1. The Executive Board of the International Olympic Committee: it has agreed to add break dancing, skateboarding, rock climbing and surfing to the 2024 Paris Olympic Games. Compared with the Tokyo Olympic Games, the scale of the 2024 Paris Olympic Games will be further reduced. The number of athletes participating in the Tokyo Olympic Games has been reduced from 11092 to 10500. In the total number of events, the Tokyo Olympic Games has 339 events, while the Paris Olympic Games will reduce the number by 10. Of all the major events, weightlifting is the most affected. A total of four events have been removed from the Olympic Games.

2. As a result of the resumption of production and the relaxation of blockades in major economies, global trade in manufactured goods partially resumed in the third quarter of this year, led by electronic, textile and automotive products, with mask trade growing by 102%. Clothing trade also showed signs of rebounding in the third quarter, with shipments falling only 4% in September from a year earlier, thanks to increased imports from North America and Europe. Clothing trade fell 15% in July from a year earlier.

3. The United States and China ranked first or second in global arms sales in 2019, respectively, according to a report released by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute in Sweden. Among the top 25 arms dealers in the world, the United States accounts for 12, accounting for 61% of sales, ranking first. Hua Chunying said she did not understand the sources and statistical standards of the relevant data. The United States is still the number one arms exporter in the world, and the Taiwan authorities have made great contributions to US arms dealers. Like other countries in the world, China has strengthened its national defense construction and carried out normal military and trade cooperation with other countries.

4. In the first 11 months of this year, China’s shipbuilding received a total of 6.67 million compensation tons of (CGT), accounted for about 46% of the world market share, ranking first in the world. South Korean shipping companies received a total of 137new orders, with a total of 5.02 million CGT, accounting for 35% of the global share, ranking second, while Japanese shipping companies received 78 new orders, with a total of 1.18 million CGT, accounting for 8% of the global share, ranking third. 

5. China’s COVID-19 vaccine has been approved for sale in the United Arab Emirates. The Ministry of Health and Prevention of the United Arab Emirates and the Ministry of Health of Abu Dhabi have reviewed the data of phase III clinical trials. Clinical trials of about 31000 volunteers with 125 different nationalities showed that the vaccine was 86% effective against viral infection, 99% neutralizing antibody seroconversion rate, and 100% prevention of moderate and severe COVID-19 cases. And related studies have not found that the vaccine has serious safety risks. 

6. The Boeing 737 MAX, which had been grounded for more than 20 months due to a fatal accident, made its first comeback in Brazil on December 9, local time. The flight leaves Sao Paulo with flight number G34104 and is destined for Porto Alegre. Brazilian Gore Airlines became the first company to return to 737 MAX aircraft. The company says it is confident about the safety upgrade of the aircraft and the expansion of its pilot training program.

7. The general accounting tax on the Japanese government’s budget for 2020 will be about 8 trillion yen (502 billion yuan) lower than originally expected, to about 55 trillion yen. That would be the biggest drop since 2009.

8. Fifty states and the District of Columbia have confirmed the election results. Biden is expected to receive 306 electoral votes and Trump is expected to receive 232 electoral votes. 270 votes are needed to win the presidency. On December 14, the Electoral College will meet to vote for the next president and vice president of the United States.

9. British “Independent”: the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) released a report saying that although the COVID-19 epidemic has reduced global greenhouse gas emissions by 7% this year, this reduction is not sustainable. If the current trend cannot be reversed, it is expected that by 2100, the global temperature will still rise by about 3.2℃. Some analysts believe that a global temperature rise of 3 ℃ will lead to a large number of biological extinctions and make many parts of the world unsuitable for human habitation, and 275 million people will face flooding due to rising sea levels.

10. The ECB: keep the main refinancing rate unchanged at 0%, the deposit mechanism rate at-0.5% and the marginal lending rate at 0.25%.