ABN Newswire

SingTel CIO Day 2012 Hong Kong - Unleash the Power of Your Business with Fixed Mobile Cloud Convergence

newsroom@abnnewswire.net — Mon, 19 Mar 2012 10:02:33 GMT

SingTel CIO Day 2012 - Hong Kong 'Unleash the Power of Your Business with Fixed Mobile Cloud Convergence' is heading into its third year on 23rd March, 2012 at Grand Hyatt Hong Kong. Gathering up to 600 C-level delegates, this year will be the largest congregation of industry movers and shakers, entrepreneurs, and business leaders from the region.

Showcasing innovative and intelligent ICT services 'Enterprise Mobility, Cloud Computing and Disruptive Technology', you are expected to learn how these 3 ICT services can converge and unleash the power of your business to its utmost.

This year's featuring keynote speaker, Mr. Jack Uldrich, renowned global futurist and best-selling author, will share his insights on '2020 ICT Predictions and the Business Impacts for CIOs in Asia'. In this ever-evolving world of technology, the unpredictable future will test even the most successful and well-run institutions. Mr. Uldrich will discuss what information CIOs will need to possess in order to better understand this future, as well as outline the strategies they must employ today in order to help prepare their organizations for tomorrow's accelerating change.

Featuring luminary Industry Keynotes, Executive Insight Panels on Convergence of ICT Services, Cutting Edge Solution Showcases from Leading Providers a and Extensive Networking with ICT Though-Leaders and Peers, you can gain insights from influential and respected industry practitioners and discover innovations that will help your organization advance. Join the SingTel CIO Day 2012 - Hong Kong today to explore more than just the technology.

Event Location: Grand Ballroom, Grand Hyatt Hong Kong
Event Time: 23rd March 2012, 9:00 - 16:30

For additional Information, please visit http://www.cioday2012.com

Jeanette Sin
T: +852-3563-5869
E: Jeanette.sin@mig-events.com

Asian Activities Report for December 15, 2011: DeNA (TYO:2432) and Alibaba Cloud Computing to Form Strategic Alliance in China

newsroom@abnnewswire.net — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 11:00:46 GMT

DeNA Co., Ltd. (TYO:2432) has agreed to form a strategic alliance with Alibaba Cloud Computing ("AliCloud"), a subsidiary of China's Alibaba Group to provide DeNA's Mobage social gaming platform to consumers and developers in China. The two parties will work together to bring Mobage to Chinese consumers on Aliyun OS-based smartphones in early 2012. In addition, DeNA will make the company's proprietary ngCore game engine available and easily accessible to Chinese game developers through AliCloud's cloud services.

Marubeni Corporation (TYO:8002) has agreed to acquire a 40% equity interest in APT Allgas Energy Pty Ltd ("Allgas"), a wholly owned subsidiary of APA Group (ASX:APA) in Australia. APA is a major energy company involved in the ownership, operation and management of gas pipelines and gas distribution networks throughout Australia. Through its interest in Allgas, Marubeni will become the first Japanese corporation to participate in the gas distribution network business in Australia.

Japan Airlines and WestJet Airlines (TSE:WJA), a low-cost airline in Canada have signed a codeshare agreement which will place the "JL" flight indicator on WestJet-operated flights between Vancouver and six Canadian cities - Calgary, Edmonton, Kelowna, Montreal, Toronto and Winnipeg, from December 15, 2011. The agreement will expand the total number of Canadian cities in Japan Airlines' network from three to seven.

Sumitomo Chemical Co., Ltd. (TYO:4005) and Nabaltec AG (ETR:NTG) of Germany have been in discussions about collaborating on their Alumina and Aluminum Trihydroxide businesses. The companies have agreed to start collaborating first in the commercial area. Beginning December 1, 2011, Nabaltec will be supplying Sumitomo Chemical an exclusive grade of fine precipitated Aluminum Trihydroxide for sale in East Asia.

