AsiaPulse News articles from November 2001

AsiaPulse News archives from November 2001

STOCKS - DSE CLOSES HIGHER - NOV 1, 2001.
November 1, 2001... STOCKS - DSE CLOSES HIGHER - NOV 1, 2001 $all $in $stx pticloser NEW DELHI, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Announcement of attractive quarterly results by Reliance Industries and ACC boosted the trading sentiment on the stock market today and triggered...

FOREX - US DOLLAR MILDLY DEARER AGAINST RUPEE - NOV 1, 2001.
November 1, 2001... FOREX - US DOLLAR MILDLY DEARER AGAINST RUPEE - NOV 1, 2001 $all $in $stx pticloser MUMBAI, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - The U.S. Dollar ended mildly dearer against the rupee at Rs 47.9900/9950 per dollar and the pound sterling...

STOCKS - BSE CLOSES UP - NOV 1, 2001.
November 1, 2001... STOCKS - BSE CLOSES UP - NOV 1, 2001 $all $in $stx pticloser MUMBAI, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Under the leadership of tobacco-giant ITC, equities rallied smartly, lifting the sensex by 60.45 points, past the 3000-mark to close at 3049.80 on the...

OPEN - ASIA PULSE INTERNATIONAL - NOV 1, 2001.
November 1, 2001... Good Morning. This is the Asia Pulse International service of business intelligence, news, tenders and expert commentary on the economies of Asia provided by Asia Pulse Pte Ltd (Asia Pulse). Asia Pulse reserves all rights including...

AUSTRALIAN NEWSPAPER HIGHLIGHTS - NOV 1, 2001.
November 1, 2001... SYDNEY, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Highlights of today's newspapers: THE DAILY TELEGRAPH - Kim Beazley launches Labor campaign with $2 billion education package; Jonathan Shier quits ABC board. - ABC staff celebrate Shier's resignation....

FOREX - AUSTRALIAN DOLLAR CLOSES LOWER - NOV 1, 2001.
November 1, 2001... SYDNEY, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - The Australian dollar has eased at the open but is still consolidating within the tight range of this week, dealers said. At 0700 AEDT the Australian dollar was trading at $US0.5035/40 from 0.5049/54 at...

CISCO ANNOUNCES FIRST CONTRACT IN TAIWAN FOR ICM CONTACT SYSTEM.
November 1, 2001... (Full text of a statement. Contact details below.) TAIPEI, Taiwan, Oct. 31 /PRNewswire Asia-AsiaNet/ -- Cisco Systems, the worldwide leader in networking for the Internet, has announced the sale of the first Cisco Intelligent Contact...

CRAYFISH ANNOUNCES CHANGE IN MAJOR SHAREHOLDINGS.
November 1, 2001... (Full text of a statement. Contact details below.) TOKYO and NEW YORK, Oct. 31 /PRNewswire Asia-AsiaNet/ -- Crayfish Co., Ltd. (Nasdaq: CRFH) (MOTHERS: 4747) ("Crayfish" or "the Company"), a leading provider of e-mail and web-hosting and...

ASIA GLOBAL CROSSING OBTAINS FULL SUITE OF LICENSES IN KOREA.
November 1, 2001... (For a full text of statement, contact www.asianet.com.au) SEOUL, Oct. 31 /PRNewswire-AsiaNet/ -- Asia Global Crossing announced today that it has been granted the Specific Service Provider and Value Added Service Provider licenses by the...

SPEEDCAST PARTNERS WITH WORLD'S LARGEST BROADBAND PROVIDER.
November 1, 2001... (Full text of a statement. Contact details below.) HONG KONG, Oct. 31 /PRNewswire Asia-AsiaNet/ -- SpeedCast Ltd., a leading satellite broadband enabler, today announced the details of its partnership with Korea Telecom, the world's largest...

IIJ TO ADD 8MBPS SERVICES OVER NTT'S ADSL OPEN LINES.
November 1, 2001... (Full text of a statement. Contact details below.) TOKYO, Oct. 31 /PRNewswire Asia-AsiaNet/ -- Internet Initiative Japan Inc. (Nasdaq: IIJI) ("IIJ"), Japan's leading Internet access and comprehensive solutions provider, today announced...

