Asia-Pacific
\nnations meet to
\nbattle global gloom
\nJP\/<\/p>\n
Asia-Pacific nations meet to battle global gloom<\/p>\n
SUZHOU, China (Reuters): Asia-Pacific finance ministers,
\ngrappling with a global slowdown and wide divisions over how to
\ndeal with it, gather this week in one of the few countries
\nmanaging to thrive despite the slump -- China.<\/p>\n
Deputy ministers and central bankers from the Asia-Pacific
\nEconomic Cooperation (APEC) forum kick off two days of talks in
\nthe city of Suzhou on Thursday, with finance ministers meeting on
\nSaturday and Sunday.<\/p>\n
The gloom hanging over the meeting is a stark contrast to the
\nearly days of APEC a decade ago, when participants believed they
\nwere witnessing the dawn of a "Pacific century" of startling
\neconomic growth that would eclipse the rest of the world.<\/p>\n
That optimism is long gone, strangled by the brutal economic
\ncrisis that hit southeast Asia in 1997, financial turbulence in
\nSouth America, deep-seated problems in Japan and the sharp
\nslowdown in the U.S. and the global technology sector.<\/p>\n
FROM BOOM TO GLOOM<\/p>\n
When APEC finance ministers gathered last year in Brunei,
\nAsia's recovery from crisis seemed comfortably on track.<\/p>\n
No more.<\/p>\n
The U.S. economic slowdown and slumping exports have weighed
\non Asia. Singapore slipped into recession in the first half,
\nJapan and Hong Kong teeter on the edge and Taiwan has suffered
\nits first contraction in 26 years. South America, meanwhile, has
\nbeen shaken by Argentina's debt troubles.<\/p>\n
2. ( 3 x 21 )<\/p>\n
IMF says making fewer
\nconditions on
\nits lending<\/p>\n
JP\/<\/p>\n
IMF says making fewer conditions on its lending<\/p>\n
WASHINGTON (Reuters):The International Monetary Fund (IMF)
\nsaid on Tuesday it has pared back the amount of conditions its
\nattaches to its loans, but that more needs to be done on the
\npolicy, which aims to give borrowers more freedom in setting
\ntheir own economic policies.<\/p>\n
An IMF executive board assessment on the new policy, which has
\nbeen in place for less than a year, found there has been a
\nnotable reduction in the numbers of conditions attached to loans
\nto poor countries, mainly in Africa.<\/p>\n
But, it also found that some of its recent standby loans, the
\nsort of facilities used by nation's like Argentina and Brazil,
\nhave had more conditions attached to them since the new policy
\nwas put in place.<\/p>\n
The board discussion, which took place at the end of July,
\nalso revealed that some IMF directors would like to see the
\nlender become, "more selective in providing financial support to
\ncountries, particularly in cases where there is weak track
\nrecords or an insufficient commitment to the program."<\/p>\n
Sources on the IMF's board told Reuters that the United States
\nand Britain were the most vocal in demanding less loans to
\ncountries with bad track records of performing under earlier
\nloans, such as Kenya and Zimbabwe.<\/p>\n
"The United States and Britain want the IMF to be more
\nselective, in the belief that by lending to countries that have
\nperformed well in the past, you will have a greater chance of
\nsuccess with IMF programs," the board member said.<\/p>\n
3. ( 2 x 15 )<\/p>\n
U.S. economy sees
\nclear recovery sign
\nJP\/<\/p>\n
U.S. economy sees first clear sign of recovery<\/p>\n
NEW YORK (Reuters): A report on Tuesday suggesting the hard-
\nhit U.S. manufacturing sector is finally pulling out of its year-
\nlong slump provided the most solid evidence yet the stalled U.S.
