KL must boost competitiveness

KL must boost competitiveness

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia has to make its corporate sector more
competitive and draw in more foreign investment to sustain its
economic growth, Moody's Investors Service said on Wednesday.

In its annual report, Moody's maintained its Baa1 rating and
stable outlook for Malaysia, citing an improved external
financial position and a resilient electronics sector in the face
of global volatility.

The agency said Malaysia was expected to record its sixth
current account surplus this year, although it was likely to be
lower than previous years.

Its liquidity position was also healthy as short-term external
debt fell to a low level, while progress in corporate
restructuring and a strengthened banking system further supported
the ratings, it said.

But Moody's noted the economy has been hit by the global
slowdown in demand for electronics products and by low levels of
capital inflows. -- AFP

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Moneymatter-China-jail-scam
China jails six in financial scam
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China jails six in financial scam

SHANGHAI: China jailed six people involved in a scam to
manipulate share prices of Shenzhen China Venture Capital Co, now
known as Kangda'er Group, after a 10-month investigation and
trial, state press reported on Wednesday.

The criminal sentences handed down by the Beijing No. 2
Intermediate People's Court, mark the first time defendants in a
stock manipulation case have been jailed, the China Daily said.

The six were sentenced to terms of up to four years in prison
and fined up to 500,000 yuan (US$60,000) each, the newspaper
reported, without providing further details.

Lu Xinjian and Zhu Huanling, considered the group's
ringleaders, have fled the country and are still at large.

Meanwhile, Shanghai Huayua Industrial Development Co. was
fined 23 million yuan for helping Lu raise 770 million yuan to
fund his illegal activities.

Investors who lost money as a result of the stock rigging
scheme will not be entitled to compensation because the court
said the case was a criminal matter.

Courts have rejected plaintiff submissions for a civil
compensation lawsuit, the report said. -- AFP

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Moneymatter-SKorea-Roh-economy
Roh says no stimulus for economy
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Roh says no stimulus for economy

SEOUL: President Roh Moo-Hyun on Wednesday ruled out a stimulus
package for South Korea's slowing economy, saying the step could
trigger negative side-effects such as higher consumer and real
estate prices.

"The economy is in a difficult situation. But the government
will not take any short-term stimulus steps as it will trigger
higher consumer prices and real estate prices," he said in a
speech to the National Assembly.

Roh pledged that his administration would succeed in
stabilizing real estate and consumer prices while continuing to
push ahead with economic reforms.

The reformist president also said the economy is overcoming
the shock of an accounting scandal at SK Global, the trading arm
of SK Group, South Korea's third biggest conglomerate.

"If there had been no reforms, our economy would have
collapsed again at the SK Global shock," he told legislators.

A third straight monthly trade deficit announced Tuesday was
the latest in a series of bad news affecting South Korea's
economy.

Consumer confidence tumbled to an 18-month low on Monday while
consumer prices rose at the fastest pace in more than two years
in March. -- AFP

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Moneymatter-Singapore-manufacture-down
S'pore manufacturing index down
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S'pore manufacturing index down

SINGAPORE: A leading indicator of Singapore's manufacturing
sector declined for the first time in 12 months on weaker demand,
the Singapore Institute of Purchasing and Materials Management
(SIPMM) said on Wednesday.

The Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) for March fell 0.7 points
over the previous month to 49.7 "on lower new orders, a
contraction in new export orders, a further contraction in
production output, as well as further contraction in employment,"
the SIPMM said.

A reading below 50 points shows that production in the
island's manufacturing industry shrank.

In the electronics sector, which accounts for nearly half of
the output in manufacturing, the index declined 1.4 points to
49.4, snapping a four-month expansion streak.

Manufacturing is a crucial pillar of the Singapore economy,
accounting for almost a quarter of the island's gross domestic
product.

The bulk of output from the sector is exported to the world's
major economies, particularly to the United States and the March
PMI reading will likely add to fears the island will be hit hard
by the fallout from the war in Iraq and a killer respiratory
virus sweeping across the world. -- AFP