks like she may need antiperspirant more than perfume wears a red dress with a plunging neckline, sings a sultry version of “Fever” and raises the temperature of everything she touches. In other words, it pretty much looks like every video Beyonce has ever made.
Friday, November 19, 2010
Macau has overtaken Las Vegas as the gambling capital of the world - more money is bet on tables there than any other place in the world
But while the former Portuguese colony has its sordid corners, it lacks the glossy party atmosphere of its American peer.
The people at Playboy Enterprises want to change that.
Playboy - that he-man brand created in the 1950s by Hugh Hefner that's best known in the West for its magazine - is betting big that its kind of glamour will sell well in this part of Asia. The company is opening its second club, a 1,115-square-meter club in Macau on the penthouse level of the Sands Macau Hotel (its other club is in Las Vegas). There's more in the works: A 2,787-square-meter mansion is planned for Macau in 2012.
But first, Playboy will go looking for bunnies.
We're talking Playboy Bunnies, of course - women clad in skimpy costumes, complete with tight corsets, a tuxedo collar, bunny ears and a cottontail. On Friday, the club hosted a casting call to find the 20 bunnies they need for opening day (scheduled for Nov. 20). According to the organizers, around 600 women from around the world have already applied. Friday's bunny-hunt event was a chance for some of the final candidates to be interviewed, presented to the press, and to have their pictures taken in their swimsuits. The final roster will be announced later.
Denise Pernula, a former bunny and model who posed for the magazine as Miss November 2007, flew from Wyoming to serve as one of the judges. As a bunny for the Playboy club in Las Vegas, which opened in 2006, she says she understands the pressure. The women will be under 'a lot of…stress' to land the job, she says. 'They have to be intelligent, charming, attractive.' As for physique? 'All bunnies come in different shapes and sizes,' she added.
The original Playboy Bunnies were waitresses at the many clubs the company used to run but shut down in the late 1980s. The Bunnies came under fire from many critics, including the feminist Gloria Steinem, who derided the selection and training process - where looks trumped all - as degrading.
In Macau, Playboy is banking on sex appeal, of course. But Reggie Martin, the club's general manager, says that the Macau club will be tailored to its clientele.
'The Asian market is very different from the U.S. market,' said Mr. Martin, an American from Indiana who has lived in Macau for eight years. 'It won't be as crazy as Las Vegas. More chill. Las Vegas has a lot of college-aged people while Macau has more of a mature crowd. It also draws more of a local crowd than a tourist crowd.'
He later added, 'We really want to establish Macau as more than just a gaming destination.'
While Playboy is ingrained in American pop culture and synonymous with sex appeal, in China it has a different image - as a fashion line. The magazine is not sold in China, where pornography is banned, though Playboy has sold clothing with its bunny logo in the mainland for about 20 years. Chinese firewalls keep Playboy's website at bay.
'The Chinese think of us as an American fashion brand,' said Jeff Dougherty, vice president of marketing license group at Playboy. 'But we think they'll be lured by the brand to the club.'
And by the bunnies, of course. Candidates for the job will be interviewed in swimsuits. And Mr. Dougherty said one of the obvious requirements for the job is 'to look terrific in the bunny costume.'
Once the staff is picked, they'll be central to the club and to its identity, just like in its previous ones. 'No matter what time you're in the club, there will be a bunny,' said Mr. Martin. 'Guaranteed.'
The people at Playboy Enterprises want to change that.
Playboy - that he-man brand created in the 1950s by Hugh Hefner that's best known in the West for its magazine - is betting big that its kind of glamour will sell well in this part of Asia. The company is opening its second club, a 1,115-square-meter club in Macau on the penthouse level of the Sands Macau Hotel (its other club is in Las Vegas). There's more in the works: A 2,787-square-meter mansion is planned for Macau in 2012.
But first, Playboy will go looking for bunnies.
