For the first time ever, the Chinese capital has become the new billionaire center of the world. Beijing gained 33 new billionaires in 2020, bringing its total to 100 and narrowly beating New York City’s 99, according to Forbes.

The annual World's Billionaires List for 2021 showed that the Big Apple added only seven new billionaires in the same time span.

“China bounced back quickly from its pandemic woes, skyrocketing from No. 4 to No. 1 on our annual list,” said the report.

Overall, five Chinese cities ranked among the top 10 globally with the most billionaires. Hong Kong was in third place with 80 billionaires, Shenzhen in fifth with 68, and Shanghai in sixth place with 64. Hangzhou added 21 billionaires, enough to overtake Singapore for the No. 10 spot.

The UK capital, London, also counted seven more billionaire residents, even though it dropped from the fifth spot to the seventh as “the most popular home for ten-figure fortunes.” Rounding out the top 10, Moscow slipped from third place to fourth, while Mumbai and San Francisco – each home to 48 billionaires – tied at No. 8.

According to the report, Beijing’s wealthiest newcomer is 34-year-old Wang Ning, whose booming toy business Pop Mart went public in Hong Kong in December 2020. “Zhang Yiming, Beijing’s richest denizen and founder of social media sensation TikTok, doubled his net worth to $35.6 billion.”

The world's ultra-wealthy got even richer last year despite the Covid-19 pandemic and economic recessions, said the report. Globally, 660 people became new billionaires, bringing the world total to 2,755 billionaires worth a collective $13.1 trillion, per Forbes.

Mongolia reported 575 daily cases of COVID-19 bringing the total number of infection to 12,226 as of April 7.

456 cases were confirmed in Ulaanbaatar, while the rest were confirmed in the regions.

2,480 patients are being treated, 70 of them are in serious and 10 patients are in extremely serious condition.

A total of 6,912 patients recovered with 185 patients recovering in the last 24 hours.

4 new deaths from coronavirus were reported for a day.

Iron ore prices rose on Tuesday, boosted by strong Chinese demand.

According to Fastmarkets MB, benchmark 62% Fe fines imported into Northern China (CFR Qingdao) were changing hands for $170.90 a tonne, up 1.43% from the previous trade.

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China’s steel prices also jumped to record highs, on concerns over supply curbs in the world’s biggest producer and exporter of construction and manufacturing material.

Construction steel rebar’s May contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange ended the daytime trading session 2.1% higher at 5,180 yuan ($791) a tonne, after earlier climbing to 5,200 yuan, the highest on record or since 2011.

PRICES ARE EXPECTED TO HALVE BY THE END OF NEXT YEAR

Production restrictions in China’s top-steelmaking city of Tangshan during the peak demand season have brought down stocks at commercial warehouses and created a “bullish atmosphere” for the market, Sinosteel Futures analysts said in a note.

Iron ore was the best performing commodity in 2020, thanks to China’s early emergence from the pandemic and Beijing’s heavy spending on economic stimulus, particularly infrastructure.

Iron ore price reached its highest level since September 2011 in mid-January, at $174.07 per tonne. The benchmark hit an all-time high of $191.70 in February 2011.

Prices are expected to halve by the end of next year and then gradually decline to reach $72 a tonne in real terms by the end of 2026.

(With files from Reuters)

This year, Mongolia is set to hold the eighth presidential election on June 9, Wednesday.

According to the Law on Presidential Election, the Director of the General Authority for State Registration of Mongolia has issued a decision to suspend citizens’ internal migration nationwide starting April 10 until the end of the day to publicly announce the election results. During this period, there will be no registration of citizens’ movements between different administrative units.

Article 25.1 of the Law on Presidential Elections reads, “Individuals’ internal migration from one to another administrative unit shall be stopped 60 days before the election and shall be resumed the following day of the election results are announced to the public.” During this period, there will be no registration of citizens’ movements to different administrative units countrywide.

Earlier in March, the General Election Commission approved a regulation for the forthcoming election and approved a new rule to manually count all of the machine-counted ballots after the polling is closed at all polling stations in order to verify the accuracy of the results.

On April 6, five systems developed with a view to improve the registration, information, control and tracing system of the livestock and farming industry in the scope of the technical assistances projects undertaken by the Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Light Industry (MoFALI) and Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) were handed over to the MoFALI.

The systems, which are deemed to lay the foundation for the future development of the digital agriculture, include the following, and have become ready for introduction into practice.

Value chain for plants and plant-derived products:

1. Plant origin tracing system,

2. Chemical substances tracing system,

3. General system of laboratories,

Value chain for meat:

4. Operational system for meat factory,

5. Block chain module for meat certificates,

At the hand over event, Minister of Agriculture Z.Mendsaikhan expressed his gratitude for the FAO for implementing major projects to introduce digital technologies into Mongolia’s agricultural industry and cooperation with the government at policy level.