Qiubei Fu
Asia Business News
Tel: +61-2-9247-4344
http://www.abnnewswire.net

Australian Market Report of April 29, 2010: Remained Weak Despite Wall Street Rebounded

newsroom@abnnewswire.net — Thu, 29 Apr 2010 13:30:29 GMT

Today Australian shares continued their losing streak in early trade, despite a positive lead from Wall Street. Yesterday the Asian and Australian market declined massively on the back to credit ratings downgrades for Greece and Portugal. Australian market's decline today was led by financial shares.

US stocks rose on Wednesday on hope of a European Union bailout for Greece and an extended period that US interest rates remain at historic lows.

Thursday Asian stocks markets opened mixed in the morning. Tokyo bourse is closed to celebrate the Showa Day.

Company News

IT services provider ASG Group (ASX:ASZ) enters the SAP market for the first time through the acquisition of Courtland Business Solutions, an SAP partner providing business management software to mining, oil and gas, engineering, construction and infrastructure sectors. The total purchase price is based on a multiple of five times earnings before interest and tax. ASG expects the Courtland takeover, in the form of 50 per cent script and 50 per cent cash payable in three instalments, will be earnings per share accretive in its fiscal year 2011.

ANZ (ASX:ANZ) today reported a net profit for the half year ended March 31 of A$1.9 billion, up 26 per cent on the preceding half and 36 per cent higher than the prior same period a year earlier. The result was driven by an 8 per cent growth in profit before provisions excluding global markets and a 32 per cent reduction in the credit impairment charge, ANZ said. The lender anticipates over 3 per cent growth in Australia and an almost 2 per cent growth in New Zealand in 2010, while Asia will remain the world's best performing region with an annual growth of almost 8 per cent.

Real estate developer Mirvac Group (ASX:MGR) said today that it has entered into an agreement with Westpac Funds Management Limited, the responsible entity of the Westpac Office Trust (ASX:WOT), to acquire all WOT units and instalment receipts. The cash and script takeover offer made by Mirvac values the property trust at about A$413 million. The proposed acquisition is expected to deliver 3 per cent earnings accretion to Mirvac Property Trust in the fiscal year ending 2011 and to expand Mirvac's Australian investment grade property portfolio by an additional A$1.1 billion. WOT has indicated that it recommended the offer from Mirvac.

Atlas Iron Limited (ASX:AGO) will raise up to A$63.5 million through a placement to international and domestic institutional shareholders, in a bid to fund a substantial increase in production and shipments in the second half of this calendar year. Takeover target Aurox Resources Ltd (ASX:AXO) says it believes the Atlas capital raising is a positive development for the proposed merger between Aurox and Atlas. The board of Aurox says it continues to unanimously recommend friendly takeover offer by Atlas, in the absence of a superior proposal.

Michelle Liang
Asia Business News Asia Bureau
Tel: +61-2-9247-4344
Email: michelle.liang@abnnewswire.net

Ms. Hera K. Siu Joins SAP as President, SAP China (ETR:SAP): New Generation Leader Brings Fresh Perspective to SAP China

newsroom@abnnewswire.net — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 12:30:59 GMT

SAP Asia Pacific Japan today announced the appointment of Hera K. Siu as President, SAP China (ETR:SAP). Reporting directly to Steve Watts, President, SAP Asia Pacific Japan, Ms. Siu will assume responsibility for all aspects of SAP China's operations with particular focus on continuing to grow SAP's on-premise, on-demand and on-device solutions in China.

Ms. Siu is a new-generation, technology industry leader, with more than 20 years experience spanning business software and mobile technologies. She has had Greater China leadership roles with Nokia, Computer Associates and Pacific Century Cyberworks (PCCW). Ms. Siu's breadth and depth of experience brings SAP China a new dimensional perspective on forces shaping the next generation of business software, including software-as-a-service (SaaS) and mobile solutions. Born and raised in China, with a strong background in international business, one of Ms. Siu's strengths is her deep understanding of the challenges customers and partners face in China's dynamic global business environment.

