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Asia-Pacific regional coordination to fight bird flu

Asia-Pacific regional coordination to fight bird flu The Asian Development Bank (ADB) began hosting Friday a meeting of major partners to discuss regional coordination to meet the threat posed by avian influenza in Asia and the Pacific, the ADB said in a news release. The event is a follow-up to an informal meeting, where regional donors shared information on their bird flu projects and activities in the region, on the sidelines of the high-level conference on bird flu in Beijing in January, said ADB. At the Beijing conference, the international community pledged 1.9 billion U.S. dollars for the fight against avian

ADB launches new anti-corruption plan for aid to Asia

ADB launches new anti-corruption plan for aid to Asia ALL CONTRACTS awarded by the Asian Development Bank are to be made public as part of a new anti-corruption plan, the Manila-based lender said. Under the plan, borrowers will be required to make public all contract awards, and to publish on the ADBs website contracts worth more than one million dollars, the multilateral institution said in a statement. The move is part of an anti-corruption review carried out by the bank. Facilities to report allegations of fraud and corruption will also be improved, the ADB said. More : business.inq7.net

Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 rose sharply in afternoon trade to set a five-year closing high as traders bet continuing U.S. dollar strength would benefit exporters.

Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 rose sharply in afternoon trade to set a five-year closing high as traders bet continuing U.S. dollar strength would benefit exporters. The Nikkei closed at 16,194.61, a gain of 225.21 points or 1.41%. The broader Topix rose 0.98% or 15.99 points to close at 1,653.92. Data released in the morning in Tokyo showed November industrial production rose 1.4% from a month earlier, disappointing consensus estimates among economists of a beefier 1.9% gain. Shares listed on the first section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange are estimated to yield an average 0.95% for fiscal 2005, the lowest level since Sept. 2000.

Markets down after N.Korea launches missiles

Markets down after N.Korea launches missiles Asian stocks fell on Wednesday, with Seoul shares sliding as much as 2 percent after news North Korea had launched a number of missiles rattled investors and fired up political tension in the region. A lack of direction from Wall Street, which was shut on Tuesday for the Independence Day holiday, also contributed to the softer tone. U.S. stocks will resume trade on Wednesday. At 0015 GMT, Tokyo stocks < .N225> had dropped 0.83 percent as industrial robot maker Fanuc (6954.T: Quote, Profile, Research), Internet conglomerate Softbank (9984.T: Quote, Profile, Research) and Honda Motor (7267.T:

Turkey signs to join planned Asia-Pacific space group

Turkey signs to join planned Asia-Pacific space group Turkey signed on a charter for a planned international space club on Thursday in Beijing, making it the ninth member of the organization with headquarters. Oktay Ozuye, Turkish ambassador to China, signed the Convention on the proposed Asia-Pacific Space Cooperation Organization (APSCO), which is designed to promote the peaceful use of space and space applications in the Asia-Pacific region. Among those witnessing the ceremony were diplomats from Bangladesh, China, Indonesia, Iran, Mongolia, Pakistan, Peru and Thailand, the eight countries that signed the document last October in Beijing. Sun Laiyan, director of the China