AsiaPulse News articles from December 2005

AsiaPulse News archives from December 2005

FOREX - AUSTRALIAN DOLLAR OPENS STRONGER - DEC 1, 2005.
December 1, 2005... SYDNEY, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - The Australian dollar opened marginally stronger today as the US dollar gave back gains made on a report showing US inflation is still tame, while investors await the European Central Bank's rate decision tonight. ...

AUSTRALIAN NEWSPAPER HIGHLIGHTS - DEC 1, 2005.
December 1, 2005... SYDNEY, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Highlights of today's newspapers: THE DAILY TELEGRAPH - Mother of condemned Australian Nguyen Tuong Van begs authorities to have a final embrace with her son before he dies. Bashed teenager Lauren Huxley...

MANUFACTURING ACTIVITY SOFTENS IN NOVEMBER.
December 1, 2005... SYDNEY, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Manufacturing activity in Australia softened in November, due to weak domestic spending, cost pressures and weakness in residential construction. The Australian Industry Group/PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC)...

JAMES HARDIE COMPENSATION DEAL DUE FOR CLOSURE TODAY.
December 1, 2005... SYDNEY, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - A long-awaited compensation deal for asbestos disease victims is expected to be signed by the board of James Hardie Industries today. But a stand-off is looming between the building products company and the...

BLOWOUT EXPECTED FOR AUSTRALIAN CURRENT ACCOUNT DEFICIT.
December 1, 2005... CANBERRA, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - New figures due out today are expected to show another blowout in Australia's current account deficit. Economists expect figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics will show the current account rising to...

SNOWY MOUNTAINS HYDRO SCHEME MAY LIST IN AUSTRALIA.
December 1, 2005... SYDNEY, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Australia's iconic Snowy Mountains Hydro Electric Scheme could be listed on the stock exchange under a proposal being considered by the NSW, Victorian and federal governments. Snowy Hydro Ltd managing director...

CALL FOR SOUTH KOREAN BANKS TO IMPROVE LENDING SKILLS.
December 1, 2005... WASHINGTON, Nov. 30 Asia Pulse - South Korea needs to invite foreign management to run local banks to develop better lending skills, an official of the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) said Wednesday. Randall...

INDIA CALLS FOR DEBT SWAP BY DEVELOPING NATIONS.
December 1, 2005... BEIJING, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - India has urged the international community to provide more aid to developing countries and to allow debt swapping, which will help them to devote more financial resources to realise the ambitious Millennium...

ONGC RANKED AS INDIA'S BIGGEST WEALTH CREATOR.
December 1, 2005... NEW DELHI, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Having acquired a Rs 1258.74 billion ($US27.4 billion) market cap by 2005, the state-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) has been ranked the 'Biggest Wealth Creator' by Indian Capital Markets. ONGC...

INDIA'S ASIA CRYO-CELL TO EXPAND NETWORK TO 24 CITIES.
December 1, 2005... BANGALORE, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Chennai-based cord blood bank, Asia CRYO-CELL plans to expand its network of marketing and collection centres to 24 cities, including six overseas like Dubai, Colombo and Kuala Lumpur, within two years, senior...

XAAR OF UK TO ADD 8 MORE OE PARTNERS IN INDIA BY 2006.
December 1, 2005... NEW DELHI, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - UK-based high-end inkjet printing technlogy product maker Xaar on Wednesday said it would add eight original equipment partners by next year as the company looks to double its growth in India. "Despite our...

HEAD OF BRITISH TRADE OFFICE ADVOCATES DIRECT CROSS-STRAIT FLIGHTS.
December 1, 2005... TAIPEI, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Taiwan should allow direct flights across the Taiwan Strait to enhance its regional and international competitiveness, Derek Marsh, outgoing director-general of the British Trade and Cultural Office (BTCO) said...

TAIWAN TO HOLD 2ND NATIONAL ECONOMIC CONFERENCE.
December 1, 2005... TAIPEI, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Premier Frank Hsieh said Wednesday that the administration will see to it that a second national economic conference is held prior to the Chinese New Year, which falls on Jan. 29, 2006. Following a recent...

