Oil settles near US$80 a barrel again
NEW YORK: Oil prices hit US$80 a barrel Friday to end a wild trading week that saw prices swing in the opposite direction every day.
Appeals court reinstates US$2bil lawsuit over McDonald’s hot sandwich
ALEXANDRIA, Virginia: It’s been nearly five years since carnival operator Frank Sutton bit into a chicken sandwich at a McDonald’s at a truck stop in Virginia. The legal world is still dealing with the ramifications.
Fastweb founder jailed in US$2.7bil money laundering probe
ROME: Businessman Silvio Scaglia has been jailed pending questioning in a probe of an alleged euro2 billion (US$2.7 billion) money laundering operations involving two Italian Internet and phone companies, Italian news agencies said Friday.
PepsiCo finishes US$7.8bil buyout of 2 bottlers
PURCHASE, New York: PepsiCo closed the deal to buy its two biggest bottlers Friday – a move that’s expected to shake up the beverage industry.
California cuts deficit by selling 11 buildings for US$2bil
SACRAMENTO, California: California has put the “for sale” sign on 11 state office buildings, including the San Francisco Civic Center and the Ronald Reagan State Building in Los Angeles, as a way to raise cash to shrink the budget deficit.
US growth likely slowing after big year-end spurt
WASHINGTON: The recovery is losing steam.The U.S. economy is now likely expanding at just half the brisk 5.9 percent pace at which the government on Friday estimated it grew last quarter.
Fannie Mae seeks US$15.3bil in new govt aid bringing total to US$75bil
WASHINGTON: Fannie Mae is asking for a federal cash infusion of US$15.3 billion after posting another big loss in the fourth quarter of last year.
China still biggest foreign buyer of US securities at US$894bil
WASHINGTON: The government now says that China did not lose its place in December as the largest foreign holder of U.S. Treasury debt.
US stocks higher after mixed economic news
NEW YORK: The stock market eked out a gain Friday as investors took downbeat economic news in stride.
Was billionaire club founder Blixseth ever a billionaire?
MISSOULA, Montana: The actual size of Yellowstone Club founder Tim Blixseth’s fortune could soon come to light as a a judge considers whether the high-flying real estate developer took hundreds of millions of dollars in a fraud scheme that left the exclusive resort broke.
507-carat rough diamond sold for record US$35mil
LONDON: A 507-carat diamond as big as a chicken’s egg sold for US$35.3 million (euro25.8 million), breaking the record for the highest price ever paid for a rough diamond, the supplier said Friday.
Lawmaker: Toyota withheld crash lawsuit evidence
Sealink wins charters, vessel sale contracts
KUCHING: Miri-based Sealink International Bhd has secured contracts for two long-term charters of its offshore support vessels and the sale of a similar vessel to a foreign buyer. The contracts are worth a total RM58mil.
Strong orders for automated equipment
GEORGE TOWN: While the local automated equipment manufacturers are getting unusually strong orders for the first and second quarters, they are unable to make long-term expansion plans due to the lack of market visibility for the second half of 2010.
Swee Joo seeks to pare down gearing
KUCHING: Highly-geared shipping firm Swee Joo Bhd is mulling over fund-raising exercises to pare down its borrowings. Its short-term loans and long-term liabilities stood at RM500mil as at Sept 30, 2009.
Asian markets pick up steam
PETALING JAYA: Key Asian equity markets traded higher yesterday as investors returned, albeit cautiously, boosted by a slew of better-than-expected news from the region, say analysts.
All segments lift Xingquan earnings
PETALING JAYA: Shoemaker Xingquan International Sports Holdings Ltd posted a net profit of RM30.6mil for the second quarter ended Dec 31, a 34.1% increase compared with the previous corresponding period, mainly driven by improved sales for all its product segments.
More room for womens participation in decision-making
KUALA LUMPUR: There is still room for greater participation by women in key decision-making areas in both public and private sectors.
Your 10 Questions
SP Setia Bhd president and CEO Tan SriLiew Kee Sin fields the 10 questions posedto him by our readers.
Up Close and Personal with Royal Prof Ungku Aziz
Royal Prof Ungku Aziz, former vice-chancelor of Universiti Malaya keeps himself busy with book on pantun.
Tabung Haji in the limelight
Recent events have raised questions about the pilgrim funds investment decisions. We examine how the fund operates and talk to its newly appointed chief investment officer.
Halim defends his resignation
FORMER Lembaga Tabung Haji (LTH) chief investment officer (CIO) Abdul Halim Alias, who resigned from his post earlier this month in an apparent fallout with CEO Datuk Ismee Ismail, says he took the decision to quit because he claims that he can no longer perform his duties without compromising his principles.
What happened at Petra Perdana
OIL and gas outfit Petra Perdana Bhd is experiencing a tussle forcontrol that has abated somewhat since its controversial EGM heldon Feb 4. The marathon shareholder meeting on that day resulted inthe removal of four Petra Perdana directors, including its co-founderand chief executiv e Teng ku Ibrahim Petra.
