WRAPUP 1-Faurecia, Plastic Omnium upbeat after strong H1

July 23, 2010 By Leave a Comment

PARIS, July 22 (Reuters) – French car parts maker Faurecia (EPED.PA) raised its full-year targets on Thursday while smaller supplier Plastic Omnium (PLOF.PA) made upbeat comments about the coming months as rising car demand boosted first-half results.

Carmakers and suppliers hurt by a deep industry crisis and a dramatic sales slump have benefited in recent months from scrappage schemes and rising emerging market sales, combined with an underlying recovery in economic activity in Europe.

Faurecia, which makes seats, exhausts and emissions control systems for carmakers including BMW (BMWG.DE) and Opel [GM.UL], said it saw product sales up 13-16 percent for the full year, compared with a previous target of a 4 percent rise.

Faurecia said it was aiming for over 340 million euros in operating income in the year as a whole, compared with an earlier target of over 200 million. Net cash flow would be over 100 million euros, rather than simply “positive”, it added.

Chief Executive Yann Delabriere told BFM Radio he expected the group to post a net profit for the year.

“We can easily imagine that the net profit will remain comfortably positive for the year as a whole,” he said.

Analysts had predicted first-half sales from car suppliers and carmakers would be strong, but warned there were still doubts about the second half as scrapping schemes fade and austerity measures kick in. [ID:nLDE66F083]

Plastic Omnium had a first-half net profit of 72.3 million euros, up from 8 million in the first half of 2009 and more than double the 31 million euros it posted in the full year.

The first-half operating margin reached 7.3 percent, compared with 3 percent in the first half last year. The group is expecting business to remain “dynamic” in the second half, it said in a statement.

Faurecia, 57.4 percent-owned by French carmaker PSA Peugeot Citroen (PEUP.PA), posted a 33.2 percent like-for-like rise in product sales in the first half to 5.4 billion euros. Overall sales rose 26.9 percent like-for-like to 6.8 billion.

Operating income swung to a 216.5 million euro profit from a 187.3 million euro loss in the first half of 2009. Net income reached 101.9 million euros, against a 364.6 million net loss.

The group said second-half sales would likely fall 5-8 percent in Europe. Sales soared in the second half of last year with scrapping schemes in full swing, providing an unfavourable basis for comparison.

Sales in the second half are set to rise 11-14 percent in North America and surge 20-25 percent in Asia, Faurecia said.

Faurecia last month set out ambitious growth and profitability targets and said it wanted to speed up development in Asia. [ID:nLDE65D11I]

For a story on truckmaker Volvo see [ID:nLDE66L06A]

(Reporting by Helen Massy-Beresford; Additional Reporting by Gilles Guillaume; Editing by James Regan and Michael Shields)

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WRAPUP 1-Faurecia, Plastic Omnium upbeat after strong H1

July 23, 2010 By Leave a Comment

PARIS, July 22 (Reuters) – French car parts maker Faurecia (EPED.PA) raised its full-year targets on Thursday while smaller supplier Plastic Omnium (PLOF.PA) made upbeat comments about the coming months as rising car demand boosted first-half results.

Carmakers and suppliers hurt by a deep industry crisis and a dramatic sales slump have benefited in recent months from scrappage schemes and rising emerging market sales, combined with an underlying recovery in economic activity in Europe.

Faurecia, which makes seats, exhausts and emissions control systems for carmakers including BMW (BMWG.DE) and Opel [GM.UL], said it saw product sales up 13-16 percent for the full year, compared with a previous target of a 4 percent rise.

Faurecia said it was aiming for over 340 million euros in operating income in the year as a whole, compared with an earlier target of over 200 million. Net cash flow would be over 100 million euros, rather than simply “positive”, it added.

Chief Executive Yann Delabriere told BFM Radio he expected the group to post a net profit for the year.

“We can easily imagine that the net profit will remain comfortably positive for the year as a whole,” he said.

Analysts had predicted first-half sales from car suppliers and carmakers would be strong, but warned there were still doubts about the second half as scrapping schemes fade and austerity measures kick in. [ID:nLDE66F083]

Plastic Omnium had a first-half net profit of 72.3 million euros, up from 8 million in the first half of 2009 and more than double the 31 million euros it posted in the full year.

The first-half operating margin reached 7.3 percent, compared with 3 percent in the first half last year. The group is expecting business to remain “dynamic” in the second half, it said in a statement.

Faurecia, 57.4 percent-owned by French carmaker PSA Peugeot Citroen (PEUP.PA), posted a 33.2 percent like-for-like rise in product sales in the first half to 5.4 billion euros. Overall sales rose 26.9 percent like-for-like to 6.8 billion.

Operating income swung to a 216.5 million euro profit from a 187.3 million euro loss in the first half of 2009. Net income reached 101.9 million euros, against a 364.6 million net loss.

The group said second-half sales would likely fall 5-8 percent in Europe. Sales soared in the second half of last year with scrapping schemes in full swing, providing an unfavourable basis for comparison.

Sales in the second half are set to rise 11-14 percent in North America and surge 20-25 percent in Asia, Faurecia said.

Faurecia last month set out ambitious growth and profitability targets and said it wanted to speed up development in Asia. [ID:nLDE65D11I]

For a story on truckmaker Volvo see [ID:nLDE66L06A]

(Reporting by Helen Massy-Beresford; Additional Reporting by Gilles Guillaume; Editing by James Regan and Michael Shields)

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UK firms cut advertising spend in Q2 – survey

July 13, 2010 By Leave a Comment

July 12 (Reuters) – British companies cut their marketing budgets in the second quarter and sentiment dropped to its lowest level for a year, a survey showed on Monday, suggesting the rebound in economic activity is waning.

