The Business Times, 28 January 2006

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Total Pages: 20
1 20 The Business Times
  • 21 1 THE BUSINESS TIMES weekend SINGAPORE 85 cents MICA (P) 089/03/2005 J.inu.iry 28-29 2006 online .it h!tp /'business times tsu.l iom scj
    21 words
  • 96 1 Retted and in high spiritiCthe international crews of the 10 boats in the gruelling Clipper Round-the- World Yacht Race slipped their moorings yesterday and headed for the open seas. The crews and boats have been in Singapore for about a week of rest and maintenance, during which
    YEN MEN JIIN  -  96 words
  • 732 1  -  With valuations climbing, analysts expect the battle to be over soon By DONALD URQUHART, CLARENCE MICHAEL in Dubai [SINGAPORKI Dubai Ports World (DPW) has blown PSA International's £3.7 billion (5510.7 billion) bid for Peninsular Oriental Steam Navigation Co (P&O) out of
    732 words
  • 315 1  -  By NEIL BEHRMANN in London -P&O SHARKS yesterday soared 5 per cent above a new 520 pence offer by Dubai Ports World (DPW) and hedge fund arbitrageurs were active. Trading around 546 pence, with a market capitalisation of around £4.1 billion (5512.3 billion),
    315 words
  • 404 1  -  By CHEN HUIFEN (SINGAPORFI After spending more than 20 years at the Fconomic Development Board (FOB), Philip Yeo, 60, will step down next month from his post as cochairman of Singapore's inward investment agency. In a joint statement issued yesterday,
    404 words
  • 795 1  -  By KALPANA RASHIWAIA (SINGAPORE] Those looking for more signs to confirm the recovery in Singapore's property market should find them in official figures released yesterday. For the private residential market, the supply glut is abating and is at its lowest level in
    Source: URA  -  795 words
  • 148 1 ST! (+23.86) ST INDEX FUTURE! 2JU9M (+29.00) siMsa 287.03 (+3.00) SIMSCI FUTURES 287J0 (+3.10) MARKETS Friday Chang* KLSECOMP 914.01 +0.87 NIKKEI 225 16,460 68 +569 66 HANG SENG 15,***** +233.07 SET INDEX 761.27 +013 JAKARTA COMP 1.229 71 +3 06 MANILA COMP 2,121.89 +4.08 SEOUL COMP 1,384 56
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  • Page 1 Advertisements

  • TOP STORIES
    • 380 2 Source: The Globalist Coming to America Illegal immigration has once again become a contentious political issue in the United States. Many factors contribute to this problem, including the relative attractiveness of the US labour market and the demand for unskilled labour. We wonder. How many permanent US work visas
      Source: The Globalist  -  380 words
    • 420 2  -  He says govt won't forget welfare of older S'poreans, low-wage families By NANDE KHIN [SINGAPORE] With year of the rooster ending on a high note, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong yesterday said he is confident that the year of the -dog will be another
      420 words
    • 764 2  -  COMMENTARY They are now more reflective of forces in the car market than of consumer sentiment WONG WEI KONG Senior Correspondent BULLISH stock prices, strong economic growth, and high car COE premiums should go hand in hand. But the current reality is far
      764 words
    • 328 2 Reporting season takes off with a bang THE full-year reporting season has started on a strong note, with 20 companies with December year-ends reporting a doubling in combined net profit to $2.08 billion. COMPANY NEWS, PG 4 Keppel Energy to supply electricity by year-end KEPPEL Energy is set
      328 words
    • 633 2  -  By CHEN HUIFEN [SINGAPORE] Singapore wants to place greater emphasis on growing its medical technology (medtech) sector for the next five years, having laid the foundation in pharmaceuticals manufacturing. "Medtech has been growing quietly without fanfare," said Agency for Science, Technology
      Source: Singapore Economic Development Board  -  633 words

