Economic ties bind Germany, Korea; For both Korea and Germany, exports are crucial as a means to foster economic growth as well as employment, given the two countries’ industry structures

Economic ties bind Germany, Korea

OPINION

Mar 25,2014

For both Korea and Germany, exports are crucial as a means to foster economic growth as well as employment, given the two countries’ industry structures.
Thus, it is good to see that trade ties between them have turned out to be resilient even in the face of economic difficulties. Korea’s trade relationship with Germany has been affected less by the last economic downturn than that of most other European countries. This is obvious when looking at the data for 2013.  Read more of this post

Chinese industries are generally divided into state-owned and private sectors. The mobile and Internet field is referred to as “the third sector.”

The third sector of Chinese industry

Mar 25,2014

Chinese industries are generally divided into state-owned and private sectors. Core businesses are dominated by state-run giants, and small and midsize private companies focus on the manufacturing, processing and service industries. Lately, a new industrial ecosystem that transcends the traditional boundary is emerging in China. The mobile and Internet field is referred to as “the third sector.” Koreans pay special attention to the third sector as it directly relates to us in many ways. Read more of this post

Olam, Temasek and a huge pile of debt

Olam, Temasek and a huge pile of debt

March 25th, 2014 |  Author: Contributions

Andy Xian Wong

* The author blogs at http://andyxianwong.wordpress.com

Temasek’s offer to buy out Olam in a S$2.53 billion deal comes as the commodity trader continues to pile on debt. While Olam’s politically well-connected management and shareholders may appreciate the sovereign wealth fund’s backing, this is a deal which ticks all the wrong boxes for Singapore. Read more of this post

Fast fashion brands under scrutiny in China; Since Zara entered China in 2006, it has been blacklisted at least 15 times

Fast fashion brands under scrutiny in China

Staff Reporter

2014-03-23

Over the past year, cheap, fast-fashion brands such as Zara and H&M have swept through the Chinese mainland market, the Chinese-language Time Weekly reports.

These fast fashion brands have an unbelievably quick product cycle of just 15 days, but their quality has been questioned in recent years. Many of the products have made it onto quality inspection “black lists,” said the report. Read more of this post

‘NK could be next Chernobyl’; “If North Korea transfers its nuclear weapons to terrorist groups, it would pose a great challenge to world peace”; Park proposes Pyongyang as pilot case to make nuclear-free world

Updated : 2014-03-25 07:28

‘NK could be next Chernobyl’
Park proposes Pyongyang as pilot case to make nuclear-free world
By Kim Tae-gyu
THE HAGUE ― President Park Geun-hye proposed denuclearizing North Korea, Monday, as a pilot program to make a world free of nuclear weapons. Read more of this post

Asia to unite for stable gas supply; Flexible gas pricing to end Asian premiums

Updated : 2014-03-24 19:04

Asia to unite for stable gas supply
By Choi Kyong-ae

Asian buyers of liquefied natural gas (LNG) will join forces to secure gas in the rapidly-growing Asian market, regional energy experts said in Korea, Monday. Read more of this post

As airlines rely on sophisticated calculations to harvest every drop of profit, routes from small and midsize city airports are increasingly being dropped

Smaller Airports Are Being Left Behind

MARCH 24, 2014

By JOE SHARKEY

MY son Chris is on a business trip in India this week, and his choice of how he got there from his home in Tucson underscores a reality in air service. More often these days, business travelers will choose to drive a few hours to a bigger airport because airline service is not as convenient at their local airport. Read more of this post

Backstage with Xerox CEO Ursula Burns; On the problems facing the world’s growing population, the challenges of M&A, and the one thing people don’t understand about Xerox

Backstage with Xerox CEO Ursula Burns

By Andrew Nusca March 24, 2014: 5:30 AM ET

On the problems facing the world’s growing population, the challenges of M&A, and the one thing people don’t understand about Xerox.

FORTUNE — Ahead of her keynote at her company’s inaugural Simple@Work conference in New York City, Xerox (XRX) chief executive Ursula Burns sat down with Fortune senior editor Andrew Nusca for a wide-ranging discussion on the motivation of overpopulation, popular perception of Xerox, and her biggest business challenge for 2014. Below are her words, edited and condensed for clarity. Read more of this post

Albemarle & Bond: a business you’d struggle to pawn; Breakneck expansion and the fall in the gold price have done for the high-street pawnbroker that has wiped out its shareholders

Albemarle & Bond: a business you’d struggle to pawn

Breakneck expansion and the fall in the gold price have done for the high-street pawnbroker that has wiped out its shareholders

By Alistair Osborne, Business Editor

8:35PM GMT 24 Mar 2014

So, what do you call something that you’d struggle to pawn? Albemarle & Bond, as it turns out. Read more of this post

Capital controls feared in Russia after $70bn flight; Investors are withdrawing money at a rapidly increasing rate amid sanctions; Europe’s dependence on Russia for energy is likely to ease after the US announced an export deal

Capital controls feared in Russia after $70bn flight

Investors are withdrawing money at a rapidly increasing rate amid escalating sanctions from the West

Europe’s dependence on Russia for energy is likely to ease after the US announced an export deal Photo: AFP/GETTY

By Ambrose Evans-Pritchard

8:16PM GMT 24 Mar 2014

Capital flight from Russia has spiked dramatically since President Vladimir Putin first sent troops into Crimea and may reach $70bn (£42bn) over the first quarter of the year, prompting fears that the country may soon have to impose capital controls to stem the loss. Read more of this post

Behind Indonesia’s Political Party Labels, a Lack of Substance

Behind Indonesia’s Political Party Labels, a Lack of Substance

By Vita A.D. Busyra on 10:01 am Mar 24, 2014

Prabowo Subianto rides his horse into a campaign rally for the Great Indonesia Movement Party (Gerindra) on Sunday. (JG Photo/Afriadi Hikmal)

1.  The constellation of parties competing in next month’s legislative election appears to run the gamut of the political spectrum, from nationalist to populist to Islamic conservative. But dig a little deeper beneath the labels, analysts say, and the truth is that there is very little to distinguish any of the 12 parties vying for votes.

Read more of this post

Technical innovation sets off major transformation in Asia

Technical innovation sets off major transformation in Asia

Noel Quinn
March 25, 2014 1:00 am

Asian high-tech innovation, amplified by a growing appetite for research and development, is about to transform the region.

Much of the first phase of the Asian miracle has been driven by the production of high-tech goods – the tens of millions of smartphones, flat-screen televisions and computers that have flowed off production lines since 1980.  Read more of this post

China Banks Drained by Funds Called Vampires Seek Rules

China Banks Drained by Funds Called Vampires Seek Rules

It has been labeled a “blood-sucking vampire” by a prominent commentator on state-run television. Executives at China’s largest banks have called for regulators to curb its rapid expansion.

Jeremy Grantham: The Fed is killing the recovery

Jeremy Grantham: The Fed is killing the recovery

By Stephen Gandel, senior editor March 24, 2014: 5:00 AM ET

The money manager argues that the Fed’s interventions have ruined the very recovery it was supposed to stimulate and that the market is poised to disappoint investors.

FORTUNE — If you hate the Federal Reserve, you have a new hero. Read more of this post