Justiça manda Alckmin refazer ação contra cartel

Se quiser receber alguma indenização das empresas acusadas que formar um cartel para fraudar licitações do Metrô e da CPTM, o governador Geraldo Alckmin (PSDB) terá que refazer a ação proposta em agosto contra a multinacional alemã Siemens.

Em decisão tomada na terça-feira, a juíza Celina Kiyomi Toyoshima, da 4ª Vara da Fazenda Pública de São Paulo, mandou o governo refazer a ação, incluindo outras empresas acusadas de conluio.

Investigacao do caso Alstom e reaberta a pedido da Suica.

Governo de SP ameaca proibir contratos com 12 empresas do cartel.
O pedido original do governo só citava a Siemens e foi tratado como piada nos meios jurídicos. Advogados diziam que a Procuradoria-Geral do Estado criara com a ação uma anomalia semelhante à quadrilha de um homem só: era o cartel de uma empresa só.

Cartel é a ação de um grupo de empresas para combinar o resultado --e os valores-- de uma concorrência.

"As sociedades que integram o cartel ou consórcios empresariais e que agiram em diversas licitações levadas a cabo pela CPTM e Metrô deverão integrar o polo passivo", escreveu a juíza em sua decisão. "A integração de todas é indispensável, sob pena de se dar brecha a decisões conflitantes, caso haja propositura de futuras ações."

A Folha revelou em julho que a Siemens fizera um acordo com o Cade (Conselho Administrativo de Defesa Econômica), órgão federal encarregado da defesa da concorrência, no qual a empresa confessava integrar um cartel, junto com 19 empresas.

O conluio, segundo a Siemens, ocorreu em licitações realizadas em São Paulo e no Distrito Federal entre 1998 e 2008, época em que São Paulo foi governado pelo PSDB.

A decisão manda o governo corrigir várias falhas apontadas na ação inicial. Ela não apontou os valores dos contratos sob suspeita, por exemplo, e sem isso é impossível calcular o eventual sobrepreço e a indenização devida.

A juíza também determina que o governo atribua valor mais realista à causa. Originalmente, ele dera à ação o valor de R$ 50 mil, quase nada se comparado aos bilhões de reais dos contratos que estão sob investigação no Cade.

A juíza diz ainda que o governo talvez tenha sido precipitado: "A falta de prova do envolvimento de cada um no suposto esquema de fraude-licitação sugere que tenha sido a ação prematuramente ajuizada, como bem sustentou o Ministério Público".

O Ministério Público pediu que a Justiça rejeitasse a ação por inépcia. Segundo a Promotoria, não faz sentido pedir indenização à Siemens sem antes investigar as responsabilidades de cada empresa participante do cartel.

Em nota, a Procuradoria Geral do Estado disse que vai cumprir a decisão da Justiça, mas defendeu a ação. 

Fonte: Fohla de Sao Paulo

BHP Billiton Has Room to Cut Further

Smaller is beautiful in mining nowadays—even for the sector's behemoths.
Mining companies are shedding assets. The sector cut its capital spending plans by $17 billion in the 12 months to September, notes Citigroup. Even minor selling stake, like Glencore Xstrata sale of its Frieda River copper project, has been welcomed as demonstrating a focus on core operations and investment discipline. 
 BHP Billinton,the Anglo-Australian miner has flagged plans to prune its oil and gas business, selling U.S. non-core acreage and potentially shedding other assets from Pakistan to Algeria. Across its entire business, BHP has already agreed sales totaling about $6.5 billion since the beginning of its last fiscal year, selling diamond, copper and uranium assets.

But BHP should think about wielding its scythe elsewhere. While his predecessor expressed reluctance to get out of particular commodities, new chief executive Andrew Mackenzie shows no such qualms. His focus is on improving productivity in BHP's "four pillars": iron ore, copper, coal and petroleum. 

That leaves BHP's assets in aluminium, manganese and nickel out in the cold. The trio contributed less than 1% of operating profit last year; they didn't merit a single slide in Mr. Mackenzie's presentation at August's full-year results.

There may be other reasons to sell. BHP invested $750 million in the three commodities last year, about 4% of its total capital expenditure bill. The three offer little growth, except through a recovery in beaten-down prices. And BHP needs to win over investors to its Jansen potash development, a long term, multi-billion dollar project of the kind shareholders currently hate. Freeing up capital in unloved corners can only help its case.

The three commodities, which generated about $900 million in earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization last year, could be spun off to shareholders together, worth perhaps $5 -$7 billion.

 Such a move would hardly be transformative for BHP. But it would be a statement of intent in a market where Glencore Xstrata has been rewarded because investors believe a return to focus on core operations. Small can be beautiful.

China Grants U.S. Investors Indirect Access to Its Stock Markets

  According to a report from the Wall Street Journal, China has approved two domestic fund managers to offer products in the U.S. that for the first time would give investors there indirect access to shares traded in Shanghai and Shenzhen, a significant move to further open the country's capital markets and globalize its currency, a person with direct knowledge of the matter said Thursday.

China's securities and foreign-exchange regulators recently gave joint approval for Bosera Asset Management Co. and Harvest Fund Management Co. to sell exchange-traded funds linked to China's yuan-denominated A shares in the U.S., said the person, who declined to be named.

At present, foreign investors' access to the domestically traded A-share market is limited to those under the so-called Qualified Foreign Institutional Investors and Renminbi Qualified Foreign Institutional Investors programs with predetermined quotas.

The ETFs offered by Bosera and Harvest will be listed on the New York Stock Exchange, said the person.

