China's Exports Drop

China's exports dropped 2.8% in December,following a 2.2% slip in November.The December result was the worst in 10 years.Foreign purchases have fallen sharply in the financial crisis,generating big layoffs.Chinese exports had grown 26.7% in January of 2008,but the situation is so bad now,it threatens social stability.Meanwhile,in Japan,Sony may report an operating loss of as much as 1.1 billion dollars in March,as the crisis crimps sales,business daily The Nikkei said.Sony says it will soon announce a restructuring plan,including layoffs,to deal with the downturn.

Nature Note:Car Frost

Early this morning,I started the old car up so that the battery wouldn't deteriorate in the unremitting cold.It will be ready when I leave for downtown later in the morning.While the engine warmed up,I cleared the frost and ice off the windshield.The heater and defroster were on to help the process along.My fingers started to sting,so I sat in the car until they started to feel better.The old car was parked in the drive,exposed to the bitter elements of every winter night.Good care through the years has kept her fit for small town navigation with a little coaxing.

Please Note

Because of the Inauguration next Tuesday,publication may be pushed back to later in the week.

Germany Tries More Aid

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and colleagues announced on Tuesday a second stimulus package to get the economy beyond recession.Germany entered the worst recession since World War II in Q3 of 2008.The first package was worth 32 billion euros;the second is worth 50 billion.Finance Minister Peer Steinbrueck called the new plan the biggest package the Federal Republic of Germany has ever seen.The package,which was agreed late Monday,involves a mix of investment spending and tax cuts,including incentives for new car buyers.The German economy may contract 3% in 2009,with unemployment possibly surpassing 9%,according to experts.Flagging demand for German products both at home and abroad has hindered an economy that the rest of Europe saw as a model of strength.

Nature Note:After the Ice

An ice storm badly damaged an Asian pear tree,ripping a large chunk of it off.I'll be cleaning that up the rest of the winter.There's no rush.I got it off the neighbor's property,so I can work at it a bit at a time.It's too cold to work for any length of time, when it isn't a necessity.To me,it's just another aspect of nature.I'm taking the debris in stride.It could have been a lot more costly.Someone could have been walking underneath the tree when it split.

GCC Seeks Union

The Gulf Cooperation Council,an organization of six Arab states,is moving toward a common currency and other closer economic ties by 2010.The GCC consists of Saudi Arabia,Kuwait,the United Arab Emirates,Oman,Bahrain and Qatar.Problems posed by the financial crisis have made this drive for unity more urgent than in the past,when it was hindered by squabbles.The oil-based economies of the GCC have seen their revenues decline sharply as global demand for petroleum products withers.This raises the specter of political instability in a region where radicals are all too eager to exploit such dislocation.And Shiekh Khalifa,the prime minister of Bahrain,pointed out that the rest of the world has been coalescing into economic blocs,so it is high time the GCC sped up its integration project.The GCC is definitely aware of the high costs of fragmentation in an increasingly competitive environment.

Nature Note:Ice Again

So far,much of the Mid-Atlantic region has seen precious little snow this winter.Mostly it's been a wintry mix of snow,sleet and freezing rain.Yesterday morning began with sleet,then rose to plain rain,and finally fell back to freezing rain overnight,ending as plain rain once more this morning.It's a shifting about of layers of temperature and moisture,a very dynamic regime.The ice decorates the trees and shrubs even as the rain pours,saving the day from dullness.There is something rarefied to look at beyond the cold buckets being dumped on our heads.