TAIWAN-JAPAN BUSINESS CONFERENCE OPENS IN TOKYO.
December 1, 2005... TOKYO, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - The 30th Taiwan-Japan Economic and Trade Conference opened in Tokyo Wednesday, attended by some 90 officials from the two countries. Addressing the opening ceremony, Lo Fu-chen, president of the Association of...

TAIPEI TO HOST FORUM ON TRADE FAIRS IN SOUTH KOREA.
December 1, 2005... TAIPEI, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - A Korea International Exhibition Center (KINTEX) mission will hold a seminar Thursday in Taipei to invite Taiwan businesses to participate in a series of trade fairs from April next year in South Korea. According...

TAIWAN TO ALLOW IN 20,000 FOREIGN WORKERS FROM 2006.
December 1, 2005... TAIPEI, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - A total of 20,000 foreign workers will be allowed to be imported into Taiwan next year for certain manufacturing jobs in 19 industries, a spokesman for the Cabinet-level Council of Labor Affairs (CLA) announced...

HEINZ INDIA IN TIE UP WITH LANKAN FIRM TO DISTRIBUTE DILMAH TEA.
December 1, 2005... NEW DELHI, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Food company Heinz India on Wednesday said it has entered into a partnership with Sri Lankan tea maker MJF Teas Limited to distribute latter's 'Dilmah' brand of tea in the country. Heinz's sales director K...

FOREX - US DOLLAR ENDS DEARER AGAINST RUPEE - NOV 30, 2005.
December 1, 2005... MUMBAI, Dec 1 Asia Pulse- The US Dollar ended dearer against the rupee at Rs 45.9350 per dollar and the Pound Sterling turned expensive at Rs 79.30 per pound at the close of the Interbank Foreign Exchange (FOREX) market here on Wednesday....

STOCKS - BSE CLOSES LOWER - NOV 30, 2005.
December 1, 2005... MUMBAI, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - In highly volatile trading, the Bombay Stock Exchange's sensex on Wednesday suffered a massive 265.19 point loss on sudden bouts of selling pressure towards the end of trade and closed 142.35 points down at 8,788.81....

S. KOREAN MANUFACTURERS' BIZ SENTIMENT EDGES DOWN IN DEC: INDEX.
December 1, 2005... SEOUL, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - South Korean manufacturers' business confidence inched down for December, according to a central bank survey released Thursday. The business survey index (BSI), a barometer of manufacturers' business expectations,...

TAIWAN PREMIER UNVEILS MEASURES TO BOOST ECONOMY.
December 1, 2005... TAIPEI, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Premier Frank Hsieh unveiled Wednesday a series of measures to boost the economy, which include relieving the tax burden on taxpayers to stimulate consumer spending. Others include promoting the growing of...

TUNA ASSOCIATION WANTS TAIWAN GOV'T TO BUY BACK FISHING VESSELS.
December 1, 2005... KAOHSIUNG, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - The Taiwan Tuna Association asked the government Wednesday to buy back domestic fishing boats' whose operations are set to be affected by a sanction meted out by a world fishing organization. The association...

TAIWAN GOV'T SHOULD ASSIST MICRO BUSINESSES: ANALYSIS.
December 1, 2005... TAIPEI, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Micro businesses are the backbone of Taiwan's economy and the government should provide them with adequate assistance in creating more added value, according to a recent analysis published by the Ministry of Economic...

SAMSUNG PLANS HANDSET MANUFACTURING PLANT IN HARYANA.
December 1, 2005... CHANDIGARH, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Samsung Telecommunications has huge investment plans for Haryana and to begin with will set up a US$15 million mobile handset manufacturing facility in the state. The company's president Ki Tae Lee disclosed...

JONES LANG LASALLE TO ADD SIX NEW OFFICES IN INDIA.
December 1, 2005... NEW DELHI, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Global real estate consulting firm Jones Lang LaSalle has devised aggressive plans to expand its Indian operation by doubling offices, besides increasing its headcount to 3,000 from the present 800 in the next...

