Godiva owner Yildiz to buy DeMet’s Candy for $221 mln

Godiva owner Yildiz to buy DeMet’s Candy for $221 mln

9:54am EST

(Reuters) – Private equity firm Brynwood Partners said it will sell its stake in DeMet’s Candy Company, the U.S. maker of Flipz chocolate pretzels and Turtles covered nut clusters, to Turkey’s Yildiz Holdings for $221 million. Brynwood formed DeMet’s Candy in 2007 to consolidate its confectionary brands including Turtles, Flipz and Treasures milk chocolates acquired from Nestle SA (NESN.VX: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz). Brynwood, The owner of Zest soaps and Soft & Dri deodorants, will also sell two U.S. manufacturing facilities as part of the deal. Yildiz, Turkey’s largest food group, owns the family-run biscuit company Ulker (ULKER.IS: Quote, Profile,Research, Stock Buzz) and premium chocolate maker Godiva. The company earlier this year bought Spanish discount retailer Dia’s (DIDA.MC: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) Turkish operation DiaSA for 136.5 million euros. Houlihan Lokey Capital Inc served as the investment adviser to DeMet’s Candy, Brynwood said in a statement. The news of the sale was first reported by the Wall Street Journal.

Worries in the Path of China’s Air

December 25, 2013

Worries in the Path of China’s Air

By KATE GALBRAITH

When China’s skies darken with pollution, it is not the only nation to suffer. Soot, ozone-forming compounds and other pollutants from China can blow east to Korea and Japan. Ultimately, some even reach the west coast of the United States, scientists say. Read more of this post

The Rise and Fall of a Local Official Obsessed with GDP Growth; Guo Youming rose through the ranks in Hubei by producing stunning economic results. Now, corruption fighters want to know how he did it

12.27.2013 15:54

The Rise and Fall of a Local Official Obsessed with GDP Growth

Guo Youming rose through the ranks in Hubei by producing stunning economic results. Now, corruption fighters want to know how he did it

By staff reporter Ren Zhongyuan

(Beijing) – A November 27 statement by the Communist Party’s anti-corruption watchdog confirmed that the deputy governor of Hubei Province, Guo Youming, was being investigated for graft. Read more of this post

Small jet makers see big chance as China prepares to open skies

Updated: Friday December 27, 2013 MYT 12:15:47 PM

Small jet makers see big chance as China prepares to open skies

BEIJING Ferraris and Rolls-Royces have become common sights in China’s cities as a new class of super-rich indulge a growing appetite for luxury, but tight regulation has meant the private jet, the ultimate status symbol of the global elite, remains rare. Read more of this post

Regulator Has Eyes on Popular Online Investing, Sources Say; CSRC beginning to worry about the unregulated activity, which often sees sellers pledge eye-catching returns

12.27.2013 18:40

Regulator Has Eyes on Popular Online Investing, Sources Say

CSRC beginning to worry about the unregulated activity, which often sees sellers pledge eye-catching returns

By staff reporter Yang Lu

(Beijing) – The China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) has been mulling measures governing the e-sales of investment funds, sources with knowledge of the matter say. Read more of this post

Markets on Edge as China Moves to Curb Risky Lending

December 27, 2013

Markets on Edge as China Moves to Curb Risky Lending

By NEIL GOUGH and KEITH BRADSHER

HONG KONG — China’s financial system is in danger of becoming too big to bail out. Official bank lending has more than doubled since the global financial crisis, growing nearly twice as fast as the overall economy. The even bigger problem, however, appears to come from the rise of a shadow banking system that has allowed a number of companies and individuals, often with political connections, to borrow from state-controlled banks at low interest rates and relend the money at much higher rates to private businesses desperate for credit at almost any price. Read more of this post

Luxury market in China shifts from officials to young professionals

Luxury market in China shifts from officials to young professionals

Xinhua

2013-12-28

Though China’s current anti-extravagance drive is hitting luxury sales hard, the market is still huge, especially with smart and increasingly fashion-savvy consumers. Read more of this post

How Ultra-Rich Chinese Men Find Their Wives; “Luxury Matchmaker Parties” offer women the chance to meet and marry a multi-millionaire

How Ultra-Rich Chinese Men Find Their Wives

“Luxury Matchmaker Parties” offer women the chance to meet and marry a multi-millionaire.

