China-ASEAN FTA – CCTV

China-ASEAN Free Trade Agreement came into effect at the start of the new year.  CCTV9 reports:

Happy New Year Asia & Oceania

Asia and Oceania ushered in 2010 a few hours ago.  Here’s a window into the celebrations which took place across the region.

CSA will start with none other than China, The country which unarguably had the most people around the world wishing one another a happy new year at the same time… Not because they have 1.4 billion people, but rather because the entire country is in one time zone, that of Beijing.  Happy New Year China!  I’ll be seeing you soon (CSA will be updated from China as of 2010).

China

Top Chinese leaders including President Hu Jintao on Wednesday watched Peking Opera at the National Center for the Performing Arts in a gala to mark the New Year. (Xinhua Photo)

Soldiers in NE China celebrate new year with local ethnic people. (Xinhua Photo)

Vocalist Kang Mao of Chinese rock band "SUBS" performs at a rock gala to celebrate the New Year in Beijing December 31, 2009. Picture taken December 31, 2009. (REUTERS)

Taiwan – China

A person holding an umbrella watches fireworks exploding from the world's tallest completed skyscraper Taipei 101 during New Year celebrations in Taipei January 1, 2010. (REUTERS)

Australia

Sydney, Australia - Celebrates New Years 2010 (Photo via Newsfromrussia)

Singapore

Fireworks light up the skyline of the financial district to usher in the New Year on Jan. 1, 2010 in Singapore. (THE ASSOCIATED PRESS)

Japan

People release balloons as the Tokyo Tower is illuminated to celebrate New Year at a countdown event at the Zojo-ji Buddhist temple in Tokyo January 1, 2010. (REUTERS)

South Korea

Christians sing a hymn during a prayer to celebrate the New Year at Imjingak pavilion near the demilitarized zone separating the two Koreas in Paju, about 52 km (32 miles) north of Seoul, January 1, 2010. (REUTERS)

Indonesia

Fireworks explode above downtown Jakarta's Welcome Monument, Indonesia, early Friday, Jan. 1, 2010. (THE ASSOCIATED PRESS)

Asia in Focus

APEC nations call for free trade

Nov 14 (REUTERS) – APEC leaders tackle climate change negotiations and economic integration, as Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama stresses the need for free trade zone.
Penny Tweedie, Reuters

Obama seeks stronger links in Asia

Nov 14 (REUTERS) – United States President Barack Obama pushes for greater U.S. involvement in Asia, welcoming a “strong, prosperous” China.
Penny Tweedie, Reuters.

China to lead Somalia piracy fight

Nov 13 (REUTERS) – China will assume a leadership role in an international coalition fighting maritime piracy off Somalia, signaling its navy’s growing ambitions beyond Chinese waters.
Stefanie McIntyre reports.

APEC ministers sum up recovery in one sentence – Reuters

Nov 12 (Reuters) – Finance ministers take a punch at describing the economic recovery in one word or sentence.

The consensus among 21-member Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) finance ministers was that the economic situation is better, but U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said it will take time to bring unemployment down and early recovery efforts must be supported.

SOUNDBITES:

UNITED STATES TREASURY SECRETARY TIMOTHY GEITHNER

CANADIAN FINANCE MINISTER JIM FLAHERTY

INDONESIAN FINANCE MINISTER SRI MULYANI INDRAWATI
PAPUA NEW GUINEA VICE MINISTER FOR TREASURY AND FINANCE

HONG KONG FINANCIAL SECRETARY JOHN TSANG

MALAYSIAN DEPUTY FINANCE MINISTER AHMAD HUSNI

NEW ZEALAND FINANCE MINISTER BILL ENGLISH

SINGAPORE FINANCE MINISTER THARMAN SHANMUGARATNAM

TAIWAN MINISTER OF FINANCE LEE SUSH-DER

SOUTH KOREAN DEPUTY MINISTER FOR INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

RUSSIAN DEPUTY FINANCE MINISTER

JAPAN PARLIAMENTARY SECRETARY FOR FINANCE

CHILEAN VICE MINISTER FOR FINANCE

Singapore-Latin Trade: Singapore and Panama in focus

Attention! / ¡Atención! / ???

Merlion - Singapore

For those of you out there who pay the whoppin’ $399 a year for a subscription to the Latin Business Chronicle, you can feast your eyes on some juicy reporting about Singapore’s growing trade with Latin America, particularly with Panama.

Here’s a brief synopsis from CSA of what was available for free from the Latin Business Chronicle:

Singapore’s trade with  Panama is a $6.6 billion usd, more than double Singapore’s entire trade with its second largest trading partner in Latin America, Brazil.

Considering that Singapore has signed Free Trade Agreements with the South American countries of Peru and Chile which have yet to help increase total exchange to a level even comparable with Panama’s.  It is clear to CSA, Singapore has found a healthy partner in Panama and it plans to nourish the relationship.

