Singapore’s foray into the $300 billion-a-year space industry may seem like a lucrative venture, but the path is lined with risks, especially in satellite manufacturing where Western firms have long dominated and entry barriers are high

Singapore plots economic lift-off with satellites, spacecraft

10:11pm EDT

By Kevin Lim

SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Singapore’s foray into the $300 billion-a-year space industry may seem like a lucrative venture, but the path is lined with risks, especially in satellite manufacturing where Western firms have long dominated and entry barriers are high.

The push into space technology, announced earlier this year, will initially focus on satellites to meet growing demand for top-speed Internet connections as well as high-resolution images commonly used in surveillance, forestry and energy exploration. Read more of this post

Buffett’s Wells Fargo deposes China’s ICBC as world’s biggest bank

Wells Fargo deposes China’s ICBC as world’s biggest bank

POSTED: 24 Jul 2013 1:47 PM
The Industrial & Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) has lost its standing as the world’s largest bank by market capitalisation to US-based Wells Fargo, data showed Wednesday, as China’s economy slows.

SHANGHAI: The Industrial & Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) has lost its standing as the world’s largest bank by market capitalisation to US-based Wells Fargo, data showed Wednesday, as China’s economy slows. San Francisco-based Wells Fargo & Co is worth $236 billion, according to the New York Stock Exchange, where it is listed, while Chinese figures show ICBC is now valued at $223 billion. Read more of this post

China starts 5-year ban on new gov’t buildings

China Bans New Government Buildings in Waste Crackdown

China banned government and Communist Party agencies from constructing new buildings for five years and told them to suspend projects that have already won approval as the country seeks to cut wasteful spending.

The ban includes construction for purposes of training, meetings and accommodation, the government said in a statement on its website yesterday, calling for resources to be spent instead on developing the economy and improving public welfare. All localities should report the implementation of the new rules by Sept. 30, according to the statement. Read more of this post

Fur Coats in Stores as Sweltering Britons Seek Bikinis

Fur Coats in Stores as Sweltering Britons Seek Bikinis

Finding t-shirts and bikinis during the U.K.’s longest heat wave in 18 years is presenting an unlikely fashion emergency for British shoppers.

Even as temperatures have topped 28 degrees Celsius (82 degrees Fahrenheit) for 17 consecutive days, coats and sweaters are starting to replace shorts and flip-flops in store displays as retailers roll out fall fashions, leaving little choice for customers seeking to replenish their wardrobes after two years of summer washouts.

“I want to buy summer clothes now and they’re all gone,” James Arscott, a 52-year-old data analyst, said in London. “They sell summer clothes in the spring and now they’re selling autumn clothes. It’s almost like they expect people to buy things too soon.” Read more of this post

China’s Coal-Fired Economy Dying of Thirst as Mines Lack Water

China’s Coal-Fired Economy Dying of Thirst as Mines Lack Water

At first glance, Daliuta in northern China appears to have a river running through it. A closer look reveals the stretch of water in the center is a pond, dammed at both ends. Beyond the barriers, the Wulanmulun’s bed is dry.

Daliuta in Shaanxi province sits on top of the world’s biggest underground coal mine, which requires millions of liters of water a day for extracting, washing and processing the fuel. The town is the epicenter of a looming collision between China’s increasingly scarce supplies of water and its plan to power economic growth with coal. Read more of this post

European Banks Face Capital Gap With Focus on Leverage

European Banks Face Capital Gap With Focus on Leverage

Europe’s biggest banks, which more than doubled their highest-quality capital to $1 trillion since 2007 to meet tougher rules, may have further to go as regulators scrutinize how lenders judge the riskiness of their assets.

Deutsche Bank AG (DBK), Barclays (BARC) Plc and Societe Generale SA (GLE) are among European banks that issued stock, sold units or hoarded earnings to bring capital, as a proportion of assets weighted by risk, into line with new global rules. Now some regulators are questioning the weightings, typically set by the banks’ own models, and embracing a broader measure of equity to total assets known as the leverage ratio that ignores risk. Read more of this post

UPS Shuns ‘Slash-and-Burn’ in Bid to Blunt Next-Day Drop

UPS Shuns ‘Slash-and-Burn’ in Bid to Blunt Next-Day Drop

United Parcel Service Inc. (UPS) is trimming flight hours and miles driven to reduce costs as customers shy away from pricier overnight packages to cheaper two-day and deferred offerings.

UPS is trimming main aircraft routes out of Asia to an average of 7.5 from 8, and will lower headcount through attrition and slower hiring, Chief Financial Officer Kurt Kuehn said. The company will also cut discretionary spending on projects that don’t have an immediate payoff, he said. Read more of this post

Bad Real-Estate Deals Return to Haunt Detroit’s Pensions

Bad Real-Estate Deals Return to Haunt Detroit’s Pensions

In 2006, businessman Robert Shumake asked trustees of Detroit’s two pensions to hand him $27 million to invest in real estate.