"Hera's strategic mindset, tremendous breadth of experience and proven leadership skills make her ideally suited to lead SAP China through its next phase of development. Globally the business software market is undergoing rapid change and a leader of Hera's quality and background will be a great addition to SAP," said Steve Watts, President, SAP Asia Pacific Japan.

Commenting on her appointment, Ms. Siu said, "It is a privilege to lead the world's best business software company, in the world's most dynamic market. I was drawn to this opportunity by SAP's obviously deep commitment to fostering innovation in China and helping Chinese businesses to succeed as global players. I am excited to join the world's largest provider of business software and work with SAP China's high-calibre employees, partners and customers."

Prior to joining SAP, Ms. Siu was Corporate Vice President and General Manager, Nokia Telecommunications Limited - a manufacturing joint venture based in mainland China - where she oversaw operations and managed joint venture partner relationships. As part of her wider role with Nokia, Ms. Siu also managed corporate affairs, government relations, environmental sustainability and corporate social responsibility.

Ms. Siu's other previous appointments include Vice President and Regional Manager for Computer Associates China and Senior Vice President, Application Service Provider, Pacific Century Cyberworks in Hong Kong.

Ms. Siu holds an MBA and a Bachelor of Science in Finance from the University of Nevada, Reno. She is fluent in English, Mandarin and Cantonese and lives in Beijing with her husband and two children.

For more information, press only: 
Lynn Ong
SAP Asia Pacific Japan
TEL: +65-6768-6439
EMAIL: lynn.ong@sap.com

Asian Markets Overview of March 4, 2010

newsroom@abnnewswire.net — Thu, 4 Mar 2010 13:30:25 GMT

Asian stocks saw modest gains Wednesday on hope of a bailout package for Greece. Australian market was boosted yesterday as official data showed that Australia's economy grew 0.9 per cent in fourth quarter, its fastest quarter-to-quarter pace in almost two years. Japan's Nikkei index ended up 0.3 per cent. South Korea's Kospi Composite rose 0.5 per cent. Shanghai Composite climbed 0.8 per cent higher. But Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index closed 0.1 per cent lower. Today Asian markets are likely to open flat, after Wall Street declined slightly on Wednesday.

Company News

Chinese software maker Kingdee International Software Group (HKG:0268) aims to grow revenue five-fold in the next four years and become Asia's biggest software firm, its chief executive said. The company, which is competing with global giants SAP (ETR:SAP) and Oracle (NASDAQ:ORCL), expects revenue could reach 5 billion yuan by the year 2013, and overseas clients can contribute more than 10 percent.

Japan's Mitsubishi Motors Corp. (TYO:7211) and France-based manufacturer PSA Peugeot-Citroen (EPA:UG) confirmed Wednesday they are scrapping their capital alliance talks due to lingering adverse conditions in the auto industry. The two companies said in December that they were exploring capital ties. Now the two parties confirmed that they would seek to expand their partnership, but concluded that a capital alliance was not appropriate in the current circumstances.

China Mobile Ltd. (NYSE:CHL) (HKG:0941), the world's biggest mobile operator by subscribers, has confirmed that it is in talks to buy a stake in mid-size lender Shanghai Pudong Development Bank Co. (SHA:600000). This could lead to China Mobile's first major investment outside of its core business and help it to expand into mobile e-commerce. China Mobile said the negotiations for the proposed acquisition are nearing completion, but gave no details of the deal.

AU Optronics Corp. (NYSE:AUO) (TPE:2409) said its board approved a plan to invest US$1.2 billion in a new flat-panel plant in eastern China. The company will apply for approval for the investment from Taiwan's Investment Commission as soon as possible. The plan comes after the Taiwan government eased restrictions on flat-panel makers' China-bound investment to help local makers better compete with larger rivals.