On this day, the MoFALI and FAO signed a new project aimed at creating new employment opportunities for youth in the agribusiness sector.

A memorial complex consisting of the stele of Tonyukuk the Wise, who served as an advisor to three successive khans of the Turkic Khaganate, and a place of sacrifice is located northwest of Bayantsogt Mountain in Erdene soum, Tuv aimag, and 66 km southeast of Ulaanbaatar city. The complex is put under special protection.

Alongside two inscriptions, there is an engraved stone platform, a kurgan stelae with its top part broken, small standing stones, pottery, bricks, and an irrigation system located at the site.

Due to being worn down by years of exposure to the wind and sun as well as damages, some parts are noticeably darker. There are 62-rowed inscriptions on 8 sides of the two monuments. For instance, while the 217-cm-tall first inscription monument has 37 rows of inscription, the second one that stands 243 cm tall has rows 38 to 62.

With the inscription saying, “But should a people, ruled by a kagan in any land whatever, have only worthless men [at its head] what misfortune would it not be for it. For the Turkish Bilge kagan’s people, I have had this written. I the wise Tonyukuk,” it proves that the inscriptions were made when he was still alive. Researchers have also found that the inscription tells about the social situation of that time from Tonyukuk’s viewpoint.

Born of the Ashina noble family from which most powerful aristocrats and noblemen of the Turkic Khaganate were originated, Tonyukuk the Wise lived between the years of 646 to 732. After serving as an adviser for Qapaghan Khan and Kutulug Khan, he continued to work under Bilge Khan until his death at the age of 86. The Turkic Khaganate (or the Gokturk Khaganate) was a ruling Empire in Central Asia in 552-745.

Researchers have been conducting studies on the stele of Tonyukuk since 1897. It is believed that the monument was erected between 720 and 734.

In the framework of a TIKA project on the protection and restoration of Turkic monuments in Mongolia, fences have been constructed for the 1300-year-old stele’s complex, providing protection.

WASHINGTON, D.C., April 5, 2021 – Today, the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), a U.S. Government agency, and the Government of Mongolia celebrated the launch of the $350 million Mongolia Water Compact. The partnership between MCC and the Government of Mongolia directly tackles the impending water crisis in the capital city of Ulaanbaatar, with the aim of expanding the sustainable supply of water and enhancing the long-term financial, institutional, and environmental sustainability of the water sector. The Government of Mongolia is also investing up to $111.8 million to support the investment. This significant contribution ranks among the largest ever made by a partner country in the history of MCC. It symbolizes the strong commitment and ownership of the Government of Mongolia to this priority compact.“Access to water is a critical human need. In less than three decades, the population of Mongolia’s capital, Ulaanbaatar, has nearly tripled in size and the data indicates the city’s demand for water will soon exceed supply,” noted Acting Chief Executive Officer of MCC Mahmoud Bah. “Enhancing water access in an environmentally sustainable way is critical to achieving poverty reduction and economic growth. MCC is proud to mark the compact’s entry into force with our Mongolian partners for this five-year project that aims to improve the quality of life of millions of Mongolians.”The MCC Mongolia Water Compact will increase the available supply of water through the construction of new groundwater wells, a state-of-the-art plant for purifying drinking water, and a new plant for treating and recycling wastewater. The compact will also institute policy, legal, regulatory, and institutional reforms to enhance the long-term sustainability of Ulaanbaatar’s water supply.

“The $350 million grant to the water supply program is one of the largest single commitments the U.S. has made in the region,” said U.S. Ambassador to Mongolia Michael S. Klecheski. “It will bring new jobs over its five-year lifespan and increase Ulaanbaatar’s water supply by 80 percent.”

“We are delighted to celebrate the official start of the implementation of the MCC Mongolia Water Compact with our American partners,” added the Chief Executive Officer of Millennium Challenge Account-Mongolia, E. Sodontogos. “We are confident our partnership will surmount any challenges to successfully implement programs that will pave the way for a sustainable, more economically prosperous future for the Mongolian people.”

MCC provides large grants to developing countries that meet rigorous standards for good governance, from fighting corruption to respecting democratic rights, as evaluated by MCC’s scorecard. MCC takes a business-like approach, with bedrock commitments to data, accountability, and evidence-based decision making.

Mongolia needs a significant amount of financial resources to meet its nationalized Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and the financing gap has further widened due to the impact of COVID-19 pandemic. Mongolia has lost some of the progress it made towards the SDGs because of the pandemic, therefore heightened efforts are needed to regain the lost momentum and return focus back towards achieving the SDGs.

