ASEAN ministers to discuss capital market

ASEAN ministers to discuss capital market

MANILA: ASEAN finance ministers and their deputies are
expected to discuss at the meeting initiatives to develop the
region's capital markets, particularly a proposal to create an
Asian bond market.

Deputy finance ministers from China, Japan and South Korea are
also scheduled to join the Manila meeting.

"We will get a consensus on the possible postponement," said
the Philippine finance department official.

Separately, another source from the Philippine finance
department said Singapore's Finance Minister Lee Hsien Loong, who
is also deputy prime minister and head of the central bank, has
canceled his attendance because of the outbreak of the severe
acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS, in Asia.

SARS has infected more than 2,600 people worldwide and killed
at least 104, most of them in mainland China and Hong Kong, with
others deaths in Canada, Singapore, Vietnam, Thailand and
Malaysia. -- Dow Jones

Singapore and India to talk FTA

NEW DELHI: Singapore and India Tuesday agreed to begin talks
and work towards a comprehensive free trade accord between the
two countries.

Indian Commerce Minister Arun Jaitley and Singapore Trade and
Industry Minister George Yeo signed the declaration of intent for
a Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA).

The talks on economic cooperation would cover the free trade
agreement and an accord on investment promotion, protection and
cooperation and liberal air services.

Indian Foreign Minister Yashwant Sinha and his Singapore
counterpart also signed an expression of intent for providing
technical assistance to four new ASEAN members -- Cambodia, Laos,
Myanmar and Vietnam.

Singapore Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong earlier Tuesday said he
hoped Singapore could serve as a bridge between Asian giants
India and China, and made a strong pitch for the free trade pact.
-- AFP

Japan's investment seen to fall

TOKYO: Capital investment by major Japanese firms is expected
to fall 2.2 percent in the year to March 2004, the third straight
annual decline, according to a survey released on Wednesday.

The Nihon Keizai Shimbun covered a total of 1,504 major
Japanese firms, excluding financial institutions, for the survey,
which was carried out last month.

Companies in the manufacturing sector plan to gain investment
by 0.4 percent for the first time in three years, but non-
manufacturers are expected to slash their outlay by 4.7 percent,
the business daily said.

Automakers are expected to reduce their investment by 8.8
percent in the fiscal year, with Toyota Motor Corp. seen cutting
capital expenditure by 14 percent, it said.

In contrast, steelmakers and precision machinery makers plan
to boost their outlay by more than 10 percent in the fiscal year.
-- AFP

German industrial output slips

FRANKFURT: Industrial output in Germany fell only slightly in
February, mainly as a result of cold weather, suggesting the euro
zone's biggest economy might be able to scrape past a recession
in the first quarter of this year, official data showed on
Tuesday.

According to statistics compiled by the German Economy and
Labor Ministry in Berlin, industrial output contracted by 0.7
percent in February from the figure for January, beating
expectations of a much steeper decline.

The main reason for the decline was a 4.4-percent drop in
activity in the construction sector as a result of cold and the
heavy snowfall seen during that month, the ministry explained in
a statement.

Output in the manufacturing sector eased by 0.3 percent in
February from January, the ministry calculated. And in the energy
sector, activity contracted by 1.7 percent. -- AFP

Japanese machinery orders fall

TOKYO: Japanese core private sector machinery orders in
February fell 9.6 percent from the previous month, after
increasing 7.0 percent in January, the government said Wednesday.

On a year-on-year basis, machinery orders excluding volatile
shipbuilding and power generation equipment edged up 1.4 percent
after surging 18.8 percent in January, the Cabinet Office said.

Machinery orders from manufacturers fell 9.1 percent from the
previous month while orders from non-manufacturers dropped 9.8
percent, it said. -- AFP

Three EU countries to breach deficit limit

BRUSSELS: The European Commission on Tuesday predicted that
France, Germany and Portugal would all breach euro-zone deficit
limits this year, and that Italy would join them in the doghouse
next year.

The European Union's executive arm said that France would
surpass the limit set out in the 12-nation zone's Stability and
Growth Pact -- 3.0 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) --
both this year and next.

In its spring economic report, the Commission predicted the
French deficit would be 3.7 percent of GDP this year and 3.5
percent in 2004 in the absence of any economic policy shift.

But Germany would go from 3.4 percent in 2003 to 2.9 percent
next year, the 123-page report said.

Portugal became the first euro country to breach the ceiling,
with a deficit of 4.2 percent in 2001.

The Commission said Italy would become the fourth country to
breach the stability pact by registering a deficit of 3.1 percent
in 2004, against a forecast 2.3 percent for this year. -- AFP