Lights go out across planet for Earth Hour
(CNN) -- Lights were going out across the world on Saturday as millions of homes and businesses in major cities went dark for one hour in a symbolic gesture to highlight concerns over climate change
In Australia, floodlights of the Sydney Opera House were extinguished as the city's iconic harbor kicked off events for Earth Hour, a day-long energy-saving marathon stretching through 88 countries and 24 time zones.
The event's Web site reported that hundreds of people lined the harbour for a glimpse of the dimming skyline at 8.30 pm -- the local time that nearly 4,000 participating cities around the world were expected to switch off non-essential lights.
Sydney became the birthplace of the Earth Hour campaign in 2007 when 2.2 million turned off their lights, igniting a grass roots movement that has become a global phenomenon.
In China, illuminations at major buildings including the "Bird's Nest" Olympic Stadium and the Water Cube were extinguished as 20 cities joined in, according to the official Xinhua news agency.
Other landmarks around the world expected to join the World Wildlife Fund-sponsored event were the Egyptian pyramids, Vatican, Niagara Falls, the Eiffel Tower, the Empire State Building, the Acropolis in Athens and the Las Vegas casino strip.
Earth Hour events go off to an unofficial start in the remote Chatham Islands in the southern Pacific Ocean where locals switched off their diesel generators, organizers said. Shortly afterwards, 44 New Zealand cities and town joined in the event.
Organizers say they hope this year's event will send a message to world leaders meeting Copenhagen in December for a major summit on climate change.
"We are asking one billion people to take part in what is essentially the first global vote for action on climate change by turning off their lights for one hour and casting a vote for earth," said executive director Andy Ridley.
My comment
Earth hour events began two years ago in 2007. I remembered Soochow University had turned off some lights on downtown campus for one hour. There are more and more cities joined the events. I am glad to see Beijing also participated in them. Beijing is now a international city and a metropolitan city. It showed that its residents have the awareness of global warming.
29.3.09
24.3.09
QUOTE
We have fallen into the habit of taking the term 'toxic' a bit too literally
Stephanie Flanders, BBC economics editor
Stephanie Flanders, BBC economics editor
U.S Economy
Fed pumps $1.2tn into US economy
The US Federal Reserve says it will buy almost $1.2 trillion (£843bn) worth of debt to help boost lending and promote economic recovery.
It said it would start buying long-term government debt and expand purchases of mortgage-related debt.
The Federal Reserve said it hopes the measures will boost mortgage lending and the struggling housing market by lowering interest rates on mortgages and other forms of consumer debt.
"This is not only going to keep mortgage rates low for a long period of time," said Greg McBride, a senior financial analyst at Bankrate.com.
"The mere announcement may produce a honeymoon effect and bring mortgage rates down to even lower levels in the coming days."
The US central bank also kept interest rates unchanged at close to zero after its two-day policy meeting.
Japan said earlier on Wednesday it would step up its purchases of government debt.
"Job losses, declining equity and housing wealth, and tight credit conditions have weighed on consumer sentiment and spending," the Fed said.
All tools
The Fed said it would employ "all available tools" to promote economic recovery.
The biggest surprise was the announcement that the Fed would buy up to $300bn worth of government debt, known as US Treasuries, over the next six months.
It also said it would buy an additional $750bn of mortgage-backed securities to boost mortgage lending, bringing total purchases of this type to $1.25 trillion.
It added that it would buy a further $100bn in debt issued by government-sponsored agencies like Freddie Mac, which supports the mortgage market.
"This is a pretty dramatic move," said James Caron, head of global rates research at Morgan Stanley in New York.
The Dow Jones industrial average gained 90.88 points, or 1.23%, to end at 7,486.58 points, reversing early losses.
The move boosted banks and financial shares, with Citigroup up 23% and Bank of America vaulting 22% higher.
However, the announcement hurt the dollar, which hit a two-month low against the euro on fears that the measures would undermine the currency.
The yields payable to holders of government bonds also fell sharply.
The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note fell to 2.5% percent from 3.01% - its biggest one-day slide since the Wall Street crash of 1987.
My Comment
Last week, US dollars fail and made Taiwan's currency NTD increase to $1 to 33.8. It was because U.S government bought its bonds with big amount. According to the basic monetary policy, the government usually do not buy largely of its bonds instead US sold bonds to foreign government.
The movement did do good to U.S stock which the Dow Jones industrial average gained 90.88 points, or 1.23%.
I think the government is doing the right thing. But the policy will influence Taiwan's exports and inports which the price of our product become expensive when sell to foreign countruies.
The US Federal Reserve says it will buy almost $1.2 trillion (£843bn) worth of debt to help boost lending and promote economic recovery.
It said it would start buying long-term government debt and expand purchases of mortgage-related debt.
The Federal Reserve said it hopes the measures will boost mortgage lending and the struggling housing market by lowering interest rates on mortgages and other forms of consumer debt.
"This is not only going to keep mortgage rates low for a long period of time," said Greg McBride, a senior financial analyst at Bankrate.com.
"The mere announcement may produce a honeymoon effect and bring mortgage rates down to even lower levels in the coming days."
The US central bank also kept interest rates unchanged at close to zero after its two-day policy meeting.
Japan said earlier on Wednesday it would step up its purchases of government debt.
"Job losses, declining equity and housing wealth, and tight credit conditions have weighed on consumer sentiment and spending," the Fed said.
All tools
The Fed said it would employ "all available tools" to promote economic recovery.
The biggest surprise was the announcement that the Fed would buy up to $300bn worth of government debt, known as US Treasuries, over the next six months.
It also said it would buy an additional $750bn of mortgage-backed securities to boost mortgage lending, bringing total purchases of this type to $1.25 trillion.
It added that it would buy a further $100bn in debt issued by government-sponsored agencies like Freddie Mac, which supports the mortgage market.
"This is a pretty dramatic move," said James Caron, head of global rates research at Morgan Stanley in New York.
The Dow Jones industrial average gained 90.88 points, or 1.23%, to end at 7,486.58 points, reversing early losses.
The move boosted banks and financial shares, with Citigroup up 23% and Bank of America vaulting 22% higher.
However, the announcement hurt the dollar, which hit a two-month low against the euro on fears that the measures would undermine the currency.
The yields payable to holders of government bonds also fell sharply.
The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note fell to 2.5% percent from 3.01% - its biggest one-day slide since the Wall Street crash of 1987.
My Comment
Last week, US dollars fail and made Taiwan's currency NTD increase to $1 to 33.8. It was because U.S government bought its bonds with big amount. According to the basic monetary policy, the government usually do not buy largely of its bonds instead US sold bonds to foreign government.
The movement did do good to U.S stock which the Dow Jones industrial average gained 90.88 points, or 1.23%.
I think the government is doing the right thing. But the policy will influence Taiwan's exports and inports which the price of our product become expensive when sell to foreign countruies.
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