AsiaPulse News back issues from January 2004:
INDO-GERMAN TRADE SET TO RISE TO $US5.6MLN IN 2003.
Jan 01, 2004 ... NEW DELHI, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - Indo-German trade is forecast to rise to Rs 260,000 million ($US5,698 million) in 2003, according to an expert, Director Indo-German Export Promotion Council D Kebschull said. Revaluation of the euro had improved the export possibilities for Indian ...
INDIA'S ECONOMY POSTS 8.4% GROWTH IN 2003.
Jan 01, 2004 ... NEW DELHI, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - Indian economic growth shot up to a record 8.4% during the 2nd quarter of 2003-04, after years of sluggish growth, thanks to bumper agriculture production, coupled with impressive performance by industry. The services sector, led by trade, hotels, ...
NORTH KOREA PLEDGES PEACEFUL RESOLUTION OF NUCLEAR ISSUE.
Jan 01, 2004 ... SEOUL, Jan. 1 Asia Pulse - North Korea said Thursday that despite Washington's "hostile" policy, there was no change in its policy to resolve its nuclear crisis through peaceful means. The North confirmed its policy in its New Year's message issued in the form of a joint ...
LOY YANG POWER SALE DEAL EXTENDED IN AUSTRALIA.
Jan 01, 2004 ... MELBOURNE, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - Under an extension granted yesterday, the Australian Gas Light Company (ASX:AGL) consortium will have until February 4 to complete its proposed .5 ($US2.61) billion Loy Yang Power sale deal. Under an in-principle agreement, the extension is expected ...
SAARC SUMMIT TO BE HELD IN ISLAMABAD JAN 2.
Jan 01, 2004 ... FAISALABAD, Pakistan, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - Tomorrow's South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) summit will not only play an instrumental role for cooperation between India and Pakistan, but also create new opportunities of investment and development in this region, according ...
IRAN, SUDAN DISCUSS EXPANSION OF TRADE TIES.
Jan 01, 2004 ... TEHRAN,Jan 1 Asia Pulse - The Sudanese Minister of External Trade, Abd al-Hameed Musa Kasha, has called for the expansion of bilateral trade ties with Iran. In a meeting with Secretary-General of Central Cooperatives Chamber of Iran Mohammad-Reza Ramezani, the two sides ...
IRAN-KHODRO INDUSTRIAL COMPLEX TO STEP UP OFFSHORE PRESENCE.
Jan 01, 2004 ... TEHRAN, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - Iran's deputy foreign minister for Asia-Pacific affairs said during a visit to Iran-Khodro Industrial complex that the government is ready to promote the firm in international markets. Mohsen Aminzadeh said that with the modernization and development ...
GAIL READIES LNG PIPELINE TO TRANSPORT GAS TO DELHI CONSUMERS.
Jan 01, 2004 ... NEW DELHI, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - The Gas Authority of India (GAIL), the gas transmission utility, has said it is ready to transport gas from a green field facility at Dahej to consumers in Delhi and northern India. The company said in a statement that it had completed a section of ...
INDIAN TV OWNERSHIP DISPUTE SPARKS CALL FOR REVIEW.
Jan 01, 2004 ... NEW DELHI, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - Television Eighteen (TV18) and CNBC Asia Pacific have announced they call for a review of a decision by the government rejecting the former's application to offer a 15 per cent stake in its uplinking subsidiary to the latter. "We shall work closely ...
MOTOROLA/SIEMENS TO SUPPLY OLYMPICS RADIO SYSTEM.
Jan 01, 2004 ... NEW DELHI, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - Motorola and Siemens have been selected to provide two-way radio communications systems to be used by public safety agencies during the 2004 Olympic games in Athens. Motorola says its Commercial, Government and Industrial Solutions sector (CGISS), ...
INDIA MAY APPOINT ADVISORS FOR ONGC, GAIL PUBLIC OFFERINGS.