Michelle Liang
Asia Business News Asia Bureau
Tel: +61-2-9247-4344
Email: michelle.liang@abnnewswire.net

SAP AG (ETR:SAP) World Tour 2009 Brings "Strategies for Success in the New Reality" to Asia Pacific and Japan

newsroom@abnnewswire.net — Tue, 16 June 2009 11:00:10 GMT

The SAP AG (ETR:SAP)(NYSE:SAP) Asia Pacific Japan (APJ) World Tour officially debuted in Hong Kong on 11 June to an audience of more than 600 executives from major global corporations and local government. This year's global SAP Event focuses on harnessing the power of technology to help Best-Run Businesses achieve clarity and thrive in the current business environment.

Mark Gibbs, President, SAP North Asia, who delivered the keynote address in Hong Kong, explained, "The SAP World Tour 2009 is a global event, but at every stop it addresses the unique needs of companies in that particular region. The Greater China markets are of key strategic importance to SAP and we are delighted to kick off the launch of our SAP APJ World Tour 2009 in Hong Kong."

"In today's business environment, our Customers need to see clearly, think clearly and act clearly to thrive. Gaining clarity and then acting upon it, both within their organization and across their wider business network, ensures our Customers become Best-Run Businesses," he added.

This year's SAP World Tour will focus on:

- Clear New World - outlining SAP's new strategic initiative

- Seeing Clearly - highlighting the power of SAP Business Suite 7

- Thinking Clearly - focusing on analytics and Business Intelligence

- Acting Clearly - thriving in the current market conditions, using SAP SME portfolio and Best-Run Now packages

- Customer Clarity - SAP CRM 7.0 and CRM in SAP Business All-in-One

- Industry Clarity - a specific industry focus for each market

Taking place in over 70 cities across more than 50 countries in Europe, Asia and Latin America, SAP World Tour is a premium business and technology event providing businesses with information on how SAP(R) solutions can help companies of all sizes successfully transform business challenge into opportunity, becoming a Best-Run Business in the process.

In APJ, the SAP World Tour 2009 will cover 26 markets across the Region, travelling next to Beijing, China (June 16), Seoul, Korea (June 17), and finishing in Karachi, Pakistan on October 7.

Link:
http://www.sap.com/asia/about/press/press.epx?pressid=11446

Tara Bal
SAP Asia Pacific Japan
Tel: +65-6768-6448
bal.tara.parvesh@sap.com

SAP China (NYSE:SAP) Launches 'Clear New World' Strategic Initiative

newsroom@abnnewswire.net — Fri, 22 May 2009 15:00:51 GMT

SAP China launches its 'Clear New World' strategic initiative - beginning a series of activities to help Best-Run Businesses in China see clearly, think clearly and act clearly in order to thrive in the current market conditions.

Mark Gibbs, President, SAP North Asia, pointed out that businesses in China have encountered a new reality of unprecedented risk and volatility in the past year, and need to have visibility into every aspect of their business network to act effectively and decisively.

"They need 'clarity' to refocus their business strategies and streamline operations. In other words, to win in the New Reality, China's Best-Run Businesses must become 'Clear Enteprises'," he said.

He also explained how information technology can provide executives with a clear view and greater insight into their businesses. To this end, SAP China showcased an ecosystem that offers an unrivalled portfolio of software and services that help Customers close the gap between strategy and execution, thus enabling them to become 'Clear Enterprises'.

Recent SAP initiatives to help drive 'clarity' include: making pricing transparent to Customers through an agreement with SAP's user groups to deliver on specific key performance indicators before adjusting pricing for its Enterprise Support services; and the launch of several new solutions including SAP BusinessObjects Explorer(1), which enables Customers to navigate mountains of business data at the 'speed of thought'; SAP Business Suite 7, SAP's next-generation software suite enabled by SOA; as well as a package of solutions to help businesses improve sustainability.

