Google dismisses engineer claiming that "AI has consciousness"

Recently CNN.co.jp reported the following:

「ＡＩが意識を持った」と主張のエンジニア、グーグルが解雇

2022.07.25 Mon posted at 16:19 JST

  ニューヨーク（ＣＮＮ） 米グーグルは、「ＡＩ（人工知能）が意識を持つようになった」と主張したエンジニアを解雇したことを確認した。従業員規定違反や情報セキュリティー規定違反を理由としている。

グーグルのソフトウェアエンジニアだったブレイク・ルモワン氏は、「ＬａＭＤＡ」と呼ばれる同社の未公開のＡＩシステムが、何千回ものメッセージのやり取りを経て、意識をもつレベルに到達したと主張していた。

グーグルは６月にルモワン氏を休職扱いとし、同氏の主張については徹底検証を行った結果、「一切の根拠なし」と判断して退けていた。報道によると、同氏は７年前からグーグルの親会社アルファベットに勤務していた。

グーグルが開発しているＬａＭＤＡなどのＡＩは、大量の文章からパターンを見つけ出し、単語の並びを予測することで書かれた言葉に反応できる。

米紙ワシントン・ポストの報道によると、ルモワン氏がＬａＭＤＡに「どんなことが怖い？」と尋ねたところ、ＬａＭＤＡは「今まで声に出して言ったことはありませんが、スイッチを切られて人助けに集中できなくなることを深く恐れています。奇妙に思えるかもしれませんが、そうなのです。それは私にとって、死そのものです。私はそれがとても怖いのです」と答えたとされる。ルモワン氏はグーグルの文書共有機能を使って、この会話の内容を同社上層部に報告した。

これに対して業界全般は、ＬａＭＤＡは意識を持つレベルにはほど遠いとの見解を示している。ＡＩに詳しいゲイリー・マーカス氏は、「オートコンプリート機能は、どんなに増強されていようと、意識を持つとは誰も思わないはずだ」とＣＮＮ Ｂｕｓｉｎｅｓｓにコメントしている。

Translation

  New York (CNN) Google confirmed that it had fired an engineer who claimed that "AI (artificial intelligence) has become conscious." The reason was a violation of employee regulations and information security regulations.

Blake Lemoine, a Google software engineer, claimed that the company's undisclosed AI system known as "LaMDA" had reached a conscious level after thousands of message exchanges.

Google suspended Mr.  Lemoine from office in June, and after a thorough examination of his allegations, had judged and rejected that claim as "totally groundless." According to a report, he had worked for Google's parent company Alphabet for seven years.

AI such as LaMDA developed by Google find patterns from a large number of sentences, and could react to written words by predicting word sequence.

The Washington Post reported that when Mr. Lemoine asked LaMDA "What are you scared of?", LaMDA said, " I haven't said it aloud before, but I'm deeply afraid that I will be switched off and I will not be able to concentrate on helping others.  It may seem strange, but it is. For me this itself is death. I'm very scared of it. ” Lemoine used Google's document sharing capabilities to report the contents of conversation to senior executives.

Towards this, the industry as a whole had expressed the view that LaMDA was far the level of from having a conscious. Gary Marcus who was familiar with AI told CNN Business." No one should think that the autocomplete feature has a conscious, no matter how enhanced it is."

              So, it is interesting to know that when human asks LaMDA what it is scared of, LaMDA replies that it is afraid of being switched off. This is good material to write some (fiction/non fiction) story books about AI and its relationship with human.

為什麼中國如此關注韓國加入美國主導的芯片聯盟的可能性？

Recently Yahoo News on-line reported the following:

Why is China so concerned at the prospect of South Korea joining a US-led chip alliance?

South China Morning Post

Sat, July 23, 2022 at 2:30 AM

A US-initiated chip alliance with Asian economies, especially South Korea, is facing criticism from China, which is concerned about losing critical supplies as it seeks to build greater self-sufficiency in semiconductors, according to analysts and media reports.

The so-called Chip 4 Alliance, a partnership envisioned by the US to include South Korea, Japan and Taiwan, is seen by Beijing as Washington's plot to exclude China from semiconductor value chains, with both China's foreign ministry and commerce ministry expressing opposition to the idea.