SOUTH KOREA, OMAN AGREE TO BOOST TIES AS GATEWAYS TO ASIA.
December 1, 2005... MUSCAT, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - South Korean Prime Minister Lee Hae-chan held talks with Oman's Deputy Prime Minister Fahd bin Mahmood Al-Said on Wednesday and the two countries agreed to enhance cooperation. Lee and Fahd concurred that the two...

SEMINDIA PARTNERS WITH GOVT, AMD TO INVEST US$3 BLN IN CHIP FAB.
December 1, 2005... NEW DELHI, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Even as the government's announcement on Intel's chip testing unit in India is yet to take-off, SemIndia, a consortium of overseas Indians, on Wednesday announced plans to invest US$3 billion in an advanced...

JAPANESE FIRM SUES S. KOREAN TEXTILE PRODUCER FOR INFRINGEMENT.
December 1, 2005... SEOUL, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Japanese fibermaker Asahi Kasei Fibers Corp. said Wednesday it has filed a lawsuit against a South Korean textile maker for allegedly infringing on its patented technology. The company said that components of a...

FOREX - DOLLAR OPENS HIGHER AGAINST WON - DEC 1, 2005.
December 1, 2005... SEOUL, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - The dollar opened at 1036.00 won this morning, up from 1033.50 won. (Yonhap) 01-12 1125

SOCIETE GENERALE LAUNCHES PRIVATE BANKING IN INDIA.
December 1, 2005... NEW DELHI, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Expecting the Indian economy to sustain 7-9 per cent growth, leading French bank Societe Generale on Wednesday lauched a private banking facility to tap US$560 billion assets of the growing sector of wealthy...

SHANGHAI TO GIVE PRIORITY TO NEW MATERIALS DEVELOPMENT.
December 1, 2005... BEIJING, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Shanghai will give priority to the development of the new materials industry during the 2006-2010 period, and build new materials innovation, production and export bases. According to information released at the...

O2 LAUNCHES MICROSOFT-BASED HANDSET XDA ATOM IN INDIA.
December 1, 2005... NEW DELHI, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Cellular handset maker O2 on Wednesday launched in the Indian market the "world's smallest multimedia PDA-phone", the Xda Atom, with multiple features specially designed to suit the requirements of professionals....

O'NEIL INTRODUCES PRINTPAD 7900.
December 1, 2005... (Full text of statement. Contact details below.) IRVINE, Calif., Nov. 30 /PRNewswire - AsiaNet/ -- Rugged Portable Printer Designed Exclusively to Integrate With Hand Held Products' Dolphin 7900 Mobile Computer O'Neil Product...

MATCHROOM SPORT PARTNERS FLW OUTDOORS FOR WORLDWIDE TV DISTRIBUTION.
December 1, 2005... (Full text of statement. Contact details below.) MINNEAPOLIS, MN., Nov. 30 /PRNewswire - AsiaNet/ -- America's largest, most prestigious fishing tournaments to reach 300 million households worldwide FLW Outdoors announced today...

CHINA TO UP SUPERVISION OVER FOREIGN CAPITAL IN REAL ESTATE MKT.
December 1, 2005... BEIJING, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - China will strengthen its supervision and management of foreign capital entering the country's real estate market, the People's Bank of China (PBC), the country's central bank announced recently. Supervision and...

KOMAG TO PARTICIPATE IN UPCOMING INVESTOR CONFERENCE.
December 1, 2005... (Full text of statement. Contact details below.) SAN JOSE, Calif., Nov. 30 /PRNewswire-AsiaNet/ -- Komag, Incorporated (Nasdaq: KOMG), a leading independent supplier of thin-film media for disk drives, today announced that the Company...