It is the first time China has allowed local fund managers to offer mutual funds outside Hong Kong, in a move that could pave the way for Chinese fund managers to offer similar products in the global markets, including the U.S., the person added.

The launch of the two ETFs falls under the so-called Renminbi Qualified Foreign Institutional Investors program in China that allows offshore yuan to be invested in the country's capital markets, the person said.

15th China Int'l Industry Fair kicks off in Shanghai

China's economic hub of Shanghai has opened its door to the 15th China International Industry Fair. The five-day fair serves as the country's manufacturing benchmark, showcasing its most advanced improvements in technology.

It’s all about technology. The number of exhibitors has hit a new record this year, bringing together companies from 25 countries and regions. The exhibits’ growing clout is evident, as many companies chose to debut their latest products at the fair.

"We’ve received positive feedback from the fair in previous years. It is a great platform for us to present what we have. We brought our latest innovations this year, and many people have already come to ask about our product." Zhou Haijing, CEO of Nanjing Optical Valley Nuotai Precision Tech, said.

Apart from large industrial machinery, the event’s annual robotics show attracts the most attention. And that’s not even close to the wide range of tasks they’re able to perform.

For passengers who like a softer ride, they can choose a program with gentler motions. And those who are fond of a more thrilling experience, they can select the extreme mode.

For thrill seekers or the tamed, a robot companion can do it all.

"It is so much fun. It is very exciting but I feel very stable."

"It is very thrilling. We just tried the extreme mode."

According to the International Federation of Robotics, by 2015, China will become the world’s largest robotics market. As an important part of high-end manufacturing, industrial robots play an indispensable role in China’s economy.

And there’s some aerospace technology as well, including a replica of the country’s first moon rover, which is set for launch in December this year. Those with a creative appetite are also in for a treat with this 3D printer that prints food. Any shape of chocolate is now just a click away.

Source:CCTV

Reuters: Asia stocks subdued, euro rebounds to 1-week high ahead of ECB

"Asian stocks struggled on Thursday as investors waited for stimulus-sensitive U.S. payroll data, although the euro perked up ahead of the European Central Bank's policy meeting".

The Australian dollar slipped after a weak labour force report showed a big fall in full-time employment -- undermining a popular view that the Reserve Bank of Australia has finished cutting interest rates.

All eyes will be on Friday's nonfarm payrolls data for a chance to gauge when the Fed might begin winding down its $85 billion-a-month bond-buying programme, which is linked to falling unemployment.

Before that, investors will look to the first reading of U.S. third-quarter GDP data later in the day. Economists in a Reuters survey forecast a 2.0 percent annualised rate of growth compared with 2.5 percent in the second quarter.

Source: Reuters

Bank of Japan Deputy Governor Kikuo Iwata said on Thursday that it is too early to talk to exit from QE

 Bank of Japan Deputy Governor Kikuo Iwata said on Thursday that it is too early to debate specific strategies that the central bank should use to exit from its quantitative easing.

There are many options to lower the amount of government debt on the BOJ's balance sheet, but the policies used to exit from quantitative easing will depend on how the economy is doing in the future, Iwata said in the upper house financial affairs committee.

The BOJ has kept monetary policy steady since in April, when it pledge to double the monetary base via aggressive purchases of government debt to accelerate inflation to 2 percent in roughly two years

Source: Reuters

BOJ's Kuroda - Will eventually have to debate exit strategy

"Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda said on Thursday the central bank will eventually have to debate how to reduce the amount of government debt on its balance sheet to exit from its quantitative easing".

"The BOJ will end up holding a lot of long-term government debt, but there are many ways to eventually reduce the pace of debt purchases, Kuroda said in the upper house financial affairs committee".

The BOJ has kept monetary policy steady since in April, when it pledge to double the monetary base via aggressive purchases of government debt to accelerate inflation to 2 percent in roughly two years.

Source: Reuters

Vale third-quarter profit doubles on higher iron ore sales, prices

"Brazil's Vale SA , the world's second-largest mining company, reported on Wednesday that its third-quarter net income more than doubled from a year earlier, beating analysts' expectations as iron ore prices and sales volumes rose".

"Net income for the three months ended September 30 soared 114 percent to $3.50 billion from $1.64 billion in the same period a year earlier, the company said. The result was 6 percent higher than the $3.3 billion average profit estimate of seven analysts surveyed by Reuters.

Iron ore prices averaged about a fifth higher in the third quarter of this year than in the same quarter of 2012, according to Thomson Reuters.

Net sales, or total sales minus sales taxes, rose 11 percent from a year earlier to $12.7 billion, beating the average analyst estimate of $12.5 billion. The volume of iron ore sales rose 11 percent to 73.4 million tonnes.

"We expected strong volumes, given the robust Brazilian iron ore export figures for July-September, but shipments still exceeded our expectations," mining analysts said.

"Vale's results were largely a reflection of iron ore prices that have remained 'higher for longer' in the face of widespread oversupply concerns," they added.

"The result comes a year after Vale moved to sharply cut costs and refocus expansion on its main iron-ore business. The spending diet came in the face of flagging demand and plunging prices in China for the raw material, the main ingredient in steel. China was responsible for 50.2 percent of Vale iron-ore sales in the period".

"While iron ore prices have recovered from the three-year lows of August 2012, executives of Vale and its main rivals, Australia's BHP Billiton Ltd  and Rio Tinto Ltd , have said that a decade-long, China-led commodities boom is likely over. Resulting lower growth expectations prompted them to rein in investment and prospecting budgets.

