AsiaPulse News articles from February 2003

AsiaPulse News archives from February 2003

STOCKS - BSE CLOSES 29 PTS UP - FEB 03, 2003.
February 3, 2003... MUMBAI, Feb 3 Asia Pulse - Equities rallied smartly lifting the sensex by 29 points at close on the Stock Exchange today on hectic buying prompted by receding fears of war in gulf region as well as indication of a liberal policy of tax...

FOREX - US DOLLAR CHEAPER AGAINST RUPEE - FEB 3, 2003.
February 3, 2003... MUMBAI, Feb 3 Asia Pulse - The U.S.Dollar ended cheaper against the Rupee at Rs 47.7750/7850 per dollar and the Pound Sterling also turned lower at Rs 78.30/32 per pound at the close of the Interbank Foreign Exchange (FOREX) Market here today....

STOCKS - DSE REMAINS TRADELESS - FEB 3, 2003.
February 3, 2003... NEW DELHI, Feb 3 Asia Pulse - The Delhi Stock Exchange remained tradeless for the second straight session today with most of the brokers and other market participants executing their transactions on the other leading bourses. With no...

PAKISTAN NEWSPAPER HIGHLIGHTS - FEB 3, 2003.
February 3, 2003... KARACHI, Feb 3 Asia Pulse - Highlights of today's newspapers: DAWN - Iraq ready to resolve all arms issues - Indus water officials meet tomorrow - Over 30 die in Lagos blast - Pakistan limits scale of joint exercises ...

FOREX - US DOLLAR SLIGHTLY DEARER AGAINST RUPEE - FEB 4, 2003.
February 4, 2003... MUMBAI, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - The U.S.Dollar ended slightly dearer against the Rupee at Rs 47.7900/7950 per dollar and the Pound Sterling closed expensive at Rs 78.57/59 per pound at the close of the Interbank Foreign Exchange (FOREX) Market here...

STOCKS - DSE BACK WITH BUSINESS, INDEX REMAIN FALT - FEB 4, 2003.
February 4, 2003... NEW DELHI, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - The Delhi Stock Exchange after remaining tradeless for two stratight sessions, managed to record moderate trading volumes today with stocks of state-run BPCL coming in for trading. The DSE index, however,...

STOCKS - BSE CLOSES 1.7 PTS DOWN - FEB 4, 2003.
February 4, 2003... MUMBAI, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - Led by PSU stocks, select old economy counters rallied smartly in an otherwise mixed pattern of trading on the Stock Exchange today on fresh buying prompted by a likely meeting of the Cabinet Committee on...

OPEN - ASIA PULSE INTERNATIONAL, FEB 4, 2003.
February 4, 2003... Good Morning. This is the Asia Pulse International service of business intelligence, news, tenders and expert commentary on the economics of Asia provided by Asia Pulse Pte Ltd (Asia Pulse). Asia Pulse reserves all rights including...

FOREX - AUSTRALIAN DOLLAR OPENS SOFTER - FEB 4, 2003.
February 4, 2003... SYDNEY, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - The Australian dollar followed the euro down and then up again as the US dollar rallied in overnight trade, but the local currency has opened weaker. At 0700 AEDT, the Australian dollar was at $US0.5844/49...

AUSTRALIAN NEWSPAPER HIGHLIGHTS - FEB 4, 2003.
February 4, 2003... SYDNEY, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - Highlights of today's newspapers: THE AUSTRALIAN - John Howard will meet UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, US President George W Bush, British Prime Minister Tony Blair and Indonesian President Megawati...

NSW TREASURY CORP ISSUES US$114 MLN IN JAPANESE RETAIL BONDS.
February 4, 2003... SYDNEY, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - The NSW Treasury Corporation said today it had issued A$195 million (US$114 million) in Japanese retail bonds. The NSW Treasury said the proceeds from issues would be used to refinance existing state liabilities....