We're talking Playboy Bunnies, of course - women clad in skimpy costumes, complete with tight corsets, a tuxedo collar, bunny ears and a cottontail. On Friday, the club hosted a casting call to find the 20 bunnies they need for opening day (scheduled for Nov. 20). According to the organizers, around 600 women from around the world have already applied. Friday's bunny-hunt event was a chance for some of the final candidates to be interviewed, presented to the press, and to have their pictures taken in their swimsuits. The final roster will be announced later.
Denise Pernula, a former bunny and model who posed for the magazine as Miss November 2007, flew from Wyoming to serve as one of the judges. As a bunny for the Playboy club in Las Vegas, which opened in 2006, she says she understands the pressure. The women will be under 'a lot of…stress' to land the job, she says. 'They have to be intelligent, charming, attractive.' As for physique? 'All bunnies come in different shapes and sizes,' she added.
The original Playboy Bunnies were waitresses at the many clubs the company used to run but shut down in the late 1980s. The Bunnies came under fire from many critics, including the feminist Gloria Steinem, who derided the selection and training process - where looks trumped all - as degrading.
In Macau, Playboy is banking on sex appeal, of course. But Reggie Martin, the club's general manager, says that the Macau club will be tailored to its clientele.
'The Asian market is very different from the U.S. market,' said Mr. Martin, an American from Indiana who has lived in Macau for eight years. 'It won't be as crazy as Las Vegas. More chill. Las Vegas has a lot of college-aged people while Macau has more of a mature crowd. It also draws more of a local crowd than a tourist crowd.'
He later added, 'We really want to establish Macau as more than just a gaming destination.'
While Playboy is ingrained in American pop culture and synonymous with sex appeal, in China it has a different image - as a fashion line. The magazine is not sold in China, where pornography is banned, though Playboy has sold clothing with its bunny logo in the mainland for about 20 years. Chinese firewalls keep Playboy's website at bay.
'The Chinese think of us as an American fashion brand,' said Jeff Dougherty, vice president of marketing license group at Playboy. 'But we think they'll be lured by the brand to the club.'
And by the bunnies, of course. Candidates for the job will be interviewed in swimsuits. And Mr. Dougherty said one of the obvious requirements for the job is 'to look terrific in the bunny costume.'
Once the staff is picked, they'll be central to the club and to its identity, just like in its previous ones. 'No matter what time you're in the club, there will be a bunny,' said Mr. Martin. 'Guaranteed.'
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
China said it is ready to clamp price controls on daily necessities to bring down inflation
statement from the State Council on Wednesday pledging to use administrative measures to tame rising prices of food and energy, and to cushion the poor with higher welfare payouts, appeared mainly to reflect government concerns that inflation could trigger social unrest.
Accelerating food prices--the biggest single component of China's inflation, now running well above the government's target of 3% for the year--are hurting China's neediest households, and their plight could get worse as the country heads into what is forecast to be an unusually cold winter that threatens to disrupt transport and bring new fuel shortages.
Some economists interpreted the statement as a signal that the government was more concerned about the political fallout of inflation than with economic overheating in general. The last time Beijing resorted to price controls was when inflation spiked in 2008.
Still, the measures feed into anxieties among investors that China will roll out increasingly stringent anti-inflation measures that will put a sudden brake on its growth.
The State Council said the government would intervene 'when necessary' to impose temporary controls on the prices of 'important daily necessities and factors of production.' It promised to crack down on speculators who have been driving up the price of agricultural commodities. In addition, it outlined moves to boost the supply of diesel fuel, used for farm vehicles, and to control energy prices.
Talk of price controls has worried investors for several days and has helped to send China's stock markets swooning. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index has lost 10% in the past four trading days, including a 2% drop Wednesday.
That China feels it is necessary to use price controls has signaled that policymakers have been too reactive to the inflation threat, instead of getting ahead of the problem, said Li-Gang Liu, head of China economics for ANZ Bank in Hong Kong.
'If they use too harsh monetary policy to tighten credit supply in the remainder of the year, it's quite likely we will see some sort of hard landing going forward,' Liu said.
Supermarkets and restaurants across China are passing on rising agricultural prices to their customers. McDonald's Corp. (MCD) on Wednesday blamed growing costs for a decision to increase prices at its more than 1,100 China outlets by up to 1 yuan, or 15 U.S. cents, on a range of items, including chicken McNuggets, pies, and ice cream.