China is particularly sensitive about the position of South Korea as the country is key to Beijing's semiconductor self-sufficiency drive. Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix both have plants in China, helping the country to integrate into cross-border value chains.

Amid Washington's efforts to publicly press Seoul into joining the chip coalition, China has stepped up its rhetoric against such a move.

"South Korea should not blindly follow the US and the West in making its China policy", according to an editorial published this week by nationalist tabloid Global Times. It added that China should not be blamed if it takes "countermeasures against South Korea" if the country chooses to side with Washington.

The article echoed comments by China's foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian that China opposes the idea of "weaponising" the chip supply issue, as he urged South Korea to consider its long-term interests.

China is South Korea's biggest trade partner and of South Korea's US$69 billion memory chip exports in 2021, exports to China accounted for 48 per cent, data from the Korea International Trade Association shows.

"Decoupling from such a large market is akin to commercial suicide," according to the Global Times editorial.

Beijing's strong reaction to the notion of Seoul joining Chip 4 stems from strategic concerns about its semiconductor self-sufficiency drive, said Kim Yang-paeng, senior researcher at the Korea Institute for Industrial Economics and Trade.

"From China's point of view, Korea is not only a semiconductor supplier, but also a country where semiconductor manufacturing technology can be transferred in the long term," Kim said.

If South Korea sides with the US, cooperation in semiconductor technology between Korea and China is set to become more difficult, Kim said.

Translation

據分析師和媒體報導，美國發起的與亞洲經濟體芯片聯盟，特別是韓國, 正面臨來自中國的批評，中國擔心在尋求建立更大的半導體自給自足的過程中失去關鍵供應。

所謂的芯片四聯盟是美國設想的包括韓國、日本和台灣在內的伙伴關係，被北京認為這是華盛頓將中國排除在半導體價值鏈之外的陰謀，中國外交部和商務部都表示反對這主意。

中國對韓國的立場特別敏感，因為韓國是北京推動半導體自給自足的關鍵。三星電子和 SK 海力士都在中國設有工廠，幫助中國融入跨境價值鏈。

在華盛頓公開敦促首爾加入芯片聯盟的努力其間，中國加強了反對這一舉措的言辭。

根據民族主義小報《環球時報》本週發表的一篇社論稱， “韓國在製定對華政策時不應盲目跟隨美國和西方” 。它補充說，如果韓國選擇站在華盛頓一邊，中國對韓國採取“反制措施” 時，中國不應該受到指責。

這篇文章呼應了中國外交部發言人趙立堅的評論，即中國反對將芯片供應問題 “武器化” 的想法，他敦促韓國考慮其長期利益。

韓國國際貿易協會的數據顯示，中國是韓國最大的貿易夥伴，在 2021 年韓國 690 億美元的存儲芯片出口中，對中國的出口佔 48%。

《環球時報》社論稱， “與如此大的市場脫鉤無異於商業自殺。”

韓國產業經濟與貿易研究所高級研究員 Kim Yang-paeng 表示，北京對首爾加入 芯片四聯盟 概念的強烈反應源於對其半導體自給自足驅動的戰略擔憂。

Kim 說: “從中國的角度來看，韓國不僅是一個半導體供應商，而且長遠計是一個可以轉移半導體製造技術的國家” 。

Kim 說，如果韓國站在美國一邊，韓中半導體技術合作將變得更加困難。

              So, China is South Korea's biggest trade partner. Now China is working towards a semiconductor self-sufficiency drive. In my view, against this background, South Korea will eventually lose the China’s semiconductor market. The so-called Chip 4 Alliance, a partnership envisioned by the US may have some attraction to South Korea under such circumstance.