To drive awareness of the 'Clear New World' strategic initiative in China, SAP China has launched a nationwide, integrated marketing campaign based on the 'Clear New World' theme to reach out to Customers, partners and others in the SAP ecosystem. This was successfully pre-tested with SAP China prospects, clients and market influencers to ensure the relevance of the concepts and messages for the China market.

For more details, go to our new website(2) devoted to the 'Clear New World' strategic initiative in China.
# # #

Notes:
(1) SAP BusinessObjects Explorer
http://www.sap.com/asia/about/press/press.epx?pressid=11320

(2) Clear New World strategic initiative in China
http://www.clearnewworld.cn/

Full Release
http://www.sap.com/asia/about/press/press.epx?pressid=11370

For more information, press only:
Lynn Ong
SAP Asia Pacific Japan
TEL: +65-6768-6439
Email: lynn.ong@sap.com, GMT +8

Echo Su
SAP China
TEL: +86-10-6589-8283
Email: echo.su@sap.com, GMT +8

SAP AG (FRA:SAP) Announce Asia Pacific Japan's First Quarter Results 2009 Show Depth of Regional Customer Support

newsroom@abnnewswire.net — Tue, 19 May 2009 14:05:47 GMT

SAP AG (FRA:SAP)(NYSE:SAP) announce Asia Pacific Japan (APJ) performed strongly in a challenging first quarter 2009, showing sustained Customer support and improved Operating Margins. In particular, SAP China put in an exceptional performance, showing double-digit revenue growth and material margin expansion over the previous comparable period.

Attributing SAP APJ's market leading performance to its strong customer base and ability to innovate in response to Customer needs, Geraldine McBride, President, SAP Asia Pacific Japan said, "Our Customers are with us, in spite of the current economic environment. Globally, in Q1 2009, 22% of our order entry came from new Customers, while recurring revenues comprised almost 55% of total sales revenue. SAP APJ demonstrated continued strength in its maintenance revenues - a strong indication that our Customers continue to see the value associated with SAP support."

For the full SAP APJ Q1 2009 earnings announcement, please see the link below;

http://www.sap.com/asia/about/press/press.epx?pressid=11354

Lynn Ong
SAP Asia Pacific Japan
Tel: +65-6768-6439 GMT +8
lynn.ong@sap.com
 
Vikki Tan
Upstream Asia
Tel: +65-6323-7377 GMT +8
vikki.tan@upstreamasia.com

Indian Retailers Partner With SAP (FRA:SAP) To Fuel Future Growth

newsroom@abnnewswire.net — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 17:00:00 GMT

SAP for Retail Solutions Help Retailers Anticipate Customer Needs and Inspire the Overall Shopping Experience

Highlighting its continued commitment to deliver innovative solutions to retailers in India, SAP AG (FRA:SAP)(NYSE:SAP) today announced sustained adoption of its SAP for Retail solutions with significant customer endorsements. Over 72 leading retailers, such as DLF Retail, Khadim Jewellers, Fresh & Honest Cafe, Super Religare Laboratories and Religare Wellness Limited, Dimexon Diamonds and C Mahendra have adopted and expanded their SAP footprint to simplify business processes, reduce cost and adapt to the changing industry landscape.

"Today, retailers are faced with an uncertain economic environment and by customers who are smarter and more demanding than ever before. The need of the hour is to sustain business growth through innovation and differentiation," said Mr. Ranjan Das, Managing Director, SAP Indian Subcontinent.

"Technology has provided a new dimension to the India retail sector. As Indian and international retail chains continue to plan for growth, they face a pressing challenge for a single, enterprise-wide IT platform to manage increasingly operations. In the organised retail business technology is needed not only in accounting and human resource management, but also in core functions like buying, merchandising and store management. Thus IT applications are witnessing adoption from the very beginning till the 'last mile' of the business operation for most retail functions. The key solutions being looked upon by retailers in India today are ERP/ERM solutions, supply chain management (SCM), inventory management and security solutions", said Arpan Gupta, Manager, Services, BPO & Industry Verticals Research, IDC India.