NEW SOUTH WALES GOV'T PROVIDES ADDITIONAL DROUGHT RELIEF FUNDS.
February 4, 2003... SYDNEY, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - The NSW Government will today announce an additional $28 million (US$16.38 million) in assistance to drought-affected farmers, Premier Bob Carr said. Mr Carr made the announcement as he accused the federal...

AHNKWON & CO. TO CONDUCT DUE DILIGENCE ON KOREA'S CHOHUNG BANK.
February 4, 2003... SEOUL, Feb 4 Asia Pulse -- The accounting firm of AhnKwon & Co. has been selected to carry out due diligence on the value of Chohung Bank (CHB) (KSE:00010), the Korea Deposit Insurance Corp. (KDIC) said. The state-run deposit insurer said...

KOREAN-BASED OIL COMPANIES TO RAISE DOMESTIC PRICES TODAY.
February 4, 2003... SEOUL, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - Domestic oil companies said that they will raise consumer prices of gasoline, kerosene and light oil, to reflect the cost of crude oil on the international market. SK Corp. (KSE:03600), LG-Caltex (KSE:17940) and...

BIOFUSION'S HUMAN CELL CLONING DEVICE EXHIBITED AT U.K. MUSEUM.
February 4, 2003... SEOUL, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - BioFusion Tech. Inc. said Monday that its "embryonic cell fusion system" that the company claims can be used to clone humans, has been put on display at London's Science Museum. The local affiliate of Clonaid said...

PHILIPPINES' LAOAG INT'L AIRLINES SET TO LOSE FRANCHISE.
February 4, 2003... MANILA, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - The Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) has officially asked Congress to revoke the 25-year franchise of Laoag International Airlines (LIA). The recommendation was made after an investigation...

INDIA'S I-FLEX SOLUTIONS TO OPEN OFFICE IN DUBAI.
February 4, 2003... BANGALORE, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - i-flex Solutions (BSE:IFLX), a provider of IT solutions to the financial services industry, on Monday said it would soon set up a Middle East office in Dubai Internet City. The office would serve as a hub for...

PHILIPPINE GOV'T KEEN TO IMPROVE DOMESTIC MARITIME NETWORK.
February 4, 2003... ROXAS CITY, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - The national government is establishing a national road and roll-on/roll-off network that should improve maritime transport throughout the Philippine archipelago. President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo said this...

HINDUSTAN LEVER LAUNCHES HLN DIRECT SALES UNIT.
February 4, 2003... KOLKATA, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - Fast moving consumer goods giant Hindustan Lever Limited (BSE:HLL) on Monday made a foray into the direct selling segment with the launch of Hindustan Lever Network. HLN's business head K K Rajesh told reporters...

INDIA'S WIPRO TO RECRUIT 2,500 IT PROFESSIONALS.
February 4, 2003... KOLKATA, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - India's leading software company Wipro Technologies (BSE:WIPR) said it would recruit 2500 professionals for its upcoming Software Development Centre at Kolkata to be operational from June 2004. "We will be...

INDIA'S KINETIC TO LAUNCH NEW MOTORCYCLES.
February 4, 2003... NEW DELHI, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - Kinetic Engineering (BSE:KNTE) has said it will launch a new 165cc motorcycle in March and a 115cc motorcycle in the first quarter of next fiscal year as part of plans to introduce a new motorcycle in every quarter...

PERSONAL CONSUMPTION EXPENDITURE RISES IN PHILIPPINES IN 2002.
February 4, 2003... MANILA, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - A low inflation rate and increased remittances from the overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) have contributed significantly to the growth in personal consumption expenditure (PCE) in 2002. A report of the National...

INDIAN MINISTRY SEEKS NOD FOR FOREIGN PARTICIPATION IN MUL IPO.
February 4, 2003... NEW DELHI, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - The Federal Disinvestment Ministry is approaching the Foreign Investment Promotion Board for permission to allow Foreign Institutional Investors, Non-resident Indians (NRIs) and Overseas Corporate Bodies to...

PHILIPPINE TELCO, RETAIL REFORM HELP PUSH SERVICE SECTOR GROWTH.
February 4, 2003... MANILA, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - The liberalization in the telecommunications and retail trade has sustained the growth of the services sector, allowing it to contribute 2.5 percentage points to the 4.6 per cent growth of the Gross Domestic Product...