The effort led to the mothballing or cancelling of new projects, the closing of money-losing mines and sale of assets or stakes in existing businesses. Investment in the first nine months of 2013 was $11 billion, 9.8 percent less than in the same period of 2012".

China's strong housing market, though, is keeping demand for steel and iron ore strong, Vale said in the statement. It will keep it strong in the near term as steelmakers and distributors have cut their stocks in the face of China's otherwise slowing economy.

"The Chinese economy should grow more moderately than it did in the third quarter, but despite this we expect the price of iron ore to remain stable," Vale said. It added that iron ore should average about $130 a tonne in the coming months".

Source: Reuters

World to see boom in big firms, with 70% based on Emerging Regions, especially China.

 An additional 7,000 companies globally are expected to become large enterprises with revenues of more than $1 billion by 2025, with 70 percent of them likely to be based in emerging regions, especially China, a report has said.

The new report on the shifting global business landscape, which was released by the McKinsey Global Institute on Wednesday in Shanghai, said that many more large companies will develop in emerging cities and countries from the current 8,000 large companies worldwide, 75 percent of which are based in developed regions.

China is without a doubt the most powerful growth engine for new global companies, and now is the time for forward-thinking cities to build their reputations among Chinese business leaders, the report said.

The survey found that one-third of large companies are now headquartered in only 20 cities globally while three in 10 large Chinese companies are based either in Beijing or Shanghai. However, there might be more than 300 cities in China hosting at least one large company by 2025.

"Many city officials are focused on luring corporate headquarters, but it is actually relatively rare for companies to move their head offices," said Elsie Chang, an MGI senior research fellow.

Chang added that the more promising opportunity lies in attracting foreign subsidiaries as thousands of global companies are expanding into new markets.

For instance, opening more plants in China to make products tailored specifically to local buyers is the stated goal of PPG Industries Inc, a major global coatings and specialty products company, in the next three to five years.

"China is a very important market for PPG, being the second-largest market among 70 countries, while we have plans to continue to invest in China as our business grows and we want to apply our best technology to help our customers," said Mike Horton, PPG's president for the Asia-Pacific region.

With more than 30 plants in the Asia-Pacific region, 14 of which are on the Chinese mainland, PPG plans to develop its Chinese market step by step to become a major manufacturer and seller in the country.

"We are planning to find and work with more high-standard factories to manufacture what we sell in China instead of importing products from overseas to meet the increasing demand within the country," said Horton.

The number of large companies based in emerging regions is poised to far more than triple by 2025, rising from around 2,200 today to about 7,000 in 2025. This reflects rising incomes and growing local market opportunities in these regions, as well as the fact that local companies are expanding, maturing, and reconfiguring through mergers or acquisitions, the MGI report said.

About 280 up-and-coming cities in emerging economies could host the headquarters of a large company for the first time, becoming new hubs in global industry networks, it added.

"The world's competitive landscape will be transformed over the next 10 to 15 years by the rise of a formidable new breed of large emerging-market companies," said Jonathan Woetzel, a director at MGI and one of the report's authors.

Woetzel added that the long-established dominance of Western multinationals is about to be challenged.

In addition, China will also see more small and medium-sized companies becoming large ones as the number of large companies in China is expected to increase from 800 to more than 3,400 by 2025, the report said.

Some private business owners in China are already pursuing the goal of transforming the scale of their companies from small and medium-sized to large.

For example, the effects of the growing e-commerce industry are bringing impressive results to some sectors.

Zhejiang Duoying Jewelry Co Ltd, which closed its physical shop and registered an online shop in 2012, saw its gross profit grow to 30 million yuan ($4.88 million) in 2012, twice the amount posted in 2011.

"The peak period of export trading ended in 2011 with a sharp decrease of over 30 percent on annual output from 2008 while the amount of orders also declined nearly 40 percent," said Zeng Hongqi, the general manager of Zhejiang Duoying Jewelry.

Zeng added that he aims to boost his company's profits with gradual annual growth and upgraded branding, going from the current mid-market clients to high-end customers in 10 years.

In particular, more focus will be placed on the services sector in China, as Shenzhen and Nanjing are developing as hubs for non-State controlled, medium-sized companies with a higher share of global revenue from services companies than other leading emerging-region cities such as Mumbai, India, and Sao Paulo, Brazil, said the report.

Source:  Xinhua

China Focus: China's reform energizes the world

 As the Chinese economy firms with recent upbeat data, analysts expect a reform package to be unveiled in a key plenum this weekend to bring changes not only to China but to reinvigorate the global economy, which has been in a slow recovery.

Official surveys showed the purchasing managers index (PMI) for the manufacturing and service sectors rose to the highest level of the year in October, a further sign of a stabilizing economy after China's economic growth picked up to 7.8 percent in the third quarter.

The news came ahead of the much-anticipated Third Plenary Session of the 18th Communist Party of China Central Committee, to be held from Nov. 9 to 12, when Chinese leaders will lay out comprehensive reform plans to shape China's economic development over the next five to ten years.

Upcoming reforms in China have attracted much attention as the world is concerned about whether China will continue to make new and sustainable contributions to global development, according to Zhuang Jian, an economist at the Asian Development Bank.

"The health of the future Chinese economy will lay the groundwork for those contributions," Zhuang said.

Data from the International Monetary Fund showed China contributed 29.8 percent of the world's net economic growth between 2008 and 2012. Partly hit by sluggish external demand, the country's economy expanded only 7.8 percent last year, the slowest pace since 1999.

The next round of reforms should try to eradicate factors that hold the country back from growing sustainably, said Zhuang, citing problems including an over-reliance on investment and exports and unwise use of resources.

