NEWS,13.01.2013

New York declares flu emergency

New York's governor has declared a health emergency over a flu epidemic that has hit more than 19 000 people in the state, and in an exceptional measure cleared pharmacists to immunise infants and children. To try to curb the spread of the potentially lethal virus, Andrew Cuomo said it was critical to suspend, for the next 30 days, a legal restriction under which New York pharmacists can administer flu vaccines only to patients 18 or older. His statement on Saturday came amid a nationwide epidemic expected to last several weeks. "We are experiencing the worst flu season since at least 2009, and influenza activity in New York State is widespread, with cases reported in all 57 counties and all five boroughs of New York City," said Cuomo. Flu vaccines" Therefore, I have directed my administration, the state health department and others to marshal all needed resources to address this public health emergency and remove all barriers to ensure that all New Yorkers - children and adults alike - have access to critically needed flu vaccines. "Already on Wednesday, Boston Mayor Thomas Menino had declared a public-health emergency in the city after local health officials confirmed 700 cases of flu - 10 times the number for the entire flu season last year. So far this season, 20 children have died from the flu, according to the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).While there have been at least 28 747 cases reported across the country, the true figure is likely far higher as many who fall ill do not get tested, it added. Confirmed cases. In New York state alone, 19 128 cases have been confirmed this season, a jump from the total of 4 404 during the 2011-12 flu season. The New York Health Department is launching a large-scale campaign to promote immunisation, using the media, dedicated websites and social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter. Cuomo urged non-immunised New Yorkers to schedule a flu shot immediately. "It is not too late to get a vaccination," he stressed. He said relatives and caregivers who regularly come into contact with young children or people at high risk should get a shot against the flu virus, which spreads through coughing or sneezing. It poses an increased risk for infants and toddlers under the age of two, people over 50, pregnant women and those with weakened immune systems or chronic medical conditions. Flu strikes every year across the United States, bringing chills, sore throats, fever, coughing, aches and congestion to millions. Older people at risk. The number of annual deaths has ranged from a low of 3 000 to a high of 49 000 since 1976, according to the CDC. Most of those deaths were among people aged 65 and older. Meanwhile, Massachusetts has had 18 flu deaths so far this season, according to the state Department of Public Health. The hospitals in Boston have been overwhelmed. Jim Heffernan, chief of primary care at Boston's Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Centre said the emergency room at his hospital was "overflowing because there aren't enough places to put people. It just snowballs."Spreads like wildfire Last Monday, Beth Israel got 400 more calls than normal to its urgent care hotline, hospital officials said. "We had to open a new unit to accommodate all the patients." hospital spokesperson Kelly Lawman said. Influenza was also rampant in New Jersey."It's here. Big time," said Doctor Thomas Birch, president of the medical staff at Holy Name Medical Centre in Hackensack, New Jersey. "When the virus comes into a community with susceptible individuals, it will literally spread like those wildfires in California that burn everything in their path. "Specialists and government officials urge Americans to protect themselves with flu shots.However, the CDC also acknowledged on Friday that influenza vaccines, on average, are only about 62% effective."There is a growing consensus among the public health communities that we need better influenza vaccines," says Michael Osterholm, director of the Centre for Infectious Disease Research and Policy. "We're operating largely in the 1950s for our flu technology."

Brother says Chavez not in coma

Ailing Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is not in a coma and is responding well to cancer treatment in Cuba, making daily progress, his brother said on Saturday. "Reports that the president is in a coma and that the family is discussing ending life support, are totally false," Adan Chavez, governor of the state of Barinas, said in a statement.He "continues to respond well to his medical care and to make daily progress in his recovery. "Chavez has been out of public sight since undergoing surgery in Havana on 11 December, the fourth such operation in the 18 months since his condition was made public. Uncertainty Officials have said the fiery leftist leader is suffering from a severe pulmonary infection that has resulted in a "respiratory insufficiency," fuelling speculation about his prospects for a full recovery  and his political future.The uncertainty surrounding Chavez's condition has rattled Venezuela, the nation with the world's largest proven oil reserves. The government was forced to postpone the president's scheduled inauguration on Thursday, as it became clear that he could not attend. Authorities insist the country's constitution allows Chavez to take the oath of office later on.But the opposition has cried foul, calling for a medical board to review the absent leader's health  a demand rejected by the Supreme Court, which said the delayed swearing-in was constitutional. Support from CubaIn Cuba on Saturday, President Raul Castro voiced his support for the Venezuelan leadership, his government's closest and most critical economic and political ally. Castro made the comments during a meeting with Venezuelan Vice President Nicolas Maduro, who arrived in the Cuban capital late on Friday to check on his ailing boss, who had a difficult fourth round of cancer surgery last month. Raul Castro "expressed his confidence in the ability of the Venezuelan people and their institutions to address and overcome any challenge," a government statement said. Satisfaction" Raul and Maduro shared their mutual satisfaction with the emotional demonstration of support for Venezuela and President Chavez on January 10 in Caracas," it added. Two Chavez allies, Argentine President Cristina Kirchner and Peruvian President Ollanta Humala, also arrived in Havana on Friday. "We all hope for a quick recovery," Humala said. Kirchner refused to comment on Chavez's health when asked by reporters, saying it should be left to his family. She did, however, thank retired revolutionary icon Fidel Castro, 86, for hosting a luncheon for her in his home on Friday. Clinging to power Like Chavez, Castro has been sidelined by health problems and rarely appears in public since stepping aside as president of the communist country in 2006.Throughout his illness, first detected in June 2011, Chavez - in power for 14 years - has refused to relinquish the powers of the presidency, even when leaving for Cuba for his latest surgery. The Venezuelan constitution says new elections must be held within 30 days if the president-elect or president dies or is permanently incapacitated, either before he takes office or in the first four years of his six-year term.