George Orzech, a fire battalion chief who still represents uniformed workers on their fund’s board, found one thing odd:

“Anybody who knows the first names of trustees in a first meeting has already had meetings with people,” said Orzech, who unsuccessfully opposed the plan. “It was a political deal.” Read more of this post

Bitcoin Ponzi Scheme Alleged by SEC in Lawsuit Against Texas Man

Bitcoin Ponzi Scheme Alleged by SEC in Lawsuit Against Texas Man

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission sued a Texas man over claims he operated a Ponzi scheme involving Bitcoin, the virtual currency that has recently attracted investors including Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss.

Trendon T. Shavers raised at least 700,000 Bitcoin starting no later than September 2011 through his firm Bitcoin Savings and Trust and improperly used currency from new investors to cover investor withdrawals, the SEC said in a complaint filed today in federal court in Texas. Read more of this post

Selling Off Detroit’s Art Could Depress Global Market

Selling Off Detroit’s Art Could Depress Global Market

Art experts yesterday reacted with concern at the prospect of masterpieces from the Detroit Institute of Arts, including works by Bellini, Rembrandt, van Gogh and Picasso, suddenly flooding the global market.

That possibility looms in the wake of the biggest U.S. municipal bankruptcy filing by the city on July 18. The Detroit collection has been valued at more than $1 billion. Read more of this post

Worthless land could prolong Spanish banks’ property woes

Worthless land could prolong Spanish banks’ property woes

4:26am EDT

By Jose Elías Rodríguez and Tomás Cobos

MADRID (Reuters) – Spanish banks may have to swallow more losses to shake off the legacy of a property crash, real estate experts warn, as they struggle to sell plots of land that have ended up on their books and which are now worth less than many have accounted for.

Lenders were forced by the government to take billions of euros in provisions against losses last year after property values collapsed in 2008, with the steepest writedowns destined to cover land they were saddled with as developers went bust. Read more of this post

In Washington’s glare, Wall Street commodity trade falls under a shadow

In Washington’s glare, Wall Street commodity trade falls under a shadow

12:05am EDT

WASHINGTON/NEW YORK (Reuters) – Wall Street’s multibillion-dollar commodity trading operations will be put under the political spotlight on Tuesday as a powerful U.S. Senate committee questions whether commercial banks should control oil pipelines, power plants and metals warehouses.

The Senate Banking Committee hearing comes as Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and JPMorgan Chase – which generated an estimated $4 billion in commodity revenues last year – face growing pressure from a number of investigations into their operations, and as the Federal Reserve reviews Wall Street’s right to operate in raw material markets. Read more of this post

Land of Samba Is World’s Murder Champion; Crime is a symptom of the broader civic distress that is driving the protests that continue to erupt in some major cities

Land of Samba Is World’s Murder Champion

Brazil has a well-deserved reputation for violent crime. It is so pervasive that people routinely alter their behavior to reduce the odds of being victimized. Stopping at red lights at night? Better not. Thinking of wearing jewelry? Leave it home. Carrying cash? Bring no more than you need and can afford to lose. Crime also is a symptom of the broader civic distress that is driving the protests that continue to erupt in some major cities. Since Brazil seems unable or unwilling to root out the corruption that makes it difficult to develop decent infrastructure, policing and social services, it’s worth asking how it will get a handle on the crime problem. Read more of this post

1 in 5 Malaysians has a mental health problem, says Deputy Health Minister

1 in 5 Malaysians has a mental health problem, says Deputy Health Minister

KUALA LUMPUR — About 20 per cent of Malaysia’s total populations has a mental health problem, the country’s Deputy Health Minister said today (July 23).

BY –

1 HOUR 35 MIN AGO

KUALA LUMPUR — About 20 per cent of Malaysia’s total populations has a mental health problem, the country’s Deputy Health Minister said today (July 23). Dr Hilmi Yahaya, speaking in Parliament during a question-and-answer session, gave his estimation of the reach of problems like depression, stress and anxiety in the country, Malaysia’s official news agency Bernama reported. He added that the health ministry has made available screening facilities at 806 health clinics, 40 hospitals and four mental hospitals nationwide to help detect these problems. “There are 224 psychiatric specialists and 100 clinical psychiatric specialists nationwide,” Dr Hilmi said. He was responding to a senator’s question on what measures the government is taking to raise awareness of problems such as stress. Dr Hilmi also said that one per cent of the population suffers from more serious mental problems. AGENCIES

Rate-Cut Ammo Running Low Poses RBA Threat as China Risks Mount

Rate-Cut Ammo Running Low Poses RBA Threat as China Risks Mount

Australia entered its last recession with the benchmark interest rate at 12 percent. Now, as a once-in-a-century mining-investment boom wanes, the central bank finds itself with little conventional ammunition.

The Reserve Bank of Australia’s overnight cash rate, at a record-low 2.75 percent, is at a level it took the Federal Reserve and Bank of England just months to exhaust before they turned to quantitative easing. While economists see just a 12 percent chance of an Australian contraction by mid-2014, a pronounced downturn would pose unprecedented challenges. Read more of this post