The survey of around 300 British companies for the IPA/BDO Bellwether report found that advertising budgets for nearly all categories were revised down.

“The downward revision to marketing budgets in the second quarter is disappointing as it fails to build on the return to growth seen earlier in the year and highlights the fragility of the UK economic recovery,” said Chris Williamson, chief economist at Markit and author of the report.

“Companies are exercising increased caution in their expenditure in the face of likely slower economic growth in the second half of the year.

“However, it is encouraging to see that marketing spend is still set to increase for the year as a whole compared to 2009, albeit to a lesser extent than signalled in the first quarter.”

The report also said the rate that companies cut their budgets was much slower than that seen at the height of the economic downturn.

Almost 20 percent of the companies reported a cut to their spending, compared with 15 percent that increased the rate.

Some 25 percent of marketing executives described themselves as pessimistic about the financial prospects for their company, compared with 20 percent in the first quarter.

Of the different categories, main media spend was revised down in the quarter following a modest upgrade in the previous quarter. Spending on the Internet increased slightly however the rate of growth was the slowest for three quarters.

“The second quarter BDO/IPA Bellwether report reveals a cautious and uncertain picture,” Andy Viner, the head of media at BDO said. “After a strong rebound in Q1, optimism and confidence appear to be waning.

“It is clear that there are increasing signs that uncertainty over economic prospects continue and that corporates remain focussed on cost control against a backdrop of the risk of a double dip.”

(Reporting by Kate Holton; Editing by Erica Billingham)

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Fed officials see soft recovery and more uncertainty

July 2, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Louisiana (Reuters) – Jitters that financial strains may derail the U.S. economic recovery mean the Federal Reserve will be in no rush to end its ultra-low interest rates, comments by officials of the U.S. central bank suggested on Wednesday.

One senior Fed official went as far as acknowledging that falling inflation could spur the central bank to further ease financial conditions, and another policy maker would not rule out additional measures to stimulate growth.

When asked whether lower inflation would prompt the Fed to try to push borrowing costs even lower, Atlanta Federal Reserve President Dennis Lockhart told a Rotary Club audience: “It’s appropriate to think about what we would do under a deflationary scenario. At this point, no specific planning in my view is occurring but discussion in all likelihood will be on the agenda.”

The president of the Chicago Fed, Charles Evans, said the central bank had “provided a tremendous amount of accommodation,” but he also would not rule out further action to stimulate the economy.

“I’m going to be looking at the circumstances, and if we need to adjust policy in either direction, I am going to be responding,” he told business news channel CNBC.

The Fed cut interest benchmark interest rates to near zero percent in December 2008. With no room left to cut rates further, it continued efforts to boost economic activity by flooding the financial system with hundreds of billions of dollars worth of credit.

Financial market strains stemming from the European debt crisis and weak reports about U.S. housing and employment in recent weeks have led some analysts to anticipate the Fed would need to spur the tepid recovery with additional actions to promote growth. If it decided to take further action, the Fed would likely buy additional Treasury or other securities.

Lockhart and Evans are generally considered to be in the mainstream of thinking at the U.S. central bank. Neither, however, is a voter on the Fed’s interest-rate setting panel this year.

But Comments by a member of the Fed’s Board of Governors, Elizabeth Duke, suggest some trepidation at the Washington-based board about the strength of the recovery. Duke typically focuses on banking issues at and rarely comments on the outlook for the economy or policy.

Duke said the job market recovery was likely to proceed only slowly due to sluggish economic expansion. U.S. gross domestic product rose at a modest 2.7 percent annual rate in the first quarter.

“At that speed of recovery, you are not going to create jobs very quickly,” she said, in response to questions at a banking conference in Columbus, Ohio. “It is going to be, I think, a long period for jobs to recover.

Unemployment has hovered near 10 percent for several months, and analysts expect a report on Friday to show a big drop in employment, although private hiring is seen moving higher.

The Fed last week renewed its promise to hold interest rates exceptionally low for an extended period, saying the recovery is “proceeding.”

The economy has expanded for three quarters in a row, and most analysts had until recently been expecting the Fed’s next move to be a tightening of financial conditions through a combination of raising interest rates and sales of mortgage-related debt the Fed bought to stimulate lending.

The Chicago Fed’s Evans said the economic recovery is “definitely on,” with growth expected at 3.5 percent this year.

But he said he expects inflation may run below his guideline of 2 percent for the next three years or more and said unemployment would stay high for some time.

“It’s going to be a number of years before (unemployment) is going to get down to any type of rate that we might almost say is acceptable,” he said.

Taken together, low inflation and high unemployment mean that the Fed’s current accommodative monetary policy is still needed, he said.

(Additional reporting by Ann Saphir in Chicago and Jim Leckrone in Columbus, Ohio; Writing by Mark Felsenthal; Editing by Leslie Adler)

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UPDATE 1-World Bank-Double-dip recession can’t be ruled out

June 10, 2010 By Leave a Comment

WASHINGTON, June 9 (Reuters) – The World Bank on Wednesday said a double-dip recession could not be ruled out in some countries if investors lose faith in efforts in Europe and elsewhere to tackle rising debt levels.

The World Bank’s Global Economic Prospects 2010 report said slower growth in developed economies would deprive developing countries of healthy markets for their goods and would cut into investment.

