Hong Kong clothing retailers threaten to quit Taiwan over tax issue: Taipei – Four Hong Kong clothing retailers are threatening to quit Taiwan over a tax dispute with Taiwan authorities, a press report said Monday. The four Hong Kong retailers – Hang Ten, Giordano, Bossini and BaLeNo – made the threat in a petition to President Ma Ying-jeou, demanding that their names be cleared, or they might withdraw from Taiwan, the United Daily News quoted Lai Shih-pao as saying. (Via China News.)
Hainan to curb ‘whopping housing price’: As of the phenomena that the ‘whopping prices’ for living in hotels in Hainan Province ‘bluff off’ the tourists during the Spring Festival, the government would takes efforts to regulate the market, Wu Kunxiong, deputy director general of the tourism department of Hainan Province said Saturday. The government will strictly crack down on the house speculators and formulate tourism standards to cope with the high prices, according to Wu. (Via Business – People’s Daily Online.)
Revenue From Beijing’s Five-star Hotels Beijing Down 16.9% In 2009: According to data provided by Bureau of Statistics of Beijing, the revenue of star-grade hotels in the city decreased by 9.7% year-on-year in 2009. During the entire year of 2009, star hotels in Beijing made total revenues of CNY21.94 billion, including CNY9.98 billion from guest rooms. (Via ChinaRetailNews.com.)
APEC seeking pathways to Asia-Pacific free trade area: Senior officials from Pacific Rim economies accelerated their efforts Monday to seek ”possible pathways” to a region-wide free trade zone, but fell short of reaching any consensus except to continue necessary work. After a meeting in Hiroshima, where Japan formally took up its chairmanship of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum for 2010, a Japanese official said, ”We already have very sensible analytical studies but also have lots of issues that require further discussions.” (Via Kyodo News (Business).)
Asia leads global march away from easy credit: (HONG KONG) The US Federal Reserve has just kick- started its cautious exit from unprecedented emergency lending measures – but the process has been going on for months in the Asia-Pacific region, underscoring the two-speed path of the global recovery. (Via Business Times Online – All The Headlines.)
A JR Tokai Maglev train
JR Tokai targets 7 U.S. areas to promote bullet, maglev train systems: Central Japan Railway Co. said Monday it has selected seven U.S. areas in which it will concentrate its marketing efforts for its ‘’shinkansen” bullet train and maglev train systems. For shinkansen systems, the Japanese railway operator, known as JR Tokai, said it has picked four areas spearheaded by a possible route linking Tampa, Orlando and Miami in Florida. (Via Kyodo News (Business).)
Bain to buy Japan Domino’s operator Higa: Bain Capital LLC said it will buy Higa Industries Co., which operates Domino’s Pizza stores in Japan. The Boston-based private equity firm will buy the company from Duskin Co., Daiwa SMBC Capital Co. and founder Ernest Higa. The transaction will take place Feb. 1, Bain said in a statement Monday without providing a purchase price. (Via The Japan Times: News & Business.)
UPS plans new Shenzhen air hub: A planned air hub for logistics giant UPS in Shenzhen is expected to intensify competition in international express service among the big players in China. Sources from Shenzhen Airport (Group) Co Ltd said the hub is expected to be operational February 9, and will see 14 round-trip cargo flights between nine countries and regions in its first stage, the National Business Daily reported Saturday. (Via Business – People’s Daily Online.)
China Automotive Systems To Supply Chrysler North America: Wuhan-based China Automotive Systems, a power steering components and systems supplier in China, has announced that its first global OEM customer is the Chrysler Group LLC, which is headquartered in North America. In November 2008, CAAS received its first order from Chrysler to export power steering gears to Chrysler’s North America assembly facility. (Via China Sourcing News.)
Hundreds queue for Dodgers tickets: (ChinaPost.com.tw) – Hundreds of loyal fans queued up yesterday in Taipei and Kaohsiung to purchase the tickets to the exhibition games between the LA Dodgers and Taiwan’s baseball league following the Major League team’s official announcement on Jan. 23. (Via China Post Online – Taiwan , News.)