IIJ Q2 2001 CONFERENCE CALL TO BE BROADCAST OVER THE INTERNET.
November 1, 2001... (Full text of a statement. Contact details below.) NEW YORK, N.Y., Oct. 31 /PRNewswire Asia-AsiaNet/ -- Internet Initiative Japan Inc. (Nasdaq: IIJI) ("IIJ"), one of Japan's leading Internet access and Internet-related services providers,...

CREDITORS AGREE TO BAILOUT PACKAGE FOR KOREA'S HYNIX.
November 1, 2001... SEOUL, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Creditors of Hynix Semiconductor Inc. agreed yesterday to a bailout package for the troubled chipmaker to get out of the liquidity crunch. Under the agreement, six banks - Korea Development, Hanvit, Chohung, Korea...

AUSTRALIAN PM RENEWS PLEDGE NOT TO RAISE TAXES AFTER ELECTION.
November 1, 2001... MELBOURNE, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Australian Prime Minister John Howard today reiterated his promise the government would not raise taxes if it won back government on November 10. "That is our commitment and that remains our commitment," he...

300,000 AUSTRALIAN WORKERS EXPECTED TO JOIN MELBOURNE PROTEST.
November 1, 2001... MELBOURNE, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Close to 30,000 workers will take to the streets of Melbourne today calling for job security and guaranteed employee entitlements. Unions have organised meetings at capital cities and larger regional towns...

SOUTH AUSTRALIA WELCOMES ELECTRICITY INTERCONNECTOR DRAFT.
November 1, 2001... ADELAIDE, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - The South Australian government today welcomed draft approval for two new electricity interconnectors between the states of South Australia (SA), Victoria and New South Wales. A committee of the National...

AUSTRALIA'S APN NEWS & MEDIA TO FOCUS ON US$603 MLN NZ ACQUISITION.
November 1, 2001... MELBOURNE, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - APN News & Media Ltd (ASX:APN) hopes to one-day consume Australian newspaper giant Fairfax, but is currently focused on bedding down the A$1.2 billion (US$603.0 million) acquisition of New Zealand media group...

CORR: AUSTRALIA'S VIRGIN BLUE TO EXPAND SERVICES.
November 1, 2001... (Correction in dateline) BRISBANE, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Discount airline Virgin Blue announced plans yesterday to expand services today as Ansett Mark II cracked the 150,000 ticket sales mark. Virgin announced direct flights between the...

PARTS OF AUSTRALIAN ECONOMY STILL STRONG DESPITE SLUMP: PM.
November 1, 2001... MELBOURNE, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Australian Prime Minister John Howard said some parts of the Australian economy were still strong despite the global downturn led by the United States. "We thought America would take a big hit after September...

MANAGING DIRECTOR OF AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORP RESIGNS.
November 1, 2001... MELBOURNE, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - The board of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is on the hunt for a new managing director after yesterday's resignation by Jonathan Shier amid claims he had lost the confidence of the board. The...

FORD AUSTRALIA TO TEMPORARLIY CLOSE VICTORIAN OPERATIONS.
November 1, 2001... MELBOURNE, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Ford Australia will shut down its manufacturing operations in the Australian state of Victoria for three days next week because of poor sales and an uncertain future, the Herald Sun newspaper reported today. ...

STOCKS - AUSTRALIAN SHARES OPEN SLIGHTLY HIGHER - NOV 1, 2001.
November 1, 2001... MELBOURNE, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - The Australian sharemarket opened slightly higher today with market heavyweights News Corp and BHP Billiton leading the trend into positive territory. At 1015 AEDT the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 was one point higher...

TAIWAN, US AGREE ON EXCHANGES TO ENHANCE NUCLEAR PLANT SAFETY.
November 1, 2001... TAIPEI, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Participants at a civil nuclear cooperation meeting between the Taiwan and the United States have agreed to increase exchanges on nuclear power plant safety and to establish formal communication channels regarding the...