For the moment, worries that Greece’s fiscal woes could spread to other highly-indebted countries, such as Spain and Portugal, has not affected growth in developing countries, the World Bank said.

“If markets lose confidence in the credibility of efforts to put policy on a sustainable path, global growth could be significantly impaired and a double-dip recession could not be excluded,” the report said.

U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, in testimony to lawmakers on Wednesday, said a double-dip recession in the United States could never entirely be ruled out. The Fed has forecast U.S. growth this year of 3 percent to 4 percent.

The World Bank called for “significant” fiscal consolidation in advanced economies, adding that simulations conducted by the bank showed that the quicker it happened, the better it would be for developing economies.

The bank also said industrialized countries should seize the opportunities offered by stronger growth in developing countries to boost economic activity.

Still, the report warned that a prolonged period of rising sovereign debt could make credit more expensive and curtail investment and growth in emerging markets.

It said current data suggests that through the end of March the global economic recovery remained robust in most countries, with the exception of Western European nations where it had stagnated.

Euro zone countries have committed to austerity measures to bring their public finances under control, and unveiled a $1 trillion plan to stop the crisis from spreading with the help of the International Monetary Fund.

“The acute phase of the crisis is over and we’re now going into a longer term challenge of returning fiscal policy in high-income countries back to a sustainable level,” said World Bank economist Andrew Burns.

“How successful we are in doing that is going to have an important impact in developing countries and in developed countries,” he added.

The World Bank forecast that developing economies would expand at between 5.7 percent and 6.2 percent each year from 2010 to 2012 — more than twice the growth rate of advanced economies. This is substantially higher than last year’s 1.7 percent.

But should the crisis in Europe worsen and spread, the World Bank said the pace of growth in developing countries would slow to 6.1 percent this year and 5.7 percent in 2011,

Advanced economies are projected to expand by between 2.1 and 2.3 percent in 2010 — not enough to undo the 3.3 percent contraction they experienced last year — followed by growth of between 1.9 and 2.4 percent in 2011.

Meanwhile, global growth is likely to expand by 3.3 percent in 2010 and 2011, rising somewhat after that to 3.5 percent in 2010, the bank said.

The World Bank said it was concerned that aid flows to the world’s poorest countries would fall sharply amid belt-tightening in donor nations. Burns said based on previous crises in developed countries aid flows are likely to fall by between 20 to 25 percent.

“That would clearly be a very serious situation for low income countries,” Burns said. “It is not our expectation that we will see that sharp a decline, but it is an indicator of the risk that is there.”

Aid can represent as much as 20 percent of government spending in some developing countries, he noted.

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World Bank-Double-dip recession can’t be ruled out

June 10, 2010 By Leave a Comment

WASHINGTON, June 9 (Reuters) – The World Bank on Wednesday said a double-dip recession could not be ruled out in some countries if investors lose faith in efforts in Europe and elsewhere to tackle rising debt levels.

The World Bank’s Global Economic Prospects 2010 report said slower growth in developed economies would deprive developing countries of healthy markets for their goods and would cut into investment.

For the moment, worries that Greece’s fiscal woes could spread to other highly-indebted countries, such as Spain and Portugal, has not affected growth in developing countries, the World Bank said.

“If markets lose confidence in the credibility of efforts to put policy on a sustainable path, global growth could be significantly impaired and a double-dip recession could not be excluded,” the report said.

U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, in testimony to lawmakers on Wednesday, said a double-dip recession in the United States could never entirely be ruled out. The Fed has forecast U.S. growth this year of 3 percent to 4 percent.

The World Bank called for “significant” fiscal consolidation in advanced economies, adding that simulations conducted by the bank showed that the quicker it happened, the better it would be for developing economies.

The bank also said industrialized countries should seize the opportunities offered by stronger growth in developing countries to boost economic activity.

Still, the report warned that a prolonged period of rising sovereign debt could make credit more expensive and curtail investment and growth in emerging markets.

It said current data suggests that through the end of March the global economic recovery remained robust in most countries, with the exception of Western European nations where it had stagnated.

Euro zone countries have committed to austerity measures to bring their public finances under control, and unveiled a $1 trillion plan to stop the crisis from spreading with the help of the International Monetary Fund.

“The acute phase of the crisis is over and we’re now going into a longer term challenge of returning fiscal policy in high-income countries back to a sustainable level,” said World Bank economist Andrew Burns.

“How successful we are in doing that is going to have an important impact in developing countries and in developed countries,” he added.

The World Bank forecast that developing economies would expand at between 5.7 percent and 6.2 percent each year from 2010 to 2012 — more than twice the growth rate of advanced economies. This is substantially higher than last year’s 1.7 percent.

But should the crisis in Europe worsen and spread, the World Bank said the pace of growth in developing countries would slow to 6.1 percent this year and 5.7 percent in 2011,

Advanced economies are projected to expand by between 2.1 and 2.3 percent in 2010 — not enough to undo the 3.3 percent contraction they experienced last year — followed by growth of between 1.9 and 2.4 percent in 2011.

Meanwhile, global growth is likely to expand by 3.3 percent in 2010 and 2011, rising somewhat after that to 3.5 percent in 2010, the bank said.

The World Bank said it was concerned that aid flows to the world’s poorest countries would fall sharply amid belt-tightening in donor nations. Burns said based on previous crises in developed countries aid flows are likely to fall by between 20 to 25 percent.

“That would clearly be a very serious situation for low income countries,” Burns said. “It is not our expectation that we will see that sharp a decline, but it is an indicator of the risk that is there.”