BMW sees fastest growth, best potentials in China: CEO: China has become BMW’s fourth largest market, where the German luxury car maker saw the fastest growth in auto sales in 2009, and great market potentials, a senior company official told Xinhua Wednesday. The company saw a 38 percent growth in sales last year in China against a 10 percent decline worldwide due to the international financial crisis, said Christoph Stark, president and CEO of the BMW Group in China. Stark said the company sold a total of 90,536 cars in China last year. (Via Business – People’s Daily Online.)
E-Mart To Open Shanghai Mall In Time For 2010 World Expo: According to E-Mart’s Chinese headquarters, the South Korean supermarket retailer plans to open its first shopping mall on Shanghai’s Caobao road. This project, with a total area of 50,000 square meters, is reported to be in progress and is expected to be opened before the 2010 Shanghai World Expo. (Via ChinaRetailNews.com.)
Coach CEO Banking On China Growth In 2010: Although Coach reported better-than-expected sales figures in its top two markets (North America and Japan) in its latest fiscal statement, the company has made clear that it is strongly committed to building more market share in the increasingly lucrative Chinese market. Over the last year, Coach has invested heavily both in the mainland and Hong Kong markets, announcing last spring that the company intends to open add nearly 50 retail outlets to the 37 it currently operates in mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau, appointing luxury veteran Andre Cohen as China Region President, and launching a large-scale Chinese-language online promotional campaign. (Via Jing Daily :.)
Suzuki head touts VW parts tieup: Suzuki Motor Corp. Chairman and CEO Osamu Suzuki stressed Thursday the importance of making common auto parts with its new alliance partner Volkswagen AG in emerging Asian markets. Suzuki also suggested he would not accept any future offer by the German auto giant to increase its share in Suzuki. (Via The Japan Times: News & Business.)
Data collection begins in Taipei for luxury home tax: (ChinaPost.com.tw) – The Taipei City Government has begun collecting data on the city’s luxury residential buildings in preparation for imposing a tax on such buildings in the future, the United Evening News reported, yesterday. (Via Taiwan Headlines – Business.)
Office Buildings near the Singapore River (photo: Randal Rayborn)
Singapore gains advantage from surplus office demand in Hong Kong: A 20 to 25 per cent fall in Grade A office rents in Singapore this year will emerge as a reason for widening the gap between rents in Singapore and in Hong Kong, and will give Singapore a competitive advantage with firms looking to expand in Asia, property firm Savills said yesterday. Rents are speculated to fall to $5 per square foot (psf) per month in 2011, accounting to a massive new supply comes on-stream, the firm’s research shows. Grade A office rents stood at $8.80 psf per month at the end of 2009, reported Savills. (Via TopNews Singapore.)
Hainan to halt land development approval on speculation concerns: China’s southern island province of Hainan will suspend land leasing and development approval in a move to curb property speculation, the province’s Party chief has said. Following a tourism promotion policy document issued by the central government earlier this month, real estate developers have flocked into the island, causing new property bubble concerns, Wei Liucheng, secretary of the Communist Party of China Hainan provincial committee, said at a meeting in Haikou Friday. (Via Business – People’s Daily Online.)
Taipei direct flights to Shanghai may begin: (ChinaPost.com.tw) – Direct flights between the Taipei Songshan Airport and the Shanghai Hongqiao Airport are likely to be launched before World Expo 2010 Shanghai opens on May 1, as Deputy Shanghai Mayor Tang Dengjie said Friday that both sides have completed various technical preparations and are working hard to kick off direct flights as early as possible. (Via Taiwan Headlines – Business.)
Tensions bubble over gas project: Japan warned China on Sunday that it would take action if Beijing starts gas production in a disputed field in the East China Sea, Japan’s Kyodo news agency reported. Although the two countries reached a broad agreement in 2008 on principles intended to solve the dispute by jointly developing gas fields, progress has been slow and Japan has accused China of drilling for gas in violation of the agreement. (Via RTHK On Internet – Finance News.)
