Real-Time Economic Data Could Be a Game Changer; Startup Uses Phone Photos to Track Grocery Inflation

Real-Time Economic Data Could Be a Game Changer

Startup Uses Phone Photos to Track Grocery Inflation

SUDEEP REDDY

Oct. 15, 2013 12:32 a.m. ET

The world of economic data may be headed for a substantial revision. Private companies are deploying new technology to overhaul a half-century-old approach to tracking changes in the global economy, promising constantly- updated gauges to guide major corporations, hedge funds and governments. The latest entrant, Premise Data Corp., is the first to create real-time inflation data using hundreds of people snapping photos of store shelves and produce carts around the world daily to track price changes. Read more of this post

Asia’s Waning Competitiveness Seen in Trade Disconnect: Economy

Asia’s Waning Competitiveness Seen in Trade Disconnect: Economy

Asia’s exporters are failing to benefit from a recovery in advanced nations, putting the onus on policy makers to shift reliance to domestic demand as a driver of economic growth. China’s exports unexpectedly fell last month, while overseas shipments from Taiwan and South Korea also declined. Asia’s export-led growth engine is showing “signs of serious defects,” according to Frederic Neumann, Hong Kong-based co-head of Asian economics at HSBC Holdings Plc, who says the region’s trade data has disappointed over the past couple of years and may be evidence of a loss in competitiveness. The region’s export recovery is faltering even as Europe emerges from its longest recession on record and U.S. manufacturing (NAPMPMI) grows at the strongest pace in more than two years. The International Monetary Fund this month lowered its forecasts for growth in developing Asia for 2013 and 2014 while leaving projections for advanced nations unchanged. Read more of this post

IMI Sells Dispenser Arm to Berkshire Hathaway for $1.1 Billion

IMI Sells Dispenser Arm to Berkshire Hathaway for $1.1 Billion

IMI Plc (IMI) agreed to sell its beverage and snack vending machine business to Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (BRK/A)’s Marmon Group for about $1.1 billion in cash to focus on industrial valves and fluid control systems. IMI’s announcement that it would explore options for its merchandizing unit prompted Marmon to make an approach, the Birmingham, England-based company said in a statement today. Shareholders will receive 620 million pounds ($991 million) of the proceeds, with an additional 70 million-pound pension contribution, it added. The disposal is a landmark transaction for Martin Lamb as he prepares to step down as chief executive officer at the end of the year, after 13 years in the role. He’s betting that focusing on equipment for offices and control systems for chemical plants will help IMI tap demand for energy efficiency. “The disposal of Retail Dispense is a major step for IMI,” Lamb said in a statement. “It positions IMI as a highly differentiated, market leading flow-control business focused entirely on industrial-end markets.”  Read more of this post

Hong Kong Home Prices to Fall Up to 25%, Bank of America Says, bringing prices back to the level around 2011, but even at that, many people would still find it difficult to buy properties

Hong Kong Home Prices to Fall Up to 25%, Bank of America Says

Hong Kong home prices will fall as much as 25 percent from their peak as housing supply increases and the possibility of rising interest rates grows, according to Bank of America Corp.’s Merrill Lynch unit. Prices will drop 5 percent this year and another 15 percent in 2014, Raymond Ngai, a property analyst, told reporters at a briefing in the city today. He declined to give forecasts beyond 2014. UBS AG said yesterday that it expects prices to decline 5 percent in 2013 before dropping 15 percent to 20 percent next year. Read more of this post

South Korea Sees Won-to-Bond Risks as U.S. Impasse Adds Stress

South Korea Sees Won-to-Bond Risks as U.S. Impasse Adds Stress

South Korea warned of risks of volatility in the won and stresses within the nation’s bond market as the U.S. grapples with the threat of a default that could roil the global economy. Prolonged tension over U.S. fiscal policy adds to the danger of increased volatility in financial markets, the finance ministry said in a report prepared for a parliamentary audit today. Bond issuance by companies with low credit ratings may wither, the report said, amid a criminal probe and financial crisis at the Tong Yang Group. Read more of this post

Japan politics looms over ANA’s choice between Airbus, Boeing

Japan politics looms over ANA’s choice between Airbus, Boeing

12:56am EDT

By Tim Kelly, William Mallard and Tim Hepher

TOKYO/PARIS (Reuters) – When Japan Airlines Co broke with decades of tradition by buying long-haul jets from Europe’s Airbus rather than U.S. rival Boeing Co, it informed the Japanese government by email without any prior warning. The deal, worth $9.5 billion at list prices, was a major blow for Boeing, which holds more than 80 percent of Japan’s commercial-aviation market and has been intertwined with U.S-Japan diplomatic relations since shortly after World War Two. Read more of this post

