AsiaPulse News back issues from January 2005:
S. KOREAN PATIENTS ALLOWED TO USE FOREIGN HOSPITALS IN FEZS.
Jan 03, 2005 ... SEOUL, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - South Koreans will be allowed to use foreign hospitals in three planned free economic zones (FEZs) from 2008 when they are supposed to start operations, as the National Assembly passed a related government bill without amendment, the Ministry of Finance and ...
S. KOREA TO FLOAT US$7.9 BLN IN STATE BONDS IN JAN.
Jan 03, 2005 ... SEOUL, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - The South Korean government will issue 8.27 trillion won (US$7.98 billion) worth of state bonds in January, nearly double the amount of bonds floated in December, the Ministry of Finance and Economy said Sunday. A total of 2.49 trillion won in ...
S. KOREAN INVESTMENT IN OVERSEAS SECURITIES DOUBLES IN 2004.
Jan 03, 2005 ... SEOUL, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - South Korean investment in overseas stocks and bonds more than doubled in 2004 from a year ago as domestic interest rates remained low, a report showed Sunday. Outstanding investments by South Korean individuals and companies in overseas securities came ...
KOREA DEVELOPMENT BANK EMERGES AS NO. 1 SHAREHOLDER OF KEPCO.
Jan 03, 2005 ... SEOUL, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - The state-run Korea Development Bank (KDB) has become the largest shareholder of Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) by purchasing a 3.06 per cent stake from the government, officials said Sunday. The Ministry of Finance and Economy said it sold 19.59 ...
S. KOREA'S TOTAL APARTMENT MARKET VALUE RISES 8 PCT LAST YEAR.
Jan 03, 2005 ... SEOUL, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - The total market value of apartments in South Korea increased 8 per cent year-on-year to 946.81 trillion won (US$913 billion) last year, sharply down from a 23.1 per cent rise in 2003, an online real estate information provider said Sunday. According to ...
S. KOREAN WON FORECAST TO RISE 11 PCT VS U.S. DOLLAR IN 2005.
Jan 03, 2005 ... SEOUL, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - The South Korean won is likely to appreciate nearly 11 per cent against the U.S. dollar this year from a year ago due mainly to America's weak dollar policy, a policy bank said Sunday. The local currency is expected to change hands at an average of ...
WORLD'S LEADERS SEND NEW YEAR MESSAGES TO N. KOREAN LEADER.
Jan 03, 2005 ... SEOUL, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - Chinese President Hu Jintao, Russian President Vladimir Putin and other state leaders sent a New Year's messages to North Korean leader Kim Jong-il, a North Korean news outlet said Saturday. The others included ...
SHIPMENTS TO US, EUROPE, BRICS HELP S KOREA REACH EXPORT RECORD.
Jan 03, 2005 ... SEOUL, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - South Korea's exports to the United States, the European Union and the so-called BRICs - Brazil, Russia, India, and China - increased sharply last year, the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA) said Sunday. The country's market share reached ...
HYUNDAI MOTOR AIMS TO INCREASE OVERSEAS OUTPUT 55.7 PCT.
Jan 03, 2005 ... SEOUL, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - Hyundai Motor Co. (KSE:005380), South Korea's largest automaker, is targeting a 55.7 per cent increase in output at its overseas plants in an attempt to circumvent the won's strength against the dollar, a severe drop in domestic demand and soaring oil prices, a ...
S. KOREAN SMALL FIRMS PESSIMISTIC ABOUT Q1 BUSINESS CONDITIONS.
Jan 03, 2005 ... SEOUL, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - The majority of small and midsize manufacturers in South Korea expect their business conditions to worsen in the first quarter from three months earlier, a survey said Sunday. The business survey index, which measures business confidence in the economy ...
S. KOREAN BANKS' FOREIGN BORROWING PLUNGES IN 2004.
Jan 03, 2005 ... SEOUL, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - South Korean banks' borrowing from foreign lenders dipped in 2004 from a year ago due to a rise in foreign-currency deposits and weak demand for loans, the country's financial watchdog said Sunday. Domestic banks took US$23.1 billion in short-term loans ...
THAI NEWSPAPER HIGHLIGHTS - JAN 3, 2005.
Jan 03, 2005 ... BANGKOK, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - Highlights of today's newspapers: BANGKOK POST: - Tourist destinations in other regions are doing brisk business, picking up tourists shying away from tsunami-devastated Andaman coastal towns. - The general election should be ...
INDIA'S NEW PRODUCT PATENT REGIME COMES IN FORCE.