"With government policies becoming favourable and emerging technologies facilitating business operations, India has emerged as an attractive organised retail destination. Till a few years back, custom applications were more common among organised retail businesses. This has changed in recent times with vendors offering packaged applications for the retail segment. As per IDC estimates the spending on enterprise-wide applications (SCM, ERM/ERP and CRM) by the India retail segment was estimated to be around US$ 48 M in 2008. This is expected to increase at 17% year-on-year (2009 over 2008). SAP led the India enterprise-wide retail applications (SCM, ERM/ERP and CRM) market with more than 50% share in revenue terms in 2008 ", added Nandavarapu Kiran, Asst. Manager, Software and Services Research, IDC India.

Indian Retailers partner with SAP to Strengthen Business Processes on their journey to Success

Maintaining customer loyalty, a priority for Indian retailers in ordinary circumstances, is now of prime importance in the current market situation. As a result, retailers across the board are using SAP technology for greater visibility into consumer spending trends, enabling them to create shopping experiences that motivate their customers to return again and again. Alongside the phenomenal growth of the franchise business, domains such as food, pharmacy and jewellery continue to flourish. SAP's comprehensive retail suite, designed with flexible deployment blocks, provides customers agility to adapt the changing market conditions and leverage newer opportunities.

- DLF's foray into Retail- adopts SAP for Retail Solutions including SAP POS

DLF Brands, a subsidiary company of DLF Ltd, India's biggest real estate company, has joined hands with a number of leading European and American brands, including Boggi Italian Menswear, Alcott High Fashion, Luxottica which trades as Sunglass Hut, SIA fashions for the home and a number of other brands. It is quite an undertaking to manage such a variety of brands and SAP seemed to be one of the few companies to offer end to end solutions. According to Mr. Kelvin Coyle, CEO, DLF, "The business of premium and luxury retailing is dynamic. We needed an IT solution that empowers us to make decisions swiftly based on consolidated data and manage profitably." He further added, "Technology is a high-priority investment area for us."

- Retailers Leverage SAP to Gain Transparency and Automate

A growing number of retailers in India are adopting SAP solutions to streamline and gain transparency across business processes and operations.

Khadim Group, a fast growing national footwear brand with presence across various business verticals has selected SAP as the channel of growth. "Khadim's, as a brand, is well known nationally, and our steady growth can be attributed to our focus on innovation and best practices," said Mr. Suman Barman Roy, President Khadim Group. "With SAP, we have solutions that are industry-proven, help us to take better decision faster and enabling us to reach our strategic goals ahead of time."

C Mahendra, a leading diamond and jewelry company with worldwide presence, chose SAP solutions to automate processes to achieve end-to-end process efficiency and transparency across its organization, to fuel growth. "As our operations grow, we need a scalable enterprise application with world-class functionality which will support our transformation into a global business. Our journey with SAP will help us accomplish our growth plans within the framework of corporate governance," said Mr. Asif I. Mansuri, IT Head, C Mahendra.

SAP solutions enable retailers to streamline their merchandise lifecycle, integrate and manage customer information, gain a better understanding of operations, deliver shareholder value and mitigate risk, as well as manage their human resource and financial business processes. SAP for Retail portfolio has enabled Indian retailers of all sizes to improve the overall customer experience. More than 6,280 retailers worldwide rely on SAP for Retail to remain competitive, including 33 of the top 50 global retailers.

Mr. Ranjan Das, Managing Director, SAP Indian Subcontinent concludes "SAP as a market leader is committed to spearhead innovation in this space. We will continue to assist clients maximize profitability by offering solutions that streamline operations, increase operational flexibility and synchronize business processes to help them become best-run retailers."