Zhuang's words tallied with those of Premier Li Keqiang, who reiterated that China's reform had entered a critical period when addressing a group of foreign members of the 21st Century Council in Beijing on Saturday.

Efforts should be made to overcome deep-rooted obstacles and push forward structural reforms, said Li, adding that fiscal reform, financial reform, price reform and reform within enterprises will all deepen.

Zhang Liqun, an analyst with the Development Research Center of the State Council, said the reforms will transform China's growth into a higher-level, lower cost and more sustainable growth pattern.

Accordingly, China's contribution to the world can be expected to grow in quality and efficiency, said Zhang.

In October, the Chinese central bank signed currency swap agreements totaling 350 billion yuan (57 billion U.S. dollars) with the European Central Bank in hopes of boosting bilateral trade, economic development and strengthening financial stability, a sign of the growing influence of the Chinese currency.

Various energy and environmental solutions have also been unveiled this year to improve China's energy structure, tackle overcapacity and boost new and emerging industries, which could help achieve cleaner and more sustainable growth.

In September, China announced a 1.75-trillion-yuan plan to curb air pollution in the next five years. Zhuang Jian said such efforts are in line with global trends and developments and are beneficial to neighboring countries as well.

Zhao Yumin, an analyst from the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation (CAITEC), said the past three decades of reform and opening up had taught China that it should actively integrate itself into the world economy.

Zhao said the newly established China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone (FTZ) is a key market-oriented reform, with a package of policy experiments in trade, investment, governance, and the financial and service sectors.

The CAITEC analyst said she expects the government to build a domestic market with competition and rule of law through the upcoming reform plans, while a macro-economic policy would be reinforced to guard against possible external risks.

Zhang Liqun also affirmed the significance of the Shanghai Pilot FTZ, anticipating that reform measures in the zone could exert influence on a broader scale and bring China's economic system up to international standards.

"As China connects with the world in greater depth, more contributions can be expected," Zhang said.

In one of the latest highlights of the government's administrative reform, the State Council decided last week to streamline the corporate registration system to ease market access and mobilize social resources, which analysts believe is a concrete step in improving China's business climate.

Source: Xinhua

China stock index futures open lower Thursday

China's stock index futures opened lower on Thursday, with the contract for settlement in November, the most actively traded, down 2.4 points to open at 2,353.

The contract for settlement in December opened 1.8 points lower at 2,355. The March 2014 contract slipped 3.8 points to 2,363.8, while the June 2014 contract opened at 2,367, down 1 point.

The stock-index contracts, agreements to buy or sell the Hushen 300 Index at a present value on an agreed date, are designed to allow investors to bet on and profit from either gains or declines in the market.

The index futures were launched at the China Financial Futures Exchange (CFFEX) and started trading from April 16, 2010. The CFFEX has set the base value for all the four contracts at 3,399 points.

Beijing to cut new car registration quota by 37.5 pct

The Beijing municipal government will slash its new car registration quota by 37.5 percent starting from 2014 and give more stake to new energy vehicles as part of its efforts to curb air pollution.

According to an interpretation of a five-year vehicle emission reduction plan (2013-2017), the number of newly registered cars will be cut from current 240,000 each year to 150,000 by 2017.

A five-year clean air action plan (2013-2017), released on Sept. 12, ruled that the total number of vehicles in the city would be restricted to around 6 million by the end of 2017.

The city had 5.4 million vehicles at the end of October, according to figures from the Beijing Traffic Management Bureau.

Among the 600,000 vehicles allowed to hit the road within the next four years, 170,000 will be new energy vehicles which include battery electric, plug-in hybrid and fuel cell ones.

In 2014, a quota of 20,000 new car registration will be given to new energy vehicles, and 30,000 in 2015.

In 2016 and 2017, that figure will be doubled from that for 2015 to 60,000 respectively.

Source: Xinhua

Li Keqiang calls for modern agriculture development

 Chinese Premier Li Keqiang has urged efforts to push forward comprehensive reforms in the country's first approved pilot sites of agricultural modernization.

Li made the call during an inspection tour that took him to the cities of Tongjiang, Fuyuan and Harbin in northeast China's Heilongjiang Province from Nov. 4 to Nov. 6.

He stressed the importance of deepening reform in accelerating modern agriculture, which calls for innovation in agricultural production and operational systems, making sure that rural people's rights and interests are preserved.

The Premier visited Hongqi Village in Fuyuan and inspected arable land and a modern farm machinery center which provides services for thousands of farmers.

He praised the pioneering spirit and encouraged local farmers and government to work out a proper model in developing modern agriculture in accordance with local conditions.

Li also inspected the harvest and storage of autumn grain crops at Nongqiao grain depot in Fuyuan, where he stressed the role of a logistics network for farm produce in supporting modern agriculture.

He urged the public and governments at all levels to strive for better market regulations and price controls so as to realize food security.

In April, the State Council, China's cabinet, rolled out its first major reform in the sector, experimenting with schemes to accelerate modern agriculture.

The development of modern agriculture practices is "an important strategic mission" that will sustain economic growth, increase income for farmers and improve people's well-being, according to a statement issued by the State Council in April after an executive meeting presided over by Li.

The experiments are restricted to Heilongjiang Province, one of the country's top grain production regions in northeast China.

Large-scale farming is supported by the government, as farmers are encouraged to grow their joint partnerships, family farms or cooperatives.

The government pledged deeper reforms in the rural land management system to speed up the transfer of land to improve efficiency and promote large-scale commercial farming.