Jan 01, 2004 ... NEW DELHI, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - The Indian Government has fast-tracked disinvestment of the Oil and Natural Gas Commission and the Gas Authority of India and is likely to appoint in a day or two as many as five advisors for the public offer of shares of the two companies. The ...
PAKISTAN GOVT SELLS OFF HABIB BANK FOR $US391MLN.
Jan 01, 2004 ... ISLAMABAD, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - The Pakistan government has sold a controlling stake in the country's second-largest commercial bank - Habib Bank Limited (HBL) to the Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development (AKFED) for Rs22.409 billion ($US391.4 million). The AKFED submitted the ...
US-SINGAPORE FREE TRADE PACT TAKES EFFECT JAN 1.
Jan 01, 2004 ... SINGAPORE, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - A free-trade agreement between Singapore and the United States is set to come into effect Thursday, according to the Singaporean Ministry of Trade. The agreement, the United States' first with an Asian state, is expected to kick off a sweeping ...
TURNOVER ON TAIWAN'S STOCK MARKET FALLS IN 2003.
Jan 01, 2004 ... TAIPEI, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - Turnover on Taiwan's stock market fell by 6.6 per cent in 2003 from the previous-year level, according to statistics released Wednesday by the Taiwan Stock Exchange (TAIEX). A total of 968.55 billion shares changed hands on a market turnover of ...
IRAN TO CUT DEVELOPMENT BUDGET TO ADDRESS DEFICIT.
Jan 01, 2004 ... TEHRAN, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - An Iranian official has said the government faces a Rls 20 trillion ($US2.409 billion) deficit in the current Iranian year, which started on March 20). Head of Management and Plan Organization`s (MPO) Economic Bureau Mohammad Kord-Bache told IRNA that ...
ANALYSIS - AUSTRALIAN DOLLAR MAY CLIMB TO 80 US CENTS.
Jan 01, 2004 ... SYDNEY, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - Analysts have forecast that the Australian dollar's meteoric rise should peak in 2004, and that it may climb as high as 80 US cents. The same factors that pushed the currency a whopping 33 per cent higher in 2003 will remain in place for at least the ...
NEW JAPANESE-AUSTRALIAN JV RISES FROM ASHES OF MIM.
Jan 01, 2004 ... BRISBANE, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - A new Japanese-Australian mining joint venture has risen from the ashes of Queensland miner MIM Holdings Ltd. The new mining player is determined to capitalise on the experience gained from the drawn-out takeover battle with Xstrata Plc. ...
NIQUEST LAST FLOAT IN AUSTRALIA FOR 2003.
Jan 01, 2004 ... PERTH, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - Shares in junior explorer NiQuest Ltd (ASX:NIQ) hit the boards at a premium last night in the last float for 2003 on the Australian Stock Exchange amid a 14-year high for nickel prices. The Perth-based company debuted at 26.5 cents, a 6.5 cent premium ...
AUSTRALIAN INDEX GAINS 10PCT IN 2003.
Jan 01, 2004 ... SYDNEY, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - Despite a shaky start to 2003, the Australian share market has gaining nearly ten per cent in 2003. The index has put the bear market behind it heading into the new year, after gaining nearly 10 per cent in 2003, despite the war in Iraq and SARS. ...
TARAGON PROPERTY FUND TO BUY SYDNEY CBD REAL ESTATE.
Jan 01, 2004 ... SYDNEY, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - Australia's Taragon Property Fund (ASX:TPG) has announced it will buy P&O House and its adjoining property in central Sydney for $A52.38 million ($US39.13 million). Settlement is to take place in June 2004. Taragon Management Ltd, as the ...
AUSTRALIAN IPO OFFERINGS MORE THAN DOUBLE IN 2003.
Jan 01, 2004 ... SYDNEY, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - A 2003 Australian equity survey has found that the amount of money raised in initial public offerings on the Australian Stock Exchange more than doubled in 2003 to $A7.8 billion ($US5.83 billion). The survey by the Hong Kong-based Thomson Financial ...
