Disposal tax to check mountain of e-waste
The central government will levy a new trash disposal tax on all foreign consumer electronics from July 1 next year, according to mainland media reports. The tax is designed to offset the cost of dealing with discarded computers, cathode ray tube monitors and other hardware that finds its way into mainland landfills.
Much of the so-called 'e-waste', however, is not generated in China but overseas. In the United States, up to 80 per cent of what the country described as 'recyclable' electronics waste is sent to Asia, said green groups. One group estimated the US exported more than US$1 billion in electronic waste to China last year.
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Hong Kong at the top in mobile phone usage
Hong Kong had the highest mobile-phone penetration rate in the region at 83 per cent, according to a study released last week by market researcher TNS.
The figure was unchanged from last year, largely because anyone who wants a mobile phone has already bought one, said analyst Stephen Yap, adding that those who did not own one were 'rejectors' and were never likely to.