  • RAFFLES CONVERSATION
    • Article, Illustration
      1410 3  -  His team's creation of Dolly the sheep spawned controversy, but also lessons that are even more relevant now in the light of the Hwang debacle, Dr Alan Colman tells KENNETH JAMES KENNETH JAMES LIKE other scientists around the world, Dr Alan Colman was appalled when a celebrated South
      ARTHUR LEE  -  1,410 words
    • 769 3 GROWING up in Manchester, Alan Colman never thought he would become a scientist. "No, no, I wanted to be a train driver," he says quite seriously. "I still, every time I go to Japan, try and get permission to be in the driving cab of a
      769 words
  • Page 3 Advertisements
    • 61 3 Raffles INTERNATIONAL Hotels Resorts The Raffles Conversation is brought to you through a special arrangement with Raffles International Hotels and Resorts. The Traveller's Palm in the Raffles International logo is an apt symbol. Not only has water stored at the base of this palm provided sustenance, the leaves rest in
      61 words

  • COMPANY NEWS
    • 772 4  -  Combined 2005 profits of first 20 firms with Dec year-end more than double to $2.08b By WONG WEI KONG THH full-year reporting season has started on a strong note, with companies of the Keppel Group leading the'way. At the close of trading yesterday, 20
      772 words
    • 343 4  -  By MATTHEW PHAN SINGPOST Group's net profit for its third quarter ended December 2005 went up by 17.4 per cent year-on-year to $32.96 million, while revenues rose 7.4 per cent to $107.98 million. The stronger net profit margin was driven
      343 words
    • 407 4  -  By RONNIE LIM THERE will be a new supplier, the sixth, to the electricity market by year-end. This is when Keppel Energy's 500-megawatt station is due to be completed, slightly ahead of an earlier scheduled Q1 2007 date. This was disclosed during Keppel
      407 words
    • 556 4  -  STOCKS VEN SREENIVASAN Senior Correspondent A POSITIVE overnight close on Wall Street followed by strong sessions in other key Asian bourses especially Tokyo sent the Singapore market to one of its highest ever levels ahead of the Chinese New Year long
      556 words
    • 529 4  -  Turnaround from 4 quarters of loss seen continuing By ROLAND LIM AFTER four straight quarters of losses, Chartered Semiconductor Manufacturing Ltd yesterday turned around to report its highest quarterly net profit in five years. Driven by strong demand for consumer electronics,
      529 words
    • 451 4  -  By WONG WEI KONG PROSECUTORS have objected to an application by defence lawyers to move the case involving an alleged breach of the Companies Act by former member of parliament Lew Syn Pau to the High Court from the Subordinate Courts. At a High Court
      451 words
    • 450 5 Bumper crop of profit warnings issued to SGX ahead of CNY holidays CHINA-RELATED stocks are issuing a bumper crop of profit warnings as seen by the number of statements issued tofhe Singapore Exchange (SGX) yesterday, just before the Chinese New Year holidays kick in. China-based
      450 words
    • 874 5  -  STI up 16.35% from a year ago, market expected to rally in first quarter on popular Budget By SIOW LI SEN THE rooster has good reason to crow, ending the lunar year on- a new high as the total market capitalisation
      874 words
    • 256 5 THE Singapore Exchange (SGX) has given its conditional approval for shares of China Aviation Oil (CAO) to resume trading. CAO said in a statement last night that the in-princi-ple approval involved the listing of 529.28 million new shares. CAO has another 193.56
      256 words
    • 705 5  -  By SIOW LI SEN PACIFIC Century Regional Developments (PCRD) burst into life yesterday and rose 26 per cent, or 6 cents, to 29 cents following a takeover offer led by private equity group Newbridge Capital. Over 71.2 million shares of PCRD, the holding company
      BLOOMBERG  -  705 words
    • 310 5  -  Bank says wealth management will be a new focus By ALEXANDRA HO DBS Bank has completed its purchase of a stake in India's Murugappa Group's Cholamandalam Investment Finance Co. First announced last June, the deal involved DBS's investment of $87 million for a 37.48
      310 words
    • COMPANY BRIEFS
      • 170 5 UNITED Overseas Land (UOL) has acquired a freehold property at Akyab Road in the Thomson Road area, paying $20.88 million for the 20.822 square feet property. The newest acquisition sits right next to a cluster of properties that UOL had bought through a wholly-owned subsidiary
        170 words
      • 94 5 SHANDONG-based Luzhou Bio-chem Technology Ltd, a producer of corn sweeteners in China, has relodged its preliminary prospectus with the Monetary Authority of Singapore. Luzhou, which is seeking a mainboard listing, has an annual production capacity of about 650,000 tonnes of corn sweetener. For the financial year
        94 words