The government also vowed to improve financial services in rural areas, increase compensation for major grain-producing regions and boost agriculture-related technological innovation.

During the inspection tour, Li also visited local villagers affected by summer floods and told the local government to guarantee that people will be safe and warm this winter.

Source: Xinhua

Japan: SDF deploys missiles to Okinawa for drill

The Self-Defense Forces delivered surface-to-ship missiles to Miyakojima island of Okinawa Prefecture for the first time ever on Wednesday to conduct a military drill against warships.

The drill kicked off the same day at an SDF base on the island as part of a large-scale exercise that began Friday with the aim of beefing up the SDF's ability to defend remote Japanese islands.

Source: NewsOnJapan

Japan Post discloses improper handling of chilled parcels

Japan Post Co. said Wednesday that it has found cases of improper temperature management in its parcel delivery service for refrigerated products.

After receiving 22 complaints where packages that should have been delivered while chilled arrived without such care over six months to September, the company has launched an investigation of its some 3,600 collection and delivery bases across the country.

Under the company's rules, deliverers are required to carry such chilled parcels in cool bags until they hand them over on the doorstep of their destinations. However, some may have delivered and sorted parcels without keeping them cool, it said.

Source: NewsOnJapan

China's Xi asks military to uphold CPC's leadership

Chinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday called on the military to uphold the leadership of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and advocated strengthened Party building in the military.

Loyalty to the CPC is "the soul and lifeblood" of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA), and the primary task to enhance Party building in the military is to ensure the CPC's absolute leadership, Xi said.

Xi, also chairman of the Central Military Commission(CMC), said Party building is the "core issue" in the development of the Chinese military.

The President called for efforts to arm military officers with Party theories and required them to follow the command of the CPC Central Committee and CMC "at any time and under any circumstances."

Party committees should play a leading role and Party members should set an example in promoting Party building in the military and strengthening the military's combat effectiveness, he said.

Xi asked Party members in the military to relay "criticism and self-criticism," consolidate Party unity, enforce Party discipline, fight against corruption, and clean up undesirable work styles such as formalism, bureaucracy, hedonism and extravagance.

"Criticism and self-criticism" is part of the national "mass line" education campaign, which was launched by the CPC in June to boost ties between CPC officials, members and the public.

In "criticism and self-criticism" sessions, Party officials examine their own shortcomings as well as those of their colleagues at what are known as "democratic meetings."

Xi said he believes it is important for the military to both carry on its fine traditions and embrace innovation regarding Party building as China's social conditions and the composition of Party members have undergone profound changes.

He called for efforts to bring forth innovation in Party building and enhance Party committees' creativity, cohesion and combat effectiveness in the military.

Jetman flies around Mt Fuji's Peak

A Swiss adventurer with a jet wing-suit has completed flights around Mt. Fuji, Japan's highest summit, to celebrate its designation as a World Heritage Site.

Former pilot Yves Rossy is an adventurer known as "Jetman." He flies the world's skies at 300 kilometers per hour with jet-wing, which he developed himself.After he launched himself from a helicopter on Wednesday, 4 jet engines started.
He reportedly soared as high as 3,657 meters, a little lower than Mt. Fuji's peak

Source: NewsOnJapan

China Focus: Ocean development index to boost marine economy

Readings from China's first ocean development index were published on Wednesday and will provide valuable information as the country looks to boost its marine economy and build itself into a maritime power.

The index figures showed the growth of the marine industry during a five-year period.

The Xinhua Ocean Development Index rose from 100 to 275.37 between 2006 and 2011, with an annual average growth rate of 23.18 percent. This was much higher than the annual average economic growth rate of 10.52 percent in the same period, said the report.

The index included four sub-indices, namely industry development, science and technology innovation, environmental resources and marine management.

China's marine sector is being transformed through improvement of its marine industry structure, rapid growth of the offshore oil and gas industry, marine engineering construction and marine tourism, said the report.

The index showed China's marine development has enormous potential and a strong momentum, said the report, which was jointly released by the Xinhua (Qingdao) International Ocean Information Center and the State Financial Information Center Index Research Institute.

As regards the country's marine environment, the report said heavily polluted waters in relation to the total proportion of marine pollution increased substantially, indicating the pollution situation is very poor.

China's marine management has been gradually improving, the report said.

There has been a significant increase in maritime law enforcement inspections, but no significant decline in violations found, indicating China's determination and to improve management and resolutely safeguard national marine rights and interests and heavy tasks ahead, the report said.

Cao Wenzhong, president of the information center, said the rise of the index showed the remarkable progress made by China in its marine development and capabilities.

The key report to the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China last November outlined the "maritime power" strategy, calling for increased capacity for exploiting marine resources, protecting the marine environment and safeguarding the country's maritime rights and interests.

At a study session in July, Chinese President Xi Jinping called for efforts to learn more about and further manage maritime development, and underscored efforts to make marine industries a pillar of the national economy.

The ocean development index report was released at the 2013 China International Blue Economy Summit Forum, which was held in the coastal city of Qingdao, Shandong Province on Wednesday.

Source: Xinhua

Japan's dishonest labelling scandal spreads to top department stores

Japan's hotels, restaurants and food shops were being warned on Wednesday over dishonest labelling amid a growing scandal that is threatening to undermine the country's reputation for safe, high-quality produce.

The direction comes as top department stores became the latest Japanese firms to admit they had been selling food with labels falsely claiming high-quality or expensive ingredients.

"It's extremely regrettable as it seriously undermines consumer confidence," Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga told a regular press conference, speaking about the widening scandal.