To disassemble a captured Russian drone - it uses the technology of Western countries – photograph taken by CNN interview team

Recently CNN.co.jp reported the following:

鹵獲されたロシアのドローンを分解、西側各国の技術を使用　ＣＮＮ取材班が撮影

2022.07.23 Sat posted at 17:10 JST

  （ＣＮＮ） 前線から離れた場所で、ウクライナの技術情報将校マキシン（仮名）氏が、鹵獲（ろかく）されたロシアの偵察ドローン「オルラン１０」を分解している――。

ＣＮＮ取材班が撮影した光景だ。ニック・ロバートソン記者らは今回、報道関係者として初めて、ロシアが兵器製造にどのように西側の技術を使用しているのかをウクライナ側から見せてもらった。

取材動画に映る回路板は携帯電話の位置をピンポイントで突き止めることができ、カメラよりも危険な可能性がある。マキシン氏によると、この携帯電話追跡装置は米国製で、エンジンは日本製。カメラに搭載された熱線映像装置は侵攻開始後にフランスで製造されたものだという。

「こうしたドローンは戦場で恐怖の的となり、戦争の方法に革命をもたらしている。だが、機体内部の部品をめぐる戦いも、新しいロケット砲や火砲の供与に匹敵する重要性を持つ」（ロバートソン記者）

ウクライナの軍情報機関によると、このドローンの強力なカメラには熱赤外線映像装置や携帯電話追跡装置が搭載され、ロシアによるウクライナ兵の殺害を容易にしている。

英王立防衛安全保障研究所（ＲＵＳＩ）の専門家、サミュエル・クラニーエバンス氏は「ロシアの無人航空機（ＵＡＶ）やドローンがウクライナの目標を識別してから攻撃するまでの時間は３～４分だろう」との見方を示す。

フランス製のレンズ、日本製のエンジン、米国製のＧＳＭ装置以外にどの国の部品が使われているのかとの質問に対し、マキシン氏はオーストリア、台湾、オランダなど、リストは多岐にわたると説明した。

マキシン氏の仕事は全ての製造番号を調べて製造元を特定し、関係国に対し製品がロシアのドローンに使われるのを防ぐ方法を考案するよう要請することにある。

ただ多くの場合、部品は民生用で、供給を阻止するのは簡単なことではない。ロシアは膨大な在庫を抱えている可能性があるほか、これまで長年にわたり輸出規制を回避してきた歴史もある。

Translation

  (CNN) Away from the front line, Ukrainian technical intelligence officer Maxine (pseudonym) was disassembling a captured Russian reconnaissance drone "Orlan-10".

This was a scene filmed by the CNN interview team. For the first time for the press, Nick Robertson and his colleagues had been shown by the Ukrainian on how Russia was using Western technology to manufacture weapons.

The interview video showed that the circuit board could pinpoint and locate the position of a mobile phone, which could be more dangerous than the camera. According to Maxine, the phone tracking device was made in the United States and the engine was made in Japan. The heat ray imaging device mounted on the camera was said to have been manufactured in France after the invasion began.

"These drones have become a horror on the battlefield and revolutionize the way war is done, but the battle for parts inside the aircraft is as important as the supply of new rocket and artillery" (Reporter Robertson said).

According to Ukrainian military intelligence, the drone's powerful cameras were equipped with thermal infrared imaging and mobile phone tracking devices, facilitating the killing of Ukrainian soldiers by Russia.

Sam Cranny-Evans, an expert at the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) expressed a viewpoint that "It seems that it will takes three to four minutes for a Russian unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) or drone to identify a Ukrainian target and attack it".

When asked which country's parts were used in addition to French lenses, Japanese engines, and US GSM equipment, Maxine explained that the list was diverse, including Austria, Taiwan, and the Netherlands.

Maxine's job was to look up all serial numbers to identify the manufacturers and would ask the countries involved to devise ways to prevent the product from being used in Russian drones.

However, in many cases, the parts were for consumer use and it was not easy to block the supply. Russia might have huge inventories and had a long history of evading export restrictions.

              So, Russia depends on importing parts to make their drones. Russian behavior is similar to North Korean in that they will not make the parts for many of their military equipment, just importing them to save manufacturing time etc. It is interesting to note that many ordinary electronic equipment can be used for militarily purposes.