A Chinese hard-landing scenario has helped to roil international markets at a time when investors are consumed with European debt problems and rising bond yields in the U.S. China is seen by investors as having played a major role in reflating the global economy after the collapse of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. and a bruising inflation fight could mean the world's fastest-growing large economy could become preoccupied.
Expectations that China will curb its voracious appetite for commodities has sent prices lower for everything from crude oil to soybeans.
Since Nov. 11, when China published a surprisingly high 4.4% October consumer-price reading, Nymex crude oil for December delivery has fallen 7%. Soybean prices traded at the Chicago Board of Trade have fallen 9%. On the Shanghai Futures Exchange, copper and zinc both fell 5% Wednesday, triggering circuit breakers that limit single-day moves.
The urgency for Chinese officials to address rising inflation may have been increased by the U.S. Federal Reserve's plan to resume buying government bonds in an attempt to drive interest rates lower. In recent weeks, numerous Chinese officials have said the Fed's policy threatens to spur inflation and capital inflows to emerging economies.
Economists point out that the Fed's looser monetary policy should be inflationary for China only if it tries to keep its currency effectively pegged to the U.S. dollar. So the increased worries about inflation could be another incentive for China to continue, or perhaps to accelerate, the recent appreciation of its currency, which has been rising about 1% a month against the U.S. dollar since September.
While a stronger yuan, or renminbi as its also known, puts pressure on China's exporters, it also lowers the price of imports, especially raw materials that are generally priced in dollars.
'China has to allow the renminbi to appreciate faster to dampen the effect of imported inflation,' said Liu of ANZ.
Price controls are arguably the sixth tool Chinese policy makers have unveiled this year to fight inflation. The tools include increases in bank-reserve requirements, lending curbs against property, tightened capital controls, an interest-rate increase in October, and modest currency appreciation.
Economists worry that price controls can distort markets and exacerbate problems over the long run. Forcing farmers to accept lower prices for their goods takes away the incentive to plant more or invest in more-productive growing methods.
'These measures buy time, but the risk is they do more harm than good,' said Robert Subbaraman, economist for Nomura in Hong Kong.
Chinese economists mostly believe upward inflation pressures have begun easing, though inflation expectations remain high, adding to pressure on Beijing to act. 'We should fully realize the importance and urgency of stabilizing market prices and take strong measures timely,' the cabinet's meeting chaired by Premier Wen Jiabao said, according to a statement posted on the government's website.
The measures combine both 'steps to cope with short-term emergencies' and 'a mechanism that aims for long-term effect,' the statement said.
The statement said the government will gradually increase payments from pension funds and unemployment insurance and raise minimum wages, as part of measures to help low-income families cope with price rises.
It calls for an increase in oil-product supplies amid a severe shortage of diesel fuel caused by the government's energy-saving efforts. Local governments in some areas have imposed electricity rationing to meet centrally imposed energy-efficiency targets, prompting some industrial users to switch to diesel generators.
The government has planned to gradually raise natural-gas prices to encourage more efficient use, but the statement indicated this may now have to be delayed by stressing the need to 'manage well the timing, pace, and magnitude of adjustments on government-administrated prices.'
Accelerating food prices--the biggest single component of China's inflation, now running well above the government's target of 3% for the year--are hurting China's neediest households, and their plight could get worse as the country heads into what is forecast to be an unusually cold winter that threatens to disrupt transport and bring new fuel shortages.
Some economists interpreted the statement as a signal that the government was more concerned about the political fallout of inflation than with economic overheating in general. The last time Beijing resorted to price controls was when inflation spiked in 2008.
Still, the measures feed into anxieties among investors that China will roll out increasingly stringent anti-inflation measures that will put a sudden brake on its growth.
The State Council said the government would intervene 'when necessary' to impose temporary controls on the prices of 'important daily necessities and factors of production.' It promised to crack down on speculators who have been driving up the price of agricultural commodities. In addition, it outlined moves to boost the supply of diesel fuel, used for farm vehicles, and to control energy prices.