\neconomy is on a path to recovery.<\/p>\n
The National Association of Purchasing Management's monthly
\nindex, the nation's main barometer of factory activity,
\nregistered its biggest jump in five years in August when it rose
\nto 47.9 from 43.6 in July. That was well above economists'
\nforecasts of a 43.9 reading.<\/p>\n
Although the report showed overall manufacturing activity
\nstill contracted for the 13th straight month, new orders for
\nmanufactured goods rose for the first time in 13 months,
\nproduction rose for the first time in eight months and new export
\norders were up for the first time in four months.<\/p>\n
The NAPM data lit an early rally in U.S. stocks that boosted
\nthe blue-chip Dow Jones industrial average more than 2 percent
\nand the Nasdaq index more than 1 percent. But those gains
\ndisappeared by the close of trading, and the Dow ended less than
\nhalf a percentage point higher and the Nasdaq was off 1.9
\npercent.<\/p>\n
Bond prices were hammered as Wall Street scaled back
\nexpectations of another Federal Reserve rate cut in October. The
\n30-year bond fell nearly two full points. The dollar racked up
\nits biggest one-day gain against the euro this year.<\/p>\n
"The recovery starts right here; further Fed easing is
\nunnecessary," said Ian Shepherdson, chief U.S. economist at High
\nFrequency Economics in Valhalla, New York.<\/p>\n
Analysts said the NAPM report was clearly cause for optimism
\nthat the economy was turning around after a sharp slowdown over
\nthe past year. But they cautioned not to expect it to come
\nroaring back quickly.<\/p>\n
4. ( 2 x 24 )
\nThai, Indonesia, Malaysia
\nmull joint rubber export quota
\nJP\/MALAYSIA<\/p>\n
Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia consider joint rubber export quota<\/p>\n
KUALA LUMPUR (AFP): The world's top three rubber producers --
\nThailand, Indonesia and Malaysia -- may adopt a joint export
\nquota to control supply to boost sagging prices, a report said
\nWednesday.<\/p>\n
A Malaysian official said apart from export quotas, a supply
\nrationalization and stockpile scheme was also being considered.<\/p>\n
Senior officials of the three Southeast Asian countries are
\nmeeting in Kuala Lumpur under the Tripartite Rubber Cooperation
\n(TRC) for the third time. It held its first meeting in 2000 in
\nIndonesia.<\/p>\n
"We are leaving no stone unturned in devising an effective
\nmechanism to boost rubber prices," the official was quoted as
\nsaying by Business Times newspaper.<\/p>\n
Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia together produce 79 percent
\nof the world's natural rubber.<\/p>\n
The newspaper said all proposals and recommendations emerging
\nfrom the discussions would be forwarded to the ministers for
\nadoption Friday.<\/p>\n
At a meeting last July in Bangkok, Malaysian Primary
\nIndustries Minister Lim Keng Yaik along with his two counterparts
\nagreed to cut rubber output by four percent a year from 2001.<\/p>\n
"With strong cooperation from all three producers, the TRC can
\nbe expected to boost prices substantially," the official said.<\/p>\n
5. ( 2 x 24 )<\/p>\n
HP buyout to affect
\nAsia-Pacific operations
\nJP\/<\/p>\n
Hewlett-Packard buyout likely to affect Asia-Pacific operations =<\/p>\n
Singapore (DPA): The buyout of Compaq Computer by Hewlett-
\nPackard (HP) is likely to result in significant job cuts in
\nSingapore and the Asia-Pacific region, industry analysts said on
\nWednesday.<\/p>\n
"They are going to rationalize product lines, people,
\nsuppliers and sales channels, and they need to do that very
\nquickly," said Ian Bertram, regional director of the Gartner
\nGroup.<\/p>\n
Both companies have Singapore operations and a large portion
\nof Asia-Pacific headquarter functions there.<\/p>\n
HP in the city-state employs 6,500 staff, of whom 4,000 are
\nexecutives and professionals, and the rest in contract
\nmanufacturing. Compaq employs another 1,000 in Singapore.<\/p>\n
In announcing its purchase of rival Compaq, HP said global job
\ncuts of 15,000 were expected from its mega-deal. It identified
\nservers, administration, PCs and information technology as the
\nmain areas of savings.<\/p>\n
Servers would likely be the first product to be hit since both
\ncompanies have server operations, such as assembly lines, in
\nSingapore, an industry source told The Straits Times.<\/p>\n
"But for PCs, the Compaq PC people are likely to be safer
\nbecause they are far ahead of HP in that area," he was quoted as
\nsaying.<\/p>\n