E-Cigarette Marketing Seen Threatened by FDA Scrutiny

E-Cigarette Marketing Seen Threatened by FDA Scrutiny

The $1.5 billion U.S. electronic-cigarette industry has tripled sales this year with the help of TV ads, Nascar sponsorships and product giveaways. Government regulation may now threaten those marketing tactics. The Food and Drug Administration is set to decide this month whether to lump e-cigarettes in with conventional smokes as part of its oversight of the $90 billion U.S. tobacco market. Such a step would set the stage for greater restrictions on production, advertising, flavorings and online sales. Read more of this post

Concern grows at Chinese companies’ bad debts

October 15, 2013 5:39 pm

Concern grows at Chinese companies’ bad debts

By Henny Sender

Offering credit appears seductive, but the reality for investors is grim

Concern about Chinese companies’ bad debts is mounting. But, at the same time as these worries surface, a group of US, Hong Kong and Chinese investment concerns has decided that lending money to them is still an attractive business. Although China has just agreed to let UK-based institutions invest up to Rmb80bn (£8.2bn) in Chinese securities, opportunities to provide equity capital to Chinese companies remain scarce. Read more of this post

S.Korean lawmakers scold gov’t for underestimated sovereign debts

S.Korean lawmakers scold gov’t for underestimated sovereign debts

English.news.cn   2013-10-16 14:12:04

SEOUL, Oct. 16 (Xinhua) — South Korean lawmakers on Wednesday scolded the government for surging sovereign debts, which have been underestimated after excluding debts that are highly likely to be realized in the future or belonging to the government in the end. Combined debts, which the South Korean government should be accountable for, would reach 1,053 trillion won (1 trillion U.S. dollars) as of the end of 2013, main opposition Democratic Party lawmaker Lee Yong-sup said in a report for the parliamentary audit session on Wednesday. Read more of this post

Korea has the fourth-highest number of patents in the world, yet just 20 of patented technologies are commercialized. 7,400 fried chicken restaurants open and 5,000 go bankrupt each year. Half of all chicken restaurants go under within 3 years and 80% close within 10 years

Entrepreneurs thriving in former East Germany state

Oct 16,2013

SPECIAL REPORTING TEAM [kjy@joongang.co.kr]

When 50-year-old Park Myung-ja opened a fried chicken restaurant in June 2012 with her husband, it cost 60 million won ($56,297) just in rent and key money.

However, Park closed the store in less than a year.
“There are so many fried chicken stores around that we worked until dawn to survive, but there was nothing more we could do,” she said, shaking her head.
Then Park started working in the kitchen of a restaurant again, where she got paid 50,000 won a day. Her husband is currently looking for a food delivery job.
About 18,000 start-ups go out of business each year. Fried chicken stores, in particular, seem to fail easily.
According to KB Financial Group, 7,400 fried chicken restaurants open and 5,000 go bankrupt each year. Half of all chicken restaurants go under within three years and 80 percent close within 10 years.  Read more of this post

Li Ka-shing packing bags for ‘Journey to the West’

Li Ka-shing packing bags for ‘Journey to the West’

Staff Reporter

2013-10-16

With declining profit levels a ripening reality for his businesses in mainland China and Hong Kong, business magnate Li Ka-shing is dumping his assets and heading West, the Economic Observer reported. According to the financial reports of Li’s Hutchison Whampoa, the company recorded an operational income of HK$325.9 billion (US$40.03 billion) in 2010, with pre-tax revenue pegged at HK$39.3 billion (US$5.1 billion). Of this figure, the company’s mainland China business accounted for 12% of the total, with pre-tax revenue taking up 28% of the total. The contribution of its mainland China business dropped to 11% in 2012, with pre-tax revenue plunging 19%. Read more of this post

Express delivery staff in China profit from selling client data

Express delivery staff in China profit from selling client data

Staff Reporter

2013-10-16

Express delivery employees in China are profiting from the sale of records containing personal information online, with asking prices ranging between 0.40 yuan to 1 yuan (US$0.06- US$0.16), reports the Chinese-language Economic Information Daily. The business of selling express sheets has become a vast “gray area” for express delivery employees to earn money from an individual’s personal information. It is also becoming a platform for con artists to make false claims, burglarize homes or even commit murder, the paper said. Read more of this post

Export Fair in China Loses Steam

October 15, 2013

Export Fair in China Loses Steam

By KEITH BRADSHER

GUANGZHOU, China — With nearly as much floor space as five McCormick Places in Chicago, the sprawling Canton Fair, which opened in Guangzhou Tuesday morning, is a monument to China’s industrial versatility and export prowess. But although the 12 million square feet of exhibits still offer products as varied as wheelbarrows and Segway knockoffs, the autumn session of the fair hints at the broader malaise now afflicting exporters across China and other East Asian nations. Read more of this post

