S'pore manufacturing output up<\/p>\n
Singapore's manufacturing output rose for the fourth straight
\nmonth in July with a 17.8 percent surge from last year, with the
\nperformance again bolstered by the fledgling biomedical sciences,
\nthe government said Monday.<\/p>\n
The latest industrial figures are a further confirmation the
\nisland-state has overcome its worst ever recession which saw
\ngross domestic product (GDP) shrink two percent last year.<\/p>\n
Biomedical sciences, the beneficiary of several billion
\ndollars of state investment, saw output grow 51.4 percent in July
\nover the same month last year, the Economic Development Board
\n(EDB) said.<\/p>\n
The performance followed a 138 percent year-on-year rise in
\nJune, 133 percent in May and 31 percent in April,<\/p>\n
The industry covers both pharmaceuticals and medical
\ntechnology, with pharmaceuticals leading the expansion.<\/p>\n
\"Output of pharmaceuticals increased by 58.7 percent due
\nmainly to the new capacities that were operational in the latter
\npart of 2001,\" the EDB said.<\/p>\n
Biomedical sciences is one of four clusters that make up
\nSingapore's vital manufacturing sector, and has been listed as a
\nnew growth area for the island-state. -- AFP<\/p>\n
EU, Korea hold shipbuilding talk<\/p>\n
The European Union and South Korea kicked off two-day talks
\nMonday aiming to reach a settlement on their long-simmering row
\nover alleged subsidies given by Seoul to the domestic
\nshipbuilding industry.<\/p>\n
The EU has threatened to file a complaint with the World Trade
\nOrganization if there is no agreement by the end of September.<\/p>\n
\"The two-day meeting will be dominated by the EU's complaint
\nthat our shipbuilding industry has received subsidies,\" said an
\nofficial at the ministry of commerce, industry and energy.<\/p>\n
European shipbuilders have called for anti-dumping tariffs on
\nSouth Korean shipbuilders in an attempt to guard their cruise
\nship market. They contend they are threatened by the excess
\ncapacity of heavily indebted South Korean rivals.<\/p>\n
EU officials have suggested that member states should actively
\nsupport their own shipbuilding sectors, although some countries
\nsuch as Britain have traditionally resisted intervention.<\/p>\n
South Korean trade officials, however, have accused European
\nnations of using the row as an excuse to resume subsidies to
\ntheir shipbuilders.<\/p>\n
The worldwide shipbuilding industry has been driven towards
\ncrisis due to falling prices induced by excess capacity. -- AFP<\/p>\n
Thailand to clear its IMF debt<\/p>\n
Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra vowed Sunday to clear
\nThailand's billion-dollar-plus debt with the International
\nMonetary Fund (IMF) by early 2003, citing improved foreign
\ncurrency reserves.<\/p>\n
\"We can pay it all by next January,\" Thaksin said on Thai
\nBusiness Radio, clarifying that he meant only debts to the IMF
\nand \"not the debts we owe other countries\".<\/p>\n
According to an official IMF executive board notice on
\nFebruary 8, Thailand's debt to the fund stood at US$1.5 billion
\nout of the $3.2 billion it drew from 1997 as part of the
\nkingdom's $17.2 billion financial bailout.<\/p>\n
By May, the IMF debt had been reduced to $1.2 billion,
\naccording to Bank of Thailand figures.<\/p>\n
The radio report said Thaksin had expressed satisfaction with
\nthe country's foreign reserves and was not worried that the pay-
\noff would scupper Thailand's economic recovery.<\/p>\n
Thailand's current account balance of payments stood at $563
\nmillion in May, while the country's foreign reserves in June
\ntopped $36 billion, according to the Bank of Thailand. -- AFP<\/p>\n
German import prices fall again<\/p>\n
The price of imported goods in Germany continued to fall in July,
\nofficial data showed on Monday.<\/p>\n
The German import price index fell by 0.5 percent in July from
\nJune and was 4.2 percent lower than it had been in July 2001, the
\nFederal Statistics Office calculated.<\/p>\n
In both June and May, the index fallen by 5.2 percent and 4.3
\npercent respectively on a 12-month basis.<\/p>\n
Excluding oil and petrol, the import price index would have
\nfallen by 3.3 percent year-on-year, the statisticians said in a
\nstatement.<\/p>\n
At the same time, the German export price index edged 0.1
\npercent lower in July from June and was 0.5 percent lower than it
\nhad been in July 2001, the office said. -- AFP<\/p>",
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