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Alcoa, SMW Automotive enter casting pact in Asia
Alcoa Inc. (AA.N: Quote, Profile, Research) said on Wednesday it agreed with SMW Automotive Hong Kong to form an alliance to produce cast aluminum chassis and suspension components and modules for the automotive industry in China, South Korea, Japan and the Asia Pacific region.
SMW Automotive Hong Kong is a subsidiary of Concord International, a privately held supplier of chassis, brake components and systems headquartered in Troy, Michigan, with operations in the United States, Canada, France, Brazil, and China.
Under the agreement, top aluminum producer Alcoa said, it will license its Vacuum Riserless and Pressure Riserless Casting technology and sell related production assets.
More : today.reuters.com
Actis closes $130m fund for South East Asia
Emerging markets private equity investor Actis has closed its Actis ASEAN Fund on $130m. Investors in the fund include private sector institutional investors from North America, Europe and Asia.
Actis closed its Actis Malaysia Fund on $60m in 2004. Due to investor interest the firm then decided to increase the fund size and turn the Malaysia-focused fund into a fund investing across the ASEAN region.
Actis ASEAN Fund will have a special focus on investments in Malaysia, and it will also focus on investment opportunities in Indonesia, the Philippines and Thailand.
More : altassets.com
Abhishek voted sexiest man in Asia
Abhishek Bachchan tops a list of 50 Sexiest Asian Men in a survey conducted by Eastern Eye, an Asian newspaper in Britain.
Abhishek, who was spotted on number three in last years poll, was shocked to hear he had topped the ranking in Eastern Eyes Sexiest Asian Men of 2006.
Oh God really? Thats interesting. Shocking actually. Are people blind? But wow, I would like to thank everyone. I dont agree with them but it is sweet, said Abhishek in a statement.
Source : hindustantimes.com
Dollar Flat Against Yen in Asia
The dollar was flat against the yen in Asia Tuesday after overnight data showed that U.S. sales of existing homes fell for a fifth consecutive month in August, further indications of a slowdown.
The U.S. dollar was trading at 116.50 yen on the Tokyo foreign exchange market at 3 p.m. (0600 GMT) Tuesday, edging up from 116.48 yen from late Monday in New York. The euro fell to US$1.2750 from US$1.2757.
U.S. investment banks and overseas hedge funds sold the dollar to as low as 116.26 yen in early trading, but aggressive buying interest from Japanese importers helped the dollar to recover some of its losses, dealers said.
More : chron.com
Mergers and acquisitions forecast to rise in Asia-Pacific region
Merger and acquisition (M&A) activity is poised to rise in the Asia-Pacific region during the next few years, but companies are not paying enough attention to human-resource issues, according to a study reported Monday.
Leadership assessment and cultural fit are being neglected in favour of short-term objectives during due diligence, said Hewitt Associates.
Human-resource factors hold risks to ultimate success, said the Mergers and Acquisitions Asia-Pacific Study 2006, published in The Business Times in Singapore.
More : news.monstersandcritics.com
South East Asia Briefs
MANILA: Asean has sought permanent observer status in the UN, the Philippine Ambassador to the UN, Lauro Baja, said. Mr Baja said that with observer status, Asean would have a seat in all UN meetings that the grouping was interested in and would gain added visibility and importance. Asean is the worlds only regional grouping that does not have observer status in the UN.
Drug ring busted
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian police broke up the largest marijuana smuggling syndicate in the northern region with the arrests of eight suspects and seizure of drugs valued at more than 370,000 ringgit ($159,000). The drugs were believed to have come from Thailand.
More : bruneitimes.com.bn
Asia struggles as US feel-good factor ebbs
Asian stocks closed lower on Friday, hit by losses on Wall Street after US data showing a surprise contraction in a key industrial region pointed to a possibly sharper-than-expected US slowdown, dealers said.
They said this was more than enough to offset any lingering feel-good factor from the US Federal Reserves decision to leave interest rates on hold, with that move now being taken instead as another indicator that all may not be well with the US economy.
A regular Philadelphia Federal Reserve survey fell to minus 0.4 points last month from a positive 18.5 in July, compared with forecasts for 14.4, with Wall Street losing 0.69 percent as a result.
More : taipeitimes.com
Currencies dip in Asia on export fall worries
Asian currencies weakened, paced by Indonesias rupiah and the Philippine peso, on speculation investors will sell emerging-market assets as US growth slows. A report on Thursday on Philadelphia manufacturing provided further evidence a two-year cycle of interest-rate increases is cooling the US economy.
Asian exports may suffer on a decline in consumer demand in the US, one of the regions biggest overseas markets.
The rupiah posted the worst week in a month, while the peso snapped a three-week rally.
A lot of money has gone into Asian and Latin American markets and now people may be unwinding their holdings, pushing down the currencies, said Nizam Idris, a currency strategist at UBS AG in Singapore. Investors are more averse to risk following yesterdays poor US numbers.