To increase the available financial resources for Mongolia’s development from good health of citizens to decent job opportunities, the state budget cannot be the sole source of financing and thus a number of measures are being identified that would not only increase the financing sources but also help allocate them more efficiently and effectively.

The state budget, the major source for financing national development, is most efficiently allocated when they are closely linked to the development priorities and results, which is termed as ‘results-based budgeting’. The adoption of results-based budgeting is a process ongoing in Mongolia and UNDP has successfully piloted at three line Ministries in the past two years and starting two more pilots this year. It is expected that based on the success of the pilots, the results-based budgeting will be scaled up across all Ministries and sectors, hence contributing to more efficient use of the state budget.

The private sector has a pivotal role in driving the sustainable development. However, private sector engagement has been relatively limited in terms of financing for development not only in Mongolia but also globally. It is now time to address that and create the necessary policy measures and incentives for the private sector to increase its role and contribution in national development.

The Development Bank of Mongolia (DBM) assumes a special role in financing for Mongolia’s sustainable development, both as a financier and as a potential role model for the country’s banking sector. Improved alignment of DBM operations with sustainable development priorities will shift the weight of financing from regular to sustainable, due to its size and impact in the financing landscape.

All of these processes from mobilizing more resources from the private sector to aligning the development policies with the budget and financial resources are encapsulated in the concept ‘Integrated National Financing Framework’ (INFF). It is a new concept globally and Mongolia is one of the pioneer countries that is working on the development and implementation of the INFF worldwide.

The INFF is being developed in Mongolia under the leadership of the Ministry of Finance within the Joint Programme ‘Rolling Out an Integrated Approach to SDG Financing in Mongolia’ implemented by the United Nations. UNDP is providing technical leadership and working with UNICEF, and UNFPA to support the rollout of the INFF in Mongolia.

We encourage the private sector to support efforts not only to develop the Integrated National Financing Framework for Mongolia, but also to become active contributors to the financing of sustainable development. Private sector can thus play a key role in accelerating Mongolia on its path to the attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals.

Originally published on Mongolian Economy

On April 2, President of Mongolia Battulga Khaltmaa held a telephone conversation with President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin to discuss timely issues of bilateral relations.

For the 100th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries, the leaders exchanged congratulations and discussed issues concerning the Mongolian-Russian cooperation.

After stressing that in the past years, the traditionally friendly bilateral ties have been developing very successfully and reached the level of a comprehensive strategic partnership, the two presidents agreed to issue a joint statement of heads of the states on the occasion of the diplomatic anniversary in the near future.

During the conversation, the President of Russia has informed that Mongolian cosmonaut J.Gurragchaa has been awarded the Order of Alexander Nevsky, order of merit of the Russian Federation, in recognition of his deeds in the development of Comprehensive Partnership between Mongolia and Russia and on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the Mongolian-Soviet joint space flight.

President Battulga congratulated Russia for successfully developing vaccines against COVID-19 and putting into use. In turn, the Russian President confirmed that he has received a letter dated February 11, 2021, from the Mongolian President on supply of COVID-19 vaccines to Mongolia and Russia is working with Mongolia’s Ministry of Health and the private sector for the COVID-19 vaccine supply within the framework of the requests of the Mongolian President and the Mongolian side.

President of Mongolia Battulga further expressed gratitude to the Russian President for providing support to the Mongolian government and put forward a request to accelerate the Sputnik-V vaccine delivery to Mongolia.

In response, President Vladimir Putin pledged to pay attention on the coronavirus vaccine supply to Mongolia in view of the significant historical relationship between the two nations.

The meeting also touched on Mongolian President’s proposal to manufacture Russia’s Sputnik-V vaccine in Mongolia. Supporting the proposal, President Vladimir Putin noted that a working group will be formed to study the possibilities in this area. In conclusion, the President of Russia expressed his confidence that forthcoming circumstances will enable the two presidents to meet in person.

Mongolia reported the highest daily count of 831 COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours, raising its national tally to 11,651, the country's National Center for Communicable Diseases (NCCD) said on Tuesday.

Among the new cases, which were locally transmitted, 731 were detected in capital Ulan Bator, Mongolia's hardest hit region, the NCCD said in a statement.

Meanwhile, one more death and 79 new recoveries were reported in the last 24 hours, bringing the death toll to 17 and the total number of recoveries to 6,010, respectively, according to the center.

Mongolia launched a national vaccination campaign in late February, with the aim of vaccinating at least 60 percent of its total population. More than 414,000 people have been vaccinated in the country so far