INDIA TOPS THE LIST OF REJECTED FOOD AND DRUG EXPORTS.
December 1, 2005... NEW DELHI, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - India has topped the list for rejected food and drug export consignments to the US, Rajya Sabha was informed on Wednesday. In a written reply, Minister of State for Commerce and Industry E V K S Elangovan said...

SERVERSIDE EXTENDS POSITION AS MARKET LEADER FOR CARDHOLDER DESIGNED CARDS.
December 1, 2005... (Full text of statement. Contact details below.) LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 30, 2005--Serverside Group Limited: Serverside consolidates emerging market position 2005 has been an excellent year for the company. Among Serverside's...

CHINA'S FARM PRODUCE EXPORT FACES TOUGH TIMES NEXT YR: OFFICIAL.
December 1, 2005... BEIJING, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - China's farm produce export next year will face a tough situation due to the new food safety regulations to be implemented by Japan and the European Union, said Chinese Vice Minister of Commerce Yu Guangzhou here...

ANALOGICTECH UNVEILS NEW CURRENT-OUTPUT CHARGE PUMP.
December 1, 2005... (Full text of statement. Contact details below.) SUNNYVALE, Calif., Nov. 28 /PRNewswire-AsiaNet/ -- 32-Step Serial Control Interface Supports Fine Adjustment of Brightness Advanced Analogic Technologies Incorporated (AnalogicTech)...

SOUTH KOREA'S CONSUMER PRICES RISE 2.4 PCT IN NOVEMBER.
December 1, 2005... SEOUL, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - South Korea's consumer prices moved up a mild 2.4 per cent from an year earlier in November, mainly due to a fall in agricultural, petroleum and industrial prices, a government report showed Thursday. The...

A.M. BEST AFFIRMS RATING OF SAMSUNG FIRE & MARINE.
December 1, 2005... (Full text of statement. Contact details below.) OLDWICK, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 30, 2005--A.M. Best Co. has affirmed the financial strength rating (FSR) of A+ (Superior) of Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance Co., Ltd (Samsung) (South...

LOW DEBT AND DISCIPLINE SECURE AUSTRALIA'S TOP CREDIT RATING.
December 1, 2005... SYDNEY, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Low levels of debt and strong financial discipline continue to secure the Australian government top marks from a leading credit agency. Standard and Poor's (S&P) Wednesday affirmed Australia's top level AAA long...

JAPAN CONSERVATION ENGINEERS WINS 2005 BE AWARD.
December 1, 2005... (Full text of statement. Contact details below.) EXTON, Pa.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 30, 2005--Japan Conservation Engineers Co., Ltd. has won a 2005 BE Award for its Examples of Construction of Landslide GIS project in the Akita, Yamagata,...

S&P CUTS AUSTRALIAN GAS LIGHT RATING AFTER SOUTHERN HYDRO DEAL.
December 1, 2005... SYDNEY, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - International ratings agency Standard & Poor's Ratings Services has cut the Australian Gas Light Co's (AGL) (ASX:AGL) credit rating after the completion of the company's A$1.425 billion (US$1.05 billion) acquisition...

TVI ACTORS STUDIO GIVES CHANCE TO MAKE IT BIG IN ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY.
December 1, 2005... (Full text of statement. Contact details below.) LOS ANGELES, Calif., Nov. 30 /PRNewswire-AsiaNet/ -- Here's your chance to meet an A-list Hollywood manager, agent and acting school owner. In Los Angeles and New York you soon realize...

CISCO CRS-1 CARRIER ROUTING SYSTEM TAKES CHINANET IP NGN TO NEW LEVELS.
December 1, 2005... (Full text of statement. Contact details below.) BEIJING--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 30, 2005--Cisco Systems(R) today announced that China Telecom will adopt the Cisco(R) CRS-1 Carrier Routing System to integrate the supercore network nodes of...

COSMIC BLOBS 3D GRAPHICS SOFTWARE BEGINS RETAIL SALES IN JAPAN.
December 1, 2005... (Full text of statement. Contact details below.) PARIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 30, 2005--Dassault Systemes (NASDAQ: DASTY; Euronext Paris: #13065, DSY.PA) today announced that its Cosmic Blobs 3D graphics software for kids is now available...