Aid can represent as much as 20 percent of government spending in some developing countries, he noted.

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RBI Dy Governor indicates rise in interest rates

May 31, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Interest rates will only rise in the coming months with the Reserve Bank of India stating it will not digress from the trajectory of monetary tightening set last year. Further, though FII inflows are small and do not pose any risk today, the RBI will consider adopting capital control measures if net inflows cross the benchmark of $100 billion, as it did in 2007.

In an interview with The Indian Express, Subir Gokarn, who took charge as RBI’s Deputy Governor in November 2009, said the apex bank had acted moderately in the last five months with many even criticising it for mild action. But, “there has clearly been acceleration in non-food manufacturing inflation” since January. Core inflation or non-food manufacturing inflation has risen sharply from 0.7 per cent in December 2009 to 6.1 per cent in April 2010.

What is, however, complicating issues for the RBI is the global uncertainty that causes flight of capital to safety (funds shift to US government securities, seen as most safe) making it difficult for the central bank to manage the volatility in exchange rates.

In the last policy statement, RBI did add a structural element, saying that a significant disruption of economic activity may evoke a response from the monetary authority. “But we are not in the business of determining the (exchange rate) level,” he maintained.

When asked if the RBI would pause given the crisis in Eurozone or till it gets a clearer picture of monsoon at home, Gokarn said, a “stop-go” sequence sends out very mixed signals. “The ideal situation when you

are maintaining a trajectory is to take it to its logical conclusion. But this has to be done in a way that doesn’t put you in a situation where you might have to reverse your action without having completed the task, or stop in the middle,” he said.

With the Indian economy powering down post-September 2008, the RBI adopted a very accommodative monetary stance. It slashed the cash reserve ratio (CRR, the portion of deposits banks have to keep with the RBI) by 400 basis points, reduced the repo rate (the rate at which it lends to banks) by 4.25 percentage points and cut reverse repo rate (the rate at which it borrows from banks) by 2.75 percentage points. Besides these, it opened many other conventional as well as non-conventional windows for access to liquidity making available over Rs 5,60,000 crore additional funds.

But with recovery gaining ground, it started withdrawing from the accommodative stance in October 2009 itself by ending some liquidity support measures. In January 2010, it raised the CRR by 75 basis points to 5.75 per cent to suck Rs 36,000 crore out of the system. Taking mid-course action, it hiked repo and reverse repo rates by 25 basis points in March. Finally, announcing its annual policy statement for 2010-11, it hiked the CRR by 25 basis points to 6 per cent and the repo and reverse repo rates too to 5.25 per cent and 3.75 per cent, respectively.

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UNESCO head ‘reassured about grounded ship on reef’

May 6, 2010 By Leave a Comment

A senior United Nations official says she has been reassured the world heritage values of the Great Barrier Reef were not damaged by last month’s grounding of the Chinese coal ship, the Shen Neng 1.

UNESCO director-general Irina Bokova visited the reef this week and was told there was only surface damage.

Mrs Bokova says UNESCO sent an expert team to the reef after the incident and has made strong representations about protecting world heritage values.

“Protection of the world heritage sites pose incredible challenges for all countries,” she said.

“This is not only the case for Australia – how to balance the protection of a site and economic activity and all this try for more growth.

“For the time being I don’t have any reasons not to trust the authorities in their commitment to protect the site.”

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India March local car sales up 20 pct y/y-industry

April 10, 2010 By Leave a Comment

NEW DELHI, April 9 (Reuters) – Car sales in India rose an annual 20.1 percent in March, as customers advanced purchases ahead of price hikes due to new emission norms-related expenses and rising raw material costs, an industry body said on Friday.

Cyclical Consumer Goods

Domestic firms sold 155,600 cars in the month, compared with 129,585 units a year ago, data from the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) showed.

Sales of trucks and buses, a barometer of economic activity, rose 61.2 percent to 67,362 units in the month, SIAM said. (Reporting by Sanjeev Choudhary and Devidutta Tripathy; editing by Malini Menon)

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FACTBOX – Haiti’s quake recovery needs run into billions

March 30, 2010 By Leave a Comment

REUTERS – Haiti’s government, foreign donors and humanitarian groups will attend a pledging conference in New York on Wednesday aimed at securing funds and agreeing to a blueprint for the country’s reconstruction after the devastating Jan. 12 earthquake.

Here are some facts on the estimated scale of the damage inflicted by the quake, and the needs and strategies being considered to rebuild the Caribbean country.

DEATHS AND DAMAGE

- Haiti’s government has reported 222,570 people killed in the quake, but President Rene Preval says the real final death toll could be over 300,000. A similar number were injured.

- Around 1.5 million people were left homeless and displaced by the disaster. Around 600,000 fled the wrecked capital Port-au-Prince.

- Haiti’s government has estimated the economic damage and loss from the quake at close to $8 billion. Economists from the Inter-American Development Bank had previously given an estimated damage range of between $8 billion and nearly $14 billion.

- In Port-au-Prince, which concentrates 65 percent of Haiti’s economic activity, more than 100,000 homes were destroyed and over 200,000 damaged. More than 1,300 education centers and more than 50 hospitals and clinics collapsed. The country’s main port, presidential palace, parliament, justice palace and most ministries were destroyed.

- Leogane, a town southwest of Port-au-Prince, was 80 percent destroyed.

ESTIMATED NEEDS, RESPONSES

- In a report to donors and development experts preparing for the New York meeting, Haiti’s government estimated that $11.5 billion would be needed for the country’s reconstruction.