"The Consumer Affairs Agency will take strict actions under the law (against misleading representations)," he said.

Suga, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's right-hand man, was speaking after luxury department store chain Takashimaya admitted that for years labels claiming the use of top-of-the-range prawns or freshly-squeezed orange juice sat on produce made with inferior ingredients.

For example, the department store used giant tiger prawns to make a "Japanese tiger prawn" terrine, sold under the luxury French brand Fauchon.

Japanese tiger prawn is widely considered a top shrimp and one that can command premium prices in this seafood-loving nation, while giant tiger prawns are more widely available.

The company insisted that the wide range of false labelling were honest mistakes, echoing excuses from a string of hotels that had long served meals claiming quality ingredients that were not part of the dish.

Xi stresses at NUDT, military talent, technology innovation.

Chinese President Xi Jinping has urged a key university to make more efforts in fostering high-quality military talent and developing innovative science and technology projects.

Xi made the remarks Tuesday during an inspection at the National University of Defense Technology (NUDT), which is based in the city of Changsha in central China's Hunan Province.

The NUDT, which evolved from the Military Engineering Institute of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) founded in 1953, has played a key role in providing high-caliber military technicians and developing advanced weapons and equipment for the country.

While visiting an exhibition of various science and technology projects by the NUDT, Xi praised the university for its fruitful innovation drive, urging the university's technology innovation personnel to continue its hard work and strive for more achievement.

In June, the NUDT announced that it had again built the world's fastest supercomputer, the Tianhe-2, capable of performing 33.86 quadrillion operations per second and surpassing the U.S. Titan supercomputer.

The computer's predecessor, the Tianhe-1A, was the world's fastest supercomputer from November 2010 to June 2011, when it was surpassed by Japan's K computer.

Stressing ideological and political work as a major supporting force in realizing the goal of strengthening the army, Xi said that the goal should be embedded in all stages and aspects of the university's operation.

Xi called for a strong sense of politics among officers and soldiers, urging them to "unwaveringly uphold the basic principle and system of the army under the absolute leadership of the Communist Party of China (CPC)."

Xi stressed that the army should keep pace with the CPC Central Committee and the Central Military Commission and resolutely listen to their command.

Meanwhile, Xi told the university to research the characteristics and patterns of modern military education and boost educational quality so as to foster more military talent to shoulder the heavy task of reinforcing the army.

According to Xi, the NUDT should coordinate its scientific research capacity and resources while ensuring that science and technology innovation are closely linked with real combat and army service.

Source: Xinhua

Chinese shares drop as PBOC signals deleveraging

 Chinese shares fell on Wednesday after the central bank signaled it would reduce economic leveraging and that it expected CPI to rise this quarter.

The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index fell 0.82 percent, or 17.63 points, to finish at 2,139.61. The Shenzhen Component Index plummeted 1.94 percent, or 163.87 points, to finish at 8,287.86.

Combined turnover on the two bourses increased to 187.43 billion yuan (30.49 billion U.S. dollars) from 27.02 billion yuan on the previous trading day.

Only about 600 shares on the two bourses saw gains and 24 of them ended the trading day with the 10-percent increase daily cap.

The People's Bank of China (PBOC), the central bank, released its monetary policy implementation report on Tuesday, pointing out that the economy may go through a long process of reducing leverages and production capacity and that it expected a CPI rise in the fourth quarter.

Stocks in the banking sector led Wednesday's fall, as the country's banking regulator China Banking Regulatory Commission mulls enhancing liquidity regulations in commercial banks.

Stocks related to gasoline reform, environmental protection and shale gas led the gains as China's leading economic planner, the National Development and Reform Commission, looks to promote the use of natural gas to replace gasoline and coal to cut down pollutant emissions so as to tackle worsening smog.

Sinopec, the country's top oil refiner, which announced Tuesday that its major shareholders raised share holdings, rose 2.16 percent to 4.72 yuan per share. PetroChina, the nation's largest oil and gas producer, surged 1.28 percent to 7.91 yuan.

The ChiNext Index, a NASDAQ-style board tracking China's growth enterprises, dropped 1.45 percent, or 18.24 points, to close at 1,241.79 points.

Source: Xinhua

Mr Abe Japan's Tough leader?Once Again? Japanese Diet committee OKs bill to launch U.S.-style.

Japan moved closer Wednesday to creating a U.S.-style National Security Council as a Diet committee approved a bill to set up the new framework for gathering information and speeding up decision-making in diplomacy and defense.

With the backing of the House of Representatives' Special Committee on National Security, the lower house will likely pass the bill on Thursday, increasing the likelihood it will be enacted before the current extraordinary Diet session ends on Dec. 6.If established, the NSC will empower the prime minister's office to take the lead in crafting foreign and defense policy by gathering information from various ministries and agencies.

Source: NewsOnJapan

China’s Ministry of Commerce held a press conference about the pawn business.

The pawn business is a sector that often gets a bad rep.

But in reality, pawn brokering is not only a great way for SMEs to receive fast cash, but also a nice addition to large banks. Pawn shops can also help recycle second hand products. Earlier today, China’s Ministry of Commerce held a press conference about the pawn business.

Old stuff shinning like new.

Easily mistaken for a luxury mall, a pawn shop usually sits in the middle of a busy shopping district.

Sterotypical pawn shops are viewed as institutions for poor people...and during old times they partially were.Nowadays in Beijing, some ancient pawn shops can still be found in the city.

Not only the nature of pawn brokering has changed, the business itself has also been growing

In the first three quarters of this year, about 7000 pawn shops were registered, and the total sum of loan they launched for pawners has seen a more than 23% annual growth.

