Japan gets refinery order

Japan gets refinery order

TOKYO (AFP): Japan's Tomen Corp. and JGC Corp. have won a US$200 million order from Indonesia's state-run oil and gas company Pertamina to modernize an oil refinery, a Tomen spokesman said yesterday.

The spokesman said the trading house and the engineering company hoped to finalize the contract early next year after financial details are worked out.

The Export-Import Bank of Japan will extend a $140 million loan towards the project in Kalimantan while the remaining $60 million will be financed by commercial banks, he said.

Tomen and JGC will jointly provide distillation equipment to the Balikpapan refinery, the spokesman said.

The refinery modernization is one of six projects the Indonesian government froze in 1991 due to concerns over the country's growing external debts.

;AFP; ANPAf..r.. Bizbrief-Manila-venture Philippine venture signed JP/9/COLBOX2

Philippine venture signed

MANILA (AFP): A Malaysian group and a Philippine firm controlled by a former Moslem separatist leader will launch a multi-project joint venture designed to "upgrade the living standards of Moslems" in the Philippines, it was announced yesterday.

The USRA Group of Malaysia and the Janoub Philippines Development Corp. announced the formation of the joint venture, which will be centered in the Moslem-populated regions of the southern Philippines.

The new Al-Usra Janoub Joint Venture Company is 60-percent owned by USRA, a diversified business group with investments in Australia, Indonesia and Vietnam, and 40 percent by Janoub, a Philippine firm controlled by Abul Khayr Alonto, a Moslem politician and businessman.

Projects include low-cost housing, a tourist resort and golf course, a palm oil plantation and mill and other developments. The joint venture has a US$500,000 capitalization and Alonto said they expected to invest $8 billion over the next seven years.

;JP;ANR; ANPAf..r.. Bizbrief-communication-firm Malaysian firm enters RI JP/9/COLBOX3

Malaysian firm enters RI

JAKARTA (JP): The Malaysia-based Integrated Strategic Communications (ISC), a Malaysian public relations company, is entering Indonesia through a technical assistance agreement with a domestic partner.

ISC offers marketing planning and strategy, advertising, direct marketing, events management, promotions and public relations services through PT Indonusa Saranakomunikasi Cipta.

Austen Zecha, a founder of ISC, said yesterday that as the Indonesian law does not yet permit foreign investment in the communications industry, the cooperation enters the country by providing technical assistance.

Mukhriz Mahathir, a son of Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohammad ,chairs the ISC, while Indonesia's Ferry Sonnevile, honorary chairman of the Real Estate Association of Indonesia, leads Indonusa. (anr)

;RTR;ICN; ANPAf..r.. Bizbrief-Asia-market Asian stocks burst out JP/9/COLBOX4

Asian stocks burst out

HONG KONG (Reuter): Asian stock markets burst out of their lethargic ways yesterday with almost all bourses jumping by one to more than three percent.

Hong Kong rose 3.28 percent, Singapore 3.13 percent, Tokyo one percent, Taipei 2.11 percent and Kuala Lumpur 1.45 percent.

Selective bargain-hunting of blue chips by both local and foreign investors pushed up Hong Kong stocks, brokers said.

The Hang Seng Index closed up 262.21 points, or 3.28 percent, at 8,259.56.

Tokyo stocks closed higher on short-covering and arbitrage- linked buying, brokers said, with the 225-share Nikkei average gaining 189.63 points to end at 19,121.12.

Singapore's Straits Times Industrials index rose 66.23 points to close at 2,180.23 on bargain hunting, brokers said.

In Australia, the All Ordinaries index ended 31.2 points, or 1.67 percent, up at 1895.0, its biggest one-day jump since late August.

Thai stocks closed 2.34 percent higher spurred by late buying across the board after the index breached the 1,303 resistance, brokers said. The SET index closed 29.93 points higher at the day's high of 1,310.

In Seoul, the composite stock index added 1.37 points to 1,027.99, off a day high of 1,036.74. Losers led gainers by 564 to 296.

;AFP;ICN; ANPAf..r.. Bizbrief-Tokyo-dollar Dollar closes lower JP/9/COLBOX5

Dollar closes lower

TOKYO (AFP): The dollar lost ground moderately on the Tokyo foreign exchange market yesterday on prospects that the United States might not raise interest rates further in the immediate future.

It closed at 100.26 yen, down 0.12 yen from the previous day's finish of 100.38 yen here and lower than 100.30 yen quoted in New York late Wednesday.

The mark closed at 1.5712 to the dollar here yesterday, against 1.5720 the previous day.

The dollar ended mixed in Singapore. Rates provided by Banque Nationale de Paris showed the dollar strengthening to 1.5705 marks at 0900GMT compared with Wednesday's closing of 1.5700 marks.

In London, the French franc was bid at 3.4502 to the mark, compared with 3.4475 at the Wednesday close, and after slipping to a low of 3.4515 in Asian trading.

The dollar was being traded at 1.5715 marks from 1.5705 at the Wednesday close in London, at 100.25 yen from 100.30, at 1.3270 Swiss francs from 1.3290 and at 5.4213 French francs from 5.4138.

Sterling was at $1.5610 from $1.5617, at 2.4531 marks from 2.4526, at 156.49 yen from 156.64, at 2.0714 Swiss francs from 2.0755 and at 8.4626 French francs from 8.4547.

;REUTER; ANPAf..r.. Bizbrief-Cambodia-loan Cambodia gets ADB loan JP/9/COLBOX6

Cambodia gets ADB loan

MANILA (Reuter): The Asian Development Bank (ADB) said yesterday it had approved a US$28-million interest-free loan to Cambodia to help improve power generation and distribution facilities.

The project will improve the availability, reliability and quality of power supply in Phnom Penh, Sihanoukville and Siem Reap, the ADB said in a statement.

The loan has a repayment period of 40 years, including 10-year grace period, it said.

;REUTER; ANPA f..a.. Bizbrief-Japan-growth Japan sets 2.8% growth JP/9/COLBOX7

Japan sets 2.8% growth

TOKYO (Reuter): Japan has set an official forecast of a real 2.8 percent growth in gross domestic product (GDP) for the next fiscal year starting on April 1, 1995, a senior Economic Planning Agency (EPA) official told reporters yesterday.

The government has also revised its forecast for GDP growth in 1994/95 ending next March to 1.7 percent from an earlier forecast of 2.4 percent, the official said.

;AFP; ANPAf..r.. Bizbrief-Vietnam-Catlex-oil Caltex to expand to Vietnam JP/9/COLBOX8

Caltex expands to Vietnam

HANOI (AFP): U.S. oil firm Caltex has opened two offices in Vietnam and is planning investment in downstream products including fuels and lubrication oils, a report said yesterday.

Caltex, which in April became the first US oil company to buy Vietnamese crude following the lifting of a trade ban, is expected to launch sales of lubricants and other petroleum products, the Vietnam News reported.

At a ceremony to mark the opening of the office, Asia chief executive Clifton Hon predicted strong growth in the market for petroleum products in Vietnam, which saw a 15 percent rise in such imports last year.

Several foreign oil firms including Shell, British Petroleum and Castrol have begun operations in Vietnam or are planning plants for downstream products.

Vietnam exports all its crude oil for refining in Singapore and Japan and buys back derived products. It is planning to build a refinery in the center of the country in a joint venture with France's Total and two Taiwanese firms.