- A preliminary target amount of $3.8 billion was foreseen for an 18-month period starting October 1, 2010, to fulfill needs identified in the Post-Disaster Needs Assessment. World Bank officials have called this a “short-term target,” and there is recognition that much more is needed over the longer term.

- Haiti’s government is also asking for an immediate $350 million in direct budgetary support to help maintain essential state services and civil servant salaries and plug the gap caused by a drop-off in revenues following the quake.

- The European Union and a coalition of U.S.-based humanitarian groups have already indicated they are likely to pledge more than $2.7 billion in aid at the New York meeting.

- The governing board of the Inter-American Development Bank agreed last week to give $479 million in post-earthquake debt forgiveness and other relief to Haiti.

- U.S. President Barack Obama has asked Congress for $2.8 billion in funds for Haiti relief and reconstruction costs.

RECONSTRUCTION STRATEGIES

- The rebuilding plan being considered by donors foresees the creation of a Multi-Donors Trust Fund, to be managed by Haiti’s government and representatives of donors.

- Also envisaged is the setting up of an Interim Reconstruction Commission, to be chaired by Haiti’s prime minister and a United Nations representative, along with the establishment of a Reconstruction Agency for the longer term.

- Haiti’s government and donor partners are insisting on a decentralization strategy to be at the heart of the reconstruction plan. This will seek to “decompress” and decongest the crowded and wrecked capital and set up economic development poles in the rest of the country, to create jobs and industries.

- President Rene Preval has told private investors he sees them as the “backbone” of the reconstruction effort. One Haitian private investor, the Mevs family’s WIN Group, has already announced a major redevelopment and expansion project with a Florida-based company for the Varreux port terminal.

- The government and donors also foresee major reform and investment to revitalize Haiti’s weak, peasant-based farm sector, aiming for increased domestic production to reduce dependency on imported rice, sugar and poultry.

(Reporting by Pascal Fletcher; Editing by Eric Beech)

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FACTBOX – Haiti’s quake recovery needs run into billions

March 29, 2010 By Leave a Comment

REUTERS – Haiti’s government, foreign donors and humanitarian groups will attend a pledging conference in New York on Wednesday aimed at securing funds and agreeing to a blueprint for the country’s reconstruction after the devastating Jan. 12 earthquake.

Here are some facts on the estimated scale of the damage inflicted by the quake, and the needs and strategies being considered to rebuild the Caribbean country.

DEATHS AND DAMAGE

- Haiti’s government has reported 222,570 people killed in the quake, but President Rene Preval says the real final death toll could be over 300,000. A similar number were injured.

- Around 1.5 million people were left homeless and displaced by the disaster. Around 600,000 fled the wrecked capital Port-au-Prince.

- Haiti’s government has estimated the economic damage and loss from the quake at close to $8 billion. Economists from the Inter-American Development Bank had previously given an estimated damage range of between $8 billion and nearly $14 billion.

- In Port-au-Prince, which concentrates 65 percent of Haiti’s economic activity, more than 100,000 homes were destroyed and over 200,000 damaged. More than 1,300 education centers and more than 50 hospitals and clinics collapsed. The country’s main port, presidential palace, parliament, justice palace and most ministries were destroyed.

- Leogane, a town southwest of Port-au-Prince, was 80 percent destroyed.

ESTIMATED NEEDS, RESPONSES

- In a report to donors and development experts preparing for the New York meeting, Haiti’s government estimated that $11.5 billion would be needed for the country’s reconstruction.

- A preliminary target amount of $3.8 billion was foreseen for an 18-month period starting October 1, 2010, to fulfill needs identified in the Post-Disaster Needs Assessment. World Bank officials have called this a “short-term target,” and there is recognition that much more is needed over the longer term.

- Haiti’s government is also asking for an immediate $350 million in direct budgetary support to help maintain essential state services and civil servant salaries and plug the gap caused by a drop-off in revenues following the quake.

- The European Union and a coalition of U.S.-based humanitarian groups have already indicated they are likely to pledge more than $2.7 billion in aid at the New York meeting.

- The governing board of the Inter-American Development Bank agreed last week to give $479 million in post-earthquake debt forgiveness and other relief to Haiti.

- U.S. President Barack Obama has asked Congress for $2.8 billion in funds for Haiti relief and reconstruction costs.

RECONSTRUCTION STRATEGIES

- The rebuilding plan being considered by donors foresees the creation of a Multi-Donors Trust Fund, to be managed by Haiti’s government and representatives of donors.

- Also envisaged is the setting up of an Interim Reconstruction Commission, to be chaired by Haiti’s prime minister and a United Nations representative, along with the establishment of a Reconstruction Agency for the longer term.

- Haiti’s government and donor partners are insisting on a decentralization strategy to be at the heart of the reconstruction plan. This will seek to “decompress” and decongest the crowded and wrecked capital and set up economic development poles in the rest of the country, to create jobs and industries.

- President Rene Preval has told private investors he sees them as the “backbone” of the reconstruction effort. One Haitian private investor, the Mevs family’s WIN Group, has already announced a major redevelopment and expansion project with a Florida-based company for the Varreux port terminal.

- The government and donors also foresee major reform and investment to revitalize Haiti’s weak, peasant-based farm sector, aiming for increased domestic production to reduce dependency on imported rice, sugar and poultry.

