Talking points

From firework displays over Victoria Harbour to a live television gala featuring Celine Dion in Beijing, the world sees in the Year of the Snake and says farewell to the Year of the Dragon in style. Lunar New Year festivities will take place in Chinese communities around the world. Perhaps one of the strangest bookings comes in Georgetown, Malaysia, tomorrow where the ruling coalition of Prime Minister Najib Razak marks the occasion with a performance by Gangnam Style rapper Psy.

The euro zone may be in deep crisis, but there's at least one nation anxious to start using the European currency. The government of Latvia is expected as soon as tomorrow to forward its formal request to the European Commission to begin using the euro from next year. The world economic crisis has hit Latvia hard, with unemployment levels reaching more than 20 per cent.