Its business as usual
Acting CIO says there is no management crisis at Tabung Haji.
Size is not an issue for Tabung Haji if theres growth, its a buy
PILGRIM funds are characteristically seen as moderate and traditional, maybe even a little humdrum. This orthodox behaviour cannot be said about Malaysias haj pilgrims fund board, Lembaga Tabung Haji (LTH).
CR in Malaysia commendable
PETALING JAYA: The consensus of various organisations, including regulators, environmental experts and companies (local and foreign) indicates that Malaysias level of corporate responsibility (CR) benchmarked against most other Asian countries (excluding Japan, South Korea, Singapore and China) is commendable and on a strong growth path.
MSWG says there’s still room to further improve CR
THE Minority Shareholder Watchdog Group (MSWG) feels that there is still room for improvement in corporate responsibility (CR) although many local companies have made great strides in their initiatives.
Oversea ready to take the next step
FROM humble beginnings in 1977, Oversea Enterprise Bhd, owner and operator of Restoran Oversea has today become a recognisable name for Chinese cuisine. Its next milestone a listing on the ACE Market of Bursa Malaysia tentatively slated for end-March 2010.
Gearing for a new world order
Malaysias economy has exited recession; the next challenge is to maintain the momentum as the global system undergoes structural transformation.
StanChart Islamic arm to expand SME products
FUELLED by a wider product range, branch expansion and marketing campaigns, Standard Chartered Saadiq Bhd expects to at least maintain a double digit compounded annual growth rate for its small and medium enterprise (SME) business over the next few years.
Seven tips for SMEs
WITH such high expectations for recovery, prospects look good for small and medium enterprises (SMEs). Nevertheless, success is never guaranteed.
Professional financial planners
FINANCIAL planning (FP) should be viewed as a profession where unbiased and independent advice is provided to clients covering all personal financial matters and services.
Tariff guessing game in the power sector
Anita Gabriel laments on the guessing game of power tariff hike.
Not-so-sweet PN17
Financially distressed companies spiral downwards with odd moves
Fulfilling the agenda of NEP and Vision 2020
Terence Gomez mentions the Government Transformation Programme which serves as a precursor for other government plans.
How safe are your dollars?
Chinese officials and private investors around the world have been worrying aloud about whether their dollar investments are safe.
The kiss of debt
Lin See-Yan touches on how ballooning fiscal deficits and rising public debt are raising investor anxiety about sovereign risk in many advanced economies.
That idyllic home for retirement
Carol Yip advises on the need to plan thoroughly for retirement.
Seberang Prai becomes popular
THE Seberang Prai residential property market is facing robust demand in both the landed and high-rise segments.
The Chinese love for properties
China, Hong Kong and Singapore’s buoyant property markets.
Governing authorities should work towards a construction benchmark
THE need for a high quality culture to be adopted for all construction projects, whether they are public or private structures or facilities, cannot be over emphasised as the peoples safety should be of paramount importance.
The inconvenient truth about award shows
AWARDS season is upon the Malaysian advertising industry again, starting with the Asia Pacific Advertising Festival (AdFest) on March 18-21 in Pattaya, Thailand.
IRB needs a human face
FOR some of us, the income tax shock came a bit early this year. Last week I received the CP500 notice from the Inland Revenue Board (IRB), telling me that I must pay it six instalments of RM55 every two months.
A house divided
Paul Loosley opines that there is an inter-dependence in the making of adverts that needs to be recognised again.
Asians becoming more adept in using mobile and online technologies
ASIAN consumers are becoming more open to digital and mobile advertising and online commerce, says Universal McCann (Malaysia) chief executive officer Prashant Kumar.
Upbeat but shaky
By CECILIA KOK
Expert answers to the global meltdown
Freefall: America, free markets and the sinking of the world economy – Review by ABBY WONG
Snapshots
REVIEWS by THEAN LEE CHENG
China banks bad debt ratio drops
BEIJING: The bad debt ratio at Chinese banks fell to 1.48% of total loans at the end of January from 1.58% at the start of the year, the banking regulator said yesterday.
ANZ earnings rise on lower debt charges
SYDNEY: Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ), Australias fourth largest lender, joined rivals in posting a strong earnings rise but cautioned debt charges for the full year could be higher than the first four months.
UOB eyes growth as net profit surges
SINGAPORE: Singapores third biggest bank United Overseas Bank (UOB) posted its best quarterly profit since June 2008 as the city-states lenders recovered from the depths of the global financial crisis, and are poised for more growth in 2010.
BoJ may expand supply of funds by mid-year, say analysts
TOKYO: Japans narrowest measure of consumer inflation matched a record annual fall in January in a sign weak demand will prolong deflation and may prompt the Bank of Japan to expand its supply of funds to the market by mid-year.
Apples Jobs says must think big on cash hoard
CUPERTINO: Apple Inc CEO Steve Jobs said his company has to think big and its US$40bil cash hoard offers flexibility, suggesting that he had no immediate plans to spend the money on a share buyback or dividend.
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