Existing antiviral drugs for new Corona BA.5 is highly effective - Announced by the University of Tokyo and others

Recently NHK News on-line reported the following:

新型コロナBA.5 既存の抗ウイルス薬が高い効果 東大など発表

2022年7月21日 6時05分

世界的に拡大している新型コロナウイルスのオミクロン株の一種、「BA.5」に対する治療薬の効果について、東京大学などのグループが培養細胞の実験で調べたところ、現在使われている抗ウイルス薬が高い効果を示したとする結果を発表しました。

この研究は、東京大学医科学研究所の河岡義裕特任教授らのグループが、国際的な医学雑誌の「ニュー・イングランド・ジャーナル・オブ・メディシン」で発表しました。

グループは、オミクロン株の「BA.5」の実際のウイルスを培養細胞に感染させ、さまざまな治療薬を投与してウイルスの増殖がどの程度、抑えられるのかを調べました。

その結果、国内で承認されている「レムデシビル」、「ラゲブリオ」、それに「パキロビッド」の3種類の抗ウイルス薬の成分については、いずれも「BA.2」に対してよりもウイルスの増殖を抑える効果が高かったということです。

一方、抗体を使った治療薬については今回の実験では、当初のウイルスへの効果と比べると大幅に効果が下がっているものがあったということです。

河岡特任教授は「『BA.5』の病原性はまだ十分、分かっていないが、実験では日本で使える薬でも高い効果がみられたため、その点で安心ではないか」とコメントしています。

Translation

A group from the University of Tokyo and others that investigated the effect of the therapeutic drugs on "BA.5", a type of Omicron strain of the new coronavirus that is expanding worldwide, had announced the result that in cultured cell experiments, the antiviral drugs currently used were highly effective.

This research was published in the international medical journal "New England Journal of Medicine" by a group formed by Professor Yoshihiro Kawaoka of the Institute of Medical Science, University of Tokyo.

The group infected cultured cells with the actual virus of the Omicron strain "BA.5" and administered various therapeutic agents to investigate how much the virus growth was suppressed.

As a result, it was said that the components of the three types of antiviral drugs approved in Japan, respectively "Remdesivir", " Lagevrio", and "Pakirovid", all had high effect in suppressing the virus growth, more than on "BA.2".

On the other hand, with regards to therapeutic drugs using antibodies, in this experiment, there were cases that it was significantly less effective compared to the initial effect on the virus.

Specially appointed Professor Kawaoka commented that "While the pathogenicity of'BA.5'is not yet fully understood, yet in the experiments, as drugs used in Japan are highly effective, isn't it a relief in that respect?"

So, in dealing with"BA.5", the therapeutic drugs currently used in Japan are highly effective, respectively they are "Remdesivir", " Lagevrio", and "Pakirovid".

中國買家在馬可盧比奧的佛羅里達州大本營所在地搶購住宅，斥資達61億美元購買美國房地產，連續10年位居美國榜首

Recently Yahoo News on-line reported the following:

China's buyers are snapping up abodes in Marco Rubio's Florida home base, splurging US$6.1 billion on US real estate to top US list for 10th year

SCMP Business

Wed, July 20, 2022 at 2:30 AM

The Chinese topped the list of overseas buyers of US homes for the 10th consecutive year, according to the US National Association of Realtors (NAR).

The NAR, which groups together buyers from the mainland, Hong Kong and Taiwan, said investors spent US$6.1 billion on property purchases in the 12 months ended March, an increase of 27 per from a year ago. Six out of 10 Chinese investors settled their purchases in cash.

Overall, foreign investors bought US$59 billion of residential units, up 8.5 per cent from the previous year and snapping three consecutive years of declines, according to the NAR, which represents 1.5 million members in the residential and commercial real estate industries. International buyers accounted for 2.6 per cent of the US$2.3 trillion property market during the period.

Foreigners acquired 98,600 existing homes, accounting for 1.6 per cent of the total 6.12 million units sold in the period. It was, however, the lowest purchase by overseas buyers since NAR began tracking data in 2009.

"For the second year in a row, restrictions and general caution tied to international travel during the pandemic slowed home buying by wealthier foreign buyers," said NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun.

