S'pore manufacturing output up

S'pore manufacturing output up

Singapore's manufacturing output rose for the fourth straight
month in July with a 17.8 percent surge from last year, with the
performance again bolstered by the fledgling biomedical sciences,
the government said Monday.

The latest industrial figures are a further confirmation the
island-state has overcome its worst ever recession which saw
gross domestic product (GDP) shrink two percent last year.

Biomedical sciences, the beneficiary of several billion
dollars of state investment, saw output grow 51.4 percent in July
over the same month last year, the Economic Development Board
(EDB) said.

The performance followed a 138 percent year-on-year rise in
June, 133 percent in May and 31 percent in April,

The industry covers both pharmaceuticals and medical
technology, with pharmaceuticals leading the expansion.

"Output of pharmaceuticals increased by 58.7 percent due
mainly to the new capacities that were operational in the latter
part of 2001," the EDB said.

Biomedical sciences is one of four clusters that make up
Singapore's vital manufacturing sector, and has been listed as a
new growth area for the island-state. -- AFP

EU, Korea hold shipbuilding talk

The European Union and South Korea kicked off two-day talks
Monday aiming to reach a settlement on their long-simmering row
over alleged subsidies given by Seoul to the domestic
shipbuilding industry.

The EU has threatened to file a complaint with the World Trade
Organization if there is no agreement by the end of September.

"The two-day meeting will be dominated by the EU's complaint
that our shipbuilding industry has received subsidies," said an
official at the ministry of commerce, industry and energy.

European shipbuilders have called for anti-dumping tariffs on
South Korean shipbuilders in an attempt to guard their cruise
ship market. They contend they are threatened by the excess
capacity of heavily indebted South Korean rivals.

EU officials have suggested that member states should actively
support their own shipbuilding sectors, although some countries
such as Britain have traditionally resisted intervention.

South Korean trade officials, however, have accused European
nations of using the row as an excuse to resume subsidies to
their shipbuilders.

The worldwide shipbuilding industry has been driven towards
crisis due to falling prices induced by excess capacity. -- AFP

Thailand to clear its IMF debt

Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra vowed Sunday to clear
Thailand's billion-dollar-plus debt with the International
Monetary Fund (IMF) by early 2003, citing improved foreign
currency reserves.

"We can pay it all by next January," Thaksin said on Thai
Business Radio, clarifying that he meant only debts to the IMF
and "not the debts we owe other countries".

According to an official IMF executive board notice on
February 8, Thailand's debt to the fund stood at US$1.5 billion
out of the $3.2 billion it drew from 1997 as part of the
kingdom's $17.2 billion financial bailout.

By May, the IMF debt had been reduced to $1.2 billion,
according to Bank of Thailand figures.

The radio report said Thaksin had expressed satisfaction with
the country's foreign reserves and was not worried that the pay-
off would scupper Thailand's economic recovery.

Thailand's current account balance of payments stood at $563
million in May, while the country's foreign reserves in June
topped $36 billion, according to the Bank of Thailand. -- AFP

German import prices fall again

The price of imported goods in Germany continued to fall in July,
official data showed on Monday.

The German import price index fell by 0.5 percent in July from
June and was 4.2 percent lower than it had been in July 2001, the
Federal Statistics Office calculated.

In both June and May, the index fallen by 5.2 percent and 4.3
percent respectively on a 12-month basis.

Excluding oil and petrol, the import price index would have
fallen by 3.3 percent year-on-year, the statisticians said in a
statement.

At the same time, the German export price index edged 0.1
percent lower in July from June and was 0.5 percent lower than it
had been in July 2001, the office said. -- AFP