BI lowers intervention rate
BI lowers intervention rate
JAKARTA: Indonesia's central bank said Wednesday it has cut its overnight intervention rate, which is the rate it pays on deposits from commercial banks, by 100 basis points to 12.625 percent from 13.625 percent.
Bank Indonesia's latest effort to guide rates lower comes amid a reduction in inflationary pressures in recent months.
On-year inflation fell to 10.50 percent in July from 11.48 percent in June.
The government needs lower interest rates to reduce the cost of funding the state's huge debt, which at $130 billion is equal to the country's gross domestic product last year.
Interbank rates have also fallen with the cut in the intervention rate. The overnight interbank rate is now at 13 percent, much lower than 13.87 percent at the open.
;Agencies; ANPAf..r.. MoneyMatter-Japan-industrial Japan industrial index falls 1% JP/16/Money
Japan industrial index falls 1%
TOKYO: Japan's all-industries index fell 0.1 percent in June from a month earlier due to weak domestic demand and stuttering corporate investment, data showed Wednesday.
The index, which monitors industries including construction, agriculture and fisheries, had risen 1.0 percent in May, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said.
Slower activity among service industries coupled with sluggish industrial production weighed on the index in June, said Mamoru Yamazaki, chief economist at Barclays Capital.
Japan's June tertiary activity index, which covers services such as retailers, restaurants and utilities, fell 0.3 percent from the previous month when it rose a revised 0.9 percent.
"The June monthly index fell as sectors such as leasing of industrial equipment and information services dropped," said a ministry official.
"The slow activity in the leasing sector, for example, reflected sluggish or even felling capital spending," he said.
A 1.7 percent slump in the wholesale and retail sector also contributed to the weak June figure, the government said. -- AFP
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KL palm firms to set up database
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia's palm oil industry plans to set up a database in a move to reduce market dependence on foreign intelligence and to boost competitiveness, a report said Wednesday.
The intelligence unit, with an annual allocation of five million ringgit (US$1.32 million), will give market players a steady stream of reports on crop production and price, said Abdul Khalid Ibrahim, chairman of the Malaysian Palm Oil Association.
"With strong market intelligence, companies will be better at anticipating demand and supply and adjusting operations accordingly to compete against the world's 15 other edible oils," he told the New Straits Times daily.
The facility, enabling traders to monitor analyses and updates on supply and demand, would reduce the market's dependence on foreign sources such as the Chicago Board of Trade commodity market.
"The sector has been relying too much on information from abroad ... as a leading producer, we should have greater influence on the market," said Abdul Khalid, adding foreign sources could sometimes be misleading. -- AFP
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Taiwan to accelerate privatisation
TAIPEI: Taiwan plans to speed up the privatisation of a number of state-own enterprises to beef up competitiveness, economic officials said Wednesday.
The affected firms included Taiwan Power Co. (Taipower), Chinese Petroleum Corp. (CPC), Taiwan Tobacco and Liquor Corp. (TTLC) and Tang Eng Iron Works Corp., officials from the Council for Economic Planning and Development (CEPD) said.
According to the new timetable, CPC would be privatised one year earlier at the end of 2003, followed by Taipower by the end of 2005, two years ahead of an earlier schedule, they said.
The privatisation of TTLC was rescheduled one year ahead to July 2004, they said, while Chunghwa Telecom would be privatised by the end of 2003 as originally planned.
The CEPD also wants to privatise Bank of Taiwan, Land Bank of Taiwan, Central Trust of China, Taiwan Cooperative Bank and Taiwan Sugar Corp., it said, adding a timetable would be introduced by the end of the year.
The government hopes to raise NT$617.2 billion (US$18.2 billion) through the privatisation of 18 state enterprises in the next five years, the officials said.