(Reporting by Pascal Fletcher; Editing by Eric Beech)

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FACTBOX-Haiti’s quake recovery needs run into billions

March 29, 2010 By Leave a Comment

March 28 (Reuters) – Haiti’s government, foreign donors and humanitarian groups will attend a pledging conference in New York on Wednesday aimed at securing funds and agreeing to a blueprint for the country’s reconstruction after the devastating Jan. 12 earthquake.

Bonds

Here are some facts on the estimated scale of the damage inflicted by the quake, and the needs and strategies being considered to rebuild the Caribbean country.

DEATHS AND DAMAGE

- Haiti’s government has reported 222,570 people killed in the quake, but President Rene Preval says the real final death toll could be over 300,000. A similar number were injured.

- Around 1.5 million people were left homeless and displaced by the disaster. Around 600,000 fled the wrecked capital Port-au-Prince.

- Haiti’s government has estimated the economic damage and loss from the quake at close to $8 billion. Economists from the Inter-American Development Bank had previously given an estimated damage range of between $8 billion and nearly $14 billion.

- In Port-au-Prince, which concentrates 65 percent of Haiti’s economic activity, more than 100,000 homes were destroyed and over 200,000 damaged. More than 1,300 education centers and more than 50 hospitals and clinics collapsed. The country’s main port, presidential palace, parliament, justice palace and most ministries were destroyed.

- Leogane, a town southwest of Port-au-Prince, was 80 percent destroyed.

ESTIMATED NEEDS, RESPONSES

- In a report to donors and development experts preparing for the New York meeting, Haiti’s government estimated that $11.5 billion would be needed for the country’s reconstruction.

- A preliminary target amount of $3.8 billion was foreseen for an 18-month period starting October 1, 2010, to fulfill needs identified in the Post-Disaster Needs Assessment. World Bank officials have called this a “short-term target,” and there is recognition that much more is needed over the longer term.

- Haiti’s government is also asking for an immediate $350 million in direct budgetary support to help maintain essential state services and civil servant salaries and plug the gap caused by a drop-off in revenues following the quake.

- The European Union and a coalition of U.S.-based humanitarian groups have already indicated they are likely to pledge more than $2.7 billion in aid at the New York meeting.

- The governing board of the Inter-American Development Bank agreed last week to give $479 million in post-earthquake debt forgiveness and other relief to Haiti.

- U.S. President Barack Obama has asked Congress for $2.8 billion in funds for Haiti relief and reconstruction costs.

RECONSTRUCTION STRATEGIES

- The rebuilding plan being considered by donors foresees the creation of a Multi-Donors Trust Fund, to be managed by Haiti’s government and representatives of donors.

- Also envisaged is the setting up of an Interim Reconstruction Commission, to be chaired by Haiti’s prime minister and a United Nations representative, along with the establishment of a Reconstruction Agency for the longer term.

- Haiti’s government and donor partners are insisting on a decentralization strategy to be at the heart of the reconstruction plan. This will seek to “decompress” and decongest the crowded and wrecked capital and set up economic development poles in the rest of the country, to create jobs and industries.

- President Rene Preval has told private investors he sees them as the “backbone” of the reconstruction effort. One Haitian private investor, the Mevs family’s WIN Group, has already announced a major redevelopment and expansion project with a Florida-based company for the Varreux port terminal.

- The government and donors also foresee major reform and investment to revitalize Haiti’s weak, peasant-based farm sector, aiming for increased domestic production to reduce dependency on imported rice, sugar and poultry. (Reporting by Pascal Fletcher; Editing by Eric Beech)

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Factbox:Haiti’s quake recovery needs run into billions

March 29, 2010 By Leave a Comment

(Reuters) – Haiti’s government, foreign donors and humanitarian groups will attend a pledging conference in New York Wednesday aimed at securing funds and agreeing to a blueprint for the country’s reconstruction after the devastating January 12 earthquake.

World | Natural Disasters

Here are some facts on the estimated scale of the damage inflicted by the quake, and the needs and strategies being considered to rebuild the Caribbean country.

DEATHS AND DAMAGE

- Haiti’s government has reported 222,570 people killed in the quake, but President Rene Preval says the real final death toll could be over 300,000. A similar number were injured.

- Around 1.5 million people were left homeless and displaced by the disaster. Around 600,000 fled the wrecked capital Port-au-Prince.

- Haiti’s government has estimated the economic damage and loss from the quake at close to $8 billion. Economists from the Inter-American Development Bank had previously given an estimated damage range of between $8 billion and nearly $14 billion.

- In Port-au-Prince, which concentrates 65 percent of Haiti’s economic activity, more than 100,000 homes were destroyed and over 200,000 damaged. More than 1,300 education centers and more than 50 hospitals and clinics collapsed. The country’s main port, presidential palace, parliament, justice palace and most ministries were destroyed.

- Leogane, a town southwest of Port-au-Prince, was 80 percent destroyed.

ESTIMATED NEEDS, RESPONSES

- In a report to donors and development experts preparing for the New York meeting, Haiti’s government estimated that $11.5 billion would be needed for the country’s reconstruction.

- A preliminary target amount of $3.8 billion was foreseen for an 18-month period starting October 1, 2010, to fulfill needs identified in the Post-Disaster Needs Assessment. World Bank officials have called this a “short-term target,” and there is recognition that much more is needed over the longer term.

- Haiti’s government is also asking for an immediate $350 million in direct budgetary support to help maintain essential state services and civil servant salaries and plug the gap caused by a drop-off in revenues following the quake.

- The European Union and a coalition of U.S.-based humanitarian groups have already indicated they are likely to pledge more than $2.7 billion in aid at the New York meeting.