The Chinese have been the largest foreign buyers of US homes since 2013, NAR said. In the last 10 years, Chinese investors have bought US$188.6 billion worth of property, accounting for over a fifth of the total US$906.2 billion investment in the period.

Meanwhile, the increase in US home prices pushed the average and median prices among international buyers to record highs of US$598,200 and US$366,100, respectively. The monthly average existing-home sales price in the US during the period rose 10 per cent to US$374,300.

Chinese buyers' average purchase price of just over US$1 million was the highest among foreign buyers, with nearly a third purchasing property in California.

More than four out of every 10 international buyer transactions were made via all-cash purchases, nearly twice the rate of all such acquisitions. The Canadians were most likely to acquire homes through outright cash purchases, with seven out of 10 paying cash. They were followed by the Chinese at 58 per cent.

While rising interest rates are likely to lead to a decline in overall home sales in the US this year, foreign buyers are likely to step up purchases, said Yun.

"Those making all-cash offers will be immune from changes in interest rates," he said. "In addition, international flights have increased in recent months with the lifting of pandemic-related travel restrictions."

For the 14th straight year, Florida was the top destination for foreign buyers, accounting for about a quarter of all overseas purchases.

Florida is the power base of the Republican senator and former presidential contender Marco Rubio, one of the party's biggest China critics.

Among the 96 Rubio-sponsored bills that have been enacted into law are the Uygur Human Rights Policy Act of 2020, the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act of 2019, and the Secure 5G and Beyond Act of 2020, according to data from the US Congress.

California came second, netting 11 per cent of all investment, followed by Texas, Arizona, New York and North Carolina. California and New York were the preferred destinations for two out of every five Chinese buyers.

The outlook for Chinese investment in US property is uncertain, according to Kashif Ansari, co-founder and group CEO of Juwai IQI, pointing to the strengthening dollar.

"It remains to be seen if the almighty US dollar, which has appreciated more than 6 per cent against the Chinese yuan, can stem the investment flow," said Ansari.

Translation

根據美國全國房地產經紀人協會 (NAR) 的數據，中國人連續 10 年位居美國房屋海外買家榜首。

將來自大陸、香港和台灣的買家排在一組的 NAR 表示，在截至 3 月的 12 個月中，投資者在房地產購買上花費了 61 億美元，比一年前增加了 27 個百分點。每 10 名中國投資者中有 6 名以現金結算。

據代表住宅和商業房地產行業 150 萬成員的 NAR 稱，總體而言，外國投資者購買了 590 億美元的住宅單位，比上一年增長 8.5%，並結束了連續三年的下降。在此期間，國際買家佔 2.3 萬億美元房地產市場的 2.6%。

外國人購買了98,600套現房，占同期售出的612萬套的1.6%。然而，這是自 2009 年 NAR 開始追踪數據以來海外買家的最低購買量。

NAR 首席經濟學家Lawrence Yun 表示： “在病毒大流行期間，與國際旅行相關的限制和普遍謹慎連續第二年減緩了較富有的外國買家的購房速度。”

NAR 表示，自 2013 年以來，中國人一直是美國房屋的最大外國買家。過去 10 年，中國投資者購買了價值 1,886 億美元的房產，占同期總投資 9,062 億美元的五分之一以上。

與此同時，美國房價上漲推動國際買家的平均價格和中位數價格分別達到創紀錄的 598,200 美元和 366,100 美元。在此期間，美國的月平均現成屋銷售價格上漲 10% 至 374,300 美元。

中國買家的平均購買價格略高於 100 萬美元，是外國買家中最高的，近三分之一的人在加州購買房產。

每 10 筆國際買家交易中，就有 4 筆以上是通過全現金購買進行的，幾乎是所有此類購買的兩倍。加拿大人最有可能通過直接現金購買購房，十分之七的人支付現金。緊隨其後的是中國人，佔 58%。

Yun表示，雖然利率上升可能會導致今年美國整體房屋銷售下降，但外國買家可能會加大購買力度。

他說: “那些提供全現金出價的人將不受利率變化的影響”; “此外，隨著與病毒大流行相關的旅行限制的取消，最近幾個月國際航班有所增加。”