More : gulf-times.com
Africa: World Bank Study Urges Africa Trade With Asia
Africa should embrace growing trade relations between the continent and Asian giants China and India, the World Bank says.
In a new study, the Bank notes the growing Asian investment in Africa, saying it holds growth potential for the continent.
The study, Africas Silk Road: China and Indias New Economic Frontier, recommends an array of trade and investment reforms within and between these regions to deepen the growing South-South ties.
This new Silk Road potentially presents to sub-Saharan Africa – home to 300 million of the globes poorest people – a significant and rare opportunity to hasten its international integration and growth, said Mr Harry Broadman, World Bank Africa Region Economic Advisor and author of the report.
More : allafrica.com
Asia Orchestra Week 2006
This October, Tokyo and Osaka will host Asia Orchestra Week 2006, an annual festival that celebrates classical music from a distinctly Asian – and contemporary – perspective. Over the last four years, AOW has drawn 30,000 people to watch more than 2,000 musicians from 13 Asia-Pacific countries. Programs presented by these orchestras, which this year include Sydney Orchestra and the Korean Symphony Orchestra, combine the traditional classical repertoire with innovative contemporary compositions that often reflect their own national folk music. Each concert is headed by a promising young soloist, who harmonizes this blend of conflict and contrast.
One such concert is scheduled from Chinas Heilongjiang Symphony Orchestra of Harbin (Tokyo, Oct. 4; Osaka, Oct. 6). The highlights of this program are many, and include Sibelius beautiful Violin Concerto played by 20-year-old soloist Yang Xiaoyu, winner of the Tchaikovsky International Competition for Young Musicians in 2002, followed by Shostakovichs Fifth Symphony, whose movements the Russian composer has said trace the making of a man.
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A nuclear-free Central Asia
Five former republics of the Soviet Union in Central Asia have created a nuclear-free zone. The agreement is an important step forward for the global nonproliferation regime at a time when that order is under assault on multiple fronts.
The governments of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan signed the treaty, which bans the production, acquisition or deployment of nuclear weapons or their components as well as nuclear explosives, and forbids the hosting or transport of nuclear weapons or materials for third parties. In essence, it creates a nuclear-weapons-free zone that is about 3.8 million sq. km in size and includes some 60 million people. In addition, the five nations committed to enhanced International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards regarding security of nuclear facilities and radioactive waste.
More : search.japantimes.co.jp
Singapore to create investment funds for Asias infrastructure needs
Singapore is seeking to tap opportunities in Asias infrastructure building growth, and it hopes to attract investors by providing incentives for infrastructure funds.
Asian countries are expected to spend US$250b a year over the next five years to build large-scale projects such as roads systems, bridges, and power generators, and Singapore aims to make it easier for both institutional and retail private investors to pool their money together to finance such projects.
Singapores neighbours like Indonesia and Vietnam are now relying on offshore banks to lend them money for their infrastructure projects, but Singapore is hoping to develop infrastructure funds as an alternative source of capital.
More : channelnewsasia.com
Indian shares fall on mixed Asia; Karachi rises
Indian shares fell nearly 1 percent on Tuesday to end below the 12,000 mark as investors took profits after five sessions of gains and on mixed Asian markets ahead of a U.S. Federal Reserve meeting on Wednesday.
The Federal Reserve is widely expected to keep interest rates unchanged, but investors will look for clues on future rate policy. A slew of U.S. economic data is also expected this week.
The key 30-share BSE index ended down 0.84 percent at 11,970.47 points. Losers beat gainers 1,582 to 924 on trade of 230 million shares.
Heavyweight Reliance Industries Ltd. fell 1.2 percent to 1,118.35 rupees. A senior official said the companys natural gas reserves are expected to exceed 50 trillion cubic feet.
More : in.today.reuters.com
Regional cooperative movement for reducing poverty stressed in South Asia
South Asian experts at a regional conference held here on Rural Financing Institutions and Cooperatives stressed that the region needed to expedite cooperative movement for reducing poverty, a leading English newspaper, The Himalayan Times reported on Wednesday.
According to the newspaper, some experts presenting papers Tuesday emphasised that all governments in the region needed to focus on reducing poverty through empowering poor people with easy access to credit.
The participants from India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Bhutan and Maldives are representing their countries financial institutions.
More : english.people.com.cn
Rohm and Haas sees one-third sales in Asia by 2010
Chemical maker Rohm and Haas Co. (ROH.N: Quote, Profile, Research) expects the Asia-Pacific region to account for a third of its global sales by 2010, overtaking Europe as its second-largest market, the firms chief executive said on Wednesday.
Ten years ago, (Asia) was 10 percent of our revenue. Now its 20 percent and our goal is in five years it will be one-third of Rohm and Haas, Rajiv Gupta told Reuters in an interview.
To help achieve that goal, the U.S. firm plans to invest between $150 million and $200 million in China over the next four to five years, he said.
Source : today.reuters.com
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