AUSTRALIAN BOURSE TO CONTINUE LISTINGS GROWTH IN 2004.
Jan 01, 2004 ... BRISBANE, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - A higher number of companies listed on the Australian Stock Exchange in 2003, over 2002, and the trend is set to continue into 2004. A total of 124 companies joined the ASX in 2003, based on provisional figures, with 96 of these in the second half of ...
CALENDAR 2003 AN OUTSTANDING YEAR FOR AUSTRALIAN BONDS.
Jan 01, 2004 ... SYDNEY, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - Calendar 2003 has been dubbed an outstanding year for Australian corporate bonds, with attractive spreads, underpinned by ongoing investor demand, boosting issuance. The Commonwealth bond market survived a near-death experience in 2003 before the ...
ADVISORY - JAPANESE MARKETS CLOSED TILL JAN 5 - JAN 1, 2004.
Jan 01, 2004 ... TOKYO, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - Japan's financial markets are closed for the New Year holidays. The Tokyo ...
AUSTRALIAN DEBT MARKET RAISES HIGHER FUNDS IN 2003.
Jan 01, 2004 ... SYDNEY, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - Thomson Financial's Australian Debt League Table Rankings for 2003, released today, found that Australian corporate debt raised totalled $US81.25 billion in 2003, up almost 50 per cent from 2002. "This represents a 46 per cent jump from $US55.5 billion ...
SPOT GOLD PRICES TRADE ABOVE $US400.
Jan 01, 2004 ... PERTH, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - Spot gold prices are continuing to trade well above $US400 an ounce heading into 2004. Continued US dollar weakness is the underlying factor, but analysts say it will need to conquer an eight-year peak to have a major impact on Australian resource ...
AUSTRALIAN HOME LENDING HITS NEW HIGHS IN NOVEMBER.
Jan 01, 2004 ... SYDNEY, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - Australian home lending hit record levels in November and looks to be buoyant into 2004. Data from the Reserve Bank of Australia shows that housing credit grew at an annual rate of 23.3 per cent in the month of November, a pace economists say has not ...
TASMANIA'S HELLYER METALS PROJECT SOLD OFF.
Jan 01, 2004 ... PERTH, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - The failed lead, zinc and copper Hellyer Metals Project in Tasmania has been sold off for $A1.6 million ($US1.2 million). The receivers and managers of parent group Western Metals have sold the project. PricewaterhouseCoopers' David McEvoy ...
IRAN, PAKISTAN HOLD TALKS ON GAS PIPELINE.
Jan 01, 2004 ... ISLAMABAD, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - A two-day meeting of Iranian and Pakistani experts on a proposed gas pipeline project was concluded here last Tuesday. The multi-billion project is to extend from Iran to Pakistan. Iranian Deputy Oil Minister for International Affairs ...
ADVISORY - ASIAN MARKETS CLOSED - JAN 1, 2004.
Jan 01, 2004 ... SYDNEY, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - Please note the majority of stock markets in ...
SINGAPORE NEWSPAPER HIGHLIGHTS - JAN 1, 2004.
Jan 01, 2004 ... SINGAPORE, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - Highlights of today's newspapers: THE STRAITS TIMES - Singapore's economy grew by 0.8 per cent in 2003, within the 0.5 to 1 per cent range forecast by the Government. Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong, who revealed the figure in his ...
JAPANESE NEWSPAPER HIGHLIGHTS - JAN 1, 2004.
Jan 01, 2004 ... TOKYO, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - Highlights of today's newspapers: NIKKEI NET - Only a decade after embracing the Internet, Japanese people today rely heavily on information technology to communicate and maintain close relationships with their families, friends and society. ...
HONG KONG NEWSPAPER HIGHLIGHTS - JAN 1, 2004.
Jan 01, 2004 ... HONG KONG, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - Highlights of today's newspapers: SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST - Pro-democracy groups on Wednesday called on the Hong Kong public to attend a New Years Day rally in the that hope another show of people power will pressure the government into ...