Jan 03, 2005 ... NEW DELHI, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - In line with its WTO obligations, India adopted Saturday the product patent regime for food, drugs and chemicals and embedded software with adequate safeguards to protect the interests of the common man. The government introduced the product patent ...
RUSSIA'S TIES WITH INDIA, CHINA TO GROW IN 05: RUSSIAN OFFICIAL.
Jan 03, 2005 ... MOSCOW, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - Moscow's ties with India and China will 'develop upwards' in the New Year, a senior Russian official said Saturday. "The outcome of Russia's dialogue with India and China in the last year can be characterised as impressive," Russian Deputy Foreign ...
INDIA'S FOREIGN CURRENCY RESERVES UP BY US$394 MLN IN DEC.
Jan 03, 2005 ... MUMBAI, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - India's foreign exchange reserves rose by US$394 million during the week ending December 24, taking the total reserves past US$131 billion. Revaluation of the US dollar led to a drop in the reserves, which stood at US$1,31,016 million. The ...
AUSTRALIAN DOCTORS WARN OF COMMON PAINKILLER LINKED TO SEIZURES.
Jan 03, 2005 ... CANBERRA, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - The commonly-prescribed painkiller tramadol was linked to a growing number of epilepsy-like seizures, doctors warned today. United States studies have previously declared the painkiller, also sold as Tramal, to carry only a low risk of causing ...
BRITAIN WELCOMES S KOREA'S EXTENSION OF TROOP DEPLOYMENT TO IRAQ.
Jan 03, 2005 ... SEOUL, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - The British government welcomed the South Korean National Assembly's passage of a bill that extends its troop deployment in Iraq by another year, the country's foreign secretary said Saturday. Britain's Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said his country ...
FOREX - U.S. DOLLAR OPENS LOWER AGAINST WON - JAN 3, 2005.
Jan 03, 2005 ... SEOUL, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - The U.S. dollar opened at 1,035.00 won ...
FOREIGN INVESTORS IN S KOREA RECEIVE RECORD HIGH DIVIDENDS IN 04.
Jan 03, 2005 ... SEOUL, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - South Korea's companies issued record dividend payments to foreign investors in the first 11 months of last year, the central bank said Monday. The total overseas dividend payments came to US$4.74 billion in January-November period, up 40.1 per cent ...
JAPAN'S CROWN PRINCE, PRINCESS MAY VISIT SOUTH KOREA: REPORT.
Jan 03, 2005 ... TOKYO, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - The Japanese government is considering a plan to send Crown Prince Naruhito and Princess Masako to South Korea after this year's fall, a news report said Saturday. The plan is aimed at improving ties between the two countries this year, which marks the ...
N KOREA URGES U.S. TO CHANGE ITS "HOSTILE" POLICY.
Jan 03, 2005 ... SEOUL, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - North Korea called on the United States Saturday to change its "hostile" policy toward the communist country, declaring that it is fully prepared for war or dialogue. Outlining its policy for the new year, North Korea also urged its 22 million people to ...
S. KOREAN SHIPBUILDERS LOWER ORDERS TARGETS.
Jan 03, 2005 ... SEOUL, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - Rising steel prices and the strengthening of the local currency against the U.S. dollar are prompting South Korean shipbuilders to reduce their orders targets for this year, industry sources said Monday. "It looks like the price of raw materials will ...
HYUNDAI MOTOR AIMS AT US$81 BLN IN SALES IN 2005.
Jan 03, 2005 ... SEOUL, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - Hyundai Motor Group, South Korea's largest automaking group, said Monday it targets 85 trillion won (US$81 billion) in sales this year. The group, whose flagship automakers are Hyundai Motor Co. (KSE:005380) and Kia Motors Corp. (KSE:000270), said it ...
PHILIPPINE AMBASSADOR FLIES TO PHUKET AFTER TSUNAMI.
Jan 03, 2005 ... MANILA, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - Upon instruction of Department of Foreign Affairs Secretary Alberto G. Romulo, Philippine Ambassador to Bangkok Antonio V. Rodriquez flew to Phuket Saturday to reassure Filipino victims of the tsunami that hit the resort province of Phuket on December 26 that the ...
S. KOREA'S EXPORTS REACH RECORD HIGH IN 2004.
Jan 03, 2005 ... SEOUL, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - South Korea exported a record US$254.22 billion worth of goods and services last year, up 31.2 per cent on an annual basis, the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Energy said Saturday. The provisional tally also showed imports rising 25.5 per cent to ...
KOREAN SHARES EXPECTED TO REMAIN STRONG THIS WEEK.