- The governing board of the Inter-American Development Bank agreed last week to give $479 million in post-earthquake debt forgiveness and other relief to Haiti.

- U.S. President Barack Obama has asked Congress for $2.8 billion in funds for Haiti relief and reconstruction costs.

RECONSTRUCTION STRATEGIES

- The rebuilding plan being considered by donors foresees the creation of a Multi-Donors Trust Fund, to be managed by Haiti’s government and representatives of donors.

- Also envisaged is the setting up of an Interim Reconstruction Commission, to be chaired by Haiti’s prime minister and a United Nations representative, along with the establishment of a Reconstruction Agency for the longer term.

- Haiti’s government and donor partners are insisting on a decentralization strategy to be at the heart of the reconstruction plan. This will seek to “decompress” and decongest the crowded and wrecked capital and set up economic development poles in the rest of the country, to create jobs and industries.

- President Rene Preval has told private investors he sees them as the “backbone” of the reconstruction effort. One Haitian private investor, the Mevs family’s WIN Group, has already announced a major redevelopment and expansion project with a Florida-based company for the Varreux port terminal.

- The government and donors also foresee major reform and investment to revitalize Haiti’s weak, peasant-based farm sector, aiming for increased domestic production to reduce dependency on imported rice, sugar and poultry.

(Reporting by Pascal Fletcher; Editing by Eric Beech)

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PIMCO: End of mortgage buys form of tightening

March 17, 2010 By Leave a Comment

(Reuters) – The end of the Federal Reserve’s program of purchasing $1.25 trillion of mortgage-backed securities at the end of March is a form of tightening monetary policy, the chief of the largest U.S. bond fund manager said on Tuesday.

Housing Market

Mohamed El-Erian, chief executive and co-chief investment officer of Pacific Investment Management Co, or PIMCO, said the end of the Fed’s mortgage program, one of the U.S. central bank’s major support programs, signals a form of credit tightening.

The Federal Reserve Open Market Committee’s statement on Tuesday “met market expectations on the three key aspects of leaving interest rates unchanged, maintaining dovish language about future policy moves and allowing the special programs to lapse,” El-Erian told Reuters.

By the end of March, the Fed plans to have bought $1.25 trillion worth of mortgage-backed securities and about $175 billion worth of agency debt — a process economists and investors have called “quantitative easing.”

The unwind of the program weans the U.S. economy from government support at a time when the Fed believes the recovery is gathering some strength.

In fact, Fed officials said the overall economy is improving. In their statement, they said: “Information received since the Federal Open Market Committee met in January suggests that economic activity has continued to strengthen and that the labor market is stabilizing,” it said.

That said, there were words of caution in the Fed’s statement, which accompanied the decision to renew its pledge to keep interest rates near zero for an “extended period.”

The Fed said household spending is expanding at a moderate rate “but remains constrained by high unemployment, modest income growth, lower housing wealth, and tight credit.”

El-Erian said the statement confirms that the resurgence in economic activity from the global financial crisis is “likely to be bumpy and generally disappointing when compared to previous recoveries.”

(Reporting by Jennifer Ablan; Editing by Dan Grebler)

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Italy judge rejects Berlusconi request in Mediaset trial

March 2, 2010 By Leave a Comment

AMSTERDAM, April 28 (Reuters) – Dutch mail company TNT NV (TNT.AS) said on Monday first-quarter operating profit fell 17.7 percent due to fewer working days in the period and a charge taken to end a joint venture.

Europe’s second-biggest mail company had 289 million euros

($450.6 million) in earnings before interest and tax (EBIT), down from 351 million a year ago and below an average forecast of 314 million euros in a Reuters poll of 13 analysts.

TNT said confirmed its 2008 outlook and said it saw economic activity in its markets at the same level as in the fourth quarter of 2007.

(Reporting by Niclas Mika)

((niclas.mika@thomsonreuters.com; +31 20 504 5008; Reuters Messaging: niclas.mika.reuters.com@reuters.net))

($1=.6413 Euro) Keywords: TNT/

AMSTERDAM, April 28 (Reuters) – Dutch mail company TNT NV Keywords: TNT/

(C) Reuters 2008. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution ofReuters content, including by caching, framing or similar means, is expresslyprohibited without the prior written consent of Reuters. Reuters and the Reuterssphere logo are registered trademarks and trademarks of the Reuters group ofcompanies around the world.nWEB3043

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South Sandwich Islands | Sandwich Islands | South Georgia | British overseas Territory Southern Atlantic Ocean | Eight Islands Sandwich Islands Group | Sandwich Land | Sandwich Islands Hawaii

December 25, 2009 By Leave a Comment

South Sandwich Islands | Sandwich Islands | South Georgia | British overseas Territory Southern Atlantic Ocean | Eight Islands Sandwich Islands Group | Sandwich Land | Sandwich Islands Hawaii

South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands (SGSSI) is a British overseas territory in the southern Atlantic Ocean. This territory is a remote and inhospitable collection of islands, consisting of South Georgia and a chain of smaller islands, the South Sandwich Islands. South Georgia is about 170 kilometres (110 mi) long and 2 to 40 km (1.2 to 25 miles) wide and is by far the largest island in the territory. The South Sandwich Islands lie about 640 kilometres (400 mi) to the south-east of South Georgia. The total land area of the territory is 3,903 square kilometres (1,507 sq mi).

Argentina maintained a naval station, Corbeta Uruguay on Thule Island in the South Sandwich Islands from 1976 until 1982 when it was closed by the Royal Navy. The Argentine claim over South Georgia contributed to the 1982 Falklands War, during which Argentine forces briefly occupied the Island. Argentina continues to claim sovereignty of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands.