  • Page 5 Advertisements
    • 391 5 NO I K I S IN THE MATTER OF THE COMPANIES ACT, CAP. SO AND IN THE MATTER OF SIN SOON CHEONO (PTE.) LTD. (IN MEMBERS' VOLUNTARY WINDING UP) uornpany no. *****1776 M NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the Creditors of the abovenamed-Company. which it being voluntarily wound up, are
      391 words

  • PERSONAL INVESTMENT
    • Article, Illustration
      1033 6  -  Compiled by MATTHEW PHAN GES International Jan 27 dose: Ssl.ol KIM ENG RESEARCH. Jan 27 NET profit grew 23 per cent year-on-year to $14.6 million versus our $15 million forecast. Some of the one-off items within these results were $1.2 million of adjustment for accelerated depreciation of IT
      Source: Bloomberg  -  1,033 words
    • 950 6 SUBSTANTIAL SHAREHOLDER/DIRECTOR TRANSACTIONS Subsantial luy No of Price SHAREHOLDING Trans Shareholder/ Sell Shares Par Before After Stock Date Director Conv '000 Shr S ('000) C000) CWT Distribution 26-Jan-06 Loi Kai Meng (Pte) Ltd *ST 3000 na ***** 62.46 ***** 60 46 CWT Distribution 26-Jan-06 CSP Holdgs
      950 words
    • 1339 6  -  SHOW ME THE MONEY Company holds decent prospects and low earnings multiples TEH HOOI LING Senior Correspondent Arising tide lifts all boats. That indeed has been the case for the ma-rine-related industry. Companies in shipbuilding, ship repair, chartering, shipping, and offshore support services, among
      1,339 words
  • Page 6 Advertisements
    • 31 6 Insiders' trades. Brokers' recommendations. Dividend tabie. The pages also cover transactions by directors and substantial shareholders. In other words, news you can use. 11 >11 VJ 111 yVB 11 u I
      31 words

  • BT INVESTMENT ROUNDTABLE
    • 2760 7 OVERVIEW ON Jan 1, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong told Singaporeans in an upbeat New Year message that they could look forward to some goodies in the 2006 Budget their share of the country's economic success in the last two years. This was soon followed
      2,760 words