Jan 03, 2005 ... SEOUL, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - The South Korean stock market is likely to remain strong in the first week of New Year amid hopes of a continuation of last week's rally, with the market expected to test the 900-point level, analysts said. "With a so-called January effect in the coming ...
S. KOREAN GOVT, PUBLIC COMPANIES TO INCREASE SCIENCE-TECH JOBS.
Jan 03, 2005 ... SEOUL, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - South Korea's government-invested and public companies will have to increase employment for science and technology majors by about 10 percentage points starting from the second quarter, the Ministry of Finance and Economy said Monday. Unless they meet ...
KOREAN PARTIES AGREE TO VOTE ON BILLS ON BUDGET, TROOPS IN IRAQ.
Jan 03, 2005 ... SEOUL, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - Rival parties on Friday made a last-minute agreement to vote on 19 long-delayed bills, including those on the 2005 government budget and extension of South Korea's troop deployment in Iraq by another year, at the mediation of National Assembly Speaker Kim One-ki. ...
S. KOREA'S SEMICONDUCTOR INDUSTRY TRADE TURNS TO SURPLUS.
Jan 03, 2005 ... SEOUL, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - South Korea's trade in the chipmaking industry turned to a surplus for the first time in four years in 2004, officials said Monday. According to the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Energy, the semiconductor industry posted a trade surplus of US$2.58 ...
JAPAN'S KOIZUMI SAYS HE WON'T VISIT WAR SHRINE INJA: REPORT.
Jan 03, 2005 ... TOKYO, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi said Saturday he will not pay a visit this month to a controversial shrine devoted to Japan's war dead, Kyodo News Agency reported. Asked whether he will refrain from visiting the shrine during the New Year ...
KOREA'S TONGYANG FIRE & MARINE SEE OP PROFIT DOUBLE IN NOV.
Jan 03, 2005 ... SEOUL, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - Nonlife insurer Tongyang Fire & Marine Insurance Co. said its operating profit nearly doubled in November from the previous month on strong investment earnings. Operating profit came to 10.5 billion won (US$10.1 million) last month, up 98.1 per cent ...
WOORI GROUP, HANA BANK, FOREIGN PLAYERS SEEN AS EYEING LG CARD.
Jan 03, 2005 ... SEOUL, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - As LG Card Co. (KSE:32710) was finally rescued by another bailout, attention was focusing Friday on whether the country's No. 2 card issuer will be taken over in the near future. Following a surprise announcement earlier in the day of the 1-trillion-won ...
HONG KONG NEWSPAPER HIGHLIGHTS - JAN 3, 2005.
Jan 03, 2005 ... HONG KONG, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - Highlights of today's newspapers: THE STANDARD: - China's tax revenue rose by 25.7 per cent year-on-year to a record 2.57 trillion yuan (HK$2.4 trillion) last year, boosted by strong economic growth, high corporate profits and strong ...
S. KOREAN INTERNET AUCTION PICKS PARK JOO-MAN AS CEO.
Jan 03, 2005 ... SEOUL, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - South Korea's biggest online auctioneer Internet Auction Co., a unit of U.S. online retailer eBay Inc., promoted vice president Park Joo-man to president and appointed him chief executive officer as part of a management reshuffle. Lee Jae-hyun, outgoing ...
KOREAN NATIONAL RAILROAD BECOMES STATE CORPORATION.
Jan 03, 2005 ... SEOUL, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - Korean National Railroad (KNR), a state-run rail service monopoly, has transformed itself into a public corporation, promising to provide higher quality railway services, company officials said. "With the transformation into a public corporation, we ...
STOCKS - KOSDAQ OPENS STRONGER - JAN 3, 2005.
Jan 03, 2005 ... SEOUL, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - The KOSDAQ opened at ...
INDONESIAN NEWSPAPER HIGHLIGHTS - JAN 3, 2005.
Jan 03, 2005 ... JAKARTA, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - Highlights for today's major newspaper: KOMPAS - A week after the earthquake triggered tsunami struck, the condition in Banda Aceh is still far from normal with office works almost paralysed. - Police arrested on Sunday Adiguna Sutowo, a ...
S. KOREA TO EXPAND IT COOPERATION WITH N. KOREA, MINISTER SAYS.
Jan 03, 2005 ... SEOUL, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - South Korea's telecommunications ministry plans to increase exchanges between the two Koreas in the information and communications technology sector, Chin Dae-je, minister of information and communication, said Monday. "We have an aim to develop ...
S. KOREA'S IMPORTS OF STEAMED RICE UP 30.5% LAST YEAR.
Jan 03, 2005 ... SEOUL, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - South Korea's imports of steamed rice increased 30.5 per cent from a year earlier to 8,659 metric tons in the January-October period last year, the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry said Monday. Unlike uncooked rice, steamed rice, mainly from China, ...