Mazda eyes dissolving joint car production with Ford in China: Mazda Motor Corp. is considering dissolving its partnership with Ford Motor Co. for the joint production of cars in China to increase its flexibility in meeting growing demand for Mazda-brand cars in the country, company sources said Sunday. Mazda plans to withdraw from Changan Ford Mazda Automobile Co. in Chongqing, a joint venture of Mazda, Ford and a Chinese automaker, after production of Mazda cars at the plant is transferred to another joint venture of the three automakers in Nanjing in May, the sources said. (Via Kyodo News (Business).)
UPS Adds 101 New Locations In China: UPS plans to increase its global service parts logistics network significantly, by establishing 101 new field stocking locations in China. According to Brad Mitchell, the president of UPS Logistics and Distribution, UPS China is a critical part of the growth strategy of many companies worldwide and UPS’s regional and global FSL network is positioned to support these companies after-market needs in Asia. He pointed out that the UPS network was already the world’s largest logistics network. (Via China Sourcing News.)
Singapore’s retail sales down 1.4% year-on-year in Nov 2009: Singapore’s retail sales decreased by 1.4 percent in November 2009 compared with a year ago, according to Singapore Department of Statistics on Friday. Turnover of motor vehicles in November 2009 decreased by 16 percent, while food and beverages sales fell by 3.1 percent over a year ago. In contrast, sales of watches and jewelry, medical goods and toiletries, furniture and household equipment increased by between 7.2 percent and 14.8 percent. (Via Business – People’s Daily Online.)
Google’s loss could be Baidu’s gain: Domestic search firm Baidu Inc could be the biggest beneficiary of a possible pullout from China by Internet major Google, leading industry experts said yesterday. The NASDAQ-listed Baidu already dominates the Chinese search landscape and it has signaled its intentions to spread wings, even before Google hinted at a pullout. The California-based Google could see an exodus of advertisers from the Chinese mainland and see them switching to Baidu. (Via Business – People’s Daily Online.)
Mainland Chinese Tourists Spent $42 Billion Overseas In 2009 – Mainland Tourist Spending Abroad Outspent International Tourist Spending In China For The First Time: Chinese Media is reporting this week that outbound tourists from mainland China spent some $42 billion overseas (including Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan) last year, outspending inbound international tourists for the first time. Though articles do point out that the majority of first-time outbound tourists from the mainland went to nearby Hong Kong (18%) and Macau (16%) — two very accessible destinations for Chinese tourists, who typically travel there for quick weekend jaunts or shopping sprees — more of them are heading to more distant locales, staying longer, and spending more. (Via Jing Daily :.)
Taiwan Semiconductor to hire 3,000 engineers amid expansion: (ChinaPost.com.tw) – Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., the world’s largest custom-chip maker, plans to recruit more than 3,000 engineers this year as the company expands. (Via Taiwan Headlines – Business.)
Dubai Seeks Chinese Tourists
Dubai Banking On Increased Chinese Tourism: Dubai hopes more Chinese tourists will inject much-needed cash into its tourism industry in 2010: One of the interesting effects of the global economic slowdown has been the growth in outbound tourism among mainland Chinese. Although foreign travel still remains an elite activity despite the large numbers of Chinese tourists appearing in cities like New York, Paris and Tokyo, visa restrictions are easing year by year and rising incomes (as well as a growing middle class) mean that more mainlanders than ever before have the ability to take overseas jaunts. For many retailers, hotels, airlines and tour operators, these Chinese tourists have been a godsend. In an effort to tap into the growing Chinese outbound tourist market, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) stepped up its efforts to woo Chinese tourists in 2009, following the Chinese government’s loosening of visa restrictions. As an article in this week’s National newspaper (Dubai) observes, since last September, tour operators, hoteliers and retailers throughout the emirate have reported an influx of Chinese tourists. (Via Jing Daily :.)
Online shopping boom in China: Shi Fang spends more than 4,000 yuan (588 U.S. dollars) a month shopping, but she rarely goes to the shopping mall. Why need a shopping mall if you have Taobao? I am a Taobaoer,’ says Shi, 28, a freelance writer in Beijing. Taobao, China’s largest online shopping site has become an indispensable part of Shi Fang’ s life. She spends half of her monthly salary to Taobao, logging onto the website every day, even when she doesn’t need anything… (Via China – People’s Daily Online.)