Panama is country of similar size (population wise), like Singapore it is strategically positioned in the middle a important global trade network, and it is increasingly open to economic cooperation with Asia.

Long term, CSA believes that Singapore is playing it smart in Latin America.  It is positioning itself to not only benefit directly from trade, but also from the growth of trade between other Asian and Latin American countries.

In other words, once Singapore has established a base of operations in Panama, it will probably expand into the business of providing services for other countries and companies within the Asia – Latin America trade network.

Below are a few excerpts from the Latin Business Chronicle article you can access directly via this link.

Soon, Singapore will also be known locally for its port services. PSA International, the world’s second-largest container terminal operator, will be competing with Hong Kong-based Hutchison Whampoa, the world’s largest operator for container traffic that goes through Panama.

PSA is building a terminal at the Pacific entrance of the Panama Canal, right across from the Port of Balboa, which is operated by Hutchison unit Panama Ports Company. It expects to open the terminal, located at what once was a US Naval station, next year.

The current and future business generated by ST Aerospace and PSA is helping cement Panama as Singapore’s top trading partner in Latin America. Singapore’s trade with Panama is twice as large as its second-largest trade partner in Latin America, Brazil.

Last year, Singapore’s total trade with Panama grew by 59.6 percent to 9.2 billion Singapore dollars (US$6.6 billion), according to a Latin Business Chronicle analysis of IE Singapore data. While Singapore exports still dominate the …

Chile stands up for fellow developing nations

South-South Cooperation politics at their finest according to CSA.   Chile made headlines on various news sites this afternoon when president, Michelle Bachelet announced she wants to see China, Brazil and India have a greater role in the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.

President of Chile - Michelle Bachelet

Today, with a few choice words, Bachelet propelled her country into global headlines on sites like Bloomberg– which usually prefer to focus on Brazil & Mexico’s stock markets, how Argentina’s political system is a mess, or when miners go on strike in Chile or Peru… Or when Huge or Evo do something which is worthy to flash on major cable news.

Click here to read a Bloomberg article which touches upon a few different elements of Bachelet’s trip to Asia, not covered here in this post.  Instead, CSA has focused on what Bachelet said in regard to China, Brazil and India’s.  Summed up with the following excerpt (taken from the same Bloomberg article linked above).

Before the recent global slump, the Washington-based bodies “were not representative of global realities,” she said. “There are countries like Brazil, India and China that are world powers and economic powers and that have very little representation.”

Bachelet also questioned the custom that the president of the World Bank always comes from the U.S. while leadership of the IMF goes to a European.

The lack of representation from developing countries at global institutions has contributed to several crises, Bachelet said, such as the record high prices of wheat, corn last year.

Little Demand for China Output

Airtime: Sun. Nov. 1 2009 | 6:31 PM ET – CNBC

Despite strong manufacturing data out of China, Jim Walker, founder and CEO of Asianomics, says there is little demand for the output produced. He gives his take on the Chinese economy, with CNBC’s Martin Soong & guest host Mark Kiesel of PIMCO.

China’s seemingly unending quest for resources continues

Sinopec Corp. announced today that it expects to incorporate parts of its overseas assets from its parent company Sinopec Group into its listed listed company in China.

Wang Xinhua, chief financial officer (CFO) of the oil firm  said “the good overseas assets of the Sinopec Group, the parent company of Sinopec Corp., would be injected into the listed company before the end of the year.”

CSA smell’s a bid to strengthen the traded shares, especially once Chinese investors jump on the bandwagon.

The assets in question are found in countries ranging from Russia, Australia and Canada.   Company data indicates that by the end of 2008, Sinopec’s overseas recoverable reserves reached 160 million tons.

According to this ChinaMining.org article Sinopec Groups oil equity production in 2008 was 9.01 million tons, accounting for up about one-third of Sinopec’s total output.  This year overseas oil equity output will rise to roughly, 17.40 million tons, almost double the previous year.

Qiu Xiaofeng, an analyst with Merchants Securities, reckon that the Sinopec Group’s overseas assets are able to generate about 11.2 billion yuan of profit or 0.13 yuan EPS, if the oil price stays at 75 US dollars/barrel.  On the news, Founder Securities maintains its rating of “overweight” on Sinopec Corp.  A-stock.

Here’s a look at the two year performance of this growing Chinese energy giant’s shares on the NYSE.

SHI - NYSE

Inflation Seen Rising in China

Airtime: Sun. Nov. 1 2009 | 6:40 PM ET – CNBC

Inflation will start to rise in China, observes Jim Walker, founder and CEO of Asianomics. He shares his outlook of the economy, with guest host Mark Kiesel of PIMCO.

Asian Stock Markets; weekly roundup