Talk of price controls has worried investors for several days and has helped to send China's stock markets swooning. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index has lost 10% in the past four trading days, including a 2% drop Wednesday.
That China feels it is necessary to use price controls has signaled that policymakers have been too reactive to the inflation threat, instead of getting ahead of the problem, said Li-Gang Liu, head of China economics for ANZ Bank in Hong Kong.
'If they use too harsh monetary policy to tighten credit supply in the remainder of the year, it's quite likely we will see some sort of hard landing going forward,' Liu said.
Supermarkets and restaurants across China are passing on rising agricultural prices to their customers. McDonald's Corp. (MCD) on Wednesday blamed growing costs for a decision to increase prices at its more than 1,100 China outlets by up to 1 yuan, or 15 U.S. cents, on a range of items, including chicken McNuggets, pies, and ice cream.
A Chinese hard-landing scenario has helped to roil international markets at a time when investors are consumed with European debt problems and rising bond yields in the U.S. China is seen by investors as having played a major role in reflating the global economy after the collapse of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. and a bruising inflation fight could mean the world's fastest-growing large economy could become preoccupied.
Expectations that China will curb its voracious appetite for commodities has sent prices lower for everything from crude oil to soybeans.
Since Nov. 11, when China published a surprisingly high 4.4% October consumer-price reading, Nymex crude oil for December delivery has fallen 7%. Soybean prices traded at the Chicago Board of Trade have fallen 9%. On the Shanghai Futures Exchange, copper and zinc both fell 5% Wednesday, triggering circuit breakers that limit single-day moves.
The urgency for Chinese officials to address rising inflation may have been increased by the U.S. Federal Reserve's plan to resume buying government bonds in an attempt to drive interest rates lower. In recent weeks, numerous Chinese officials have said the Fed's policy threatens to spur inflation and capital inflows to emerging economies.
Economists point out that the Fed's looser monetary policy should be inflationary for China only if it tries to keep its currency effectively pegged to the U.S. dollar. So the increased worries about inflation could be another incentive for China to continue, or perhaps to accelerate, the recent appreciation of its currency, which has been rising about 1% a month against the U.S. dollar since September.
While a stronger yuan, or renminbi as its also known, puts pressure on China's exporters, it also lowers the price of imports, especially raw materials that are generally priced in dollars.
'China has to allow the renminbi to appreciate faster to dampen the effect of imported inflation,' said Liu of ANZ.
Price controls are arguably the sixth tool Chinese policy makers have unveiled this year to fight inflation. The tools include increases in bank-reserve requirements, lending curbs against property, tightened capital controls, an interest-rate increase in October, and modest currency appreciation.
Economists worry that price controls can distort markets and exacerbate problems over the long run. Forcing farmers to accept lower prices for their goods takes away the incentive to plant more or invest in more-productive growing methods.
'These measures buy time, but the risk is they do more harm than good,' said Robert Subbaraman, economist for Nomura in Hong Kong.
Chinese economists mostly believe upward inflation pressures have begun easing, though inflation expectations remain high, adding to pressure on Beijing to act. 'We should fully realize the importance and urgency of stabilizing market prices and take strong measures timely,' the cabinet's meeting chaired by Premier Wen Jiabao said, according to a statement posted on the government's website.
The measures combine both 'steps to cope with short-term emergencies' and 'a mechanism that aims for long-term effect,' the statement said.
The statement said the government will gradually increase payments from pension funds and unemployment insurance and raise minimum wages, as part of measures to help low-income families cope with price rises.
It calls for an increase in oil-product supplies amid a severe shortage of diesel fuel caused by the government's energy-saving efforts. Local governments in some areas have imposed electricity rationing to meet centrally imposed energy-efficiency targets, prompting some industrial users to switch to diesel generators.
The government has planned to gradually raise natural-gas prices to encourage more efficient use, but the statement indicated this may now have to be delayed by stressing the need to 'manage well the timing, pace, and magnitude of adjustments on government-administrated prices.'
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)