STOCKS - AUSTRALIAN STOCKS OPEN HIGHER - FEB 4, 2003.
February 4, 2003... MELBOURNE, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - The Australian sharemarket headed straight into positive territory at the opening today reflecting the modest rise on Wall Street overnight. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index gained 13.4 points to 2956.0, while...

LOCKHEED-MARTIN TO BID FOR INDIAN ADVANCED JET TRAINER DEAL.
February 4, 2003... NEW DELHI, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - Exuding confidence that the US adminstration would not block weapons transfers to India, top officials from American aviation giant Lockheed-Martin on Monday said they were ready to offer New Delhi the medium haul...

ALLIANCE CAPITAL TO RETAIN OWNERSHIP OF INDIAN ENTITY.
February 4, 2003... MUMBAI, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - Seeking to set speculations at rest while reaffirming its commitment to Indian operations, Alliance Capital Management LP has said it would retain its ownership interest in Alliance Capital Asset Management (India)...

PHILIPPINE GOV'T ACTS AGAINST MONEY LAUNDERING.
February 4, 2003... MANILA, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - Regulators have crafted a compromise by which the country's banks would avoid punitive sanctions from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) without compromising the cloak of secrecy on bank deposits guaranteed by the...

HK GOV'T TO IMPOSE 5% WAGE CUT ON FOREIGN DOMESTIC HELPERS.
February 4, 2003... MANILA, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) will impose a five per cent wage reduction on the salaries of foreign domestic helpers in place of the planned HK$500 (US$64) levy. However, the Department of...

PHILIPPINE CENTRAL BANK GOVERNOR WANTS IMF INSPECTIONS STOPPED.
February 4, 2003... MANILA, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Gov. Rafael Buenaventura said the monitoring program conducted by the International Monetary Fund has outlived its usefulness and should be terminated. He told reporters last Friday the...

US EXPERT SUGGESTS WAYS TO BOOST PHILIPPINE ECONOMY.
February 4, 2003... DAVAO CITY, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - To stimulate the economy, the Philippines needs more supply-producing firms that employ more people which will eventually create more demands, according to US noted economist John Mangun. Government spending...

MANILA-SOUTHERN BICOL RAILWAY TO BE REPAIRED, EXPANDED.
February 4, 2003... LEGAZPI CITY, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - A total rehabilitation and expansion of Manila-Southern Bicol Railways is expected in full in the first quarter of 2003, announced Rep. Jose Solis (2nd district Sorosogon). Solis told the members of the...

PHILIPPINE GOV'T KEEN TO SECURE INVESTMENT FUNDS.
February 4, 2003... MANILA, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - The government is urging investors to put in their money into the country's growing economy. "Economic growth potential props up investments. More investment creates more jobs opportunities," Palace Spokesman...

RICE HARVEST IN EASTERN VISAYAS, PHILIPPINES JUMPS IN 2002.
February 4, 2003... TACLOBAN CITY, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - The Bureau of Agricultural Statistics (BAS) has disclosed that the overall rice harvest in Eastern Visayas last year was recorded at over 622,430 metric tons (MTs) compared to the only 565,895 metric tons...

NEW AIRPORT ROAD AT MACTAN, PHILIPPINES TO CUT TRANSPORT COSTS.
February 4, 2003... CEBU CITY, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - The new access road from Mactan airport to Mactan Economic Zone (MEZ) 1 will bring down the transport cost of imported goods, said Philippine Export Zone Authority (Peza) Director General Lilia de Lima. ...

KOREA'S FOREIGN RESERVES INCREASE FOR 21 MONTHS TO US$123 BLN.
February 4, 2003... SEOUL, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - South Korea's foreign reserves in January rose US$1.49 billion to $122.9 billion from the previous month, the Bank of Korea (BOK) said today. Foreign reserves, including $104.241 billion of securities, $18.053...

