Packer's Midas touch deserts ecorp
Sydney: Loyal investors in ecorp Ltd lost money for the first time on Monday as Australian media mogul Kerry Packer's Internet spin-off dived below its issue price, falling 19 cents to a low of A$ 1.02--18 cents out of the money. Packer, who recently had a kidney transplant, is Australia's richest citizen, and some investors are almost religious followers of his investment strategy, as if the 62-year-old billionaire has the modern equivalent of a Midas touch. But ecorp, in which the Packer-controlled media and gaming company Publishing & Broadcasting Ltd has an 80 per cent stake, has been falling since February when it peaked at A$ 8.60, closing on Monday down seven cents at A$ 1.14.
Dell to double Asia-Pacific capacity
KUALA LUMPUR: Leading direct marketer of computers Dell Computer Corp said on Monday it plans to double manufacturing capacity for the Asia-Pacific, confident that sales growth will outpace any US economic slowdown. Simon Wong, MD for Dell's Asia Pacific Customer Centre in the north Malaysian state of Penang, said the new plant, to be built near the existing facility, would boost production to two million units within three years. "We are stretched right to the limit. The healthy growth of the region and the market is creating tremendous demand," Wong told a news conference. Dell now ships PCs, servers and other computer equipment to almost the whole Asia-Pacific region from its Malaysian plant, although China is suppled from a dedicated facility in that country.
NEC wins order for Italy 3G cellphone test
Tokyo: Japanese electronics maker NEC Corp sad on Monday it would supply Italian mobile phone operator TIM with equipment enabling it to offer third-generation (G) cell phone services for a field test. The first such deal between a Japanese telecoms equipment maker and a European carrier comes ahead of the expected launch of 3G services in Europe sometime early next year,an NE spokeswoman said. The 3G systems will offer such feature as high-speed Internet connections with customised news services ability to recognise the user's location and remote monitoring of devices. Japanese manufacturers have so far made telecoms equipment based on a format used exclusively in Japan. Under the deal with TIM (Telecom Italia Mobile), NEC will make cellphone radio stations, which will be offered to the major Italian cell phone carrier along with Siemens' wireless phone switching systems.
Woodside says Shell likely to keep chasing
Melbourne: Takeover target Woodside Petroleum Ltd said on Monday that Royal Dutch/Shell Group would not easily give up its pursuit of Woodside but again urged shareholders not to sell to the Anglo-Dutch giant. Woodside MD John Akehurst said it was clear Shell was determined to take control of Woodside and shareholders should reject the inadequate cash offer plus call option and retain exposure to the company's growth opportunities. Shell launched a A$ 14.80 cash plus call option bid in November to raise its Woodside stake to 56 per cent from 34 per cent through an asset for shares/swap proposal, sweetened from an earlier asset offer rejected by the Woodside board in June.
Japan's Snow Brand to close 5 domestic plants
Tokyo: Japanese dairy goods producer Snow Brand Milk Products Co Ltd said on Monday it will close a total of five domestic milk plants as it tries to rebuild its business following a tainted milk scandal last year. The move, to be followed by a shift of the production to existing facilities, is aimed at returning the company to profit for the business year to March 2003. Snow Brand also said it expects a 20 billion yen ($ 169 million) profit from the securitisation or sale of some of its office buildings and land by the end of March this year. The plan includes the land used for three of the plants to be shut down. The five plants to be closed include its facility in Osaka, which the company had already said would shut down on January 31.
Japan's T&E Soft to tie-up with Disney group firms
Tokyo: Japanese game software maker T&E Soft Inc said on Monday it would form a business and capital alliance with two affiliates of US media giant Walt Disney Co to develop an online education project. The alliance, which also includes Walt Disney Co unit Disney Interactive Inc, is aimed at developing online games and other products in Asia, the company said. T&E will issue 7.5 billion yen ($ 63.31 million) in convertible bonds, 5.5 billion yen of which will go to DI Holdings LLC, an affiliate of Disney. As a result, DI Holdings would end up with a 37.6 per cent stake in T&E Soft and the rights to acquire up to 50.1 per cent in the Nagoya-based software company.
Exel in distribution deal with Motorola
London: British logistics group Exel Plc said on Monday it signed a deal with Motorola Inc to manage the mobile phone maker's new semi-conductor products distribution facilities in Chicago and Amsterdam. Exel said the deal was seen as a first possible step towards the development of a global lead logistics partnership and that it showed the benefits of its recent merger with Ocean Group companies. "The trust Motorola SPS has (semiconductor products sector) placed in our capabilities shows we are at the forefront at adding value on a global level," Mike Fountain, divisional CEO for Exel said in a statement. No financial details were provided in the statement. The Financial Times earlier said the five-year contract would be worth around $ 200 million.
Ford names Thursfield CEO Europe region
London: Ford Motor Co said on Monday David Thursfield, president of Ford of Europe, will take up the new position of CEO of the region in a move to sustain and accelerate the group's European strategy. Thursfield, who has spearheaded Ford of Europe's operations as president since January 2000, will report to Ford chairman Nick Scheele. The new CEO role is effectively immediately. "Our strategy of intense product investment and cost reduction is hitting its stride, and since my external responsibilities as chairman are expanding, the time is right to concentrate the execution of our strategy in the hands of a chief executive," Scheele said in a statement.
PCCW hits post-merger low on share overhang
Hong Kong: Shares of Internet and telecoms group Pacific Century CyberWorks fell to a new post-takeover low on Monday on lingering worries that Britain's Cable & Wireless Plc will soon sell part of its stake in the company. The stock ended down 7.69 per cent at HK$ 4.20 after falling to HK$ 4.15, its lowest level since the company took over Cable and Wireless HKT, the territory's dominant telecommunications service provider, from Cable & Wireless in August last year. Investors are worried that Cable & Wireless will sell half of its 15.3 per cent stake in tycoon Richard Li's PCCW at a price below current trading levels when a lock-up period ends on February 21.
Japan LDP to propose support steps for stocks
Tokyo: Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) decided on Monday to set up a special task force to come up with proposals by the end of the month to try to halt a nine-month slide on Tokyo's beleaguered stock market. However, analysts say such artificial measures may not be the solution to halt the slide that took the Nikkei average down to 27-month lows last week, levels close to those plumbed after the bursting of Japan's asset and prices bubble in the early years of the decade. "The task force will consider urgently, by the end of the month, whether any steps can be taken without revising relevant regulations," LDP veteran was quoted as saying after a meeting with party policy chief Shizuka Kamei.
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