  • SINGAPORE NEWS
    • 653 8  -  5-room flat there goes for 51% more than one in Jurong West, the cheapest Reports by ARTHUR SIM THE average resale price of Mousing Development Hoard (lll)B) flats in the most expensive HI)B town is 50 per cent more than that in the cheapest
      653 words
    • 181 8 FOR a growing number of people, self-ser-vice is the name of the game vis-a-vis the Housing Development Board (HDB). According to the latest figures from HDB, there have been 68,000 transactions done through self-service kiosks like AXS stations and self-service automated machines (SAMs)
      181 words
    • 6152 8 UNIT TRUSTS FUNDS AM Amro Aimat Mgl (S'port) Stat fuope Iqty! 0.W Star I nape Band 1701/ sidr luape Bdl 1 162/ Star Asian l«»wEcjly 1177/ Sw Mu Band 1101/ Star Asia Balinud 1 086/ Su* Global technology I und'"* 070% MultiSlfd 105V S tm BamXUSW 0303/ GllMult.SIUSD 1 144/
      6,152 words
    • 621 9  -  It calls for more stringent rules for charities that raise funds from public By CONRAD RAJ A SPECIALLY constituted Inter-Ministry Committee (IMC) has recommended against a heavy hand in regulating Singapore's 1,800 charities, and says that they should, instead, be encouraged to self-regu-late. The 14-strong
      621 words
    • 261 9  -  By MATTHEW PHAN AFTER a week of celebration and touring, the international crew of the 10 Clipper boats sailed off yesterday in a rain of confetti on their next 4,400-mile leg to Qingdao, China, as shore-bound Singaporeans looked on with half-envious excitement. It felt
      261 words
    • 2403 9 VOL Jan 17 KM *1- COOP) ASM Realty 1.41 -0.04 1 Abrjc .031 -0.01 16 ACP Industries .0.69 -0.04 20 Advance Synergy .0.23 0.01 110 Adventa .0.25 0.01 249 AE Multi .0.30 0.01 52 Affin Hldgs 1.61 0.01 503 Ahmad Zaki Res 1.22 unch 31 AlCCorp J 1.15
      2,403 words
    • 164 9 TAN Wee Kiat the tireless chief executive officer of the National Parks Board (NParks) and a recognised authority on orchids is retiring on Feb 15. He will be succeeded by Ng Lang, according-to an NParks statement yesterday. During his tenure,
      164 words
    • 439 9  -  By CHEN HUIFEN FUSIONPOLIS is set to become the icon for physical science research in Singapore, just like the Biopolis is for biomedical research. When completed by end-2008, the $500-700 million complex, next to the Insead Asia campus at Ayer Rajah, will be
      439 words
    • 353 9  -  EASIER CREDIT Reports by LESLIE YEE SINGAPOREANS are still in love with plastic. Credit and •charge card issuers churned out plenty of new products last year and customers appeared to lap them up, according to figures from the Monetary Authority of Singapore. The
      353 words
    • 376 9 LOANS and advances by banks to non-bank customers in 2005 grew just 2.2 per cent, the slowest annual pace in three years and a fraction of the year's growth in bank deposits. According to the Monetary Authority of Singapore, bank loans rose to
      376 words
  • Page 8 Advertisements
    • 36 8 Allianz Global Investors one of world's top five asset management groups' Allianz (flj) with more than US$l.45 trillion' nf assets under management. Global investors Sonne. Wdlsun Myall As .it ill >r. tjin; i ■mi,, „o rwo/)^7
      36 words

  • Page 9 Advertisements
    • 133 9 >AT3 NOTICES SYNTECH-WOH HUP INVESTMENTS PTE LTD (IN MEMBERS'VOLUNTARY WINDING-UP) (Company Number: *****8437E) NOTICE OF FINAL MEETING NOTICE OF HEREBY GIVEN thai pursuant to Section 308( 1) of the Companies Act, Cap. 50. that the Final Meeting of the Member, of SYNTECH WOH HUP INVESTMENTS PTE LTD will be held
      133 words

  • MALAYSIA
    • 350 10 Legal action could prove a major test for Malaysia's judiciary Reuters [KUALA LUMPURJ Malaysian opposition icon Anwar Ibrahim filed a suit against former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad yesterday, opening a new battle against the man who drove him from government in a chain of events
      Reuters; AFP  -  350 words
    • 160 10 [KUALA LUMPUR] The Naza Group is hiring CIMB Group and ECM Libra Bhd to arrange its initial public offering (IPO), slated to be one of the biggest this year, according to a report in Malaysia's Business Times. The paper quoted group managing
      160 words
    • 245 10 AP [KUALA LUMPUR] Malaysia's decision to build a bridge reaching only halfway across the waterway separating it from Singapore will benefit the two nations even if its neighbour refuses to complete its side of the project, its deputy prime minister said yesterday. Najib Razak said,
      AP  -  245 words
    • 8029 10 Transaction date: Jan 27 52-Wk Id Last Vol Day Lart Quote GrMv Dfv GrYW Mat MCaa Higli Uwi» CoJo Comply Sate W- fOQQ> Mjfr law 8uyr Safcr Cw Ht sJ 7 2 5716 1st Software 5c 2.5 unch 2177 2.5 2.5 2.5 3 10.1 20 6 3148 8Te(ecomUS2c
      8,029 words
    • 237 10 Bloomberg [KUALA LUMPUR] Proton Holdings Bhd, Malaysia's biggest carmaker, and Volkswagen AG have ended stake-sale talks and decided to cooperate on projects including a dealer network in Malaysia and supply of products and components. "We have moved past the issue of VW-AG eyeing
      Bloomberg  -  237 words