Australian tio, including Vanda Gould, chairman of listed investment company CVC, charged in $30 million fraud investigation

Trio charged in $30 million fraud investigation

October 16, 2013 – 12:50PM

Ben Butler

Police have arrested Australian businessmen Vanda Gould and John Leaver and Belgian national Peter Borgas as part of an Operation Wickenby investigation into $30 million of tax evasion and money laundering. Mr Gould, who is chairman of listed investment company CVC, and Mr Leaver, who is a director of the company, were arrested in raids on their Sydney homes on Tuesday night.

Read more of this post

Asia’s Challenge to Europe

October 14, 2013

Asia’s Challenge to Europe

By KEITH BRADSHER

The BaShiTong food court, a collection of small eateries on the third floor of an office building in central Chongqing, China, closed this summer just three months after it opened. Workers sued for back wages. The owner of one spot lost all his savings and barged into the office of the food court’s promoter with a propane tank, taking him hostage and threatening to blow the place up by igniting the tank. Read more of this post

India’s struggling sugar mills seek solace in ethanol

India’s struggling sugar mills seek solace in ethanol

Tue, Oct 15 2013

* Govt wants oil companies to achieve 5 pct blending of ethanol in gasoline

* Hopes to reduce record current account deficit by cutting crude imports

* Demand for ethanol will give sugar mills a shot in the arm

* Oil firms float tender for 1.33 bln litres of ethanol

* With Brazil as inspiration, ethanol blending could keep growing

By Rajendra Jadhav

MUMBAI, Oct 15 (Reuters) – Struggling sugar mills in India are seeking solace in producing ethanol from crushing sugarcane, as the government ramps up pressure on oil retailers to cut fossil fuel imports by blending gasoline with the biofuel. New Delhi, scrambling for ways to cut nearly $20 billion off its oil costs as it battles a record current account deficit, could save around $1 billion on annual imports of crude as it pushes oil firms to hit a goal of 5 percent blending of ethanol in gasoline. Read more of this post

People are drinking more Coca-Cola despite costs and a slow economy

Updated: Wednesday October 16, 2013 MYT 7:30:30 AM

People are drinking more Coca-Cola despite costs and a slow economy

NEW YORK: Coca-Cola Co on Tuesday reported quarterly earnings that met Wall Street’s expectations as it sold more of its namesake soft drinks, as well as teas and waters, despite a challenging economy. Morningstar analyst Tom Mullarkey said he was encouraged by Coke’s global volume growth, which reached 2 percent overall, as well as the popularity of the Coca-Cola brand in North America. Read more of this post

The Slow Death of a Former Breakfast Table Star; Americans bought just 563.2 million gallons of orange juice, the lowest since at least the 1998-99 season

Oct 14, 2013

The Slow Death of a Former Breakfast Table Star

By Alexandra Wexler

Picture an American family at the breakfast table. Now remove the pitcher of orange juice. Once a morning staple, orange juice is on the outs. Total U.S. retail sales of the juice fell to the lowest level in at least 15 years during the 2012-13 season, according to Nielsen data published by the Florida Department of Citrus on Monday. Americans bought just 563.2 million gallons of the beverage during the season that ended on Sept. 28, the lowest since at least the 1998-99 season, the oldest data available from the FDOC. Read more of this post

Regulators warn on rise of boom-era debt

October 15, 2013 5:27 pm

Regulators warn on rise of boom-era debt

By Sam Fleming and Philip Stafford

Global securities regulators have warned that the types of debt security that played a central role in the global financial crisis are again growing in popularity among investors. The International Organisation of Securities Commissions (Iosco) said on Tuesday that investors chasing higher yields were placing more money into leveraged investment products that could be vulnerable to a sharp change in financial market conditions. Read more of this post

Credit default swaps run out of road

October 15, 2013 9:35 am

Credit default swaps run out of road

By Tracy Alloway and Michael Mackenzie in New York

In 1994 bankers at JPMorgan Chase came up with the canny idea of selling off some of the risk of their loans by striking insurance-like deals with other banks and financial institutions. In return for paying some fees, JPMorgan was able in effect to unload much of its credit risk and save on capital costs. From that humble beginning the “single-name” credit default swap (CDS) was born. By 2008, Wall Street had manufactured trillions of dollars’ worth of the swaps, using the derivatives to increase or reduce their exposure to loans – with sometimes disastrous results. Read more of this post