MALAYSIAN NEWSPAPER HIGHLIGHTS - JAN 1, 2004.
Jan 01, 2004 ... KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - Highlights of today's newspapers: THE STAR - Despite some late attempts at window-dressing, the KLSE Composite Index (CI) ended 2003 a few points shy of the psychologically significant 800-point mark. For 2003 as a whole, however, the ...
THAI NEWSPAPER HIGHLIGHTS - JAN 1, 2004.
Jan 01, 2004 ... BANGKOK, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - Highlights of today's newspapers: THE NATION - Expatriates will be charged Bt2 million next year for a Thailand Elite privilege card. - Six years after the economic crisis, a number of tycoons who faced financial ruin are back ...
IRANIAN BANKS TO PROVIDE US$82.5 MLN IN CREDIT TO BAM RESIDENTS.
Jan 01, 2004 ... TEHRAN, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - Deputy Minister of Finance and Economy Mehdi Karbasian said on Tuesday that the banking system would contribute rls 660 billion (US$82.5 million) in credit to build 10,000 houses and farms in the quake-hit city of Bam. He said that rls 500 billion ...
IRAN CABINET EARMARKS FUNDS FOR BAM RESIDENTS.
Jan 01, 2004 ... TEHRAN, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - Cabinet ministers earmarked rls 3,410 billion (US$425 million) to rehabilitate the tragedy-hit city of Bam. The Management and Planning Organization (MPO) said on Tuesday that the cabinet held an emergency meeting on Tuesday to allocate fund for rehabilitation ...
S. KOREA'S EXPORTS HIT ALL-TIME HIGH LAST YEAR.
Jan 01, 2004 ... SEOUL, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - South Korea set a new record in exports with US$194.33 billion last year, up 19.6 per cent on-year, the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Energy said Thursday in a provisional tally. The nation's imports also soared 17.5 per cent to $178.78 billion on ...
PAKISTAN NEWSPAPER HIGHLIGHTS - DEC 31, 2003.
Jan 01, 2004 ... KARACHI, Dec 31 Asia Pulse - Highlights of today's newspapers: DAWN - Indian flights to resume on 9th January - Delhi reduces troop presence in Kashmir - 5.4pc GDP growth likely: SBP - Raise in NFC share pledged THE NEWS ...
PAKISTAN MAY EXCEED GDP TARGET.
Jan 01, 2004 ... KARACHI, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has projected that the country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) target will be exceeded. In its latest quarterly report, the SBP has said: "Current projections by SBP's staff confirm that the target of GDP growth for ...
PAKISTAN'S SBP ADVISES MOF ON FUNDING.
Jan 01, 2004 ... KARACHI, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has advised the Ministry of Finance (MoF) to incorporate or include development spending, independent of anti-poverty expenditure. While issuing a special report on Fiscal Responsibility and Debt Limitation Law FRDLL, ...
US$ PURCHASES BY STATE BANK PAKISTAN DROPS BY US$751 MLN IN Q1.
Jan 01, 2004 ... KARACHI, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - The purchase of US dollars from the open currency market by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has dropped by a record Rs43.4 billion (US$751 million) during the first quarter of current financial year. According to the First Quarterly Report from the ...
PAKISTAN MULLS MEASURES TO FACILITATE AFGHAN IMPORTERS.
Jan 01, 2004 ... ISLAMABAD, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - The government is considering various measures including the removal of more items from the negative list and the opening up of new routes to help Afghan importers. An official source told that these measures would be finalized during the third ...
STRUGGLING INDUSTRIAL UNITS RECEIVE HELP FROM PAKISTAN'S SBP.
Jan 01, 2004 ... KARACHI, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has granted another relief package to sick industrial units by exempting them from maintaining mandatory financial exposure, as required under Prudential Regulation (PR) number-5. The exemption will be applicable for ...
Q1 REVENUE COLLECTION REACHES US$1.6 BLN IN PAKISTAN.
