Sunday SHANGRI-LA Asia's partly owned China World Trade Centre in Beijing is to raise more than one billion yuan (about HK$930.69 million) through an A-share listing in Shanghai shortly. As one of the largest listings of recent years, it will set a new trend among 30-odd mainland corporations which have received approval to sell shares to foreign investors. (SCMP) IN A bid to boost Hong Kong's competitiveness as the region's container hub, the Government plans to adopt a series of measures to lower container transport costs by about 10 per cent. It aims to narrow the cost premium of Hong Kong over Shenzhen's container port from 20 to 30 per cent to 10 to 20 per cent.
(Economic Times) A COMPANY source reveals Tokyu Department Store is selling various assets, including Central's Dragon Seed Building, Tokyu department store, two Dragon Seed department stores and four Hugo shops. Dragon Seed Building's redevelopment value is attractive, as the existing building has not fully exploited the permissible plot ratio. (Economic Times) Monday GOVERNMENT figures reveal exports fell 9.3 per cent in value to $113.1 billion in November from a year earlier, with domestic exports and re-exports tumbling 15.8 and 8.2 per cent respectively. Imports fell 14.4 per cent, showing weak domestic demand. (SCMP) THE head of financial advisory services for PricewaterhouseCoopers, Chris Barlow, says Hong Kong could face an excessive number of corporate collapses if the Government requires firms to meet staff redundancy costs as part of a proposed scheme of provisional supervision. (SCMP) SHENZHEN officials unveil plans to build a new urban central district, involving initial investment of 12 billion yuan (about HK$11.16 billion). The city centre will provide jobs for 260,000 people, and will be linked to Hong Kong's northwest rail extension by a new underground railway by 2004. (SCMP) Tuesday A SPOKESMAN for the Financial Supervisory Commission says HSBC Holdings is close to reaching an agreement to acquire a majority stake in Korea First Bank, one of Korea's 10 largest commercial banks. (SCMP) HONG KONG has suffered three consecutive quarters of negative growth for the first time in 30 years. The Government says the SAR's third-quarter gross domestic product dropped 7.1 per cent year on year. A 10 per cent drop in consumer spending and a 7 per cent dip in visible trade are blamed for the GDP slump. (SCMP) BEIJING passes the country's first national Securities law, comprising 250 sets of provisional regulations governing the rapidly growing but scandal-ridden securities markets. Expectation of the law's imminent passage have triggered capital flight from the Shanghai and Shenzhen markets in recent weeks. (SCMP) Wednesday HONG KONG Monetary Authority chief executive Joseph Yam Chi-kwong says tougher trading conditions next year will drive some banks into the red. With an average capital-adequacy ratio of 18.5 per cent - high by international standards - he expects provisions to go up slightly. (SCMP) CALLING next year 'a year of reform', Securities and Futures Commission chairman Andrew Sheng says the commission is planning a number of reform measures, including regulation of Internet trading, criminalisation of insider dealing and improvements to the 'technological infrastructure'. (SCMP) THE Government releases further figures underlining the disastrous performance of the economy. Provisional figures show manufacturing prices have fallen 2 per cent in the third quarter from a year earlier. Also, restaurant receipts and tonnage of seaborne cargo have dropped 4 per cent and 7 per cent respectively. (SCMP) Thursday A US investment consortium led by Newbridge Capital beats HSBC Holdings in the race to acquire Korea First Bank, the first big foreign acquisition of a South Korean institution. HSBC loses out mainly because it has asked to buy a higher stake than required by the American consortium. Analysts expect HSBC to bid for Seoul Bank. (SCMP) SINGAPORE officially slips into a recession for the first time since 1985, with its third-quarter gross domestic product shrinking 1.5 per cent in the fourth quarter, after having contracted 0.7 per cent in the third quarter. Analysts expect further pressure in the trade and financial sectors for this year. (SCMP) PREMIER Zhu Rongji has revealed to magazine Banyue Tan that Guangdong International Trust and Investment Corp (Gitic) has debts of more than $2.5 billion, higher than the $1.8 billion-$2 billion estimated earlier. Mr Zhu said the closure of Gitic will not hurt Guangdong's image, but help it develop. (SCMP) Friday A SURVEY of more than 20 brokerages and banks in Hong Kong suggests the Hang Seng Index could rise to about 11,277 points in the coming year, with most forecasters looking for the bulk of the gains in the second half. (SCMP) MORE than 4,000 investors lost 363 million yuan (about HK$337.84 million) in a futures scam, one of the biggest financial scandals to hit Beijing last year, and are unlikely to get any of their money back, according to an official investigation. (SCMP) AFTER the most traumatic 12 months in a generation, economists and Government officials forecast a turnaround in Hong Kong's economic fortunes in the second half of this year. However, the improvement will be modest and preceded by more financial pain, they say. (SCMP)