TNS Indonesia rebrands

TNS Indonesia rebrands

JAKARTA: Taylor Nelson Sofres (TNS), one of the world's
leading market information groups, has announced that it was
renaming itself into its acronyms TNS after bringing its entire
worldwide operations into one single brand.

TNS said in a statement that after the rebranding move, the
company remains committed to Indonesia, where it has operated
over the past 22 years.

"The market research industry is facing the real threat that
our currency of information is becoming increasingly devalued,"
Hans Lang, TNS Indonesia managing director said.

"Indonesia is a good example of this where businesses are
increasingly challenged with tighter margins and more challenging
market conditions," he said.

The new TNS brand was developed by global brand consultancy
Wolff Olins and is based on the idea of being "the sixth sense in
business", the statement said. -- JP

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ANPAf..r..
CorporateBrief-Maspion-IPO
Maspion to launch IPO
JP/JAPAN

Maspion to launch IPO

JAKARTA: Electronic and household goods producer PT Maspion
plans to sell 25 percent of its shares through an initial public
offering (IPO) next year.

The company said on Tuesday that it had also planned to issue
Rp 500 billion (US$60.2 million) worth of bonds next month,
mainly to refinance Rp 318 billion in debts.

The bonds will have a fixed rate of between 13.25 percent and
13.75 percent with a maturity period of five years. The bonds had
earned an A rating from local rating company PT Pefindo.

The company had appointed PT Danareksa Sekuritas as the
underwriter for the bonds offering.

Maspion recorded a drop of Rp 1.8 trillion in 2002 sales from
Rp 2 trillion in 2002. -- JP

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CorporateBrief-Mandiri-IPO
Mandiri to seek IPO approval
JP/JAPAN

Mandiri to seek IPO approval

JAKARTA: State Bank Mandiri will hold a shareholders meeting on
Thursday to seek approval for a planned initial public offering
(IPO) next month.

The deputy of the offices of the State Ministry of State
Enterprises, Mahmuddin Yasin, said on Tuesday that the bank would
sell 15 percent of its shares.

He said that the bank planned to register the IPO plan with
the Capital Market Supervisory Agency (Bapepam) later this week.

Mahmuddin also said that the meeting would also discuss the
bank's capital condition and the appointment of a new board of
directors. -- JP

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CorporateBrief-Telkomsel-IPO
Govt to delay Telkomsel IPO
JP/JAPAN

Govt to delay Telkomsel IPO

JAKARTA: The Indonesian government said Tuesday it will delay
a plan to divest its stake in cellular phone company PT
Telekomunikasi Selular Indonesia, or Telkomsel, through an
initial public offering (IPO) to next year.

"We won't do the Telkomsel IPO this year," Mahmuddin Yasin, a
deputy to the Minister of State Enterprises' Affairs told Dow
Jones Newswires.

He said the decision to delay the IPO came after the
government received a letter from the management of PT
Telekomunikasi Indonesia (Telkom), which owns a 65 percent stake
in Telkomsel, asking for more time to prepare for the share sale.

Mahmuddin didn't elaborate.

Last month, the state-owned enterprises ministry told Telkom's
management to prepare for the Telkomsel IPO in September or
October.

Singapore Telecommunications Ltd., or Singtel, holds the
remaining 35 percent stake in Telkomsel. The government holds a
51.2 percent in Telkom. -- Dow Jones