BAGUIO CITY, PHILIPPINES TO OPERATE WITH US$11 MLN BUDGET.
February 4, 2003... BAGUIO CITY, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - This city's P601-million (US$11 million) budget for this year will allow for steady infrastructure development, enhancement of the environment, and will ensure the payment of its employees' salaries and benefits....

US$115 MLN ILOILO AIRPORT, PHILIPPINES TO BE FAST-TRACKED.
February 4, 2003... MANILA, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - The Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) has moved to fast-track the construction of the P6.2 billion (US$115 million) New Iloilo Airport. DOTC Secretary Leonardo Mendoza said the modernization,...

MCDATA ANNOUNCES PRIVATE OFFERING OF CONVERTIBLE NOTES.
February 4, 2003... (Full text of a statement. Contact details below.) BROOMFIELD, Colo., Feb. 3 /PRNewswire-FirstCall-AsiaNet/ -- McDATA(R) Corporation (Nasdaq: MCDTA, MCDT) today announced that it intends to sell approximately $150 million principal amount...

EWEEK TAPS MCDATA'S SPHEREON 4500 FOR ANALYST'S CHOICE AWARD.
February 4, 2003... (Full text of a statement. Contact details below.) BROOMFIELD, Colo., Feb. 4 /PRNewswire-FirstCall-AsiaNet/ -- McDATA(R) Corporation (Nasdaq: MCDTA, MCDT), the worldwide leader in open, ultra-high availability storage networking solutions,...

STOCKS - KOREAN SHARES OPEN LOWER - FEB 4, 2003.
February 4, 2003... SEOUL, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - Korean stocks started lower Tuesday despite bullish U.S. stocks. Opening 1.88 point higher at 602.29, the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 1.09 point, or 0.18 per cent from the previous session to...

SPINEVISION ANNOUNCES AGREEMENT FOR DISTRIBUTION OF PLATFORM.
February 4, 2003... (Full text of a statement. Contact details below.) ATLANTA, Ga., Feb. 3 /PRNewswire-AsiaNet/ -- SpineVision, a leading company in innovative spinal technologies, announced today that it has entered into an Agreement with Osteotech Inc., one...

PROTEOME RELEASES NEW GENERATION OF ELECTROPHORESIS SOLUTIONS.
February 4, 2003... (Full text of a statement. Contact details below.) SYDNEY, Feb. 4 /MediaNet International-AsiaNet/ -- Proteome Systems today introduced its intelligent electrophoresis platform comprising two innovative and fully integrated systems,...

FRAPORT AG SUBMITS ZONING APPLICATION FOR A380 MAINTENANCE BASE.
February 4, 2003... (Full text of a statement. Contact details below.) FRANKFURT, Feb. 3, /News Aktuell-AsiaNet/ -- Frankfurt, Germany (ots) - Fraport AG has submitted a zoning application to the responsible hearing authority - the President of the Darmstadt...

NEW PHILIPPINE CARGO TERMINAL MAY GENERATE ADDITIONAL INCOME.
February 4, 2003... CEBU CITY, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - The Mactan-Cebu International Airport Authority (MCIAA) management is still studying the possible construction of a cargo terminal to boost its revenue. Operations Manager Romeo Bersonda said that once a cargo...

GEN-PROBE TO ANNOUNCE Q4 AND YEAR END 2002 FINANCIAL RESULTS.
February 4, 2003... (Full text of a statement. Contact details below.) SAN DIEGO, Calif., Feb. 3 /PRNewswire-FirstCall-Asianet/ -- Gen-Probe Incorporated (Nasdaq: GPRO) today announced that it will release its fourth quarter 2002 financial results on Thursday,...

SCOTT+SCOTT ANNOUNCES THAT IT HAS FILED LAWSUIT AGAINST VERITAS.
February 4, 2003... (Full text of a statement. Contact details below.) COLCHESTER, Conn., Feb. 3 /PRNewswire-AsiaNet/ -- Scott + Scott, LLC, a Connecticut-based law firm, announces that it commenced a class action in the United States District Court for the...

