1. The latest monitoring results from the Institute of International Finance show that as a result of the epidemic, global debt increased by US$24 trillion to a record US $281 trillion in 2020. At the same time, the global debt-to-GDP ratio is more than 355%. Government debt as a share of GDP rose to 105% from 88% in 2019.

2.The United States has formally rejoined the Paris Agreement on global climate change. Us Secretary of State Abraham Lincoln said in a statement that the Paris Agreement is an unprecedented global framework for action. After taking the oath of office on January 20, US President Joe Biden announced a number of administrative measures, including the return of the United States to the Paris Agreement on climate change and the suspension of withdrawal from the World Health Organization.

3. The US “perseverance” rover successfully landed on Mars, becoming the fifth successful landing rover of NASA. After landing, perseverance sent back its first picture of the Martian surface, after which it will collect samples on Mars and try to find evidence of the existence of life.

4.According to a new report released on the 19th by ONE Campaign, an international non-profit organization dedicated to tackling poverty and preventable diseases, according to data from five pharmaceutical companies, Pfizer, Modena, AstraZeneca, Johnson and Novax, so far, the United States, the European Union, Britain, Australia, Canada and Japan have received more than 3 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccine, more than 1 billion doses more than the 2.06 billion needed for all people in these countries to receive two doses of vaccine. World Health Organization (WHO) urged these countries to share vaccines with poor countries to fight the epidemic.

5.The United States has formally rejoined the Paris Agreement on global climate change. Us Secretary of State Abraham Lincoln said in a statement that the Paris Agreement is an unprecedented global framework for action. After taking the oath of office on January 20, US President Joe Biden announced a number of administrative measures, including the return of the United States to the Paris Agreement on climate change and the suspension of withdrawal from the World Health Organization.

6.Seven workers at a poultry processing plant in southern Russia have been infected with the bird flu virus, Russia’s TASS news agency reported Monday. This is the first time that a human case of H5N8 bird flu has been found in Russia, and Russia has reported the situation to the World Health Organization. Experts say there have been no cases of human-to-human transmission of H5N8 bird flu found in Russia. However, the possibility of human-to-human transmission after the mutation of the virus in the future cannot be ruled out.

7.[WTO] in the fourth quarter of 2020, the climate index of global trade in goods reached 103.9, up from 100.7 in the third quarter. After a sharp decline in trade in goods in the first half of 2020, the volume of global trade in goods has rebounded from the trough since the third quarter, driven by higher exports from Asia and increased imports from North America and Europe. But the rebound may not be sustainable in the first quarter of 2021.

8.Starting from September 1, 2021, Thailand will charge a 7 per cent value-added tax on electronic services to all foreign electronic service operators that provide online services with an annual income of more than 387000 yuan. The Thai government expects the tax to increase revenue by about 1.1 billion yuan in the 2021 tax year. 

9.In the United States, the sense of existence of special purpose acquisition companies is getting higher and higher. Due to the expansion of the COVID-19 epidemic, the global financial easing policy has led to a large amount of money flowing into special purpose acquisition companies. Since 2021, the acquisition amount has approached $85 billion, accounting for 30% of the total US acquisition market. More than 300 special purpose buy-out companies are looking for companies to acquire. The number of such companies to be listed has reached 398. in January alone, 91 companies have gone public, raising a total of about $25 billion, accounting for 60% of IPO, and nearly 100 projects are scheduled to implement IPO. 

10.The US state of Texas last week imposed a temporary ban on natural gas exports, creating an energy crisis in Mexico, which is highly dependent on natural gas imports from the US. In response, Venezuelan President Maduro said he planned to call Mexican President Lopez and proposed that Venezuela ensure the supply of natural gas to Mexico. Due to long-standing US sanctions, Venezuela has no facilities to convert natural gas into liquefied natural gas, Reuters quoted energy experts as saying. 

11.Over the past few days, 10 cities in the northwestern Brazilian state of Akre have been hit by floods, seriously affecting the lives of about 130000 people in the state, and displaced people have been placed in temporary shelters set up by schools, gymnasiums and other places. At present, due to the deterioration of the COVID-19 epidemic in the state, the dengue fever outbreak, the near collapse of the health care system and the large number of Haitian refugees entering Brazil from the state’s border with Peru, Akre State has entered a state of emergency on February 16.

12.On Feb. 21, local time, more than 100000 demonstrators gathered in the northern Indian state of Punjab to protest against the government’s new agricultural bill. Local police estimated that the final gathering of demonstrators was between 120000 and 130000 people. Demonstrators demanded that Mr. Modi repeal several agricultural reform bills introduced last September, which farmers thought would hurt their interests and benefit some big companies. The farmers’ union vowed to continue to protest until the law was repealed.

13.In 2020, the COVID-19 epidemic increased global debt by US$24 trillion, and the total global debt reached a record US$281 trillion, accounting for 355% of the world’s gross domestic product (GDP), an increase of 35% compared with 2019. This growth rate is also higher than in 2008, when the subprime crisis occurred.

14.US Treasury Secretary Yellen: Bitcoin is often used for illegal financing. Its application is inefficient. Bitcoin is highly speculative. Investors should beware. Digital money may lead to faster and lower-cost payments, but there are many issues that need to be studied, including consumer protection and money laundering.

15.Bill Gates: the social media ban could lead to more divisions in the United States. We don’t want to split social networks into two groups, we want to have a common foundation and exchange ideas on that basis.