But what does the future hold? will there be any competition?

Now within the Shanghai Free trade zone, the pawn business is even open for foreign investment - Under regulation of course, with over 1600 years of history, the pawn business is still slowly growing in modern China.

Source: CCTV

Roadless wheel concept adjusts to all terrains

Graduate student Ackeem Ngwenya has combined the 6000 year-old wheel with modern materials to develop a new type of all-terrain wheel assembly that switches from narrow to wide tread at the turn of a screw. His Roadless wheel system, while envisioned for rural applications in his native Malawi, has the potential to be as big a change to road (and off-road) transport as was the introduction of anti-lock braking.
We've all done it. Before embarking on a long driving trip on smooth-surfaced interstate highways or other roads of national importance, we'll raise the tire pressure to boost the gas mileage a bit. Stuck in the snow, mud, or sand? Let some pressure out of the tires to increase the contact area, while at the same time increasing the chances that the now floppy tire will grab hold. However, the benefits of trying to change the aspect ratio of a tire by simply changing pressure are rather minor, and often associated with a significant loss in tire lifetime.

The Roadless wheel system attempts to throw out the limitations of a pneumatic tire by substituting a tread material wrapped around a pair of rod networks attached by an axle. The rods are adjusted using a mechanism reminiscent of a scissor jack.

When the disks on which the rods are mounted are far apart, the wheel takes the form of a wide tire of small diameter. When the disks are moved close together, the wheel becomes a narrow tire of large diameter. The proximate rods from the two disks are mutually attached to a fixed bearing.

 The tread of the wheel must be sufficiently compliant to adapt to the changing aspect ratio of the wheel, so is likely to be some form of elastomer.

Alternately, the wheel can include compliant members that directly form the shape and supporting mechanism for the tread, which can then be as simple as a sheet of rubber.

Source: Gizmag

China: Small petrol firms call to break monopolies in the sector

The third plenum of China’s 18th CPC central committee will kick off in Beijing this Saturday. It's expected to inaugurate extensive economic reforms. Media reports indicate part of those reforms could well be breaking up monopolies in the country’s energy sector.

At two Petroleum stations in Shanghai, drivers said they routinely choose smaller stations rather than ones run by bigger players mainly for lower prices. Mr Lu has been a taxi driver for eight years.

"For taxis, the cheaper the better. Sometimes Sinopec offers discounts during the evening, but here there are discounts all day long." said Mr lu, taxi driver.

The price of number 92 fuel at this Dongliang station is 0.3 yuan per liter cheaper than that at the Sinopec station nearby. Sinopec’s price is 7.75 yuan per liter. Staff at the station says they usually try to undersell the market, and drivers confirm this.

"Compared with Sinopec and PetroChina, there are discounts here. " a driver said.

China, the world’s second-largest oil user, already relies on imports for 60 percent of its consumption and is set to double its fuel use by 2030. But right now, large state-owned oil companies still monopolize the sector. It’s not easy for smaller private operations to gain market share against the big established companies.

"In Shanghai, private stations may take up only 5 or ten percent of the market. It could be more in the suburbs. It’s just like a movie -- when the seats are full, there’s no room for late-comers." said Chen Xian, Executive Dean, School of Economics, Shanghai Jiaotong Univ..

China’s leading oil and gas producer PetroChina and Asia’s largest refiner Sinopec reported last week net profit growth of some 20 percent in the third quarter. They are benefiting from higher refining margins following Beijing’s loosening of price controls earlier this year. Domestic prices are now allowed to more closely follow international levels. But there are doubts over how far Beijing will go to shake up the state-owned firms, given the difficulty of making large-scale changes, but there is no doubt over what the effects could be.

"Competition will help consumers to get better service and prices. The oil price would be 10 percent cheaper if the oil sector were open to more players." said Chen Xian, Executive Dean, School of Economics, Shanghai Jiaotong Univ..

China’s retail oil price has risen nearly 40 percent since 2009.

France. Affaire Leonarda : la mobilisation lycéenne s'essouffle

"Leonarda Dibrani, 15 ans, avait été expulsée le 9 octobre du Doubs vers le Kosovo après avoir été interpellée par la police lors d'une sortie scolaire. Khatchik Kachatryan, 19 ans, lycéen à Paris a, lui, été expulsé le 12 octobre vers l'Arménie.

L'affaire Leonarda a donné lieu, mardi 5 novembre, à de nouvelles manifestations dans plusieurs villes et des perturbations dans quelques lycées parisiens. Cependant, la mobilisation des lycéens et des étudiants pour réclamer l'arrêt des expulsions de jeunes étrangers scolarisés semblait s'essouffler.

A la mi-journée à Paris, quelques centaines de manifestants défilaient à l'appel de la Fédération indépendante et démocratique lycéenne (FIDL), de l'Union nationale lycéenne (UNL) et de l'Union nationale des étudiants de France (UNEF), sous la pluie et sous bonne escorte policière. Lucas Ravaud, du Mouvement interlycéen indépendant, un collectif informel, a évoqué la présence de 1 000 à 2 000 personnes. A titre de comparaison, les manifestations précédentes avant les vacances de la Toussaint avaient mobilisé plusieurs milliers de jeunes.

La FIDL appelle en outre à "une semaine d'actions" à partir de lundi 11 novembre et à une deuxième manifestation jeudi. L'UNL pourrait également se mobiliserjeudi.