About SAP for Retail

SAP for Retail is a solution portfolio that helps retailers understand their business, anticipate the needs of their business and inspire their customers, employees and shareholders by delivering results. The portfolio comprises an end-to-end set of retail solutions; merchandise management and planning; store operations (through the acquisition and integration of Triversity POS solutions); and base finance and HR solutions. SAP for Retail helps retailers of all sizes to create shopping experiences that their customers will want again and again, by providing the ability to make the right decisions quickly and profitably. Today, 33 of the top 50 global retailers run SAP. (Additional information at http://www.sap.com/retail/ ).

SAP India: 
Chaya Arora; 
TEL: +91-9987590976
Email: chaya.arora@sap.com

Genesis Burson Marsteller: 
Suhana Basu
TEL: +91-9886297297
EMAIL: suhana.basu@bm.com

Asian Market Overview of March 26

newsroom@abnnewswire.net — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 15:40:59 GMT

Most Asian markets opened firmer Thursday following Wall Street's rebound overnight lifted by better-than-expected economic figures.

Asia Economy Watch

Bank of Japan said the nation's corporate services prices fell 2.6% from a year before in February. The corporate service price index stood at 92.1 against 100 for the base year of 2000.

Thailand's Prime Minister said the economy could expand in the fourth quarter, thanks to the government's stimulus measures. The government has introduced stimulus packages aimed at boosting domestic demand and investment as demand has been weak for the country's exports, its main source of income.

Company News

Hong Kong based Bank of East Asia (HKG:0023) said on Thursday it had signed a deal to buy the Taiwan securities arm of American International Group. Analysts estimated the deal would be worth $US10 million to $US20 million. The deal is subject to regulatory approval in Taiwan.

Highlighting its continued commitment to deliver innovative solutions to retailers in India, SAP AG (FRA:SAP)(NYSE:SAP) today announced sustained adoption of its SAP for Retail solutions with significant customer endorsements. Over 72 leading retailers, such as DLF Retail, Khadim Jewellers, Fresh & Honest Cafe, Super Religare Laboratories and Religare Wellness Limited, Dimexon Diamonds and C Mahendra have adopted and expanded their SAP footprint to simplify business processes, reduce cost and adapt to the changing industry landscape. With approximately 82,000 customers in over 120 countries, SAP is the world's leading provider of business software.

PetroChina Co. (NYSE:PTR)(SHA:601857) said net profit was down 22% last year due to oil-price volatility and soaring costs. PetroChina expects to cut crude oil output 4.3% this year and refinery runs 1.4% in response to weakening domestic demand.

South Korea's Daewoo Motor Sales Corp. (SEO:004550) said it plans to sell 30 per cent of its 76 per cent stake in Woori Capital to increase its liquidity.

It is reported that Fuji Electric Holdings Co Ltd (TYO:6504) and TDK Corp (TYO:6762)(NYSE:TDK) planned to merge their uninterruptible power supply operations in October, forming a venture larger than the UPS operations of current market leader Mitsubishi Electric Corp (TYO:6503). Fuji is expected to take a majority stake in the venture, which would have 400 to 500 employees at the outset.

Shares in Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (HKG:1398)(SHA:601398) surged significantly after Goldman Sachs said it would not sell 80 percent of its nearly 4.9% holding in ICBC before April 2010.

China Shipping Container Lines Co. (HKG:2866) said its 2008 net profit fell 96% from a year earlier due to a slump in exports amid the global financial crisis. China Shipping also anticipates that 2009 revenue will fall 15.2% to CNY29.77 billion on an excess supply of container ships.

Tata Communications (NYSE:TCL)(BOM:10032149) and Tata Power (BOM:500400), India's Tata group companies, have jointly raised Rs 740.72 crore from selling their stake in group company, Tata Teleservices (BOM:532371).

The chief executive of South Korea's Hynix Semiconductor Inc. (SEO:000660) said Thursday the global semiconductor industry is likely to have hit its bottom in the fourth quarter of last year. The company will likely complete later this week the development of NAND flash memory chips using 41-nanometer process technology.

Michelle Liang
Asia Business News Asia Bureau
Tel: +61-2-9247-4344
Email: michelle.liang@abnnewswire.net