KOREAN CREDIT CARD FIRMS LIKELY TO SWING BACK TO BLACK IN 2005.
Jan 03, 2005 ... SEOUL, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - South Korean credit card companies are expected to return to profit this year since their asset quality improved a lot following massive write-offs of bad loans and strengthened regulations, industry sources said Monday. BC Card Co., the sole credit ...
ANALYSIS - INDIA'S STEEL INDUSTRY IN 2004.
Jan 03, 2005 ... NEW DELHI, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - Soaring prices, super normal profits for producers and the government haunted by the fear of inflation marked the year 2004 for the steel industry, which was shown the stick of a "regulator' to rein it in. The much talked about National Steel Policy ...
INDIAN GOVT LOOKS TO BOOST TEXTILE EXPORTS.
Jan 03, 2005 ... NEW DELHI, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - In a new year gift to the textile industry, the government has enhanced Duty Entitlement Passbook rates. DEPB prices have been revised for 83 product lines, including cotton blouses, children's sweatshirt, gents long coats and jackets and ladies ...
INDIA'S BAFFIN ENGINEERING BUYS 91% STAKE IN UNIWORLD TELECOM.
Jan 03, 2005 ... NEW DELHI, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - Baffin Engineering Projects Ltd has acquired 91.4 per cent stake in telecom equipment manufacturing and contract manufacturing services company, Uniword Telecom Ltd, for an undisclosed amount. Baffin Engineering Projects Ltd informed the BSE about ...
INDIA'S PHARMA INDUSTRY PREPARES TO ENTER PRODUCT PATENT ERA.
Jan 03, 2005 ... NEW DELHI, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - As India prepared to enter the product patent regime on Saturday, the country's pharmaceutical industry is brimming with confidence and is all set to meet new challenges while allaying fears about rise in drug prices. "Industry is fully prepared to ...
INDIA'S GECIS COMPLETES STAKE SALE TANSACTION WITH GAP, OAK HILL.
Jan 03, 2005 ... NEW DELHI, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) company Gecis announced that the agreement among its key shareholders General Electric, General Atlantic Partners and Oak Hill Capital Partners has been completed, with GAP and Oak Hill taking a majority interest in the ...
INDIAN AIRLINES LINKS GUWAHATI WITH BANGKOK.
Jan 03, 2005 ... NEW DELHI, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - Indian Airlines has commenced a direct flight between Guwahati and Bangkok, making the north-eastern city the eighth Indian destination to be connected with the Thai capital. The new IA service is using an Airbus' A-320 aircraft twice a week, a ...
INDIA'S H1 BOP DEFICIT US$3.2 BLN, TRADE DEFICIT US$17.4 BLN.
Jan 03, 2005 ... MUMBAI, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - Driven by a surge in import payments for crude oil, petroleum products and merchandise, India's Balance of Payments (BoP) saw a deficit of US$3.25 billion on current account for the first half ending September, 2004, as against a surplus of US$2.19 billion in the ...
FDI INFLOWS INTO INDIA SURGE 54% , JAN-SEPT.
Jan 03, 2005 ... NEW DELHI, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) increased by over 54 per cent year-on-year in January-September, 2004, to touch US$3 billion. As per the revised definition of FDI, which includes reinvested earnings, FDI inflows during the period touched a record ...
STOCKS - KOREAN SHARES BEGIN SOFTER - JAN 3, 2005.
Jan 03, 2005 ... SEOUL, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - South Korean stocks started lower Monday on slumping technology shares. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) edged down 1.55 points, or 0.17 per cent, to 894.37 as of 10:15 a.m. The tech-filled KOSDAQ index was marginally higher at ...
LG FILES ANOTHER PATENT SUIT AGAINST MATSUSHITA IN S. KOREA.
Jan 03, 2005 ... SEOUL, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - LG Electronics Inc. (KSE:66570), South Korea's second-largest consumer electronics manufacturer, on Monday filed another patent infringement suit against the South Korea unit of Japan's Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. over plasma screen technologies, LG said. ...
US PROMISES INDONESIA US$15 MLN FOR TSUNAMI, QUAKE VICTIMS.
Jan 03, 2005 ... JAKARTA, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - The US government pledged nearly US$15 million in humanitarian assistance to Indonesia for the earthquake-triggered tsunamis victims in Aceh and North Sumatera, a US Embassy press release said. To date, the US government has pledged nearly $15 million ...
INDONESIA'S SUMMARECON AGUNG EXPECTS STRONG 2005.