Selon le rectorat de Paris, 18 lycées – sur une centaine – ont été "perturbés" dans la matinée. La FIDL a recensé 30 lycées "lourdement perturbés à Paris", dont Charlemagne (4e arrondissement) ou Victor-Hugo (3e).

Des lycées de Rouen, Nancy, Gardanne, Marseille et Mende ont également été perturbés, selon la police. Des manifestations sont par ailleurs annoncées àStrasbourg, Metz, Reims, Lille (à l'appel de la Confédération générale du travail (CGT), de la Confédération française démocratique du travail (CFDT), de la Fédération syndicale unitaie (FSU), et de Solidaires), Marseille, Bordeaux et Alençon.

Le ministre de l'éducation nationale, Vincent Peillon,a exhorte lundi les lyceens mobilises a ne pas recourir a la "violence" et aux "blocus"."Leur émotion légitime a été entendue, dit-il, le premier ministre et le ministre de l'intérieur ont rédigé une circulaire qui sanctuarise l'école et le périscolaire." M. Peillon a cependant exclu toute autre mesure susceptible d'assouplir la législation en matière d'expulsion de familles d'enfants scolarisés. 

  Leonarda Dibrani a assuré ne pas vouloir regagner la France sans ses parents".

Source: Le Monde

Asia stocks subdued, euro rebounds to one-week high ahead of ECB

"Asian stocks got off to sluggish start on Thursday as investors hunkered down to take the latest pulse on the U.S. economy and implications for the Federal Reserve's easy money policy, while the euro perked up ahead of the European Central Bank meeting.

"All eyes will be on Friday's nonfarm payrolls data for further gauge on when the Fed will begin winding down its $85 billion-a-month bond-buying program.

Before that, investors will look to the first reading of U.S. third-quarter GDP data later in the day. Economists in a Reuters survey forecast a 2.0 percent annualized pace of growth compared with a 2.5 percent rate in the second-quarter".

"Markets were range bound ahead of the ECB and U.S. GDP data tonight, and U.S. payrolls on Friday," ANZ bank analysts said in a note.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan inched down 0.1 percent after snapping a four-day losing streak on Wednesday with a flat performance.

The single currency hovered near one-week highs against the dollar as strong German data prompted investors to scale back expectations of an ECB rate cut at its policy meeting later in the global day.

"The recent data enables them to wait till December and announce the rate cut as part of their broader inflation/growth forecasting exercise."

The euro was steady at $1.3515, having risen 0.3 percent on Wednesday on the back of the slight shift in expectations.

The single currency was also aided by new research papers from two of the Fed's top staff economists for more aggressive action by the U.S. central bank to drive down unemployment by promising to hold interest rates lower for longer".

Source: Reuters

Abe Risks Ire of Rice Farmers, Consumers With Latest Proposals

The Wall Street Journal Reports,"in a surprise move, Mr. Abe's ruling Liberal Democratic Party approved a plan that called for ending production rationing and across-the-board cash handouts to farmers in five years, curbing support for a key bloc that has kept the party in power for most of the postwar period".

"The proposal is part of a broader package being crafted by the LDP and the government to ease trade barriers in agriculture and other politically influential sectors, as Mr. Abe steers Japan to join an emerging pan-Pacific trade bloc endorsed by the U.S".

"But hours before the farm announcement, Mr. Abe's health minister disappointed some of the prime minister's allies by unveiling a closely watched plan for regulating online sales of over-the-counter medicines. While the market is relatively small, Mr. Abe earlier this year had made it a symbol of his push to cut red tape, vowing to set the same set of rules for e-commerce companies as brick-and-mortar drugstores. After intense pushback from pharmacies and concerns raised by safety advocates, he instead decided to put forth legislation that restricts online sales for the most potent OTC medications".

"That prompted a blistering news conference from Internet mogul Hiroshi Mikitani, once a strong supporter of Mr. Abe who said he would quit one of Mr. Abe's economic advisory panels in protest over the decision. "We were supposed to make it easier for businesses to do new things, and encourage innovation—we're about to go in the exact opposite direction," the chief executive of Rakuten Inc.,an online marketplace, told reporters.

Germany, Britain shine but Europe's recovery still fragile

 "The euro zone's economic recovery lost a little momentum last month, according to surveys that showed only modest growth in German and French businesses.

Data from non-euro zone Britain impressed again, however, and German industrial orders jumped underlining the uneven nature of overall European recovery.

Wednesday's purchasing managers' indexes (PMIs) from Markit showed the pace of growth in euro zone businesses slipped last month, although not nearly as badly as first projections.

Taken as a whole, the indexes pointed to fragile economic growth that will do little to ease the pressure on the European Central Bank to take some action, although not perhaps at its policy meeting on Thursday.

With surprisingly low inflation last month, speculation in markets and among economists has grown that the ECB is primed to stimulate the economy again - perhaps next month.

Overall, the tone of the data on Wednesday were mixed. German industrial orders rose at a far faster pace than expected in September, but euro zone retails sales slipped more than predicted during the same month.

By contrast, British indicators added to evidence the UK is spearheading Europe's recovery from recession.

UK industrial output in September came in much better than the Reuters consensus, following on from Tuesday's upbeat business surveys.

The Bank of England meets on Wednesday and Thursday and is not expected to change policy, having said it will keep interest rates at their record low until unemployment falls to 7 percent.

Economists expect the Bank to bring forward its expectation for when that will happen - currently late 2016 - when it publishes new forecasts next week.

The euro tip-toed away from a seven-week low on Wednesday after the data, as talk of extending the lifespan of the U.S. Federal Reserve's stimulus helped balance expectations of easing by the ECB in coming months".

Source: Reuters