KOREAN GOV'T TO HOLD SPECIAL MEETING OF ECONOMIC MINISTERS.
February 4, 2003... SEOUL, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - The government will hold a special meeting of economic ministers today to discuss policies options to cope with rising international crude oil prices. The session is planned after the cabinet meeting at Cheong Wa...

FITCH RAISES QUEENSLAND'S FOREIGN CURRENCY RATING TO AA-PLUS.
February 4, 2003... SYDNEY, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - International ratings agency Fitch Ratings today lifted the State of Queensland's long-term foreign currency rating to AA-plus from AA. Fitch said the long-term outlook for the State of Queensland's long-term...

PRESIDENT-ELECT'S TEAM, SEOUL CITY AT ODDS OVER FOREIGNERS' ZONES.
February 4, 2003... SEOUL, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - Seoul is a kaleidoscope of different places for foreigners, ranging from being a great place to live in to a city expatriates should avoid at all costs. Among the positive factors are the city's high-tech features,...

NEW LAW TO CURTAIL POWERS OF PAKISTAN'S CENTRAL BOARD OF REVENUE.
February 4, 2003... ISLAMABAD, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - A new Income Tax Law in Pakistan will strip the Central Board Revenue (CBR) of its discretion to determine the gross profit rate of businessmen. A system is being evolved for accepting maximum tax declarations...

ITALIAN GOV'T MAY INVEST IN KARACHI'S TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE.
February 4, 2003... KARACHI, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - The Italian government is keen to invest in Karachi's transport sector, especially CNG buses. The Transport and Communication Department briefed the Italian Commercial Attache on Monday with regards to this...

FOREX - AUSTRALIAN DOLLAR WEAKER AT NOON - FEB 4, 2003.
February 4, 2003... SYDNEY, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - The Australian dollar was softer to noon but remained resilient to a breakdown despite a robust rally in the US dollar against the Japanese yen. At 1200 AEDT, the Australian dollar was at $US0.5841/46 compared...

STATE BANK OF PAKISTAN GOVERNOR WANTS INTEREST FREE BANKING.
February 4, 2003... LAHORE, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - The governor of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) Dr. Ishrat Hussain said efforts were being made to come up with an interest free banking system in the country which is fully compliant with Shariah. The...

FITCH LIFTS AUSTRALIA'S FOREIGN CURRENCY RATING TO AA-PLUS.
February 4, 2003... SYDNEY, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - International ratings agency Fitch Ratings today lifted the Commonwealth of Australia's long-term foreign currency rating to AA-plus from AA. Fitch said the upgrade reflected the continuing impressive performance...

PAKISTAN, RUSSIA TO SIGN FOUR ACCORDS DURING MUSHARRAF'S VISIT.
February 4, 2003... ISLAMABAD, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - Pakistan and Russia are likely to sign four agreements during the forthcoming three-day state visit of President Pervez Musharraf to Moscow from today. Briefing journalists who will accompany the president to...

PAKISTAN GOV'T KEEN TO ENCOURAGE SMALL, MEDIUM BUSINESS SECTOR.
February 4, 2003... LAHORE, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - The Federal Minister for Industries and Production Liaquat Ali Jatoi said the Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) sector in the country would be provided with all possible facilities for rapid growth of industrial...

JAPANESE MORNING NEWSPAPER HIGHLIGHTS - FEB 4 2003.
February 4, 2003... TOKYO, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - Highlights of the morning edition of the Nihon Keizai Shimbun (Nikkei) today: - Tokyo Gas To Buy Liquefied Natural Gas From Sakhalin - MOF Considers Doubling Offering Of Retail JGBs For FY03 1st Half -...

NEW JAPANESE SERVICE ENABLES USERS TO ORDER GOODS VIA CELL PHONE.
February 4, 2003... TOKYO, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - Online payment settlement firm ecash corp. has begun to sell an e-commerce system that enables users to order goods via camera-equipped cellular phones. With this system, cell phone cameras scan bar codes printed...