  • INDONESIA
    • 356 11 It expects net income of 15.5t rupiah, down 31% from previously Bloomberg [SINGAPORE/JAKARTA] PT Pertamina, Indonesia's state oil company, cut this year's profit forecast 31 per cent because of rising costs and falling sales. Pertamina forecasts net income of 15.5 trillion rupiah (552.7 billion) in
      Bloomberg  -  356 words
    • 153 11 Reuters [JAKARTA] Indonesia's state asset management company plans to sell its remaining minority stakes in three banks this year in a bid to raise funds to help finance the state budget deficit, the head of the company said yesterday. The planned sales
      Reuters  -  153 words
    • 6280 11 Transaction Date: Jan 27 MOST ACTIVE STOCKS VOLUME VALUE Chart SemiCood 26c 73.959,000 UOB 110,464.200 PacifkGenturylOc 71.206,000 Chart SemiCood 26c 103.ISO.635 UTACUSISc 49,535,000 DBS Grp B8.3S6.882 GlobalVoice 5c 48,105.000 5inqTet15c 78l677.925 Genlnt USlOc 41,311,000 SIASOc 49.385.906 Sky Petrol 5c 35.255.000 UTACUSISc 45.346,035 GlobalTest 10c 31,651,000 OCBCBfcSOc 43.557.200 SingTel 15c
      6,280 words
    • 193 11 AFP [JAKARTA] Indonesia's struggling flag carrier Garuda will spin off its lowcost unit Citilink into an independent budget airline in a bid to compete with fastgrowing local carriers, a report said yesterday. Garuda vice-president Joseph Saul told the Jakarta Post that the unit, which
      AFP  -  193 words

