Imports from china

In a nutshell: With the global chip shortage showing little signs of improving, at least in the short-term, China imported a record number of semiconductors last month: 58.9 billion units, worth around $35.9 billion. As reported by the South China Morning Post , data released by the General Administration of Customs show that China's total integrated circuit (IC) imports reached 155.6 billion units in the first quarter, up 33.6% from a year ago and worth around $93.6 billion. For comparison, the first quarter of 2020 saw 116.1 billion imports worth $72.1 billion. Most of the chips China is stockpiling cannot be manufactured within the country at this time, including volatile memory. With demand for products surging across the world as many economies reopen, Chinese firms don't want to miss out. The bigger concern, of course, is the trade sanctions being placed on Chinese firms by the US government. Huawei saw its first-ever quarterly revenue decline in Q4, the result of its … [Read more...] about China imported a record $35.9 billion worth of semiconductors in March amid global chip shortages

Ant Group will apply to become a financial holding company that is overseen by China's central bank as part of efforts to appease regulatory concerns over the way it conducts its online payments operations. Pan Gongsheng, deputy governor of the People's Bank of China (PBOC), said in a statement that Ant representatives met with four of China's regulatory arms to address anti-monopoly concerns on Monday. In the statement, he also revealed that Ant Group has been working with the agencies in recent months to formulate "rectification plans" aimed at resolving these concerns. As part of the plan, Ant Group has agreed to apply to become a financial holding company that is supervised by the PBOC. It will also give consumers more payment method options and disconnect any "anti-competitive connections" between Alipay and other financial products, such as Huabei and Bibai, as part of the plan. The formulation of the "rectification plan" follows the suspension of Ant Groups's initial … [Read more...] about Ant Group to become a financial holding company overseen by China’s central bank

By Dennis Normile Apr. 13, 2021 , 10:25 AM Japan announced today it will release 1.25 million tons of treated wastewater contaminated by the wrecked Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant into the Pacific Ocean. The government said it is the best way to deal with tritium and trace amounts of other radionuclides in the water. "Releasing the treated water into the sea is a realistic solution," Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said at a Cabinet meeting endorsing the plan. “We will do our utmost to keep the water far above safety standards.” A Japanese government official later clarified that details of the release need to be worked out and approved. Gradual, trial releases could start in 2 years and might take 40 years to complete. Industry groups and nuclear scientists say other nuclear plants have disposed of wastewater this way with minimal impacts. But environmental groups, fisheries organizations, and neighboring countries immediately condemned the decision, citing the vast amounts … [Read more...] about Japan plans to release Fukushima’s contaminated water into the ocean

So you’re considering a projector? Perhaps you’re a movie fan who wants to curate their own home cinema night, popcorn and all. Or you’re a gamer who wants to step out onto a distant planet and blast life-sized aliens to smithereens? With the right projector you can do all of these things, and so much more. If you are indeed ready to take the plunge, or are looking to upgrade, there are a few considerations to take into account. Projectors require a little more planning and setting up when compared with televisions. To get the best out of one, you’ll need to attach it to the ceiling, as – unlike TVs – you’ll need distance between the lens and the screen to project. (Unless of course, you go for a short throw model, but we’ll talk a little more on this later.) A ceiling-mounted beamer also eliminates the possibility of shadows cast by passing people or pets. Not all need to be ceiling mounted as smaller projectors can be moved in and out of a room as needed, but Sony’s range … [Read more...] about Should I buy a Sony projector?

Some 100,000 years ago, an extended family of 36 Neanderthals walked along a beach, with the kids jumping and frolicking in the sand, scientists report after analyzing the beachgoers' fossilized footprints in what is now southern Spain. "We have found some areas where several small footprints appeared grouped in a chaotic arrangement," said Eduardo Mayoral, a paleontologist at the University of Huelva and lead author of the study, which was published online March 11 in the journal Scientific Reports . The footprints "could indicate an area of passage of very young individuals, as if they were playing or loitering on the shore of the nearby waterlogged area," Mayoral told Live Science in an email. Related: See photos of our closest human ancestor In June 2020, two biologists discovered the tracks on Matalascañas beach, in Doñana National Park, after a period of intense storms and high tides. The biologists first saw fossilized animal tracks; some of the … [Read more...] about 100,000-year-old Neanderthal footprints show children playing in the sand