PAKISTAN STEEL MILLS POST RECORD HIGH SALES IN JANUARY.
February 4, 2003... KARACHI, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - The monthly sales of Pakistan Steel (PS) touched a record high of Rs2.36 billion (US$40.61 million) in January 2003, breaking its previous record of Rs1.403 billion in January of the previous fiscal year. The...

RUSSIA WILLING TO TRANSFER TECHNOLOGY TO PAKISTAN: OFFICIAL.
February 4, 2003... KARACHI, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - The Consul General of the Russian Federation, Vladimir P. Mikhaylov, said his country is willing to transfer technology to Pakistan. Speaking at a meeting with the members of the Federation of Pakistan Chamber...

FILMMAKERS RUSHING TO USE NEW DIGITAL STUDIO IN SAITAMA, JAPAN.
February 4, 2003... TOKYO, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - Shochiku Co. (TSE:9601) and six other film companies are moving to produce digital movies at a facility that opened Saturday in Kawaguchi, Saitama Prefecture. The new facility, called SKIP City, is jointly run by...

J-PHONE TO BEGIN SALES OF NEW PREPAID MOBILE PHONE BRAND.
February 4, 2003... TOKYO, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - J-Phone Co. announced Monday that it will launch a new brand of prepaid mobile phones and begin marketing the first of the new handsets, sold under the enjorno name, in mid-February. With the introduction of the...

JAPAN'S ART CORP TO MARKET HOME APPLIANCES VIA TV.
February 4, 2003... TOKYO, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - Osaka-based moving firm Art Corp. plans to start television sales of air conditioners, vacuum cleaners and other household appliances, aiming to exploit demand from customers who are moving. The company plans to...

PAKISTANI GOVT MAY BORROW FROM MARKET AS IMF LIFTS BAN.
February 4, 2003... KARACHI, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - The government is likely to directly borrow rupees from the market to pay back its expensive loans after lifting of a ban by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), analysts said. The liquid investment...

CONSUMER-RELATED KOREAN TAX REVENUES DECLINE BY 2.2% IN 2001.
February 4, 2003... SEOUL, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - Economic slowdown and reduced spending resulted in state tax earnings related to consumption declining by 2.2 per cent in 2001, the National Tax Service (NTS) said Tuesday. The tax office said revenues generated...

YAHOO JAPAN EXPERIMENT SHOWS INTERNET ADS CAN DOUBLE SALES.
February 4, 2003... TOKYO, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - In an experiment designed to see how advertising on the Internet can be effective, Yahoo Japan Corp. (TSE:4689) showed that such ads can help double sales of a particular product. The portal operator plans to...

KOREAN GOVT SET TO LOWER RICE PURCHASE PRICE 2% THIS YEAR.
February 4, 2003... SEOUL, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - The Korean government today decided to lower the price of rice purchased from local farmers by 2 per cent this year for the first time since the purchase system was introduced in 1948. Instead, the government...

SHINKO RESEARCH, TSINGHUA UNIV TO PROVIDE CHINA ECO CONSULTING.
February 4, 2003... TOKYO, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - Shinko Research Co., a subsidiary of Kobe Steel Ltd. (TSE:5406), and Tsinghua University plan to launch environmental consulting operations for Japanese companies developing business in China. They will, for...

JAPAN'S GLORY TO EXPAND DESIGN, DEVELOPMENT, PRODUCTION STAFF.
February 4, 2003... TOKYO, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - Glory Ltd. (TSE:6457) plans to expand its staff for developing and producing money-handling machines in anticipation of the Japanese government's plan to issue new bank notes in the spring of 2004. By next spring,...

KOREA'S FIRST MARINE FUND COMPANY TO BE COMMISSIONED.
February 4, 2003... SEOUL, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - Ten domestic firms signed on January 30 an agreement to launch a marine fund company by investing 7.3 billion won (US$6.19 million), the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries said Tuesday. The company, the...

LARGE KOREAN FIRMS SEEK MEASURES TO COMBAT HIGH OIL PRICES.
February 4, 2003... SEOUL, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - Large companies in the country have been trying to come up with appropriate measures to cope effectively with high oil prices, business sources said Tuesday. Most of these firms have been focusing on cutting costs...