  • GREATER CHINA
    • 622 12 They agree to pump US$3.78 billion into ICBC, China's biggest lender Reuters [BEIJING] Goldman Sachs, Allianz and American Express agreed yesterday to invest US$3.7B billion in Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), the country's largest bank, in the latest foreign bet
      Reuters; REUTERS; Source: WSI research  -  622 words
    • 625 12 NEWS ANALYSIS But there is no official approval for futures trading Reuters [SHANGHAI] China's nascent fund industry has finally joined the commodities party, as money continues to stream into markets around the world, boosting prices from copper to sugar to record highs. Fund involvement
      Reuters  -  625 words
    • Article, Illustration
      71 12 [BEIJING] A couple arriving at the railway station here yesterday, part of a massive wave of humanity travelling for the Chinese New Year holidays an annual movement of hundreds of millions of people that is much larger than the migration inspired by the Muslim Haj. According to local
      AP  -  71 words
    • 229 12 Bloomberg [SHANGHAI] China's four asset management companies disposed of 839.8 billion yuan (Ssl69 billion) of non-performing loans as of Dec 31, the China Banking Regulatory Commission said.. The bad-debt managers, formed to manage soured loans transferred from the country's biggest stateowned lenders,
      Bloomberg  -  229 words
    • 223 12 Bloomberg IHONG KONG] Shares in Lenovo Group Ltd, the world's third-biggest-per-sonal-computer maker, plunged after brokerages downgraded the stock on lower-than-expected thirdquarter earnings. The company's shares closed 8.1 per cent lower at HK53.125 (65 Singapore cents) in Hong Kong yesterday. after dropping as much as
      Bloomberg; Source: Bloomberg  -  223 words
    • 312 12 AP [HONG KONG] China will likely see an increase in mergers and acquisitions (M&A) deals this year, helped by relaxed regulations that will lure private equity transactions, a research report by the consultant group PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) says. The number of
      AP  -  312 words
    • 250 12 China state firms' profits up 25.1 in '05 Reuters [BEIJING] China's state-owned enterprises raked in 904.7 billion yuan (Ssl 82 billion) in profits in 2005, up 25.1 per cent from the previous year, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. The ministry said on its website (www.mof.gov.cn) that all state-owned firms
      Reuters  -  250 words
    • BRIEFLY ASIA
      • 69 12 Bloomberg [BEIJING] PetroChinaCo, the nation's largest petroleum company, had the estimate of its 2005 loss from refining operations widened by Merrill Lynch Co, mainly because of China's controls on fuel prices. The company may have a loss of 20 billion yuan (Ss4 billion) from refining,
        Bloomberg  -  69 words
      • 61 12 Reuters [HONG KONG] Hong Kong posted a HK$6 billion (Ssl.3 billion) deficit for April-December 2005, expanding from a HK$2.B billion deficit for the same period a year earlier, data released yesterday showed. However, last year's account included HK$26 billion in revenue raised from government
        Reuters  -  61 words
      • 77 12 Reuters [HONG KONG] Chinese advertising network company Focus Media Holding Ltd has raised US$295 million through an American depository share (ADS) sale to help fund an acquisition, a person familiar with the deal said yesterday. Focus Media sold 1.5 million primary ADS and 5.3 million
        Reuters  -  77 words
      • 41 12 Reuters [TAIPEI] The Hon Hai group, Taiwan's top electronicrfpart maker, aims to double its annual revenue to Ts2 trillion (Sslo2 billion) by 2008 from Tsl trillion last year, the Economic Daily said yesterday. —Reuters
        Reuters  -  41 words
      • 64 12 Bloomberg [JAKARTA] PT Tambang Batubara Bukit Asam, a state-run Indonesian coal company, which plans to diversify into power to meet the nation's electricity demand, has planned a more than 10-fold increase in investment for the projects. It proposes to spend 650 billion rupiah (S$
        Bloomberg  -  64 words
      • 58 12 AFP [TAIPEI] MediaTek Inc, a digital media chipset solutions provider in Taiwan, said yesterday it has agreed with Zoran Corp of the US to settle their patent infringement disputes. The two companies will immediately dismiss all pending litigation filed against each other in all jurisdictions
        AFP  -  58 words

  • INDIA/GREATER CHINA
    • 414 13 DAVOS FILE Finance minister also hints at move to relax FDI limit in insurance sector Reuters INDIA'S Finance Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram said on Thursday that Asia's third-largest economy could grow by 10 per cent in the 2006-2007 fiscal year if investment levels were
      Reuters; AFP  -  414 words
    • 706 13  -  INDIA INSIGHT It plans a mega-public issue of US$1.3 billion before June among the largest private sector offerings ASHOK KUMAR THE Reliance group ranks among India's prenjier private sector groups. Its rise through the 1980s and 1990s under the stewardship of its founder member,
      706 words
    • 637 13 Central bank governor says it'll be gradual, though Reuters CHINA pledged on Thursday to liberalise its interest rate and foreign exchange policy further as part of wider economic reform but said the process would be gradual. People's Bank of China (PBOC) governor Zhou
      Reuters; REUTERS  -  637 words
    • 196 13 AP CHINA is set to become the biggest user of broadband in the world, Bill Gates said yesterday. "No one will catch up (except) maybe India in 50 years," the chairman and co-founder of Microsoft Corp said at the World Economic Forum's
      AP  -  196 words
    • 415 13 [HONG KONG] A group of young entrepreneurs saw their HK$BO,OOO (5516,750) investment in one of this year's hottestselling items at the Victoria Park Lunar New Year fair flushed away when HSBC "advised" them on Thursday to stop selling rolls of "banknote" toilet
      415 words
    • 196 13 Bloomberg [NEW DELHI] India is seeking to resume power generation by May at an Enron Corp founded plant that's been shut for five years with gas from Oman, helping the South Asian nation's most industrialised region meet energy demand.
      Bloomberg  -  196 words
  • Page 13 Advertisements

