bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

moreOnThisArticles

urlAlias

commentCount

sponsorType

authorLocations

authors

paywallTypes

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

socialHeadline

headline

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

publishedDate

additionalInfoBoxes

images

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

createdDate

sponsor

factSheets

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

copyrighted

customTimezone

liveContents

SCMP Reporter

Fund products to soar under MPF Sales of fund products are expected to rise fivefold in the 10 years after December's launch of the Mandatory Provident Fund (MPF), according to outgoing Hong Kong Investment Funds Association chairman Murray Simpson.

 Mr Simpson expects up to 10 per cent of the population will be investing in fund products five years after the introduction of the MPF plans, up from 4 per cent now. This would grow to 20 per cent 10 years after the launch.

 The introduction of the MPF plans would boost employees' interest in investing in other fund products.

 Under the MPF ordinance, employers will choose the service providers for their companies' plans, while employees will choose the investment funds into which to put their money.

Exchange studies hi-tech index The Hong Kong Futures Exchange is studying the feasibility of introducing a technology futures index in a bid to tap the sector.

 But Calvin Tai Chi-kin, the exchange's head of product development, said an imminent launch was unlikely pending the solution to technical problems in configuring the underlying index.

 'We are aware of the trend that the market focus is shifting from the 33 Hang Seng Index constituents stocks to technology plays,' Mr Tai said. As a result, the exchange was examining a technology-related futures product in a bid to meet the trend.

 Mr Tai said the futures exchange had also contacted HSI Services - which operates the Hang Seng Index - on the feasibility of building an underlined index for the new product.

Unicom float after arm-twisting fails China Unicom has baulked at what it sees as excessive demands from SAR-listed CCT Telecom Holdings and Italy's Stet to unwind three mainland-based mobile phone joint ventures banned by Beijing, according to sources.

  As a result, the sources said, the mainland's second-largest telecommunications operator has decided to go ahead with its plan to float up to US$3 billion in shares in Hong Kong and New York later this year, excluding the joint ventures.

  'China Unicom has already instructed its auditors to stop auditing the three ventures,' one source said. He said CCT and Stet, the investment arm of Telecom Italia, had asked for too much during the talks but the door for further talks remained open.

Sino Tech plans $3b venture firm Sino Technology, an investment arm of Sino Land, plans to form a $3 billion capital venture firm to invest in telecommunications and Internet companies.

 James Liu, Sino Technology's new chief executive president, said the firm would raise $2 billion from European and US investors to set up the unit. The remaining $1 billion is to be invested by Sino Land.

CyberWorks off to flying start Pacific Century CyberWorks' broadband Internet services have yet to be introduced, but the company has already gained a paper profit of US$1.3 billion from investments, according to its chairman and chief executive, Richard Li Tzar-kai.

 He attributed the paper profit to the improving valuations of 28 Internet and information-technology investments made by CyberWorks in the past six months.

  Most of these investments were made by CyberWorks Ventures, the company's venture capital fund.

  CyberWorks has set aside US$200 million for CyberWorks Ventures to acquire Internet-related assets.

 But less than $60 million has been used up for acquisitions, as most of the major investments were made through share swaps, Mr Li said.

Swire sees red over $4.5b land-fee claim A dispute by Swire Pacific over a $4.5 billion Government land claim is to be settled by arbitration.

 Swire says the claim, which is for three office towers at Citiplaza in Quarry Bay, is ill-founded and that it is not liable to pay.

 Analysts say the Government claim is unusual as Swire was not asked to pay land premiums before construction, which was completed years ago.

 If Swire was to lose the arbitration, the case could be used by the Government as a precedent to seek land premiums for other buildings where none had been previously demanded. A loss for Swire would seriously affect its net-asset value.

HSBC beefing up US West Coast presence HSBC Holdings is again looking to the United States following its recent purchase of Republic New York.

 The West Coast, with its large Chinese population, is seen as a fertile base for its private-banking business, and it is seeking to acquire a bank in the area.

 Republic and its subsidiary Safra Republic Holdings were owned by financier Edmond Safra, who died in a fire last month at his Monaco penthouse. Both entities were bought out by HSBC for US$9.85 billion earlier this month.

 HSBC Republic now has the largest branch network in New York state, with an $85 billion balance sheet, $10 billion in equity and a $35 billion deposit base, and has beaten other Hong Kong banks into the US.

Citibank gets cold feet on provident fund Expectations of fierce competition has prompted Citibank to abandon plans to sell Mandatory Provident Fund products.

 The announcement from the large United States banking group comes less than three weeks before the launch of MPF sales, but it is not expected to have a big impact as there are plenty of other providers in a market which offers lucrative opportunities.

 Although Citibank is the first MPF service provider to pull out of the compulsory retirement scheme, it is thought not to be the last as other providers succumb to keen competition, with yet more prospective providers waiting to step in if the opportunity arises.

Exhibitors playing dirty at toy fair Asia's biggest toy fair kicked off in Hong Kong on Monday and immediately attracted a string of complaints of infringements of intellectual property rights.

 Ten complaints were lodged against exhibitors on the first day of the Trade Development Council's Hong Kong Toys and Games Fair.

 The allegations have dented the image of Hong Kong, which has been trying hard to shake off its reputation as a haven for pirated products in areas such as compact discs and computer software.

 The firms were accused of copying the designs of fellow exhibitors' toys. The Trade Development Council, in turn, threatened to sue the Hong Kong Small and Medium Business Association for causing havoc at the fair.

 The dispute flared when 20 trade association members stormed booths and seized toys they alleged infringed rights of original design.



The Week: Jan 10 - Jan 16