FIDELITY, FMR CORP ACQUIRE 3,43,080 SHARES IN INDIA'S INFOSYS.
December 1, 2005... MUMBAI, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Foreign Institutional Investors, Fidelity International and FMR Corp have acquired 3,43,080 shares in Infosys Technologies Ltd (BSE:500209). The shares amounting to 0.13 per cent of Infosys' total paid up capital...

SENSIS LAUNCHES ESTARA CLICK TO CALL BETA.
December 1, 2005... (Full text of statement. Contact details below.) RESTON, Va.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 1, 2005--Earlier this week, Sensis - Australia's leading information resource - launched a pay-per-call pilot on its search engine, sensis.com.au, powered...

SOUTH KOREA BEGINS WORLD'S FIRST TERRESTRIAL MOBILE TV SERVICE.
December 1, 2005... SEOUL, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - South Korea launched the world's first terrestrial mobile TV service on Thursday, making a step forward toward a "ubiquitous era" that promises to enable people to watch TV anywhere and anytime. South Korea's four...

SELENIUM, INSTITUTE TO TEST SELENIUM-COATED CONTACT LENSES.
December 1, 2005... (Full text of statement. Contact details below.) AUSTIN, Texas & LUBBOCK, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 30, 2005--Emergent Technologies Inc. ("ETI") of Austin announced today that one of its WesTech Ventures I, L.P. portfolio companies,...

NEW AT&T TO BEGIN TRADING UNDER "T" TICKER SYMBOL.
December 1, 2005... (Full text of statement. Contact details below.) NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 30, 2005--One of the most-recognized ticker symbols in the global investment community will return to the Dow 30 tomorrow as the new AT&T begins trading under...

ZHANG ZIYI WORE OSCAR DE LA RENTA TO 'MEMOIRS OF A GEISHA' PREMIERE.
December 1, 2005... (Full text of statement. Contact details below.) NEW YORK, Nov. 30 /PRNewswire-AsiaNet/ -- Actress Zhang Ziyi wore a dress by world-renowned designer Oscar de la Renta to the "Memoirs of a Geisha" World Premiere in Tokyo, Japan on...

O'SEAS FILIPINO WORKER DOLLARS SEEN AS NOT REACHING REAL ECONOMY.
December 1, 2005... MANILA, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Poor Filipinos may have to wait a little longer before the improved performance of the stock market, the increase in remittances from overseas Filipino workers and the strengthening of the peso begin to effect any...

CHINA EASES LIMITS ON BRANCHES OF FOREIGN REINSURERS.
December 1, 2005... BEIJING, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - China's first general regulation governing the reinsurance market is due to take effect on December 1 and will lessen the requirements on solvency capacity of branches of foreign reinsurance companies set up in the...

CORRECTION - AUSTRALIAN MANUFACTURING ACTIVITY SOFTENS.
December 1, 2005... SYDNEY, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Manufacturing activity in Australia softened in November, due to weak domestic spending, cost pressures and weakness in residential construction. The Australian Industry Group/PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC)...

WAGE HIKE IN DAVAO SEEN AS DEPENDENT ON ECONOMIC GROWTH.
December 1, 2005... DAVAO CITY, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Labor officials here believe that prospects for a wage increase in 2006 depends on whether the economy continues to expand in the fourth quarter. Philippine Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) Region 11...

TURKEY TO BOOST TRADE WITH INDONESIA.
December 1, 2005... JAKARTA, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Turkey wishes to increase its trade with Indonesia to US$1 billion by 2007, the head of the Turkish Export Promotion Center, Tuncer Kayalar, told newsmen here on Wednesday. "Our target for the next two years is...

S KOREAN EXPORTS HIT RECORD US$26 BLN IN NOVEMBER.
December 1, 2005... SEOUL, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - South Korea's exports reached an all-time monthly high of US$26.07 billion in November thanks to strong overseas demand for machinery, car parts and petrochemicals, the government said Thursday. Last month's...