KOREAN OVERSEASE INVESTMENT DECLINES IN LINE WITH THE ECONOMY.
November 1, 2001... SEOUL, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Foreign direct investment (FDI) by Koreans declined 8.1 per cent on year to US$3.52 billion for the first nine months of 2001 due largely to the global economic downturn aggravated by the Sept 11 terror strikes in the...

AMENDMENT TO TAIWAN-US AGRICULTURAL COOPERATION PLAN INKED.
November 1, 2001... WASHINGTON, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - An amendment to a 1986 outline on Taiwan-United States agricultural cooperation was signed in Washington recently to enhance substantive cooperation between the two countries. The amendment was signed by...

S&P's ASSIGNS BBB- RATING TO PRESSES OF AUSTRALIA'S FAIRFAX.
November 1, 2001... SYDNEY, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - International ratings agency Standard & Poor's has given its BBB-minus long term rating to a proposed $A200 million issue of preferred reset securities exchangeable for shares (also known as Presses) by Australian...

TAIWAN'S EXECUTIVE YUAN ASKED TO REVISE FY 02 BUDGET PROPOSAL.
November 1, 2001... TAIPEI, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - The legislative caucuses of the opposition Kuomintang (KMT) and New Party (NP) warned Wednesday that if the Executive Yuan fails to revise the budget proposal for fiscal 2002, they will boycott budget deliberations....

ASSETS MANAGEMENT COS MAY DEPRESS TAIWAN'S REAL ESTATE MARKET.
November 1, 2001... TAIPEI, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Taiwan's sluggish real estate market could slip further if assets management companies (AMCs) suppress the purchasing prices too much, said Central Bank of China Deputy Governor Chen Shih-meng. Chen made the...

KOREAN GOVT TO MODIFY CAPITAL GAINS TAX REGULATIONS.
November 1, 2001... SEOUL, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Taiwan's Ministry of Finance and Economy said it would revise regulations to exempt owners of individual businesses from capital gains tax on the sale of the entities when they change their businesses into...

KOREAN NEWSPAPER HIGHLIGHTS - NOV 1, 2001.
November 1, 2001... SEOUL, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Highlights of today's newspapers: DONG-A ILBO - Reformist MDP lawmakers call for retirement of Donggyo-dong faction head Kwon Roh-kap and Park Jie-won, senior presidential policy planner - Hynix to...

AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY TO PUMP US$7.52 MLN INTO EXPORT GRANTS.
November 1, 2001... CANBERRA, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - The Australian Labor Party (ALP) will pump A$15 million (US$7.52 million) into export development grants and set up an agriculture trade task force under its new trade policy. ALP trade spokesman Peter Cook said...

TAIWAN TO SEND TRADE DELEGATION TO VIETNAM.
November 1, 2001... KAOHSIUNG, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Taiwan's Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) will send a trade delegation to Vietnam in mid-November to seek trade opportunities and industrial cooperation partners. Chang Tien-ming, head of a division of the...

KOREAN BANKS TO SUBSTANTIALLY RAISE STAFF SALARIES.
November 1, 2001... SEOUL, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Shinhan Bank, Kookmin Bank and KorAm Bank raised staff salaries substantially as they unloaded bad debts last year and raked in considerable earnings by taking advantage of the increased spread between deposit and...

TAIWAN PREMIER URGES GOVT TO IMPROVE TOURISM MANAGEMENT.
November 1, 2001... TAIPEI, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Premier Chang Chun-hsiung instructed the government to strengthen management and control of tourist attractions across the island so as to upgrade tourism quality in line with 2002's international ecological tourism...

KOREA'S MIRYANG MULTIPURPOSE DAM COMPLETED.
November 1, 2001... SEOUL, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - The Ministry of Construction and Transportation today said the Miryang multipurpose dam, which has been under construction since 1990, has been completed at a cost of 206 billion won (US$158 million). The...

