When a financial crisis hits, its the peripherals that go first - advertising, additional human capital, fringe benefits and speculative investments. American’s witnessed this first hand during the last few weeks as markets plunged and art speculators shied away from Asian art auctions.

When Asian auctions opened the week beginning September 15 in New York, around the same time as Wall Street crashed,  art connoisseurs picked up well researched collectors pieces from India, China, Japan, Korea and Taiwan. Those who didn’t know their art and would have otherwise picked up paintings and sculptures purely for their decorative value, preferred to abstain from making high value payments, as a result, many collectibles were auctioned off well below their estimated price

The only difference with the summer auctions, the international herald tribune said was that silly showoff buying has stopped. The uninformed newcomers of yore unconcerned with art and on the lookout for expensive fun are gone. This was made crystal clear at Christie’s and Sotheby’s Chinese sales of Sept. 16 and 17, and was further borne out in the auction of Japanese and Korean art held at Christie’s on Sept. 18, just as the financial crisis was reaching an apex.

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If you think China’s powder milk scandal is the only food poisoning us, think again. Almost all food that mankind consumes today has some degree of chemical. Depending on where your food comes from, it could have varying levels and different kinds of chemicals. Both harmful and harmless chemicals creep into foods in a multitude of ways, while some are sprayed on food to keep insects and pests away, others seep in through the soil, yet others are pumped into fruits and vegetables making carrots oranger, apples rounder and redder and peaches bigger.

Modern science luckily, has allowed us to calculate and determine for ourselves the right amount of chemicals we can ingest before its fatal, the publicity of which gives rise to going back to the basics or a more marketable term - Organic foods.

Various governments around the world have identified several chemicals which when they reside in your body for long periods of time can create defects, abnormalities and/or death. The following are a list of chemicals found in our everyday foods, and the effects they have on humans.

What are the prime suspects?

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Two days before Taro Aso an outspoken conservative who has advocated a return to old-style government spending to stimulate Japan’s economy, was nominated to power, Nomura Holdings, Japan’s largest brokerage, reached a deal to buy the Asian operations of Lehman Brothers.

The Japanese bank announced it would pay US$225 million for Lehman’s equities and investment banking operations across Asia, which includes Japan and Australia. In bailing Lehman’s out, Nomura told the AFP it would offer employment to all 3,000 Lehman Brothers’ workers in Asia.

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There is a brilliant white light at the end of the tunnel of U.S. financial woes - lucrative jobs in emerging Asia. As investment banks fold in the U.S. and hundreds lose their livelihoods, banks in India and China are lapping up wall street bankers by the dozens. Asian economies which are growing at an average of seven percent annually, can easily absorb these globally experienced whiz kids.

New York’s governor reckons 40,000 Wall Street jobs could go in a worst-case scenario, with talk swirling of more bank deals and mergers.

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Shanghai Airlines will be the new plane on the block to fly direct between Asian economic behemoths Shanghai and Mumbai. Official sources say that the airline which will start plying between the two cities from the 29th of October, will fly twice a week on Wednesdays and Saturdays. In order to boost passenger traffic between the two cities, the airline is planning on introducing an initial offer of RMB3,250 + tax for a round trip. If this is the price offered by Shanghai Airlines, it will be one of the cheapest return flights from Shanghai-Mumbai.

Sources have also told 2point6billion.com that since one more Chinese airline has been given permission to fly between the two countries, Vijay Mallya’s kingfisher Airlines, which just won the rights to fly internationally will also start flying between the two countries - most probably from Bangalore to Guangzhou. China Eastern and Air India were the initial airlines which were given permission to fly between India and China.

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The ease of doing business across Asia varies significantly. According to the ‘Doing Business Report 2009’ prepared jointly by the International Finance Corporation and the World Bank, Singapore retains its number one position on the overall regulatory ease of doing business for a third consecutive year. While due to poignant regulatory reforms China’s rank improved from 83 from 90, out of 181 countries. India, however, slipped two notches to rank at 122nd, below its neighbors - Nepal, Bangladesh and Pakistan which have been placed 121, 110 and 77 respectively, in the overall ranking.