STOCKS - AUSTRALIAN INDEX WEAKER TO NOON - DEC 1, 2005.
December 1, 2005... PERTH, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - The Australian stock market was weaker at noon, following a negative lead from the US, which saw many stocks losing value. The gold price, which reached 18 year highs earlier this week, also continued to pull...

MALAYSIAN NEWSPAPER HIGHLIGHTS - DEC 1, 2005.
December 1, 2005... KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Highlights of today's newspapers: BUSINESS TIMES: - Malaysia's economy beat market expectations in the third quarter with gross domestic product (GDP) growing 5.3 per cent, well on track to end the...

BRIGHT PROSPECTS FOR PHILIPPINE POULTRY SEEN IN HALAL MARKET.
December 1, 2005... DAVAO CITY, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Businesspeople in the Philippines' Mindanao see bright prospect for the poultry industry as the government of Brunei has agreed to fund the study on the Halal certification program in the island. Sebastian...

JAPANESE NEWSPAPER HIGHLIGHTS - DEC 1, 2005.
December 1, 2005... TOKYO, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Highlights of today's newspapers: NIKKEI NET: - The agreement reached Wednesday by Rakuten Inc. (TSE:4755) and Tokyo Broadcasting System Inc. (TSE:9401) calls for the virtual mall operator to withdraw its...

CITIBANK KOREA'S UNION LAUNCHES TWO-DAY STRIKE.
December 1, 2005... SEOUL, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Unionized workers at Citibank Korea Inc. launched a two-day strike Thursday to protest the bank's alleged discrimination against former employees of KorAm Bank. Citibank Korea was launched in November 2004 as a...

THERMO ELECTRON LAUNCHES NEW CUSTOMER DEMO FACILITY IN INDIA.
December 1, 2005... MUMBAI, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Thermo Electron Corporation, the world leader in analytical instruments, has launched its new customer demonstration and training facilities at Powai here. Thermo's Indian laboratory and life sciences...

KOREA ZINC PLANS TO SELL OR LIQUIDATE STRUGGLING US AFFILIATE.
December 1, 2005... SEOUL, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Korea Zinc Co., the world's largest zinc smelter by production, said Thursday it plans to sell or liquidate its affiliate in the United States after suspending the unit's operations in February next year. "We will...

AUSTRALIA'S MYOB TO SELL ITS US OPERATIONS.
December 1, 2005... MELBOURNE, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Accounting software provider MYOB Ltd (ASX:MYO) will sell its United States sales and marketing operations to an entity controlled by the US managers of the business. MYOB had reviewed options for the US...

PHILIPPINE NEWSPAPER HIGHLIGHTS - DEC 1, 2005.
December 1, 2005... MANILA, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Highlights of today's newspapers: MANILA TIMES: - The Philippine government will forgo nearly half-a- billion pesos in income taxes once the Bureau of Internal Revenue releases a regulation granting...

FOREX - RINGGIT OPENS FIRMER VS US DOLLAR - DEC 1, 2005.
December 1, 2005... KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - The ringgit opened at US 3.7755/7765 against the US dollar on Thursday, firmer than Wednesday's closing value of 3.7765/7775. ASIA PULSE 01-12 1301

FIRDOSE VANDREVALA QUITS INDIA'S TATA GROUP, JOINS MOTOROLA.
December 1, 2005... NEW DELHI, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Having spent 33 years with the Tata Group in different capacities in the steel, power and telecom sectors, Firdose Vandrevala has quit the group and joined telecom multinational Motorola as head of Indian...

INDONESIAN NEWSPAPER HIGHLIGHTS - DEC 1, 2005.
December 1, 2005... JAKARTA, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Highlights from today's newspapers: KOMPAS - President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said he wants to see development of culture of excellence on awareness and capability to become the identity and spirit of...