MERGER TO CREATE AUSTRALIA'S LARGEST CREDIT UNION.
November 1, 2001... MELBOURNE, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Australia's largest credit union, with $A1.32 billion ($US662.11 million) in assets and combined membership of membership of 201,000, will come into being with the merger between the Australian Central and Northern...

ROUTE FOR ONE OF THE MELBOURNE AIRPORT RAIL LINKS RULED OUT.
November 1, 2001... MELBOURNE, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - The state government of Victorian has vetoes one of the planned routes for a heavy rail link to Melbourne Airport. The government today said it had decided against the proposed route through Broadmeadows, in...

AUSTRALIAN CONSUMER SPENDING FALLS SLIGHTLY IN SEPTEMBER.
November 1, 2001... CANBERRA, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Australian consumer spending dipped slightly in September, the first fall since November last year, official figures showed today. Allowing for seasonal factors, retail trade fell 0.1 per cent in September to...

MTI TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION LAUNCHES BEIJING OFFICE.
November 1, 2001... (Full text of a statement. Contact details below.) BEIJING, Nov. 1 /PRNewswire-China/ -- Chinese officials and representatives of major enterprises were on hand today to welcome MTI Technology Corp. (Nasdaq: MTIC), a leading provider of...

STOCKS - KOREAN SHARES UP AMID CAUTIOUS TRADING - NOV 1, 2001.
November 1, 2001... SEOUL, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Korean stocks moved up slightly early Thursday helped by the rally on the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index and the decision to provide relief measures for faltering Hynix Semiconductor Inc. The Korea Composite...

JAPANESE MORNING NEWSPAPER HIGHLIGHTS - NOV 1, 2001.
November 1, 2001... TOKYO, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Highlights of today's morning edition of the Nihon Keizai Shimbun (Nikkei) today: - Ford, Bridgestone To Hold Talks To Mend Ties - China, ASEAN To Negotiate Free Trade Agreement - Mitsui To Acquire...

ANSETT AUSTRALIA WORKERS PROTEST OVER ENTITLEMENTS.
November 1, 2001... MELBOURNE, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Ansett workers and thousands of union members called for security for employee entitlements in a protest rally down Melbourne's Swanston Street today. The rally is part of a national forum with meetings being...

PHILIPPINES' DPWH BEGINS REPAIR OF SOUTH SUPERHIGHWAY BRIDGE.
November 1, 2001... MANILA, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - The Philipppines' Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) has begun emergency repairs on the southbound portion of the South Superhighway (SSH) Bridge in Manila. DPWH Secretary Simeon Datumanong has asked...

PRESIDENT OF JAPAN'S MAZDA DENIES PLANS FOR RETIREMENT.
November 1, 2001... HIROSHIMA, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Mark Fields has made it clear that he plans to stay on as president of Mazda Motor Corp (TSE:7261) despite rumors that his days may be numbered due to the recent firing of Ford Motor Co. President & CEO Jacques...

AUSTRALIAN AIRCRAFT MAINTENANCE UNIONS CONTINUE QANTAS TALKS.
November 1, 2001... SYDNEY, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Australian maintenance unions are today continuing talks with Qantas over plans to freeze staff wages for 18 months. Qantas chief executive Geoff Dixon last week briefed unions about the pay plan. Australian...

JAPAN'S SKY PERFECT POSTS LESS-THAN-EXPECTED LOSSES.
November 1, 2001... TOKYO, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Sky Perfect Communications Inc (TSE:4795) has announced a group pretax loss of 4.8 billion yen ($US39.35 million) for the six months ended September 30, an improvement on the 15.8 billion yen loss seen a year earlier...

JAPAN'S TRAVEL AGENCIES REPORT 11.7% FALL IN SEPT SALES.
November 1, 2001... TOKYO, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Sales at eight major travel agencies, including JTB Corp and Kinki Nippon Tourist Co (TSE:9726), fell 11.7 per cent in September from a year earlier to 304.57 billion yen ($US2.5 billion), the first decline in four...

JAPAN'S TOHOKU ELECTRIC TO BUY COAL & EMISSIONS ALLOWANCES.
November 1, 2001... TOKYO, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Tohoku Electric Power Co. (TSE:9506) announced Wednesday that it has agreed to purchase coal and gas emissions allowances from two Australian firms as a set, marking the first deal in Japan in which fuel and emissions...

