Firm to expand business

JAKARTA (JP): PT Lippo Industries, a holding company for automotive part, consumer electronics and infrastructure equipment producers, plans to expand through joint ventures with Japanese and South Korean partners.

Rudy Nanggulangi, the company's president, told reporters after an annual meeting of its shareholders here on Friday that Lippo Industries will establish a joint venture with a Japanese company to manufacture printed circuit boards later this year.

Lippo Industries also plans to produce home water pumps in cooperation with a Korean company.

Rudy refused to disclose the names of the Japanese and Korean firms on the grounds that he had not completed negotiations.

He said his company will finance most of the equity needed for the establishment of the joint ventures with retained profits. "That's why we will distribute only Rp 60 (2.7 U.S. cents) for each of the company's 10,625,000 shares," he said.

Rudy reported to the shareholders that the company gained an after-tax profit of Rp 4.03 billion (US$2.1 million) or Rp 380 per share last year. The profit was 76 percent higher than the Rp 2.2 billion in 1992.

The planned joint venture with the Japanese company will likely need an investment of about $7 million, he said. (02)

Danamon to open offices

JAKARTA (JP): Bank Danamon Indonesia will open 50 new sub- branch offices throughout the country this year with a total investment of Rp 1.75 billion (US$813,200) to improve services to small-scale industries.

Steve Boedy Subroto, the bank's director for finance and management supervision, told reporters after its annual shareholder meeting here on Friday that the company, which has operated 231 offices throughout the country, plans to expand its credit by 30 percent this year.

"Our credit increased by 58.53 percent to Rp 5.7 trillion last year," he said.

He said the bank's loan-to-deposit ratio last year stood at 84.48 percent, far lower than 91.64 percent a year earlier.

Subroto also reported a 21.25-percent increase in the bank's after-tax profit to Rp 48.3 billion last year.

The shareholders approved Friday the company's proposal to pay cash dividends of Rp 22.4 billion or Rp 50 per share. (fhp)

RI mission to visit UAE

ABU DHABI (AFP): More than 80 Indonesian officials and businessmen will visit the United Arab Emirates (UAE) this week to discuss investment and economic cooperation, newspapers said.

It will be the largest delegation from Indonesia to have visited the Emirates.

Industrial states and other countries have stepped up a drive to grab a bigger share of the regional market after the end of the 1991 Gulf war boosted business.

The Indonesian delegation, which will visit the UAE between May 25 and 28, includes representatives from trade, industry, tourism and other sectors.

Trade between the two countries, both key members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, rose to US$326 million in 1992 from $266 million in 1991.

The balance was largely in favor of Indonesia, whose exports stood at $299 million in 1992.

KL rubber output shrinks

KUALA LUMPUR (AFP): Malaysia's rubber output shrank 32 percent in March, bringing down by 18 percent total production for the first quarter of the year, the statistics department said.

Output in March declined to 50,472 tons from 73,756 tons in the preceding month, the department said in its latest monthly report on rubber statistics.

The significantly lower production brought first quarter output down to 241,202 tons compared to the corresponding period last year, it said.

The department said output had declined because of the seasonal wintering and rainy season.

Analysts said prices remained depressed despite falling production because of dismal global demand.

Consumption by Malaysian manufacturers rose, however, by six percent to 65,062 tons in the first quarter from the previous period, although demand fell slightly to 20,829 tons in March, the department said.

Malaysia, which used to be the world's top natural rubber producer, has since been relegated to number three, behind Thailand and Indonesia.

HK raises interest rates

HONG KONG (Reuter): Hong Kong's savings and lending rates will be raised today in response to a hike in U.S. interest rates last week.

The territory's two biggest banks, Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corp and Standard Chartered Bank, announced that their best lending rates on which other lending rates are based, would be lifted 0.5 percentage points to 7.25 percent effective Monday.

The moves followed an increase in deposit rates Friday by the Hong Kong Association of Banks, a cartel which fixes deposit rates at a weekly meeting.

Hong Kong's dollar is pegged to the U.S. dollar and local interest rates must follow those of the U.S.

The association said savings and 24-hour deposit rates would rise 0.5 percentage points.

Other deposit interest rates would rise by 0.75 percentage points, the association said.

The new deposit rates are savings at 2.5 percent, 24 hours 2.5 percent, seven-day call 3.0 percent, one week 3.0 percent, two weeks 3.0 percent, one month 3.75 percent, two months 3.75 percent, three months 4.25 percent, six months 4.5 percent, nine months 4.75 percent and 12 months 5.25 percent.

Japan's output index up

TOKYO (AFP): Japan's index of mining and manufacturing rose 4.6 percent in March from the preceding month while that of shipments gained 4.8 percent, according to a revised government report.

The index of inventories declined 1.1 percent month-to-month but it "still remained at a high level despite moves of inventory adjustment," the ministry of international trade and industry said.

It added that the ratio of inventories to sales dropped 5.3 percent.

The output and shipment increases in March were revised upward from earlier estimates of 3.3 percent and 3.9 percent as production and distribution of pharmaceuticals, beer and printing machines turned out to be more brisk, the ministry said.

But the ministry said the monthly gains were mainly attributed to seasonal factors because manufacturers stepped up production before the closing of their books at the end of the fiscal year on March 31.