Americans feel bite as pay tax rises

 

Americans are beginning to feel the pinch from Washington's decision to embrace austerity measures aimed at bringing down the nation's budget deficit. Paychecks across the country have shrunk over the last week due to higher federal tax rates, and workers are already cutting back on spending, which will drag on the economy this year. In Warren, Rhode Island, Ben DeCastro got his first paycheck on Friday in which taxes on his wages rose by 2 percentage points. That works out to about $30 a week. "You sit back and do the calculation, and that's $30 I'm not going to spend at a restaurant," said DeCastro.He said he worries that people hit by higher taxes will spend less at the chain of furniture stores where he works as a marketing manager. Politicians in Washington made much hubbub last week about a bipartisan deal to soften or postpone some $600bn in scheduled tax hikes and government spending cuts. President Barack Obama said the deal would shield 98% of Americans from a middle-class tax hike. Nevertheless, for most workers, rich and poor alike, taxes went up on December 31 as a temporary payroll tax cut expired. That cut - a 2 percentage point reduction in a levy that funds Social Security - was put in place two years ago to help the economy, which was still smarting from the 2007-09 recession. About 160 million workers pay this tax, and the increase will cost the average worker about $700 a year, according to the Tax Policy Centre, a Washington think tank. "It stinks," said Beverly Renfroe, an accountant for a realty firm in Jackson, Mississippi. "I definitely noticed a decrease. "The pain will trickle through the economy over the next few weeks. Already, the new rate of 6.2% has trimmed paychecks for about half of the 200 000 employees whose paychecks are processed by Advantage Payroll Services, a payroll firm based in Auburn, Maine. Economists estimate the payroll tax hike will reduce household incomes by a collective $125bn this year. Some households could reduce contributions to retirement accounts or other savings, but most are also expected to cut back on spending. That alone could reduce economic growth this year by about 0.6 percentage point, said Michael Feroli, an economist at JPMorgan in New York City. "The headwind to growth should be noticeable," he said. Most mainstream economists say the government should still be trying to stimulate the economy by lowering taxes or raising spending to help bring down the 7.8% jobless rate. Even Federal Reserve Chairperson Ben Bernanke has said Congress could consider short-term stimulus measures if they can be coupled with a plan to tame the deficit over the long run. But a consensus has emerged between Congress and the White House that the federal government should step up the pace at which it cuts the deficit, which ballooned during the recession. That decision is having repercussions across the country. In Bergenfield, New Jersey, Evelyn Weiss Francisco has put off plans to upgrade her cellphone and thinks she might go to fewer music concerts. A director at a public relations firm, she thinks the higher payroll taxes will cost her about $1 000 this year.Some Americans will also pay higher income taxes this year. Congress and Obama let income tax rates rise for households making more than $450 000 a year, a partial repeal of tax cuts put in place under President George W Bush. The wealthy will also pay a new tax to help fund a health insurance reform passed in 2010.These will have a smaller impact on the wider economy because they affect fewer people. But taken together, this year's tax hikes could subtract a full percentage point from growth, Feroli said. Most economists see economic growth of roughly 2% this year, a lacklustre pace held back by the government's austerity measures that is likely to do little to reduce unemployment. Failure to postpone government spending cuts due to begin around March would slow growth more, further frustrating the economic recovery.The blow to the economy from the tax hikes will hurt the most during the first half of the year as people adapt to their smaller paychecks.Consumer spending, which drives more than two thirds of the economy, will likely grow at a mere 1% annual rate in the first quarter, and 1.5% in the second, said Sven Jari Stehn, an economist at Goldman Sachs in New York.Nicki Hagen, who received her first reduced paycheck on January 4 and then another on Friday, estimates the higher taxes will shrink her paychecks by about $10 a week. She has already started holding back from coffee-and-bagel runs made by coworkers at the home improvement company where she works as an office administrator in New York City. She expects a much bigger hit to her family's income when her husband gets his first paycheck for 2013 on Tuesday. The two will then sit down and figure out how to budget their money. They might cut cable channels, or take vacation days when their daughter is out of school to save on babysitter expenses."This is going to affect our lives," she said.