  • WORLD
    • 550 14  -  Fuji TV mulls Livedoor buyout; Sony sees reversal of bad fortunes By ANTHONY ROWLEY in Tokyo TOKYO stock prices roared ahead by almost 4 per cent to a new five-year high yesterday, as the Livedoor saga took a more positive
      AFP  -  550 words
    • 390 14 LATEST US DATA Reuters [WASHINGTON] US economic growth slowed sharply in the fourth quarter to the weakest pace in three years as consumers spent less robustly, growth in homebuilding eased and businesses were less eager to boost investments, a government report yesterday showed. Gross
      Reuters  -  390 words
    • 368 14 Bloomberg [NEW YORK] AT&T Inc, in its first earnings report since the combination of SBC Communications Inc and AT&T Corp, said fourth-quarter profit more than doubled as rising wireless and Internet sales countered the shrinking local-phone business. AT&T, the biggest US
      Bloomberg  -  368 words
    • 274 14 Bloomberg [LOS ANGELES] Ford Motor Co, which is cutting as many as 30,000 North American jobs, said it's not seeking a US bailout, after President George W Bush said Ford and General Motors Corp can't expect aid from the federal government. The
      Bloomberg; BLOOMBERG  -  274 words
    • WORLD WATCH
      • 111 14 Reuters [LONDONI The world's largest steel maker, Mittal Steel, bid 18.6 billion euros (Ss37 billion) yesterday for its biggest rival, Arcelor. The bid is the largest in the history of steelmaking. Mittal Steel said the unsolicited offer was worth 28.21 euros a share, a
        Reuters  -  111 words
      • 145 14 AP [HOUSTON] The judge overseeing the fraud and conspiracy trial of Enron Corp founder Kenneth Lay and former CEO Jeffrey Skilling on Thursday rejected their last-minute bid to halt the trial, saying they couldn't credibly argue the jury pool is too biased
        AP  -  145 words
      • 91 14 AP [NEW YORK] Silver prices rose to hit a new 19-year high on fund buying on Thursday. Some of the move may be a "catch-up" to gains that previously had been occurring in gold, analysts said, and some buying is market speculation
        AP  -  91 words
      • 94 14 Bloomberg {HOUSTON] Halliburton Co. the world's largest oil-services company, reported a profit of US$l.l billion in the fourth quarter compared with a loss a year earlier, as record energy prices boosted demand. Per share profit was US$2.OB versus a loss of US$2Ol million, or 46
        Bloomberg  -  94 words
    • 636 14 Profits boosted by new server product, healthy PC market AP (SEATTLE] Microsoft Corp said on Thursday that earnings for its fiscal second quarter rose 5 per cent, helped by a successful launch of a new server product and a healthy market for personal
      AP; AFP  -  636 words

  • MOTORING
    • Article, Illustration
      1076 15  - ME MY MERC DRIVING STYLE Gunther Meyer's love affair with his Mercedes-Benz 190SL involved a five-year ground-up restoration, says GEOFFREY EU GEOFFREY EU YOU could call Gunther Meyer a classic motoring monogamist. After all, he belongs to that rare breed of enthusiast whose automotive loyalties lie entirely with one specific
      ARTHUR LEE  -  1,076 words
    • 510 15  -  By RAYMOND LAI WELCAB may sound like the name of a Hong Kong taxi company, but it's actually Toyota's offer of mobility to disabled drivers and passengers. Derived from a combination of "welfare" and "cabin", it comprises a range of purpose-built vehicles developed by
      ARTHUR LEE  -  510 words
    • 457 15  -  By SAMUEL EE LIKE the fireworks which heralded the opening of its new showroom, the range of Mini options has exploded ever since Trans Eurokars took over the franchise on Jan 1. The personalising of this already very personal car has zoomed to a new level with
      ARTHUR LEE  -  457 words