Jan 01, 2004 ... KARACHI, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - Tax collected by the Central Board of Revenue in the first quarter of FY2004 stood at Rs94.1 billion (US$1.6 billion), slightly above the quarterly target of Rs92.2 billion but only 18.4 per cent of the total FY04 target of Rs510 billion. "This meagre ...
TETLEY TEA TO ENTER PAKISTAN MARKET IN FIRST QUARTER OF '04.
Jan 01, 2004 ... KARACHI, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - Tetley Clover Private Limited (TCPL) is now planning to introduce Tetley tea in Pakistan in the first quarter of 2004, hoping to capture six to eight per cent share in a market dominated by Unilever and Tapal Tea. As per previous market reports, based ...
PAKISTAN'S CENTRAL BANK ABSORBS US$305 MLN FROM BANK SECTOR.
Jan 01, 2004 ... KARACHI, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - After scrapping 96 per cent bids for treasury bills last week to avoid fuelling expectations of an interest rate spike, the State Bank mopped up Rs17.5 billion (US$305 million) from the banking system for one week. The SBP undertook this via an open ...
OMAN'S POPULATION TOPS 2.331 MLN.
Jan 01, 2004 ... MUSCAT, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - Ahmed bin Abdul-Nabi Macki, Minister of National Economy and Deputy Chairman of the Financial Affairs and Energy Resources Council and general supervisor of the general Census of Population, houses and establishments has said the Sultanate's population is ...
NEW RAILWAY STATION BUILT IN SEOUL FOR BULLET TRAIN SERVICE.
Jan 01, 2004 ... SEOUL, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - With its first bullet train ready to roll four months later, South Korea dedicated a new railway station in Seoul Thursday to serve as its starting point. Prime Minister Koh Gun cut the ribbon to open the new station built next to the Japanese ...
Q3 SURPLUS IN MALAYSIA'S OVERALL BALANCE OF PAYMENTS RISES 67%.
Jan 01, 2004 ... KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - The surplus in the overall balance of payments (BOP) for the third quarter of 2003 increased by 67.5 per cent (+RM5.6 billion, US$1.4 billion) to RM13.9 billion from that of RM8.3 billion in the second quarter, the Department of Statistics, Malaysia ...
BRIEFING - ASIA AUTOMOTIVE - JAN 1, 2004.
Jan 01, 2004 ... An executive briefing on the automotive industry for Jan 1, 2004, prepared by Asia Pulse (http://www.asiapulse.com), the real-time, Asia-based wire with exclusive news, commercial intelligence and business opportunities. HYUNDAI INCREASES OFFSHORE PRODUCTION SEOUL - ...
BRIEFING - ASIA INFRASTRUCTURE - JAN 1, 2004.
Jan 01, 2004 ... An executive briefing on infrastructure for Jan 1, 2004, prepared by Asia Pulse (http://www.asiapulse.com), the real-time, Asia-based wire with exclusive news, commercial intelligence and business opportunities. IRAN CABINET EARMARKS FUNDS FOR BAM RESIDENTS TEHRAN ...
SOUTH KOREA'S 2003 EXPORTS HIT ALL-TIME HIGH.
Jan 01, 2004 ... SEOUL, Jan. 1 Asia Pulse - Helped by shipments of cars, petrochemicals and electronic products, South Korea exported a record US$194.33 billion worth of goods last year, officials said Thursday. Provisional figures compiled by the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Energy showed ...
PROFILE - CHINA'S BEER INDUSTRY (JAN 2004).
Jan 01, 2004 ... BEIJING, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - The following is a profile of China's beer industry, updated January 2004, with statistics for the first ten months of 2003: OVERVIEW * Despite such unfavorable factors as the outbreak of the SARS epidemic in the spring, hikes in raw ...
SINGAPORE APPOINTS NEW APEC REPRESENTATIVE.