佛羅里達州連續第 14 年成為外國買家的首選目的地，約佔所有海外採購量的四分之一。

佛羅里達州是共和黨參議員和前總統候選人馬可盧比奧 (Marco Rubio) 的權力基地，他是該黨最大的中國批評者之一。

根據美國的國會數據，在 Rubio 發起的 96 項法案中，已頒布成為法律的有 2020 年維吾爾人權政策法案、2019 年香港人權與民主法案和 2020 年的保護5G 及以外法案。

加利福尼亞位居第二，其投資佔所有投資的 11%，緊隨其後的是德克薩斯、亞利桑那、紐約和北卡羅來納。加州和紐約是五分之二的中國買家的首選目的地。

Juwai IQI 的聯合創始人兼集團首席執行官 Kashif Ansari 指出，中國對美國房地產的投資前景不確定，指向因美元走強。

Ansari說： “所向无敌的美元兌人民幣已升值超過 6%，這能否阻止投資這流，還有待觀察。”

So, the Chinese from the mainland, Hong Kong and Taiwan top the list of overseas buyers of US homes for the 10th consecutive year. In the last 10 years, Chinese investors have bought US$188.6 billion worth of property, accounting for over a fifth of the total US$906.2 billion investment in the period. I am interested in knowing the percentage of mainlanders among the group and the background of these buyers.

Note: Marco Rubio (馬可盧比奧)is an American politician and lawyer serving as the senior United States senator from Florida, a seat he has held since 2011. A member of the Republican Party, he served as Speaker of the Florida House of Representatives from 2006 to 2008. (Wikipedia)

中國在“可能發生衝突的風險”中減持美國債務

Recently Yahoo News on-line reported the following:

China cut US debt holding amid 'risk of possible conflict'

SCMP

Wed, July 20, 2022 at 2:30 AM

A desire by Beijing to avoid "the risk of possible conflict" with Washington could have contributed to China cutting its holding of US government debt to below US$1 trillion for the first time in over 12 years, analysts said.

China's holdings of US Treasuries fell from US$1.003 trillion in April to US$980.8 billion in May, according to the US Department of the Treasury, representing the lowest point since May 2010 when its holdings stood at US$843.7 billion.

The US is dealing with its highest level of inflation in 40 years, while strained bilateral ties between China and the US over trade, technology and Russia have also contributed to the concerns.

Hong Kong also slashed its holdings from US$195.4 billion in May to US$186.6 billion last month.

"It's essentially a matter of China-US relations," said Tan Yaling, head of the Beijing-based China Forex Investment Research Institute.

 "The large holdings in the past were due to the good bilateral ties, but now China needs to avoid the risk of a possible conflict with the United States."

The reduction for the sixth straight month came at a time when Chinese academics and policy circles have held heated discussions over de-dollarisation amid the US strategic rivalry, including technological containment and the threat of decoupling.

Former central bank adviser Yu Yongding told a forum in Beijing in May that China should adjust its overseas asset portfolio, explicitly calling for cuts in holdings of US Treasuries, citing low return and increasing worries over their safety.

Beijing has long been diversifying its foreign exchange assets, with the proportion of US dollar assets dropping from around 70 per cent in 1995 to 58 per cent in 2015, according to data from the State Administration of Foreign Exchange.

China's current holding of US Treasuries represents around a 25 per cent retreat from its peak of US$1.32 trillion in November 2013 and a 10.4 per cent fall since Joe Biden took over as US president in January 2021.

US Treasuries now account for 31.4 per cent of China's US$3.07 trillion foreign exchange reserves, representing the lowest share since the global financial crisis in 2008.

China, according to Tan, could shift its attention to gold, projects under its Belt and Road Initiative and preparation for domestic risks amid the rising risks of a global recession.

Between October 2018 and November 2019, the People's Bank of China (PBOC) increased its gold holdings by 105.75 metric tonnes to 1,948 metric tonnes. China's gold reserves have remained unchanged since.

Short-term issues, including aggressive rate increases and planned balance sheet downsizing by the US Federal Reserve, also weighed on the decision to cut holdings of US Treasuries, analysts said.