  • GOLF
    • 1359 16  -  Yet, even with the best teacher, one will only get out of the game what one puts into it, reports JUSTINE MOSS JUSTINE MOSS A QUICK flip through the Yellow Pages reveals a surprisingly small list of qualified golf coaches in Singapore, given that the game
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  • Page 16 Advertisements
    • 275 16 wine&dine withweekendßT Cafebiz Traders Hotel, Lobby Level, Tel: 6831 4374 Cafebiz offers exotic Asian and local cuisine as well as tempting selections of global culinaty delights for buffet and a la carte dining. Expect show kitchen with Chinese traditional "hand-made" noodles or "La-Man", Tandoori dishes and Chinese-style roasted meats. On
      275 words
    • 556 16 is committed to establish Fuenti as a (fining destination which delivers quality authantk Maßan cuisine. Pina Court Chinese Restaurant 333Meritou Mandarin Singapore, Orchard RoadL T«L *****262/66 Enjoy Chatterbox's time-honoured and multi-award winning Mandarin Chicken Rice along with other lauded local favourites in an all-new presentation and ambience of modem vibrancy.
      556 words
    • 241 16 Try Skylight Cafe's weekly lunch special of<jflfcen corden bleu supreme or katsu don at $7.50 nett, Incisive of a cup of caffea/tttfeoft drink. Savour the cultural mix efthe Peranakan cu&ne: special homemade spices and aromiticdkhes. serifcd buffet-styie. Breakfast daily 6am to I&3 Gam. lunch: Montofri, 12pm to 230pm. High Tea:
      241 words

  • WELLNESS
    • 1205 17  -  A food-based rapid weight loss programme is a different approach to stay trim without £oing hungry, reports CHEAH UI-HOON CHEAH UI-HOON THERE'S no better time than this weekend to resolve to make this a year of eating less and eating more healthily but starting only after the
      1,205 words
    • 248 17  -  By CHEAH UI-HOON CHEF Bing Lam gives the assurance that Chinese New Year cuisine on the whole is fine, as there are a lot of vegetables used in various dishes. Abalone and pineapples, for example are both kidney yin tonic foods, deficiencies (which refers to
      248 words
  • Page 17 Advertisements
    • 34 17 9» Get a I Leading Edge J Your sailing schedules get wider attention I in The Business Times shipping pages Call Bernard Ong at 6319-1645 or Michael Chng at 6319-2026 *m» v -■> Shipping times
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  • Page 17 Miscellaneous
    • 429 17 CRYPTIC CROSSWORD a line beneath nineteen at cleaner (4) ■■B 9 New dairy built with quality of I I I I I 1 1 1 I BB 10 Singer from local town (4) I I I 13 One of the sisterhood gets a I I I I iBl dance (7)
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  • SHOPPING
    • Article, Illustration
      1132 18  -  CORINNE KERK gives a run-down on Her World Beauty Awards, an annual event to pick the products which deliver the best results CORINNE KERK WITH cosmetic houses launching thousands of beauty and skincare products each year, it can be a challenge sieving the good stuff from the so-so
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    • 281 18  -  Spring/Summer 2006 brings an exceptionally wonderful collection of bags from different labels. CORINNE KERK selects some of the oh-so-desirable pieces arriving on our shores CORINNE KERK BVLGARI THIS season, the Italian house better known for its jewellery has an especially attractive collection of bags. There seems to
      281 words

  • TRAVEL
    • 1305 19  -  A trip to France's famed Champagne region isn't complete unless you visit the historic city of Reims, says GEOFFREY EU GEOFFREY EU THE Hotel du Marc, an oasis of Gallic calm and charm surrounded by low walls and shaded by large trees, is tucked away on a quiet
      PHOTOS BY GEOFFREY EU  -  1,305 words

  • THE BUSINESS TIMES weekend
    • 1035 20 JAIME EE offers some options if you haven't yet (gasp!) made a booking for the all-important occasion IT'S Chinese New Year's Eve. Do you know where your steamboat is? If you have suddenly awoken to the fact that we are now on the cusp of
      1,035 words
    • 866 20  -  Don't be caught wanting when friends visit. JAIME EE samples the traditional Chinese New Year cookies hotels have to offer JAIME EE TO many caught up in the festive spirit, there's nothing like the fragrant layered spice cake known as kueh lapis which seems to appear at
      866 words
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