Gadget sales to reach $666bn in 2013

Worldwide spending on devices such as mobile phones, tablets, printers and PCs will reach $666bn in 2013, according to market research firm Gartner. The increase is $50bn less than previously estimated, but is still a 6.3% increase on the 2012 figure. The move to tablets from desktop or laptop computers is playing a role in the rise. "The transition from PC to tablet is running faster than we thought," said Richard Gordon, managing vice president at Gartner. "The tablet market has seen greater price competition from Android devices as well as smaller, low-priced devices in emerging markets. "Long-term, the forecast for worldwide device spending has been reduced as well, with growth from 2012 through 2016 now expected to average 4.5%, down from the previous estimate of 6.4%.Worldwide IT spending in 2013 is projected to be $3.7 trillion, a 4.2% increase on 2012. The lion's share, $1.7 trillion, will be spent on telecommunications services.

China set for rebound in 2013 - survey

China's economy is poised finally to end a long downward trend in 2013, economists polled by AFP say, as the new communist leadership vows to retool the nation's investment-led development model and promote a "happy life" for all. The world's second-largest economy is not expected to return to double-digit growth, but the economists' predictions are a welcome spot of good news in a financial world assailed by the eurozone debt crisis and lacklustre recovery in the United States. After seven consecutive quarters of slowing growth, China's gross domestic product (GDP) will rise by 8.0% in 2013, according to the median forecast of 15 economists surveyed by AFP. The poll also projected 7.7% growth for 2012.The figures would outpace the government's 7.5% growth target for 2012 - but are well below the 9.3% recorded in 2011 and 10.4% in 2010.Maintaining growth is all-important for China's communist leaders, who derive much of their claims to legitimacy from the country's reform-led economic rise, which has lifted hundreds of millions of people out of poverty over the past three decades. The rebound comes as China formally wraps up a once-in-a-decade leadership change in March when Xi Jinping, who was named Communist Party chief in November, takes over as president and Li Keqiang becomes premier in charge of day-to-day administration. Xi, in his first public appearance after being chosen to lead the party, said China's citizens "want their children to have sound growth, have good jobs and lead a more enjoyable life". "To meet their desire for a happy life is our mission. "China's stunning economic transformation has long been fuelled by heavy state investment in railways, airports, bridges and buildings, as well as an emphasis on manufacturing and exports. But it is now trying to promote demand from its own increasingly well-off consumers as the economy's main driver. And the Communist Party says it recognises the need to encompass the have-nots who have failed to share in the boom as a rich-poor gap opens up. The National Bureau of Statistics is due to announce GDP figures for the fourth quarter and the whole of 2012 on Friday. For the final quarter of last year, the median forecast in the AFP survey was 7.8%, up from official third-quarter growth of 7.4% - which was the lowest figure since early 2009."The new leaders themselves would like economic growth to not be slower than 2012... in their first year," Chen Xingdong, a Beijing-based economist with French bank BNP Paribas who is expecting 2013 growth of 8.3%, told AFP.Stronger monthly data during the fourth quarter, including industrial output and retail sales, has fanned optimism the worst is over, as did new single-month highs for imports and exports in December.But the economy still faces challenges such as unresolved structural problems including overcapacity and reliance on investment-driven growth, said Yao Wei, Hong Kong-based economist with Societe Generale. "We can't get over-optimistic over the current recovery," she said. China's economy averaged GDP growth of 10% in the decade to 2010. A slower rate of 7.0% to 8.0% is seen by economists as part of China's natural economic evolution as spending on projects such as transport and utility networks is reined in.But market optimism over China's prospects risks being disappointed if in 2013 "the recovery remains centred on infrastructure and real-estate investment rather than consumption", wrote Mark Williams, chief Asia economist at Capital Economics. Some also question how serious the government is about reforming the economy, as well as other challenges it has vowed to pursue, including cracking down on corruption. "The current difficulty we have with the policymakers is that the focus is on changing the perception and hoping that the people believe," said Andy Xie, a Shanghai-based independent economist. "It shows that real change is very hard to do. So you shift to the propaganda department to see if they can do the job."

US snubs platinum coins as debt remedy

The US Treasury Department said on Saturday it will not produce platinum coins as a way of generating $1 trillion in revenue and avoiding a battle in Congress over raising the US debt ceiling. The idea of minting $1 trillion in platinum coins has gained some currency among Democrats in recent days, with Republicans threatening to hold up an increase in the debt ceiling unless deep spending cuts are made. The United States is expected to reach its debt limit in February. "Neither the Treasury Department nor the Federal Reserve believes that the law can or should be used to facilitate the production of platinum coins for the purpose of avoiding an increase in the debt limit," said Treasury spokesperson Anthony Coley in a statement. Congress' refusal in 2011 to raise the debt ceiling unless the White House agreed to large spending cuts brought the United States close to the brink of a debt default and dealt the weak recovery a setback. White House spokesperson Jay Carney said that with the platinum coin question resolved, the pressure is on congressional Republicans now to act to raise the debt ceiling. "Congress can pay its bills or they can fail to act and put the nation into default," he said. "When congressional Republicans played politics with this issue last time, putting us at the edge of default, it was a blow to our economic recovery, causing our nation's credit rating to be downgraded."