A Push to End Securities Fraud Lawsuits Gains Momentum

OCTOBER 15, 2013, 4:35 PM

A Push to End Securities Fraud Lawsuits Gains Momentum

By STEVEN M. DAVIDOFF

A group of pro-corporate forces has begun a behind-the-scenes fight at the Supreme Court. You may not have heard about it, but it could just end shareholders’ ability to sue companies for securities fraud. Securities fraud litigation — suits against companies for disclosure violations of the federal securities laws — has been a big business over the years. From 1997 to 2012, more than 3,050 securities litigation cases were brought, according to Cornerstone Research, a financial and economic consulting firm. Companies and their insurers paid $73.1 billion in judgments and settlements, and plaintiffs’ lawyers alone collected almost $17 billion in fees, Cornerstone’s research shows. Read more of this post

Power-Starved Iraqis Know Amps From Watts

Power-Starved Iraqis Know Amps From Watts

By Francis Curta on 3:13 pm October 14, 2013.
Baghdad. In electricity-starved Iraq, just about everyone knows his amperes from his watts, and juggling electrical appliances to run them off a generator is by now second-nature. Power cuts and shortages have gone on for so long that most Iraqis turned to generators to make up for the lack of national grid electricity. “In Iraq, there isn’t a single home without a generator… from the most simple abode to the most remote tent,” says Abu Karar al-Quraishi, who sells small generators in central Baghdad. Read more of this post

China’s Retail Grocers Consolidate Further; Wumart to Buy Stores and Equity Stake From Local Competitor CP Lotus for $372m

China’s Retail Grocers Consolidate Further

Wumart to Buy Stores and Equity Stake From Local Competitor

LAURIE BURKITT in Beijing and CYNTHIA KOONS in Hong Kong

Updated Oct. 15, 2013 12:06 p.m. ET

Chinese supermarket chain Wumart Stores Inc. will acquire stores and an equity stake from a local rival for about US$372 million in cash and stock, in the latest move to consolidate China’s fragmented retail grocery market. Wumart said Tuesday that it struck a deal to buy the majority of C.P. Lotus Corp.’s retail outlets in China for 2.34 billion Hong Kong dollars (US$301.8 million). The acquisition will add 36 stores to Hong Kong-listed Wumart’s 145 markets and 396 minimarkets across China, according to a statement from the company. Wumart will take control of C.P. Lotus stores in the cities of Beijing and Shanghai and provinces other than the southern regions of Guangdong and Hunan, the statement said. Read more of this post

Maersk Monster Ships Create Capacity Glut to Clip Kuehne

Maersk Monster Ships Create Capacity Glut to Clip Kuehne

A.P. Moeller-Maersk A/S (MAERSKB)’s fleet of 1,300-foot container ships has worsened a capacity glut that’s depressing freight rates and eroding earnings, Kuehne & Nagel International AG (KNIN), the No. 1 sea-freight forwarder, said today. The three Triple-E class ships, the largest in the world, are exacerbating the effects of slowing demand on routes linking Asian exporters with consumers in Europe, Kuehne & Nagel Chief Financial Officer Gerard van Kesteren said in an interview after the company’s third-quarter profit missed analyst estimates. Read more of this post

For U.S. bond traders, the Grinch may steal bonuses

For U.S. bond traders, the Grinch may steal bonuses

8:20pm EDT

By Lauren Tara LaCapra and David Henry

NEW YORK (Reuters) – With anemic bond trading revenue over the past few months hurting Wall Street profits, pay cuts and even layoffs are back on the table just when the future had started looking up for traders. Overall, bonuses on fixed-income, currency, and commodity trading desks will likely be down 10 percent to 15 percent, said Alan Johnson, head of the Wall Street compensation consulting firm Johnson Associates. It could be the third or fourth year in a row in which some Wall Street bond traders get $0 bonus checks, he added. Read more of this post

Time to fix flaws in Singapore’s contra trading system

Time to fix flaws in local contra trading system

Wednesday, Oct 16, 2013

Goh Eng Yeow

The Straits Times

Last week, the local stock market suffered its worst calamity since the global financial crisis when the Singapore Exchange (SGX) “designated” the trading of three counters – LionGold Corp, Blumont Group and Asiasons Capital. The SGX edict means investors must pay for these three stocks in cash, while contra trading and short selling are banned. It came after the trio’s share prices went into free fall the previous Friday. As the losses mount, there is the usual finger-pointing to find scapegoats, and soul-searching to determine if things could have been done better to prevent a similar incident in future. One important observation to make is the many flaws in the “contra trading system” that have been uncovered by the fiasco. Read more of this post