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Current
Affairs
mAlAK HArB, AP PHOTO
Digital rice
The Indonesian government
has launched a farming
digitization project in West
Java, which may increase
rice output by at least 20
percent, officials said on July
9. The project is currently
tested among thousands of
farmers in nine rice-producing
districts as President
Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s
administration seeks to boost
domestic food production.
“The goal is to transform
farming, which is still quite
traditional, to be more modern
and to teach farmers to be
agro-entrepreneurs,” Deputy
State-Owned enterprises
minister Wahyu Kuncoro
stated.
inMeMorial
Former journalist, filmmaker,
and senior producer Tino
Saroengallo has died at
60 years old on Friday, 27
July 2018. His family has
announced his death through
Whatsapp messages notifying
close friends and colleagues
of the news. A colleague
of his, senior marketing
communication consultant,
Bernaldi Pamuntjak explained
that Tino had suffered from
bladder cancer since last year.
“At first it was bladder cancer
which he had an operation
performed in Singapore
and Jakarta last year,
unfortunately the cancer
has metastasized all over his
body” Bernaldi stated. Tino
is survived by his wife, his
two children, and his many
accomplishment in the media
industry.
US President Donald Trump said last month that he was ready to impose tariffs on all $500
billion worth of imported goods from China, threatening to escalate a clash over trade policy
that has unnerved financial markets. “We’re down a tremendous amount,” Trump said in
an interview on CNBC on July 20. “I’m ready to go to 500.” His comments worried investors
already grappling with the impact of a strengthening dollar on corporate results and saw a
drop in key stock indices on Wall Street. The dollar fell against major currencies on July 20
following Trump’s threat to impose more import tariffs and his repeat of complaints about
rising interest rates and the strength of the dollar. The dollar index, a measure of its value
against a basket of six major currencies, was on track to post its largest one-day loss in three
weeks at the time. Against the yen, the dollar was on course for its worst daily fall in two
months. A top US Federal Reserve official meanwhile warned that the trade war could hurt
the US economy.
tradE War ContinuEs
international
UAE and China Meet
china and the united Arab emirates
signed a raft of financial, business
and trade agreements during a
visit by President Xi Jinping to the
Gulf state on July 20, underscoring
energy-hungry Beijing’s rapidly
growing interest in the middle east.
Xi made the first visit by a chinese
leader to the state in 29 years,
meeting two of its most powerful
leaders, Sheikh mohammed bin
rashid al-maktoum, the ruler of
Dubai, and Sheikh mohammed bin
Zayed al-nahyan, the crown prince
of Abu Dhabi. They announced 13
agreements and memoranda of
understanding, including approval
for the first chinese state-owned
financial services firm to set up in
Abu Dhabi Global market, a financial
center, while the Abu Dhabi national
Oil company and the china national
Petroleum corporation agreed to
explore joint business opportunities.
As both a major energy exporter
and a hub for international trade,
the uAe is an important part of
Xi’s Belt and road Initiative, which
involves infrastructure linking china
by both sea and land to markets in
Asia, Africa and europe.