Talking points

Our editors will be looking ahead today to these developing stories ...

Cathay boss to press for a third runway

Cathay Pacific chief executive John Slosar puts the case for a third runway. More than 50 million passengers arrived or departed last year through Chek Lap Kok but the airport is rapidly becoming saturated and Cathay says Hong Kong must continue with expansion plans for a third runway to ensure success for North Asian carriers, which face stiff competition from the aggressive state-backed growth of Gulf Arab carriers.

Legco on alert for protesting villagers

Thousands of villagers from the New Territories are expected to stage a protest outside the Legislative Council as its development panel discusses a proposal to crack down on illegal structures. The Heung Yee Kuk, the rural affairs body that is mobilising the villagers, is demanding the government exempt from the crackdown thousands of village houses on old leases that do not contain a height restriction. The government says many houses have more than three storeys and these illegal extensions will have to be demolished under the new policy.

Lagarde poised to become next IMF chief

The International Monetary Fund executive board will meet to discuss the strengths of the two candidates for managing director, with the aim of completing its selection by Thursday. French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde appears poised to become the head despite a strong challenge to Europe's traditional hold on the job by Mexico's central bank governor, Agustin Carstens.

Greek unions step up the pressure

Greece's influential unions have called a 48-hour walkout on top of rolling power cuts by disgruntled electricity workers that have hit households around the country for the past week. Greece faces a strike this week and a momentous battle in parliament as the government struggles to quash dissent to additional austerity reforms needed to secure a vital new European Union-IMF bailout.

US women hope to rediscover scoring touch

Two-time world soccer champions United States look to shrug off a bumpy road to the 2011 World Cup in Germany and start their title run against North Korea. The US were the last team to qualify for the tournament then lost warm-up matches against fellow World Cup sides England and Norway. 'All of the losses we've suffered over the past 12 months have given us things to work on, and I think it has helped us to improve in the long run,' said forward Abby Wambach, one of the most prolific goal scorers in the world.

Communisty Party moves with the times

The Communist Party of China meets the press to discuss its junior membership and party works. Although the party has 80 million members, some scholars say it is losing its influence in local communities as society transforms from a planned economy to a more open and market-oriented one. The party is trying new ways to organise members at local level, including setting up party branches in high-rise buildings, and setting up chapters for migrant workers and even online party branches.