By Charmika Monet

December 27, 2013

Much of the world is familiar with the unique struggles Chinese face when it comes to marriage. Increasingly strict financial security requirements coupled with the growing pains of a nation in the midst of swift change leave many unable to find proper marriage partners. Read more of this post

History’s future crumbling to ruins. Since 1978 when serious reform got underway, China has been striving to protect its past. The 1982 Cultural Relics Protection Law, was an institutional guarantee for historical relics

History’s future crumbling to ruins

NANNING, Dec. 27 (Xinhua) – At Xishan Mountain, a sacred Buddhist site in south China’s Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, besides receiving pilgrims, the monks and nuns have a unique role: firefighters. Read more of this post

China’s lonely parents tell of loss of only children as family holiday nears

China’s lonely parents tell of loss of only children as family holiday nears

5:18am EST

By Grace Li

HONG KONG (Reuters) – Chinese travel far and wide to join their families for the Lunar New Year holiday, but for 60-year-old Xie, whose only child died seven years ago, China’s biggest holiday is a reminder that she faces old age with little in the way of financial support. Read more of this post

China’s homegrown satellite navigation system will bring untold economic, social and military benefits and other countries in Asia are welcome to use it, the director of China’s satellite navigation agency

China says satellite network to be big asset, others can use it too

1:20am EST

By Adam Rose

BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s homegrown satellite navigation system will bring untold economic, social and military benefits and other countries in Asia are welcome to use it, the director of China’s satellite navigation agency said on Friday. Read more of this post

China’s Future Is Rich With Obligations

China’s Future Is Rich With Obligations

ALEX FRANGOS

Dec. 27, 2013 1:06 p.m. ET

Imagine a country with 340 million old people. That is China in less than 20 years, with double the number of retirees it has today. In a land of big numbers, it could be the biggest of all when it comes to burgeoning pension liabilities. Read more of this post

Emerging Asia: Thailand, Taiwan and taper

December 26, 2013 2:34 pm

Emerging Asia: Thailand, Taiwan and taper

A tale of diverging markets shows shift in investors’ Asia thinking

Exports, or a nascent middle class? One is the age-old path to prosperity in Asia; the other has produced stunning returns in the past five years. But a look at the diverging performances of Taiwan and Thailand – exponents of the former and latter approaches respectively – suggests a return to the former is under way. Read more of this post

Are Kellogg’s, HUL victim of multinational ego in India?

Are Kellogg’s, HUL victim of multinational ego in India?
R Jagannathan
Firstpost.com

Should a company that’s crossed a turnover of Rs 500 crore after nearly 20 years in the business be congratulating itself? Especially when the business is food, an area where rank outsiders have scaled up in almost no time? Read more of this post

India gold tax hits bridal budgets as smuggling rises

India gold tax hits bridal budgets as smuggling rises

Saturday, December 28, 2013
By Kay Johnson, AP

MUMBAI, India–With India’s wedding season in full swing, the glass sales counters in Mumbai’s famed Zhaveri gold bazaars are crowded with customers eyeing elaborate headpieces, nose rings and necklaces. No one does jewelry quite like an Indian bride, who by tradition wears all the gold she can stand up in and her family can afford. Read more of this post

Indian central bank warns on Bitcoins; Indian Bitcoin Exchanges Halted As Government Shifts Capital Control Attention Away From Gold

Indian central bank warns on Bitcoins

Reserve Bank of India highlights the risks of digital currencies, including Bitcoins, to users, holders and traders

By Telegraph Staff

12:50PM GMT 27 Dec 2013

India has become the latest nation to warn about the risks of trading in Bitcoins. The Reserve Bank of India said users, holders and traders of “virtual currencies, including Bitcoins” were exposing themselves to “potential financial, legal, customer protection and security related risks”. Read more of this post

Indian Probes Risk Revival of $160 Billion Projects: Commodities

Indian Probes Risk Revival of $160 Billion Projects: Commodities

The decision by India’s top investigating agency to probe a third billionaire-led mining deal in six months puts at risk government efforts to revive $160 billion of stalled projects. Read more of this post

Is India Reinventing Politics?

Is India Reinventing Politics?