China becomes World’s top exporter: New trade figures released by the German national statistics office show that China is now the world’s leading exporter, ahead of Germany. In the 11 months from January to November, mainland exports reached a total value of US$1.07 trillion. German exports amounted to US$1.05 trillion. (Via RTHK On Internet – Finance News.)
High-speed Hong Kong-Guangzhou railway plan turns political: A plan to build a fast train linking Hong Kong and the Chinese mainland city Guangzhou has snowballed into a political saga for legislators and the public as hundreds of protesters rallied outside the legislature in Hong Kong on Friday. Thousands of people, divided into those supporting and opposing the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link, a line costing HK$66.9 billion (US$8.6 billion) to build, circled the legislature building while legislators debated in a marathon meeting on funding approval. (Via Kyodo News (Business).)
Acer recalls 22,000 laptop computers: (ChinaPost.com.tw) – Taiwan’s Acer Inc. is recalling about 22,000 laptop computers that could overheat and cause burns. (Via Taiwan Headlines – Business.)
Beijing airport getting mostly back to normal following snow: Beijing Capital International Airport reported 231 delayed and 40 canceled outbound flights as of 2 p.m. Tuesday after record heavy snow paralyzed the airport earlier in the week. Services were mostly back to normal with the three runways all open Tuesday thanks to more than 300 workers who worked for 60 hours to clear the snow and ice, said a spokesman for the airport management department. The airport authorities attributed the disruption mainly to bad weather in airports outside Beijing… (Via Business – People’s Daily Online.)
China Becomes Top Exporter: China took over the mantle of the world’s top merchandise exporter from Germany in 2009, aided by a global economic crisis that has taken a greater toll on other trading powers. (Via WSJ.com: What’s News Asia.)
Taiwan’s Xiabu Xiabu Opens 100th Restaurant On The Mainland: Xiabu Xiabu, a Taiwan-invested hotpot restaurant chain, has opened its 100th restaurant in Daxing, Beijing. Following registration in Beijing in 1998, Xiabu Xiabu opened its first restaurant in Beijing’s Xidan in March 1999. As the first bar-style small hot pot restaurant in Beijing, the company has developed steadily during the last ten years. (Via ChinaRetailNews.com.)
U.S. eclipsed by China in 2009 auto sales: New car sales in the United States plunged more than 20 percent in 2009 to a 27-year low of 10.43 million units, less than the 12.23 million units sold in China during January-November, making the country the world’s largest car market for the first time, data released by a U.S. research firm showed Tuesday. The result marked a historic turning point in the world automobile industry, which had been led by the Big Three Detroit companies since Ford Motor Co. began mass production in 1913 introducing the world’s first belt conveyor system. (Via Kyodo News (Business).)
Singapore PM: No return to pre-crisis growth: Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said that the city-state requires a long time to achieve the pre-crisis growth levels of 7 to 10 per cent as the recent economic slowdown has adversely impacted almost all key economic parameters. PM Lee, addressing a bursary award ceremony at Townsville Primary School, said that economy has been, however, showing the signs of resilience as demand in all spheres is slowly picking up due to stimulus measures taken by the government. (Via TopNews Singapore.)
Victoria Harbor, Hong Kong (photo: Randal Rayborn)
Asahi Breweries ties up with Carlsberg to boost Hong Kong sales: TOKYO — Asahi Breweries Ltd has signed a tie-up deal with Carlsberg A/S and will begin selling its popular Super Dry beer products through the Danish brewery’s retail sales network in Hong Kong… (Via Hong Kong News latest RSS headlines – Hong Kong Herald.com.)
