BIMSTEC and Sri Lanka so far
Sri Lanka is a founding member of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC). Since its inception in 1997, Sri Lanka has been an active member in the multilateral forum. The island nation held the chairmanship for the first time from 2002-2003, during which Colombo promoted the political commitment of member states to intensify sub-regional co-operation. As of 2016, Colombo’s trade with BIMSTEC members accounted for only 17.4 percent out of the total trade in goods. Its imports from BIMSTEC were only 23 percent of its total imports and Sri Lanka’s exports to BIMSTEC members were only 7 percent. Moreover, India accounted for more than 70 percent of Sri Lanka’s trade with BIMSTEC. Parallel to BIMSTEC’s slow progress, Sri Lanka’s co-operation with the BIMSTEC members grew at a snail’s space.
ASUS reveals new series of innovative laptops at CES 2021
Jan 15, 2021 5:55 PM PHT
Rappler.com
[Editor s Note: This 2021, ASUS Philippines introduces a new roster of laptops with even better performance and award-winning specifications. Below is their press release.]
Today, ASUS announced the latest laptops in the premium ZenBook series featuring The Laptop of Tomorrow – the 15.6-inch ASUS ZenBook Pro Duo 15 OLED (UX582) and the 14-inch ASUS ZenBook Duo 14(UX482), which are both recipients of prestigious 2021 CES® Innovation Awards. These new two-screen models introduce the tilting ASUS ScreenPad™ Plus, a full-width secondary touchscreen with a new auto-tilt mechanism that improves readability, aids cooling, and works seamlessly with the main display for effortless multitasking and creativity.
Unfortunately for Huawei, the winning streak did not last long. In May, the U.S. Department of Commerce amended export controls rules on the telecom giant to close a loophole in the original sanctions that allowed it to continue designing semiconductors using U.S. technology effectively preventing it from making the advanced chips needed to power its higher-end products. As a result of these additional sanctions, the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre determined that Huawei could be forced to use untrusted technology, raising unacceptable risks to the UK’s network. Boris Johnson’s government reversed the decision, banned purchases of Huawei network equipment, and declared that all Huawei network equipment must be removed from the UK’s network by the end of 2027. In the fall, Italy vetoed a 5G deal involving Huawei, and reports suggested that Germany, while not banning Huawei outright, could raise bureaucratic obstacles that would make it impossible for the company to partici