6. ( 2 x 21 )<\/p>\n
Daum files legal action
\nagainst Windows XP
\nJP\/<\/p>\n
Daum files legal action against Windows XP<\/p>\n
SEOUL (Reuters): Daum Communications, South Korea's largest
\nInternet portal, said on Wednesday it had filed a complaint
\nagainst Microsoft Corp., over the U.S. software giant's planned
\nrelease of its new operating system Windows XP.<\/p>\n
"We filed a complaint against Microsoft with the Korea Fair
\nTrade Commission this morning," said a spokeswoman for Daum.<\/p>\n
In the complaint, Daum said Microsoft's bundling of a variety
\nof application software -- including instant messaging, Internet
\nphone service and digital pictures -- to Windows XP constitutes
\nan unfair business practice.<\/p>\n
Windows XP, the latest version of Microsoft's flagship
\nproduct, is scheduled for widespread retail release on Oct.25.<\/p>\n
Kwon Chan, a spokesman for Microsoft Korea, said his company
\nhad no official comment on the issue.<\/p>\n
"We need to go through the complaint in detail before issuing
\nany official comment," he said. "But if the Fair Trade Commission
\nwants to make enquiries to us about it, we are willing to respond
\nto it."<\/p>\n
The Fair Trade Commission (FTC) said it would launch an
\nofficial investigation into the case soon.<\/p>\n
7. ( 2 x 24 )<\/p>\n
GM to buy Daewoo plants
\nfor US$782 million
\nJP\/<\/p>\n
GM to buy two Daewoo plants for US$782 m -paper<\/p>\n
SEOUL (Reuters): U.S. auto giant General Motors (GM) is ready
\nto pay nearly US$782 million to buy two plants from South Korea's
\nbankrupt Daewoo Motors, the Korea Economic Daily reported on
\nWednesday, citing no sources.<\/p>\n
GM and Daewoo's main creditor, state-run Korea Development
\nBank (KDB), declined to comment on the report.<\/p>\n
"Due to the ongoing status of talks with the Korean side, it
\nwould be inappropriate to comment on specific issues," GM
\nspokesman Rob Leggat said.<\/p>\n
"Talks are still progressing," a KDB spokesman said,
\nreiterating comments on Tuesday by Finance Minister Jin Nyum.
\n"That is all we can say at this point."<\/p>\n
A senior Finance Ministry official told Reuters last week GM
\nhad made a final offer for Daewoo that excluded its largest and
\nmost antiquated plant of Pupyong, which employs almost half the
\nKorean firm's workforce and is highly sensitive politically.<\/p>\n
Shares of Daewoo Motor Sales, which trade as a proxy for the
\nunlisted automaker, were up 2.42 percent at 3,510 won (US$2.74)
\nby 0107 GMT, while the broader Korea Composite Stock Price Index
\nwas down 1.27 percent at 551.71.<\/p>\n
8. ( 2 x 14 )<\/p>\n
Chipmakers mull
\ncomplaint to Hynix<\/p>\n
JP\/<\/p>\n
European Chipmakers Mull Complaint Against Korea's Hynix<\/p>\n
BERLIN (Dow Jones): The European Union Commission appears
\nlikely to come under pressure soon to impose trade restrictions
\nagainst ailing South Korean chip maker Hynix Semiconductor Inc.,
\nsources in the European semiconductor industry said Tuesday.<\/p>\n
"The overall consensus in the industry is that Hynix is the
\nbeneficiary of financial assistance that provides it with an
\nunfair advantage in the world market for semiconductors," said
\none official who asked not to be named. "We hope that
\ninternational regulatory bodies can resolve this issue in a
\ntimely manner."<\/p>\n
A formal industry complaint to the E.U. Commission, which
\nmanages trade policy for the 15-member E.U., could be just a week
\naway, the source said.<\/p>\n
If a complaint is filed, it would be another blow to the cash-
\nstrapped Korean chip maker, whose creditors are currently mulling
\na bailout package.<\/p>\n
U.S. rival Micron Technology Inc. is also considering filing a
\ncomplaint against Hynix and other Korean and Japanese chip
\nmakers.<\/p>\n
Hynix, which makes dynamic random access memory chips, has
\nsuffered along with the rest of the semiconductor industry
\nbecause of the unprecedented slump in chip prices.<\/p>\n
INFINEON SEEKS SUPPORT<\/p>\n
The Brussels-based Commission has the authority to impose
\n"provisional" duties lasting four to six months on E.U. imports,
\ndepending on whether it is an anti-dumping or anti-subsidy case.<\/p>\n
Such a move would come only after a Commission investigation,
\nwhich must stem from a complaint by companies representing 25% of
\na product's European market share. The inquiry could last up to
\nnine months.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/asia-pacific-1447899208",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}