New China-Asean free trade area dawns: A new free trade area has comes into effect, incorporating China and the six founding members of the Association of South East Asian Nations – known as Asean. These countries include Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand. They plan to eliminate tariffs on 90% of imported goods. This will reduce the cost of trade and is likely to lead to an expansion of cross border commerce between the countries concerned. In terms of population it will be the largest trade area in the world, with nearly 1.9 billion people and it includes some of the leading export driven economies. Chinese manufacturers will gain and so will South East Asian exporters of raw materials. Those countries are also likely to gain access to cheaper materials and components from the Mainland. But there have been warnings from South East Asia that some industries are not ready to compete with the Mainland and that jobs will be lost. Other members of Asean, including Vietnam and Cambodia are due to follow suite in five years. Regional and bilateral trade agreements have proliferated in recent years. The World Trade Organization says about 400 are due to be in operation by 2010. Supporters say they are a step on the way towards comprehensive global trade liberalisation. But critics say they undermine that effort and put poor countries left out at a disadvantage. (Via RTHK On Internet – Finance News.)
For some in Japan, home is a tiny plastic bunk: For Atsushi Nakanishi, jobless since Christmas, home is a cubicle barely bigger than a coffin – one of dozens of berths stacked two units high in one of central Tokyo’s decrepit ‘capsule’ hotels. The rent is surprisingly high for such a small space: 59,000 yen a month, or about $640, for an upper bunk. But with no upfront deposit or extra utility charges, and basic amenities like fresh linens and free use of a communal bath and sauna, the cost is far less than renting an apartment in Tokyo. (New York Times) (Via News On Japan.)
Singapore Health Ministry Looking to Pull Down Sugar Content in Products: The Singapore Health Ministry, with the aim to promote products which are healthier, is all set to meet with as many as 60 representatives of the food and beverage sector to try and talk them into reducing the current sugar content in their products. As per details shared by Deputy Health Minister Datuk Rosnah Abdul Rashid Shirlin, the meeting, which she would be chairing herself, is scheduled for January 12 and would be attended by, in addition to industry representatives, those from the Domestic Trade, Cooperatives and Consumerism Ministry. (Via TopNews Singapore.)
Taiwan is world’s 13th top innovator: EBS: Taipei, Jan. 3 (CNA) Taiwan ranked 13th in the European Business School’s (EBS’s) 2009 innovation capacity rankings among the 131 nations polled around the world and the second among Asian countries, the Council for Economic Planning and Development (CEPD) said Sunday. Of five Asian countries that made the EBS top 20 innovators list, known as The Innovation for Development Report 2009-2010, released by the European Business School at the end of 2009, Taiwan ranked only behind Singapore, which ranked sixth, CEPD officials said. The Innovation for Development Report provides a comprehensive look at the role of innovation in enhancing the development process, the report compilers said. Japan trailed Taiwan to rank 15th, followed by Hong Kong at 16th and South Korea at 19th. China ranked far behind at 65th, according to the innovation capacity index. Sweden, Finland and the United States are the world’s most innovative economies, in that order. Other nations that made the top 20 innovators list included Switzerland, the Netherlands and Germany. (Via Taiwan Headlines – Business.)
Costco to set up logistics and distribution center in Taoyuan: “Taipei, Dec. 25 (CNA) Costco Wholesale Corp. will set up a Taiwan logistics and distribution center in Taoyuan County at the end of next year, a move expected to significantly cut its cost of distribution, which is currently being outsourced, a county official said Friday.
After factoring in the bright prospects for the Taoyuan Aerotropolis development project and the northern county’s favorable geographic location, Costco decided to set up the center there to facilitate the distribution of products to its various branches around Taiwan, according to the official from the county’s Economic Development Department.
Costco, the largest membership warehouse club chain in the United States, expects to invest NT$800 million (US$24.81 million) in the center and two new big box outlets in northern and southern Taoyuan.
This was the first large-scale investment project in the county to be announced since Magistrate John Chih-yang Wu assumed his post earlier this month, and the economic development official said it should help stimulate the development of related industries.
Ahmen Lee, Costco Taiwan’s regional marketing manager, confirmed the project earlier Friday and said Costco decided to locate the center in Taoyuan because it is a very important market in Taiwan and home of Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport.
The planned logistics center, to cover an estimated 49,600 square meters, will be located in Dayuan Township.
The two Costco branches to be set up in the county at yet-to-be finalized locations will allow local Costco members to shop only a short distance from their homes, rather than needing to travel to Costco outlets in Taipei or Hsinchu as they do now, Lee added. (By Chiu Chun-chin and Y.L. Kao)” (Via Taiwan Headlines – Business.)