Indian democracy took a turn toward ancient Athens this week after the Aam Aadmi Party (“Common Man’s Party”) went to the people a second time in an attempt to resolve a political dilemma. The fledgling political outfit that earlier this month won 30 percent of the vote and 40 percent of the seats in elections in the city-state of Delhi brought up the notion of “direct democracy” in defense of its decision to hold a referendum in Delhi on the question of whether it should make a bid to form a minority government in the capital. Read more of this post

Kejriwal faces challenge to prove his party can govern New Delhi

December 27, 2013 1:31 pm

Kejriwal faces challenge to prove his party can govern New Delhi

By Amy Kazmin in New Delhi

Victor in New Delhi: Arvind Kejriwal is to be sworn in on Saturday

Over the past three years, Arvind Kejriwal has emerged as the angry young man ofIndian politics – an impassioned campaigner who has relentlessly attacked the political establishment for corruption and bemoaned the failure of the country’s representative democracy. Read more of this post

Mumbai’s Last Generation Of Letter Writers Signs Off

Mumbai’s Last Generation Of Letter Writers Signs Off

By Rachel O’Brien on 5:40 pm December 27, 2013.

An Indian letter writer stitching together a parcel as others wait for customers at their roadside stalls located opposite the General Post Office in Mumbai on December 6, 2013. There used to be 17 letter writers in this bustling corner of the city’s south. Now there are eight, whose tasks are largely reduced to packing parcels and filling out forms. (AFP Photo/Punit Paranjpe).

Letter writer Shakil Ahmed is a proud keeper of secrets. For decades he penned the missives of Mumbai’s illiterate workers, whether lovers pledging devotion to faraway sweethearts or prostitutes sending home money while concealing their trade. Read more of this post

Top Indian Bitcoin operator stops trade after bank warning

Top Indian Bitcoin operator stops trade after bank warning
Saturday, December 28, 2013
AFP

NEW DELHI–India’s biggest Bitcoin trading platform said on its website Friday it had suspended operations after the central bank warned against the risks of using virtual money. Read more of this post

Indonesia to Regulate Metal Exports for Companies With Smelters

Indonesia to Regulate Metal Exports for Companies With Smelters

Indonesia, the world’s largest mined nickel producer, will proceed with a plan to ban mineral-ore exports for mining companies without smelters next month, while regulating shipments by miners that do process ore. Read more of this post

Aiming to Reinvent Itself, Panasonic Moves Beyond the Living Room

December 27, 2013

Aiming to Reinvent Itself, Panasonic Moves Beyond the Living Room

By ERIC PFANNER

FUJISAWA, Japan — Panasonic used to make televisions, refrigerators and computer monitors in this suburb of Tokyo. Now, six years after closing its factories in Fujisawa, the company is building homes on the site, which is sandwiched between Mount Fuji and the Pacific. Read more of this post

Japan World-Beating Stocks Seen Repeating Gains in 2014

Japan World-Beating Stocks Seen Repeating Gains in 2014

The 49 percent rally that pushed Japanese stocks past every other developed market in 2013 has done nothing to increase valuations, a sign to the world’s biggest investors that the advance will last. Read more of this post

Korean salaried workers suffer from vacation deficit

Korean salaried workers suffer from vacation deficit

Kim Deok-sik, Chang Jae-woong

2013.12.27 16:18:56

South Korea is the world’s 15th largest economy in terms of GDP and 8th largest exporter in the world. In terms of economic performance, the country is already an advanced country. However, with respect to reasonable working hours and the use of holidays, the country may still have to be classified as underdeveloped. According to online travel company Expedia, only 70% of Korean salaried workers used their paid leaves, more than 20 percentage points lower than that of European countries like Germany or Ireland where the corresponding ratio is over 90%, and even lower than that of Italy (71%) which is experiencing an economic crisis. The deprivation of rest among Korean salaried workers becomes more pronounced around the time of year end and the New Year. Most Korean workers rest only on Jan. 1 and head back to work on Jan. 2, which makes the New Year day just another single-day holiday. There’s the lunar New Year but because a majority of people travel to their hometowns during the average three-day holiday, they end up spending more time on the road than getting a real rest. In comparison, the culture of taking a long vacation at the year end is established not only in Western regions like Europe and the US but in neighboring countries like Japan and China. Foreign salaried workers use the long holiday to spend quality time with their families, particularly their children. They also wrap up the passing year and plan for the New Year. This is possible because they are given between two to three weeks of vacation around the year end and the New Year.

LG, Samsung cooking up kitchens

LG, Samsung cooking up kitchens

BY MOON GWANG-LIP [joe@joongang.co.kr]

Dec 27,2013

Local electronics companies are expanding their kitchen business, zeroing in on a growing “smart home” market. LG Electronics said yesterday that it has launched LG Studio, a brand of premium kitchen electronics appliances, in the United States. Samsung Electronics’ similar premium kitchen brand, Club des Chefs, launched earlier this year, and both will be showcased at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas next month.  Read more of this post