Jan 03, 2005 ... JAKARTA, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - PT Summarecon Agung Tbk (JSE:SMRA) sets its growth target for 2005 at 25 per cent, higher than last year's 10 per cent, as the country's property sector begins to show signs of recovery, the company's director said. "The property business in the ...
SINGAPORE NEWSPAPER HIGHLIGHTS - JAN 3, 2005.
Jan 03, 2005 ... SINGAPORE, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - Highlights of today's newspapers: THE STRAITS TIMES - BANDA ACEH (Indonesia) - An Indonesian fisherman trapped under his boat in Asia's tsunami disaster was found alive but severely dehydrated on Sunday, even as rescue workers conceded ...
STOCKS - SINGAPORE STOCKS UP IN EARLY TRADE - JAN 3, 2005.
Jan 03, 2005 ... SINGAPORE, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - Singapore shares were higher in early trade, with the Straits ...
MALAYSIAN NEWSPAPER HIGHLIGHTS - JAN 3, 2005.
Jan 03, 2005 ... KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - Highlights of today's newspapers: THE STAR - Malaysia has allowed its air space and two airports to be used for tsunami relief operations in Indonesia's Banda Aceh. Wisma Putra said in a statement that the United Nations World Food ...
STOCKS - MALAYSIAN STOCKS DOWN IN EARLY TRADE - JAN 3, 2005.
Jan 03, 2005 ... KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - The Malaysian sharemarket was down 0.86 per cent in early trade, with the Kuala Lumpur ...
BUSINESS WIRE DAILY BRIEFING - DEC 31, 2004.
Jan 03, 2005 ... A summary of news releases for Dec. 31, 2004, compiled by Business Wire, the global leader in news distribution. To view any of these news release on Business Wire's website, please go to www.businesswire.com. 1) Category Code: Software GECIS TRANSACTION CLOSES ON ...
ADVISORY - XINHUA CLOSED - JAN 3, 2005.
Jan 03, 2005 ... BEIJING, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - Xinhua will suspend transmission ...
JAPANESE NEWSPAPER HIGHLIGHTS - JAN 3, 2005.
Jan 03, 2005 ... TOKYO, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - Highlights of today's newspapers: NIKKEI NET: - The Hitachi Ltd. (TSE:6501) group plans to gradually phase out its roughly 300,000 personal computers for the workplace and replace them with special network terminals as part of an effort to ...
CHINA'S QINGHAI AIMS TO RAISE CRUDE OIL, GAS OUTPUT THIS YEAR.
Jan 03, 2005 ... NANNING, Dec 31 Asia Pulse - Northwest China's less-developed Qinghai Province plans to bring its crude oil output to 2.5 million tons and natural gas, to 2 billion cubic meters in 2005. Vice-Governor Su Sen told a Western China Forum that the province had verified geological ...
HUTCHISON WHAMPOA PLANS TO LIST IN MILAN.
Jan 03, 2005 ... BEIJING, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - The Hong Kong-based Hutchison Whampoa (HKSE:0013) plans to seeking a listing in Milan, Italy, for its Italian subsidiary, possibly towards the end of 2005, according to General Manager Huo Jianning. The subsidiary, Hutchison 3G ...
NORTH KOREAN MINERAL WATER TO BE SOLD IN SOUTH KOREA.
Jan 03, 2005 ... SEOUL, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - North Korea's top-quality mineral water, reportedly most favored by its leader Kim Jong-il and foreign diplomats in the North, will be sold to South Korean consumers starting in the middle of this month, its importer said Monday. The Seoul-based ...
PROFITS OF KEY STATE-OWNED TEXTILE ENTERPRISES IN CHINA INCH UP.
Jan 03, 2005 ... BEIJING, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - The profits of China's 38 key state-owned textile enterprises inched up 0.8 per cent year on year to hit 1.58 billion yuan (US$193 million) in the first 11 months of 2004, according to the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration of the State Council. ...
CHINA TO FORMULATE TYRE INDUSTRY POLICY.
Jan 03, 2005 ... BEIJING, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - An official from China State Development and Reform Commission recently said that the commission is soliciting suggestions and opinions on the draft policy related to tyre industry from relevant departments and tyre producers. The policy, worked out ...
CHINA'S KUNSHAN CLAIMS LARGE SHARE OF WORLD'S NOTEBOOK OUTPUT.
Jan 03, 2005 ... NANJING, Jan 3 Asia Pulse - At present, one-fourth of the world's notebook computers are produced in Kunshan City, located in east China's Jiangsu Province. With the development in the past 20 years, Kunshan Economic and Technological Development Zone boast its three pillar ...