The southern eight islands of the Sandwich Islands Group were discovered by James Cook in 1775; the northern three by Fabian Gottlieb von Bellingshausen in 1819. They were named “Sandwich Land” by Cook after the 4th Earl of Sandwich, 1st Lord of the Admiralty. The word “South” was later added to distinguish them from the “Sandwich Islands,” now known as Hawaii.

The South Sandwich Islands are much colder than South Georgia, being further south and more exposed to cold outbreaks from the Antarctic continent. They are also surrounded by sea ice from the middle of May to late November.

As there are no native inhabitants, economic activity in South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands is limited. The territory has revenues of UK£3.9 million, 90% of which is derived from fishing licences (2002 figures). Other sources of revenue are the sale of postage stamps and coins, tourism and customs and harbour dues.(Wiki)

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Railways to probe scam during Lalu Prasad’s tenure

September 19, 2009 By Leave a Comment

New Delhi, Sep 18 (ANI): Railways Minister Mamata Banerjee has said an external agency would probe allegations of graft during her predecessor’s tenure.

Lawmakers belonging to Bihar’s Janata Dal (United) had alleged that that during the tenure of former Railways Minister Lalu Prasad, people were asked to cede land to the railways in exchange for jobs and contracts in the organisation.

Railway Recruitment Boards (RRB) and the Railway Recruitment Committees (RRC) make recruitment to Indian Railways.

“RRB and the RRC is an organisation. They do it for this. So if severe complaints come against the RRB and RRC then it is the procedure of the department, they do it internally if internal matter is involved and if outsiders are involved then the procedure is to depute an outside agency,” Banerjee told reporters here on Thursday.

She said it would also review past land seizures, mostly from farmers. It needs land to proceed with a 5.8 billion dollars project to connect Indian regions and spur economic activity. (ANI)

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Tribals attend RBI’s financial outreach camp in Tripura

September 6, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Agartala, Sep. 6 (ANI): Thousands of tribal families turned out to participate in a financial outreach camp organized by the Reserve Bank of India in Pitra village of Tripura.

The camp was organised with the objective of bringing awareness among villagers about banking norms.

“Bank wants to lend for projects which would generate economic activity will lead to development of north east.

So we have to be able to work together. The state government, the banks, the non-governmental organisations, the locals, Panchayati Raj institutions and the Reserve Bank will act like a catalyst to make people come together and work together for economic development,” said Usha Thorat, deputy governor, Reserve Bank of India.

Organised on the occasion of Platinum Year celebration of Reserve Bank, the camp witnessed hundreds of villagers gathered at the stalls of different banks for opening of new bank accounts.

The villagers were also informed and familiarized with various banking facilities, security features of currency notes, exchange their soiled and mutilated currency notes, exchange currency notes for coins and also look into their complains with regards to banking facilities.

“In the village there is no banking system and this camp will be of great benefit to us. The villagers had no means of saving but now we think we can save something for our future,” Bubantala Jamatia, a villager

Under the model, post offices, cooperatives, NGOs, financial institutions, self-help groups, retired employees of state or central government may act as an agent of the banks and provide services to people. (ANI)

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Panna Diamond Mine in Madhya Pradesh reopens after four years

August 21, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Panna (Madhya Pradesh), Aug 21(ANI): Union Steel Minister Virbhadra Singh on Friday rededicated the Panna Diamond Mine of the National Mineral Development Corporation (NDMC) in Madhya Pradesh.

The mine had remained closed for about four years for environmental reasons.

Speaking in Panna after reopening the mine, Singh said the project was not only crucial for the NMDC and Madhya Pradesh, but also prestigious for the country as it is the only mechanized diamond mine in Asia.

Singh also informed that the production capacity of the mine is one lakh carats per annum.

“With the reopening of the Panna mine, we will be able to meet at least part of the domestic demand of diamonds,” he said.

“NMDC is exploring for diamond reserves in Chattarpur District and coal deposits in Shahdole and Umaria Districts. It is in the process of acquiring mining lease for development of coal blocks,” he added.

Singh further said that NMDC is making efforts to locate alternate diamond resources in the vicinity of Panna.

The minister also thanked the Madhya Pradesh Government for extending unflinching support for the reopening of the diamond mine.

“With the re-opening of the mine, the economic activity in the Panna region will pick up and Panna township and surrounding areas will one again come alive as a centre of economic activity,” said Minister of State for Steel A. Sai Prathap.

“It will also generate both direct and indirect employment for the local population. The local business, which was adversely affected due to shifting of NMDC’s workforce in the Diamond mine will also prosper,” he added.

He also hoped that the reopening of the mine will give a strong impetus to the economic activity of the entire region. (ANI)

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War on terror cost Pak 10 billion dollars in 2008-09

July 3, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Islamabad, July 3 (ANI): Pakistan has spent about 10 billion dollars in the war on terror during the financial year 2008-09, the chairman of the Panel of Economists of the Planning Commission, Hafiz Pasha has said.

Talking to media persons, after releasing the Human Development in South Asia Report 2008, Pasha said the ongoing military operation in the Swat and Malakand Divisions is likely to cost an additional 100 billion rupees.

Pasha said that military offensive in NWFP has adversely affected the economy of the country and the region particularly.

“Pakistan’s economy is facing multidimensional losses as investment and exports are declining and economic activity leading to reduced revenue,” The Daily Times quoted Pasha, as saying. (ANI)

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