JAPAN'S DOMESTIC PC SHIPMENTS TO POST FIRST DROP IN 4 YEARS.
November 1, 2001... TOKYO, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Domestic shipments of personal computers are expected to drop 12 per cent to 10.6 million units in the 2001 fiscal year, the first contraction in four years, according to figures released Wednesday by the Japan...

JAPAN'S MACHINE TOOL ORDERS SINK 33% IN SEPTEMBER.
November 1, 2001... TOKYO, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Japan's machine tool orders tumbled 33.2 per cent in September from a year earlier to 60.16 billion yen ($US493.2 million), the sixth straight month of decline, according to revised figures released Wednesday by the...

JAPAN'S HITACHI METALS POSTS US$63.9 MLN H1 NET LOSS.
November 1, 2001... TOKYO, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Hitachi Metals Ltd. (TSE:5486) posted a group net loss of 7.82 billion yen (US$63.9 million) for the first half of the fiscal year ended September 30, compared with a profit of 2.41 billion yen a year earlier, the...

JAPAN'S YASUDA FIRE POSTS US$188.56 MLN H1 NET LOSS.
November 1, 2001... TOKYO, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Yasuda Fire & Marine Insurance Co (TSE:8755) reported Wednesday that it sustained a parent-company net loss of 23 billion yen ($US188.56 million) for the fiscal first half ended September 30. Yasuda Fire had...

JAPAN'S BML OFFERS ANTHRAX TEST FOR HOSPITALS.
November 1, 2001... TOKYO, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - BML Inc. (TSE:4694), a major clinical testing firm, will conduct tests for anthrax infection on behalf of hospitals beginning today, the company said. The company will receive blood and mucous samples obtained from...

JAPAN'S FTC WANTS LIMITS ON TRADING HOUSE OWNERSHIP TO BE LIFTED.
November 1, 2001... TOKYO, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - A Fair Trade Commission panel on the Anti-Monopoly Law has proposed that restrictions on the number of shares in other companies that can be held by general trading companies and other large corporations be removed....

JAPAN'S SHOWA SHELL TO OFFER CLEAN FUEL AS KEROSENE SUBSTITUTE.
November 1, 2001... TOKYO, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Showa Shell Sekiyu KK (TSE:5002) announced that it will begin sales of an ultra-clean fuel to replace kerosene for use in portable home heaters. The fuel is produced with GTL (gas-to-liquid) technology, which...

SAMSUNG SHIPS 2.5-GENERATION GPRS MOBILE PHONES TO GERMANY.
November 1, 2001... SEOUL, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Samsung Electronics has exported 5,000 mobile handsets based on European 2.5-generation GPRS technology to T-Mobile International AG of Germany, Samsung said Thursday. This is the Korean electronics leader's first...

FORMER PHILIPPINE PRESIDENT ADDRESSES ASIA-PACIFIC NATIONS.
November 1, 2001... MANILA, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Former President Fidel V. Ramos today said Asia-Pacific nations must adopt new strategies if their economies are to remain bouyant in the years to come. Ramos made the statement in the wake of the global economic...

KOREA'S HONMOO TO OPEN HOTEL FOR TEMPORARY HOUSING.
November 1, 2001... SEOUL, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Hanmoo Convention Company said Thursday it will open the Oakwood Premier COEX Center, a five-star hotel catering for guests staying in Korea on a temporary basis in early December. The 26-story deluxe hotel with...

FOREX - US DOLLAR EDGES UP TO 1,296.50 WON EARLY - NOV 1, 2001.
November 1, 2001... SEOUL, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - The U.S. dollar rose slightly against the won early Thursday due to a lack of incentives and weak demand. The greenback opened at 1,296.50 won and was trading at that level as of 10:15 a.m., up slightly from...