Among Asia-Pacific countries, the Philippines ranked 140th, lags most of Asia for ease of doing business was behind even Cambodia at 135 and only ahead of Laos at 165 and East Timor at 170. The average ranking for East Asia is 8. Consequently, Bangladesh is ranked 110 and has reduced the time needed to register property from 425 to 245 days. Bhutan is ranked 124th. (more…)

Investment banks, stock markets, financial institutions and governments across Asia showed their appreciation to the U.S.  government over the takeover of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The U.S. government bailout was a welcome relief after several central banks in the region expressed growing alarm over the future of their vast investments in the two ailing mortgage lenders.

Japan, South Korea and China were the worst hit Asian economies when the real estate mortgage lending firms declared their losses earlier this summer. The Washington Post said Asian investors, led by central and commercial banks in China, Japan and South Korea, are among the largest holders of Fannie Mae’s and Freddie Mac’s mortgage-related debt, the value of which has now effectively been guaranteed by the U.S. government.

The government bailout buoyed markets from Taipei to Tokyo on Monday, successfully calming growing concerns of investor flight in South Korea. The Tokyo key stock index rose 3.4 percent on Monday. Hong Kong’s jumped 4.3 percent, Seoul’s 5.2 percent, and Taiwan’s 5.6 percent.

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With or without his 40 thieves, Alibaba is expanding and amassing wealth across Asia.

Frayed by China’s strengthening currency, weakening exports, and rising labor costs, China based Alibaba.com, is expanding into neighboring markets - Japan and India. The e-commerce company,which operates a business-to-business service targeting small and midsized importers and exporters, recently expressed its interest in expanding globally, while reducing its reliance on its home market.

The first stop on the global tour: Japan, China’s largest trading partner. The company in July launched a joint venture with Softbank, an Alibaba shareholder. In August, Alibaba signed a memorandum of understanding with three Korean partners to start a Korean-language service. And in May, Alibaba teamed up with Mumbai-based Infomedia India in an effort to attract small and midsized Indian companies. “China is getting a little less competitive,” Arthur Chang, vice-president for global sales at the company told Businessweek. “India is an obvious choice for us.”

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Asia is booming and there are hard facts to prove it. According to the Forbes report on Asia’s youngest billionaires,  the region is home to the world’s fastest growing population of the wealthy. According to the World Wealth Report, the population of China’s millionaires jumped 20 percent last year. The billionaire population grew even faster. The March Forbes‘ list included 42 Chinese billionaires, up from 20 the previous year. Keeping pace are Indian millionaires who’s presence jumped 23 percent last year. The billionaire count soared to 53 from 36 the previous year.

Also worthy of note, is that India’s four riches billionaires worth a gross of US$180 billion together are worth more than China’s 40 wealthiest individuals. Nonethless, the rich are growing richer faster in China than in India - China’s richest person, Yan Huiyan, is worth US$16.2 billion, seven times the net worth of last year’s No. 1, Wong Kwong Yu.

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Little documented, Asia’s insurance sector has been growing rapidly ever since the region began opening up their markets to foreign players. The recent spate of terrorist attacks in Asia has further prompted many Asian countries to adopt insurance against terrorism.

Globalization is the key source which is bringing about an ‘irreversible transformation’ in the Asian insurance market. India and China are ‘dynamically’ driving the growth of insurance markets in Asia and according to Research and markets the outlook for this industry in the region is ’sanguine’ despite short-term uncertainties.

Advanced economies currently account for the bulk of global insurance, according to International Financial Services London. With premium income of US$1,485bn in 2007, Europe was the most important region, followed by North America (US$1,258bn) and Asia (US$801bn).

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