Although coronavirus has strangled the world economy, the new PlayStation console reports record sales. The pandemic didn't stop culture either - singer Beyoncé led nominations for the most prestigious Grammy Music Awards.
A Russian warship chased a US Navy destroyer from waters in the Sea of Japan to the East Sea. This hasn't been the only recent maritime conflict between the two great powers. Similar incidents usually occur because Russia and the United States often cannot agree on in which waters and under what conditions they can carry out their activities. U.S. military officials claim there was no breach of Russian space. Representatives of the Eastern power, on the other hand, claim that the destroyer USS John S. McCain sailed only 2 kilometers from the naval border before the Russian vessel - Admiral Vinogradov - started the chase. The American destroyer had allegedly been warned through an international communication channel.
Entrepreneurs and consumers alike continue to fear a deterioration in the overall economic situation and rising unemployment. The composite confidence indicator decreased by 4.4 points month-on-month and is now the lowest since July this year. In cast of entrepreneurs, the trust indicator decreased by 4.8 points, while the consumer confidence indicator dropped by 2.9 points.
"We have recorded the sharpest decline in selected services and trade, i.e. in sectors directly affected by anti-epidemic measures. In industry, the decline in trust is mainly due to lower demand and the associated expected slowdown in production growth in the coming months,"
The ruling officials of the People's Republic of China sharply opposed the criticism of Pope Francis. He had criticized their treatment of the Uighur minority in Xinjiang. The head of the Roman Catholic Church joined a growing group of critical voices and described the Uighurs as persecuted in his new book. It is speculated that up to a million Uighurs could now be detained in so-called re-education camps in China. The Chinese Foreign Ministry dismisses these reports, claiming that the pope's statements are unfounded. According to Chinese Foreign Minister Zhao Lijian, Beijing has always protected the legal rights of ethnic minorities.
Thirty-nine-year-old Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter dominated this year's Grammy nominations. Her new album Black Parade has earned a total of nine nominations. Beyoncé is competing for prestigious awards such as Song of the Year, Video Clip of the Year, or Best R&B and Rap Song. Taylor Swift, Dua Lipa and Roddy Rich received six nominations. Singer Harry Styles (former member of One Direction), singer Noah Cyrus (sister of the more famous Miley) or K-pop sensation BTS earned their first career chance to win the world's most prestigious music award.
The coronavirus pandemic has made Sony's new game console a scarce product worldwide. Some people who have pre-ordered the new console will have to wait an exceptionally long time for it to arrive. Many people missed out completely. The reason is increased demand due to the restrictions on outdoor life in many countries around the world, as well as restrictions and complications in the production and supply of goods. Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO Jim Ryan admitted in an interview that all PlayStation 5 consoles produced so far have already been sold.
"Everything is sold. Absolutely everything is sold. I’ve spent much of the last year trying to be sure that we can generate enough demand for the product. And now in terms of my executive bandwidth I’m spending a lot more time on trying to increase supply to meet that demand,"
Adjaye Associates has published its designs for a new learning center, museum, gallery and exhibition space in South Africa. It is dedicated to the second South African president after apartheid, Thabo Mbeki. This ambitious building is about to grow up on the Riviera in Johannesburg. If the designs are successfully implemented, eight cylindrical granary-style domes with a sloping facade and wooden paneling from local woody plants will be built here. Mbeki was the head of South Africa from 1999 to 2008. The multifunctional space is expected to spread across an area of 5,400 square meters and should become the "epicenter of the African Renaissance".
And that's all we've got for you this morning. We hope that you manage to overcome every challenge (not only) today. What kind of life you'll have depends mainly on you. Even the German philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer already knew that: