Word: growth
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...first quarter, its slowest pace since 1998. Singapore's GDP contracted an astounding 19.7% in the same period - after shrinking 16.4% in the previous quarter. Hong Kong has yet to report first-quarter numbers, but its economic performance in the final quarter 2008 does not inspire confidence: GDP growth was minus 2.5%. In the same period, the South Korean economy contracted 5.6% while Japan, Asia's largest economy and the world's second biggest, shrank...
...green shoots particularly in China, where industrial production rose 8.3% year-on-year in March, retail sales surged 15.9% in the first quarter, and investment in fixed assets jumped 28.6% in March after rising 26.5% in February. But it's difficult to see how Asia can return to real growth with export demand dead in the U.S. and Europe - and no one expects a resurrection there anytime soon...
...that China's communist rulers, fearful of social unrest that can force them from power, will succeed in buying their way to their target of 8% GDP growth, the magic number that will supposedly ensure that enough of the 1.3 billion population will have jobs. The central government has already started spending $585 billion in fiscal stimulus, second in size only to America's $787 billion (and counting) package. A second stimulus package valued at 130 billion renminbi ($19 billion) is expected to be unveiled soon...
...policy Cherlin, whose new study of the U.S. marriage landscape blames two contradictory yet dominant cultural ideals for our matrimonial meanderings. On one side is marriage itself, which holds a sacred place in American life. On the other is a "kind of individualism that emphasizes self-expression and personal growth." It's easy to see where the trouble lies. Until death do us part, sure--but only if that doesn't get in the way of our pursuit of happiness. Tracing the history of American marriage from the Puritans to the Mormons, from the nuclear family's apex...
...working together. With their militaries distrustful of one another, the governments almost never shared information on pirate activities, allowing them to operate unchecked. But in 2004, the piracy problem became so severe that it was threatening local economies - especially Malaysia and Singapore, which rely heavily on trade for economic growth. Fears were also raised in regional capitals that outside powers - whose own trade was being affected in the seizures - would intervene in the strait if the local governments didn't solve the problem themselves. A new spirit of cooperation took hold along the strait. "All of us shared the same...