Jan 01, 2004 ... SINGAPORE, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - Singapore has appointed a new representative to the APEC Business Advisory Council. Ms Chong Siak Ching, the CEO of Ascendas Pte Ltd, has been appointed Singapore's representative to the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC) from 2004 till end 2005, ...
TAIWAN NEWSPAPER HIGHLIGHTS - JAN 1, 2004.
Jan 01, 2004 ... TAIPEI, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - The lead stories in major Taiwan dailies on Thursday are as follows: THE CHINA TIMES - Liver transplant recipient donates heart and kidneys to save three lives after she dies by accident. THE UNITED DAILY NEWS - The ...
BRIEFING - ASIA ENERGY - JAN 1, 2004.
Jan 01, 2004 ... An executive briefing on energy for Jan 1, 2004, prepared by Asia Pulse (http://www.asiapulse.com), the real-time, Asia-based wire with exclusive news, commercial intelligence and business opportunities. LOY YANG POWER SALE DEAL EXTENDED IN AUSTRALIA MELBOURNE - Under ...
BRIEFING - ASIA JOINT VENTURES - JAN 1, 2004.
Jan 01, 2004 ... An executive briefing on joint ventures for Jan 1, 2004, prepared by Asia Pulse (http://www.asiapulse.com), the real-time, Asia-based wire with exclusive news, commercial intelligence and business opportunities. NEW JAPANESE-AUSTRALIAN JV RISES FROM ASHES OF MIM ...
N. KOREA VOWS TO REBUILD SHATTERED ECONOMY AMID NUCLEAR CRISIS.
Jan 01, 2004 ... SEOUL, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - North Korea urged its people Thursday to unite around its communist leadership to rebuild the country's shattered economy but gave no fresh indications how it would achieve the goal. Describing its past 10 years as "full of trials and hardships which ...
BUSINESS IN ASIA TODAY - JAN 1, 2004.
Jan 01, 2004 ... Business in Asia on Jan 1, 2004. A summary prepared by Asia Pulse (http://www.asiapulse.com), the real-time, Asia-based wire with exclusive news, market intelligence and business opportunities: SOUTH KOREA'S 2003 EXPORTS HIT ALL-TIME HIGH SEOUL - Helped by shipments ...
PHILIPPINES TO ASSUME SEAT ON UN SECURITY COUNCIL.
Jan 01, 2004 ... MANILA, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - The Philippines opens a new era in its engagement in global diplomacy when it formally assumes its seat in the 15-member United Nations Security Council later today. Ambassador Lauro Baja, Jr., the Philippines' Permanent Representative to the United ...
PETRON TO SPEND US$94 MLN ON REFINERY UPGRADE IN PHILIPPINES.
Jan 01, 2004 ... MANILA, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - The continued improvement of the country's economy under President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has encouraged Petron Corporation, one of the three big players in the oil industry, to earmark P5.11 billion, or US$94.4 million, to upgrade its refinery in Limay, Bataan ....
PHILIPPINE INDUSTRIES WANT RETURN OF CAPITAL EQUIPMENT TAX PERK.
Jan 01, 2004 ... MANILA, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - Domestic industries have urged Congress to restore the tax credit incentive for registered enterprises which source their machinery, equipment and spare parts from domestic manufacturers. This was the position presented by the Federation of Philippine ...
CEBU LOOKS FOR EDGE IN GLOBAL FURNITURE MARKET.
Jan 01, 2004 ... CEBU CITY, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - The stiff competition in the global furniture market has prompted the Cebu Furniture Industries Foundation Inc. to look for a system that will help its members increase the quantity and quality of their products. CFIF president Jay Yuvallos said the ...
MORE IT WORKERS NEEDED IN CEBU.
Jan 01, 2004 ... CEBU CITY, Jan 1 Asia Pulse - Cebu needs to produce more information technology professionals as demand has outstripped the manpower supply, according to Cyber-promdi past president Vince Rallon. Large software companies such as NEC Software Philippines and bigfoot Global ...