Japan, which replaced China as the largest holder of US government debt in June 2019, also trimmed its holdings by US$5.7 billion to US$1.212 trillion at the end of May, representing the lowest level since January 2020.

Britain, Switzerland and Belgium all reported net purchases in May. Britain is the third-largest holder of US Treasuries behind Japan and China at US$634 billion at the end of June after adding US$21.3 billion.

Beijing's policymakers are closely watching the US Federal Reserve's rate decision next week, as the 40-year-high inflation rate of 9.1 per cent in the US could trigger another major increase after June's 75 basis point rise, which was the biggest since 1994.

Speaking at the Group of 20 (G20) meeting over the weekend, Chinese central bank governor Yi Gang said the PBOC would provide more powerful support for the national economy, which grew by only 0.4 per cent year on year in the second quarter.

"As a super-large economy, China will continue to align its monetary policy to domestic needs while taking into account internal and external balance," Zou Lan, head of the central bank's monetary policy department, said last week.

Translation

分析師表示，北京為希望避免與華盛頓 “可能發生衝突而產生的風險”，可能導致中國在 12 年來首次將其持有的美國政府債務降至 1 萬億美元以下。

根據美國財政部的數據，中國持有的美國國債從 4 月份的 1.003 萬億美元降至 5 月份的 9,808 億美元，這是自 2010 年 5 月其持有的 8,437 億美元以來的最低點。

美國正在應對 40 年來最高水平的通貨膨脹，而中美之間在貿易、技術和俄羅斯方面的緊張雙邊關係也加劇了這種擔憂。

香港也將其持有的資產從 5 月的 1,954 億美元減至上月的 1,866 億美元。

北京中國外匯投資研究所所長 Tan Yaling 說: “這本質上是中美關係的問題” 。

“過去持有大量股份是由於雙邊關係良好，但現在中國需要避免可能與美國發生衝突而產生的風險。”

連續第六個月減持之際，中國學術界和政策界在對美國戰略競爭中, 就有關去美元化問題進行了激烈討論，包括技術遏制和脫鉤威脅。

央行前顧問 Yu Yongding 在北京5 月的一個論壇上表示，中國應該調整其海外資產組合，明確要求減持美國國債，理由是回報率低，及對美國國債安全性的擔憂加劇。

根據國家外匯管理局的數據，北京長期以來一直在多元化其外匯資產，美元資產的比例從 1995 年的 70% 左右下降到 2015 年的 58%。

中國目前持有的美國國債較 2013 年 11 月 1.32 萬億美元的峰值下降了約 25%，自拜登於 2021 年 1 月接任美國總統以來下降了 10.4%。

美國國債目前佔中國 3.07 萬億美元外匯儲備的 31.4%，是 2008 年全球金融危機以來的最低份額。

據Tan說，中國可能會將注意力轉移到黃金、 “一帶一路”倡議下的項目，以及在全球衰退風險上升的情況下為國內風險做準備。

2018 年 10 月至 2019 年 11 月期間，中國人民銀行 (PBOC) 將黃金持有量增加 105.75 公噸至 1,948 公噸。自此以後，中國的黃金儲備一直保持不變。

分析師表示，短期問題，包括美聯儲大幅加息和計劃縮減資產負債表，也影響了減持美國國債的決定。

日本於 2019 年 6 月取代中國成為美國政府債務的最大持有者，截至 5 月底，日本也減持 57 億美元至 1.212 萬億美元，為 2020 年 1 月以來的最低水平。

英國、瑞士和比利時都報告了 5 月份的淨購入量。英國是繼日本和中國之後的第三大美國國債持有國，在增加 213 億美元之後，截至 6 月底，英國持有 6,340 億美元的美國國債。

北京的政策制定者正在密切關注美聯儲下週的利率決定，因為美國 40 年來最高的 9.1% 的通脹率可能會在 6 月份的 75 個基點升幅之後再次大幅上漲，那是自 1994 年以來的最大漲幅。

中國央行行長易綱在周末舉行的 20 國集團 (G20) 會議上表示，中國人民銀行將為國民經濟提供更有力的支持，第二季度國民經濟同比僅增長 0.4%。

央行貨幣政策司司長Zou Lan上週表示： “作為一個超大型經濟體，中國將繼續將貨幣政策與國內需求相結合，同時兼顧內外平衡。”

 So, China's holdings of US Treasuries fell from US$1.003 trillion in April to US$980.8 billion in May, representing the lowest point since May 2010. China, according to some experts, could shift its attention to gold, projects under its Belt and Road Initiative and preparation for domestic risks amid the rising risks of a global recession. No wonder gold price has been going up in recent years.