AUSTRALIA'S ACCC NOT OPPOSING ACQUISITION OF DYNO BY MAQUARIE-LED GRP.
December 1, 2005... MELBOURNE, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Australia's competition watchdog will not intervene in the acquisition of Norwegian explosives firm Dyno Nobel by a Macquarie Bank-led (ASX:MBL) consortium and the subsequent on-sale of some operations to explosive...

SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS Q4 OPERATING PROFIT TIPPED TO GROW 10.8 PCT.
December 1, 2005... SEOUL, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Samsung Electronics Co. (KSE:005930, the world's largest memory chipmaker, is expected to see its fourth-quarter operating profit rise more than 10 per cent from three months earlier on brisk sales of flash memories...

SOUTH KOREAN EXPORTS HIT RECORD US$26 BLN IN NOVEMBER.
December 1, 2005... SEOUL, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - South Korea's exports reached an all-time monthly high of US$26.07 billion in November thanks to strong overseas demand for machinery, car parts, steel and petrochemicals, the government said Thursday. Last...

FOREX - AUSTRALIAN DOLLAR STRONGER TO NOON - DEC 1, 2005.
December 1, 2005... SYDNEY, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - The Australian dollar was marginally stronger today at noon, supported by the high price of gold, while the market gave little reaction to the local economic releases. At 1200 AEDT the local unit was trading at...

MALAYSIA AIRLINES BOOKS US$97.4 MLN NET LOSS IN Q2.
December 1, 2005... KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Malaysian Airline System (MAS) (KLSE:3786) has booked a net loss of RM367.7 million (US$97.4 million) for its second quarter to 30 September 2005 largely due to continuing high fuel prices. During the...

STOCKS - SINGAPORE STOCKS UP IN EARLY TRADE - DEC 1, 2005.
December 1, 2005... SINGAPORE, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Singapore shares were higher in early trade, with the Straits Times Index up 4.6 points at 2,304.9 at 10.25 a.m. ASIA PULSE 01-12 1327

STOCKS - MALAYSIAN STOCKS DOWN IN EARLY TRADE - DEC 1, 2005.
December 1, 2005... KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - The Malaysian sharemarket was down 0.38 per cent in early trade, with the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange Composite Index falling 3.39 points at 892.74 at 10.09 a.m. ASIA PULSE 01-12 1329

ROCKEBY BIOMED TO DISTRIBUTE ORAL SWAB TEST IN SINGAPORE.
December 1, 2005... SYDNEY, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Rockeby Biomed Ltd (ASX:RBY) has nabbed the rights to distribute an oral swab test in Singapore that can be used to detect HIV. The Singapore-based biotech, which is listed on the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX),...

SINGAPORE NEWSPAPER HIGHLIGHTS - DEC 1, 2005.
December 1, 2005... SINGAPORE, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Highlights of today's newspapers: THE STRAITS TIMES - Ministry of Manpower (MOM) inspectors arrested 52 foreigners working as cooks, stall assistants and cleaners in 13 coffeeshops in an island-wide raid...

SYMBION HEALTH TO ACQUIRE MANSFIELD PATHOLOGY.
December 1, 2005... MELBOURNE, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Pathology and diagnostics operator Symbion Health Ltd (ASX:SYB) has agreed to acquire the privately-owned Mansfield Pathology in New South Wales for an undisclosed sum. Symbion expected that the Mansfield...

LIHIR GOLD SHARES RISE AFTER RIO STAKE SALE.
December 1, 2005... SYDNEY, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Shares in Lihir Gold Ltd (ASX:LHG) have opened trading at $A2.05 ($US1.51) after coming out of a trading halt following the sale of Rio Tinto Ltd's (ASX:RIO) stake in gold miner. Rio Tinto has completed the sale...

CURRENT ACCOUNT DEFICIT CLIMBS 13PCT IN SEPT QTR.
December 1, 2005... CANBERRA, Dec 1 Asia Pulse - Australia's current account deficit climbed 13 per cent to $A13.5 billion ($US9.95 billion) in the September quarter, new figures show today. The Australian Bureau of Statistics said the deficit on goods and...