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SEARCH ASIAWEEK Intelligence: The Week Ahead Will the markets bounce back?; Missions of the No. 2s; Watch Annette and Anson; Can China head off the U.S. at the Olympics? By S. WAYNE MORRISON September 25, 2000 Web posted at 1:30 p.m. Hong Kong time, 1:30 a.m. EDT All eyes will be on Asia's stock markets today and through the week following the plunges in the region and on Wall Street before the weekend. Japan's Nikkei slumped 3% last week, Hong Kong's Hang Seng dived 10% to a 2000 low of 14,612, and Singapore's Straits Times lost 6.7%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 3% and the predominantly high-tech Nasdaq also went down.
The focus of attention in the tech sector in Hong Kong last week was the slide in the price of Richard Li's Pacific Century CyberWorks, once the darling of investors. While they will be watching PCCW today, overshadowing all else is the initial public offering of Mass Transit Railway Corp., on its first day. (The Hong Kong market was up 700 points at noon Monday and was expected to continue the strong rebound during the day.) Taiwan and Hong Kong No. 2s Go Visiting As President Chen Shui-bian and China sparred over reunification, Taiwan's Vice President Annette Lu began a tour of Central America which -- if her past public record is any indication -- will likely produce some sharp verbal jabs at adversaries, including Beijing. Lu and her 90-person entourage transited the U.S. through Los Angeles and Miami at the weekend, with the vice president grumbling that she should have been allowed to stop in New York. Even if she does target Beijing in her speeches and press conferences, Lu can't really make matters worse across the Taiwan Strait. Chen -- who Beijing insists must accept the "one China" principle -- said at the weekend that there is an infinite number of options for Taiwan's future besides independence or unification. Visiting Beijing this week is Hong Kong's Chief Secretary for Administration Anson Chan Fang On-Sang. Pundits in Hong Kong cast her visit in various lights. The most common conclusion is that Hong Kong's No. 2 will be lectured on the need to give firmer support to Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa, who is often in trouble for the gap between his ambitious reform agenda and his political abilities to carry it out. Chan, quicker on her feet and more responsive to media mood, has sometimes delivered a timely, well crafted statement on behalf of the government. She has also spoken her mind on occasions, including on Hong Kong's political future. There was speculation locally that Beijing might be prepared to consider Chan for higher office, but this was given little credence by most analysts, as Financial Secretary Donald Tsang's stock has been rising recently as the leading alternative to Tung. Tung wants another term as CE, but his continuing unpopularity in Hong Kong could be a problem for Beijing. Can China Top the Medals List? The United States and China have opened up a gap over host Australia and other nations in the medals table at the Sydney Olympics. At the end of Sunday's Day Nine, the U.S. had 21 gold medals and China 18. While the U.S. is expected to win a bunch of golds in the men's and women's track sprints and relays and boxing, China continues to produce victories in sports such as badminton, women's weightlifting and table tennis (though it missed its usual run of gold in diving). It could be a close finish between the two sporting powers. China's fine showing is surprising because it dropped many first-choice athletes from its games squad on suspicion they had taken performance-enhancing drugs. Write to Asiaweek at mail@web.asiaweek.com Quick Scroll: More stories from Asiaweek, TIME and CNN |
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