Sai Yeung Choi Street, Hong Kong (photo: Randal Rayborn)
East-west China highway completed: “A highway section started a trial operation Saturday, marking the completion of China’s east-west trunk line linking Shanghai to Chongqing.
The 320-km-long Hurongxi Section, in Hubei Province, finally joined up the 1,900-km-long Shanghai-Chongqing National Highway, reducing trip between the two destinations to 17 hours.
Construction of the section started seven years ago, during which workers erected 370 bridges, dug 46 tunnels and paved roads through steep mountain ranges by ove …”
(Via Business – People’s Daily Online.)
China’s Lining To Open New Store In U.S.: “Chinese sports supplies brand Lining has said that it will open its first store outside the Asia region in the United States in January 2010.
In addition, the company will open a badminton products specialty store in Hong Kong before the end of December 2009 as a preparation for its internationalization.
Zhang Zhiyong, the CEO of Lining, [...]“
(Via ChinaRetailNews.com.)
Best Buy Announces Further Expansion In China: “Inspired by a dramatic increase in sales in the Chinese market, the global electronics retailer Best Buy has announced that it plans to open ten to fifteen new stores in China in 2010.
One of the world’s largest leading consumer electronics retailers, Best Buy currently operates eight BestBuy stores in China as well as 167 outlets [...]“
(Via ChinaRetailNews.com.)
IBM, Beijing University Of Technology Jointly Set Up Cloud Computing Experimental Platform: “IBM has announced that it will cooperate with Beijing University of Technology to set up [...]“
(Via ChinaTechNews.com.)
US accuses China of trade restrictions: “Washington says Beijing is moving towards a more restrictive trade regime. The US Trade Representative’s Office says China continues to limit market access for foreign suppliers, and some of its practices raised questions over its World Trade Organisation obligations. But, the US Trade Representative’s ‘8th Annual Report on China’, did note that talks with Beijing produced some concrete progress, in areas ranging from agricultural products, clean energy and government procurement.”
(Via RTHK On Internet – Finance News.)
Business › ANA orders 10 Boeing jetliners: “All Nippon Airways has ordered 10 Boeing jetliners. Boeing said Monday the order is for five 777s and five 767s, both the extended-range models. The…”
(Via Japan Today: Japan News and Discussion – Business.)
Toyota presses parts makers for 30% cut in costs: NAGOYA (Kyodo) Toyota Motor Corp. has notified affiliated parts manufacturers that it plans to cut procurement costs for auto parts by a combined 30 percent by 2013, sources said Tuesday.
The move, aimed at marketing new car models in Japan and abroad at lower prices, would benefit people intending to buy new vehicles but is expected to weigh on the operations of Toyota’s subcontractors and sub-subcontractors.
(Via The Japan Times: News & Business.)
Singapore Casino Resort to Open in March End:
With the global slowdown finally receding, a whole lot of projects will get to see light of day. One of the most promising ones is Las Vegas Sands’ $5.5 billion Singapore casino resort, which saw stalled work for want of sand and workers.
(Via TopNews Singapore.)
Ford nears Volvo deal with China’s Geely: “STOCKHOLM: US auto giant Ford and Zhejiang Geely Holding could reach an agreement on Wednesday on the sale of Ford’s Swedish brand Volvo to the Chinese carmaker, Swedish television reported.”
(Via Channel NewsAsia Business News.)
Singapore Airlines to make changes in routes:
Singapore Airlines is going to make major changes on its air routes in a bid to streamline its air operations. The carrier may increase frequency to various routes besides suspending operations to some destinations including Pakistan and Nanjing in China. The last Singapore-Karachi-Lahore flight and Singapore-Nanjing service would be on February 17 and March 26.
(Via TopNews Singapore.)
U.S. beef to be debated on Dec. 29: “(ChinaPost.com.tw) – After a month-long deadlock over the controversial issue of U.S. beef imports, legislative caucuses of Taiwan’s ruling and opposition parties reached a consensus Tuesday that they will meet for a ‘final showdown’ over the issue on Dec. 29.”