DUTCH CO OFFERS TO HELP INDONESIA WITH CPO STANDARDISATION.
November 1, 2001... JAKARTA, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Dutch surveyor company PT Sthutter has offered to cooperate with Indonesia on developing standards for crude palm oil (CPO) destined for export to Europe, an official of Indonesia's Agriculture Ministry said. ...

AUSTRALIAN GOVT DEPT TO DISTRIBUTE VIDEO USING CISCO SOFTWARE.
November 1, 2001... (For a full text of statement, contact www.asianet.com.au) CANBERRA, Nov. 1 /PRNewswire Asia-AsiaNet/ -- The Commonwealth Department of Employment, Workplace Relations and Small Business (DEWRSB) will provide video broadcast and on-demand...

INDONESIAN FM EXPECTS CGI LOAN TO BE DISBURSED THIS YEAR.
November 1, 2001... JAKARTA, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - The balance of the US$4.8 billion loan pledged by the Consultative Group on Indonesia (CGI) would probably be disbursed this year, said Finance Minister Budiono. "We will try to meet all the requirements so that...

UNIONS EXCLUDED FROM CREDITOR MEETING FOR AUSTRALIA'S PASMINCO.
November 1, 2001... SYDNEY, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Two major unions claim were left out of a creditors' meeting for failed nickel miner Pasminco, leaving workers unrepresented in the administration process. Pasminco went into voluntary administration on September...

INDONESIA'S INDOSAT GRANTED ISO 9001:2000 CERTIFICATE.
November 1, 2001... JAKARTA, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - State-owned telecommunications company Indosat (JSX:ISAT) has been granted an ISO 9001:2000 certificate for quality services to the public. The ISO certificate was presented to Indosat's technical and operations...

KOREA'S HYUNDAI MOTOR EXCEEDS EXPECTATIONS IN US SALES.
November 1, 2001... SEOUL, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Hyundai Motor Co (KSE: 05380) said that its United States operations in October had far exceeded expectations, with year-on-year sales soaring 77 per cent, Hyundai Securities Co. reported Thursday. As of October...

KOOKMIN, H&CB MERGED COMPANY OFFICIALLY OPENS FOR BUSINESS.
November 1, 2001... SEOUL, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Kookmin and Housing & Commercial banks officially for business today, with their boards of directors electing Kim Jung-tae, president of H&CB, to head up the new entity, Kookmin Bank. The new Kookmin Bank...

STOCKS - AUSTRALIAN STOCKS UP AT NOON - NOV 1, 2001.
November 1, 2001... SYDNEY, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - The Australian sharemarket was slightly higher at noon, despite being weighed down by Westpac and an ex-dividend ANZ. At 1205 AEDT, the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 was five points higher at 3254.6, while the all...

PHILIPPINES' SMART SIGNS CONTRACT WITH RCBC FOR INDOOR COVERAGE.
November 1, 2001... MANILA, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - As part of an effort to expand indoor coverage in major business centres, Smart Communications has signed a lease contract with RCBC Realty Corporation for the installation of indoor cell sites at the country's...

FOREX - AUSTRALIAN DOLLAR LOWER AT NOON - NOV 1, 2001.
November 1, 2001... SYDNEY, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - The Australian dollar was weaker at noon from yesterday's close although dealers said there had been little action on the day and this trend was likely to continue. At 1200 AEDT, the Australian dollar was trading...

KOREA'S BARLEY OUTPUT RISES 69 PCT OVER LAST YEAR.
November 1, 2001... SEOUL, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - This year's production of barley grew 69 per cent from last year to reach 383,000 tons, the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry said Thursday. The National Agricultural Cooperatives Federation (NACF) will...

AUSTRALIAN RETAIL FIGURES SHOW PRESSURE ON FAMILIES: ALP.
November 1, 2001... MELBOURNE, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Retail trade figures show that Australian families were under economic pressure, federal opposition treasury spokesman Simon Crean said today. "I think that the figures do point to weakening in household goods...

AUSTRALIA'S ADULTSHOP.COM POSTS 1ST POSITIVE CASH FLOW.
November 1, 2001... PERTH, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - AdultShop.com Ltd today posted its first positive net operating cash flow of $A1.74 million ($US872,784) for the September quarter and said that it expects the excellent performance of its online entertainment business...