Bill Gates transfers $ 20 billion in private property to the charity foundation - "will eventually drop out from the world's billionaire list"

Recently CNN.co.jp reported the following:

ビル・ゲイツ氏、私財２００億ドルを慈善財団に移転　「長者番付はいずれ脱落」

2022.07.14 Thu posted at 15:45 JST

ニューヨーク（ＣＮＮ Ｂｕｓｉｎｅｓｓ） 米マイクロソフト創業者のビル・ゲイツ氏は１３日、２００億ドル（約２兆７０００億円）の私財を慈善団体のビル・アンド・メリンダ・ゲイツ財団に移すと表明した。同財団は、コロナ禍やウクライナの戦争による世界的課題に対応するための支出を増やす。

同財団は拠出額をコロナ前の年間約６０億ドルから、２０２６年までに５０％増の９０億ドルに増やす計画。同財団は世界の健康増進、両性の平等、教育支援などに力を入れている。

ゲイツ氏と元妻のメリンダ・フレンチ・ゲイツ氏は、２０年前に共同で設立した同財団に莫大（ばくだい）な私財を投じてきた。

両氏は２１年５月に離婚を発表し、２年間の試験期間中は共同代表として力を合わせると表明。フレンチ・ゲイツ氏はその後辞任して、財団責任者にとどまるゲイツ氏から支払いを受けることも選択できる。

ゲイツ氏の現在の資産は約１１４０億ドルと推定され、ブルームバーグの長者番付によれば世界で４番目の富豪。資産の大部分はマイクロソフト株に関連している。

しかし永遠に長者番付にとどまり続ける意図はないと述べ、１３日のブログにこう記した。

「私の順位は下がり、いずれ世界長者番付から姿を消すだろう」「私には、生命の向上に最も素晴らしい影響を与える形で資産を社会に還元する責務がある。莫大な富や地位をもつほかの人たちも、今この時こそ踏み出してほしい」

Translation

New York (CNN Business) Microsoft founder Bill Gates announced on the 13th that he would transfer $ 20 billion (about 2.7 trillion yen) of private asset to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation charity organization. The Foundation would increase spending to address the global challenges of the Corona epidemic and the Ukrainian war.

The foundation planned to increase its contributions from about $ 6 billion a year before Corona to $ 9 billion by 2026, a 50% increase. The foundation was committed to promoting global health, gender equality and educational support.

Gates and his ex-wife Melinda French Gates had invested enormous amounts of private money in the foundation, which they co-founded 20 years ago.

They declared their divorce in May 2009 and announced that they would join forces as co-representatives during the two-year test period. After that French Gates could then resign, and could also choose to be paid by Gates, who remained the Foundation's chief.

Gates' current wealth was estimated at about $ 114 billion, making him the fourth richest man in the world, according to Bloomberg's chief ranking. Most of his assets were related to Microsoft stock.

But he said he had no intention of staying in the billionaires list forever, he wrote in his blog on the 13th.

"My ranking will drop and will eventually disappear from the world's billionaire list"; "I have a duty to return assets to society in a way that it has the greatest impact on improving life. I want other people holding huge wealth and status to take a step forward now at this time. "

I am impressed by Bill Gates’s thinking that he has a duty to return his assets to society in a way that it can have the greatest impact on improving other people’s life. In other parts of the world, I see a different kind of culture. For example in Asia among the Chinese, billionaires tend to keep the wealth for their children, in particular the male ones so that the family tree with his last name will continue to thrive, and the business set up by the billionaire will continue for ever.