KOREAN CRUDE OIL IMPORTS DOWN, PETROLEUM PRODUCTS IMPORTS UP.
February 4, 2003... SEOUL, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - South Korea's crude oil imports fell last year, while imports of petroleum products expanded, the Korea Petroleum Association and the Korea National Oil Corp. said Tuesday. The nation purchased some 790 million...

THAI NEWSPAPER HIGHLIGHTS - FEB 4, 2003.
February 4, 2003... BANGKOK, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - Highlights of today's newspapers: THE BANGKOK POST - Damage to large Thai businesses from last week's riots in Cambodia have been estimated at 1.8 billion baht, according to government officials. - SW...

IGE TO HOLD INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE NEXT TUESDAY.
February 4, 2003... SEOUL, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - The Institute for Global Economics (IGE) will hold an international conference for world-renowned economists next Tuesday on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of its foundation, according to IGE officials Tuesday....

1-YEN START-UP COMPANY APPLICATION FILED IN JAPAN.
February 4, 2003... TOKYO, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - With a new law that makes it possible to start a business with capital of just 1 yen taking effect this month, 24 applications seeking to take advantage of the law were filed Monday, with one entrepreneur planning to...

CAT IS NZ CHAMP - AGAIN!
February 4, 2003... $all $anr aus $nz $lei MELBOURNE, Jan. 4 MediaNet International-AsiaNet -- Inky Tulloch and the CAT Team won the 2003 New Zealand Super Truck Championships after a nail-biting finish at the Manfeild circuit on the South Island. This is...

TOKYO STAR BANK LETS DEPOSITORS PAY LESS MORTGAGE INTEREST.
February 4, 2003... TOKYO, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - Tokyo Star Bank said it has begun offering a new kind of mortgage loan that allows borrowers to reduce interest payments by building ordinary deposits at the bank. Borrowers will pay mortgage interest only on the...

KOREA'S KOOKMIN BANK TO INVEST MORE THAN US$849 MLN IN STOCKS.
February 4, 2003... SEOUL, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - Kookmin Bank said Tuesday it will consider a plan to invest more than 1 trillion won (US$849 million) in the stock market. The bank said it also plans to issue hybrid bonds bearing an annual interest rate of 6 per...

FOREX - US DOLLAR EDGES HIGHER ON KOREAN WON - FEB 4, 2003.
February 4, 2003... SEOUL, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - The dollar made slight headway against the Korean won in mid-morning trading. Opening 3.30 won higher at 1,182 won thanks to its strength in the non-deliverable market in New York, it eroded to 1,179 won at 10:50...

STOCKS - AUSTRALIAN STOCKS HIGHER AT NOON - FEB 4, 2003.
February 4, 2003... MELBOURNE, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - The Australian sharemarket continued its rally at noon today pushed up by AMP and the finance sector. The United Kingdom's change to solvency regulations overnight gave insurers and banks a kick flowing into...

LG-PHILIPS AIMING TO KEEP WORLD'S TOP POSITION VIA HUGE INVESTMENT.
February 4, 2003... SEOUL, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - LG-Philips LCD Co. signaled its ambition to keep control of the global LCD (liquid crystal display) market today by signing a memorandum of understanding with the Gyeonggi Provincial Government to set up the world's...

JAPAN'S SAN-IN KENSETSU DEVELOPS NONTOXIC BIOTECH AGROCHEMICAL.
February 4, 2003... TOKYO, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - San-in Kensetsu Kogyo has worked with Shimane University and Yamaguchi University to develop a nontoxic biotechnology agricultural chemical to fight mildew and other fungal infections of vegetables, fruits and flowers....

RETAIL PRICE OF GOLD IN JAPAN AT 10-YEAR HIGH.
February 4, 2003... TOKYO, Feb 4 Asia Pulse - The domestic retail price of gold rose 9 yen from Friday to 1,539 yen (US$12.79) per gram Monday, its highest level since August 1992. Amid heightened tensions related to the situation in Iraq, the dollar-based...