Saturday, April 20 2024 | ASIA TODAY INTERNATIONAL - Reporting the Business that Matters in Asia
HONG KONG – Asia’s retail sales sector is projected to grow in 2016, according to forecasts by property major Colliers International. There are some concerns about the long-term sustainability of some of China's more ambitious development, but the overall outlook is broadly optimistic, Colliers says.
BEIJING - The Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) says China will invest about RMB77 billion (US$11.7 billion) on construction of civil aviation infrastructure, especially airports in Beijing, Chengdu, Qingdao, Xiamen and Dalian, in 2016.
GENEVA - International Air Transport Association (IATA) data for global air freight markets shows air cargo volumes down 1.2% in November 2015 compared to November 2014, but total cargo volumes expanded compared to October 2015, and were higher than the low point in August. “This indicates that the decline in cargo demand may be bottoming out,” IATA says.
BEIJING - New official data released by China’s Ministry of Commerce includes estimates of foreign investment in China during 2015 hitting a record US$126 billion. During the first 11 months of the year, China netted US$114 billion in non-financial investment, a year-on-year increase of 7.9%. Additionally, almost 24,000 foreign-funded enterprises were founded during the same period, up 11% from the same period in 2014.
SINGAPORE – In a new research report, ANZ Bank predicts 2016 and 2017 will be two of Asia’s most challenging years, with the ongoing economic slowdown in non-Japan Asia extending into an unprecedented fourth and fifth year. “The current slowdown can no longer be explained in cyclical terms alone,” ANZ says. “More structural elements are now in play.”
HONG KONG – CIMIC Group’s Leighton Asia in joint venture with Chun Wo Building Construction has won a second contract for ancillaries building works the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge Hong Kong Crossing Facilities project, valued at HK$1.15 billion (AUD205 million).
BEIJING - China’s manufacturing activity continued to deteriorate for a 10th month in a row in December, according to the Caixin China Purchasing Managers’ Index, came in at 48.2. November’s reading was 48.6. Data showed that the PMI fell largely due to renewed shrinking of manufacturing output, with total new business weakening further in the wake of softening demand, both domestically and internationally.
BEIJING - Data released by the China Railway Corp. (CRC) shows that China invested RMB830 billion in railroad infrastructure in 2015, bringing total investment for the last five years to more than RMB3.5 trillion. A CRC official said that while next year’s investment plans have not yet been finalised, expenditure would be “more than 820 billion yuan”, with the infrastructure investment budget for the 13th five-year plan (2016-2020) possibly surpassing RMB4 trillion.
HANOI - The State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) has adopted a new FX methodology, starting today, under which it will set a daily USD/VND reference rate. According to SBV, the daily rate will take into account movements in major foreign currencies that are relevant to Vietnam’s trade and investment activities, as well as domestic and international money-market developments.
TAIPEI – China and Taiwan have established a hotline connecting their respective Heads of cross-strait affairs. During the first conversation over the dedicated line, Mainland Affairs Council Minister, Andrew Hsia, and Taiwan Affairs Office Director, Zhang Zhijun, lauded achievements in cross-strait relations and exchanged New Year’s greetings.
SEOUL - Moody’s Investors Service has upgraded South Korea’s issuer and bond ratings by one notch to Aa2, from Aa3, the highest rating so far achieved. Aa2 is the third-highest of Moody’s 21 rating levels, with only seven G20 member States - South Korea, the US, Germany, Canada, Australia, the UK and France – on the list.
HONG KONG - Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited (HKEx) is extending incentives to solidify development of its RMB currency futures market, which it says continues to serve as an effective risk management tool in periods of unexpected USD/CNH volatility.
SINGAPORE - Economic risks faced by banks in Indonesia remain relatively high due to low per capita income and constraints on economic development that infrastructure shortfalls, legal uncertainties, and corruption pose, according to a paper on banking industry risk published by Standard & Poor’s.
SINGAPORE- Ratings agency Standard & Poor's has classified Cambodia’s banking sector in group '9' of its Banking Industry Country Risk Assessment (BICRA)report, along with Argentina, Kenya, Nigeria, Papua New Guinea, Tunisia, and Vietnam.
SINGAPORE - Standard & Poor's has affirmed its 'BBB+' long-term and 'A-2' short-term foreign currency sovereign credit ratings, and its 'A-' long-term and 'A-2' short-term local currency ratings on Thailand, with the outlook on long-term ratings stable. S&P also affirmed its 'axAA/axA-1' long- and short-term ASEAN regional scale ratings on Thailand. Its transfer and convertibility (T&C) assessment remains 'A'.
SEOUL – Free Trade Agreements between South Korea and China, South Korea and New Zealand, and South Korea and Vietnam have formally come into effect from December 20. All three FTAs reduce tariffs in phases over long periods – in the case of China, over 20 years, with New Zealand and Vietnam, over 15 years.
The Korea-New Zealand FTA saw tariffs on some goods reduced on December 20 with a further reduction from January 1. Bilateral trade between the two countries has increased by 10.4% over the past five years to around KRW3.3 trillion.