KOREA'S POSCO LAUNCHES TASK FORCE TO EXPAND CHINA INVESTMENT.
November 1, 2001... SEOUL, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Pohang Iron and Steel Co. (POSCO) today said it has inaugurated a task force entrusted with formulating strategies to expand the steelmaker's advance into China. The 11-member team, led by POSCO's managing director...

VIETNAMESE NEWSPAPER HIGHLIGHTS - NOV 1, 2001.
November 1, 2001... HANOI, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Highlights of today's newspapers: NHAN DAN: - Prime Minister Phan Van Khai will lead a senior delegation to the seventh ASEAN Summit; the ASEAN+3 Summit (with China, Japan and the Republic of Korea), and the...

GERMAN FOOTWEAR FIRM OPENS NEW FACILITY IN VIETNAM.
November 1, 2001... HANOI, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Footwear manufacturer Framas Vietnam has opened a new plant at Song Than Industrial Park No. 2 in Binh Duong Province's Di An District. A subsidiary of Germany's Framas Group, the firm has been capitalised at...

STOCKS - MALAYSIAN STOCKS LOWER IN EARLY TRADE - NOV 1, 2001.
November 1, 2001... KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - The Malaysian sharemarket was lower in early trade as investors kept to the sidelines in the absence of fresh buying incentives, dealers said. At 10.44 a.m., the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange Composite Index...

VIETNAM GOVT APPROVES URBAN DEVELOPMENT MASTERPLAN.
November 1, 2001... HANOI, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - The Vietnamese government has approved a master plan for urban zoning and development aimed at turning cities into engines of regional socio-economic growth. It is expected to provide a road map for the sustainable...

CHINESE NEWSPAPER HIGHLIGHTS - NOV 1, 2001.
November 1, 2001... BEIJING, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Highlights of today's newspapers: PEOPLE'S DAILY - Chinese Premier Zhu Rongji held talks in Beijing Wednesday afternoon with German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, who arrived earlier Wednesday on a three-day...

AUSTRALIA'S MIRVAC FORECASTS PROFIT DOWNTURN.
November 1, 2001... SYDNEY, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Australian property developer Mirvac Group (ASX:MGR) has said that it's hotel business was likely to see a decline in profits in the current fiscal year, but that the losses should really balanced out by ongoing...

STATISTICS - CHINA'S IMPORT & EXPORT OF OIL PRODUCTS - 1987-1999.
November 1, 2001... BEIJING, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - The following is a table showing China's annual import and export of oil products in 1987-99. (Unit: million tons) ------------------------------------------------------- Year Import ...

KOREA, JAPAN TO FURTHER EXPAND BIOINDUSTRY COOPERATION.
November 1, 2001... SEOUL, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - Korea and Japan will move to further expand cooperation in the bio industry sector with the holding of a joint conference of related businesses and organizations next week in Seoul, the Bioindustry Association of Korea...

JAPAN GOVT TENDER - DNA SEQUENCER.
November 1, 2001... ***** ASIA PULSE TENDER ***** NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF AGROBIOLOGICAL SCIENCES TO PROCURE DNA SEQUENCER The following is a procurement notice published in the Kanpo Japanese government gazette on Oct 22: (1) Official in charge of...

JAPAN GOVT TENDER - INFUSION PUMP.
November 1, 2001... ***** ASIA PULSE TENDER ***** NATIONAL CANCER CENTER CHUO HOSPITAL TO PROCURE INFUSION PUMP The following is a procurement notice published in the Kanpo Japanese government gazette on Oct 22: (1) Official in charge of...

TAIWAN & FUJIAN PROVINCE TO ENHANCE COOPERATION IN AUTO SECTOR.
November 1, 2001... BEIJING, Nov 1 Asia Pulse - On opposite sides of the Taiwan Straits, Fujian Province and Taiwan have mutually pledged to enhance cooperation in the automotive industry and to increase Fujian's strength in the sector. Fujian Southeast Motor...