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Strategies & Market Trends : Mish's Global Economic Trend Analysis -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: RealMuLan who wrote (26936)	4/5/2005 5:47:30 PM
From: RealMuLan	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 116555

China oil, Eni lose in Unocal bid EL SEGUNDO, Calif., April 4 (UPI) -- The China National Offshore Oil Corp., based in Beijing, and Italy's Eni SPA appear to have lost to ChevronTexaco in the bid to acquire the Unocal Corp. Related Headlines Silicone implants may make U.S. comeback (April 4, 2005) -- Silicone implants, once commonly used in U.S. breast-augmentation surgery, may be poised for a comeback. Currently, only saline implants are ... > full story UPI Energy Watch (March 29, 2005) -- ChevronTexaco Global Marketing officials announced on March 26 that ChevronTexaco Petroleum Company subsidiary ChevronTexaco has signed an ... > full story No answer yet to meet China's oil needs (March 23, 2005) -- China's red-hot economy is driving up oil prices. Or at least that's one key reason why many analysts expect energy costs to go up even ... > full story China National had been considered the leading bidder until the weekend, with an attractive cash offer, the Wall Street Journal reported Monday. Separately, CheveronTexas, already the second largest oil company after ExxonMobil, announced an agreement Monday to acquire the El Segundo-Calif.-based, Unocal in a stock and cash deal valued at $16.4 billion. The Journal said it was not clear why the Chinese efforts failed, but its interest forced other companies to bid on ninth-largest Unocal. The ChevronTexaco-Unocal agreement must be approved by Unocal shareholders and regulatory agencies. While Unocal has no refining and marketing operations, it has attractive oil and natural-gas reserves at a time when energy companies are struggling to find enough new oil and natural gas to replace what they pump every year, the Journal said. Most of Unocal's best assets are in Southeast Asia, near the fast-growing Chinese and Indian economies that are both consuming rapidly increasing amounts of energy, the report said. In addition to Unocal, Occidental Petroleum, Anadarko Petroleum and Devon Energy, are considered possible takeover targets, the Journal said. Copyright 2005 by United Press International. All Rights Reserved. sciencedaily.com

To: RealMuLan who wrote (26936)	4/5/2005 10:20:56 PM
From: mishedlo	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 116555

Greenspan: crude inventories could ease price frenzy Tuesday, April 5, 2005 7:51:46 PM afxpress.com WASHINGTON (AFX) -- Fed chief Alan Greenspan said the current spike in oil prices may not be long-lived. Greenspan noted that futures prices for delivery of oil for summer delivery exceed spot prices. "That will likely support increased inventories of crude oil. If sustained, these market technicals could encourage enough of an inventory buffer to damp the current price frenzy," Greenspan said in a speech prepared for delivery Tuesday for the National Petrochemical and Refiners Association. Greenspan did not hazard a guess at the impact of current high oil prices on the U.S. economy, or discuss the potential impact on inflation. Some economists believe the higher energy prices will lead to slower economic growth in the second quarter

To: RealMuLan who wrote (26936)	4/6/2005 2:41:38 AM
From: mishedlo	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 116555

Yiwu how likely is that gas tax in China? How big? Mish

To: RealMuLan who wrote (26936)	4/6/2005 10:27:21 PM
From: mishedlo	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 116555

ASIAN BUSINESS APRIL 11, 2005 China's Wasteful Ways Colossally inefficient use of energy penalizes China twice: With high costs and the ravages of pollution When Chinese Vice-Premier Zeng Peiyan swung by the Beijing headquarters of steelmaker Shougang Group on Mar. 24, it wasn't a courtesy call. He confirmed rumors China's State Council had ordered Shougang to wind down its Beijing iron-and-smelting operation by 2007 and transfer the facilities out of the city. Shougang plants, mainly fueled by coal, belch out 18,000 tons of dust and contaminants a year, and Beijing is determined to clean up in time for the 2008 Olympic Games. Shougang's departure will do more than reduce pollution: It will take a 40-year-old mill out of circulation and force Shougang to build a far more efficient facility. The energy needs of a fast-growing economy of 1.3 billion people are huge, of course. But China is also a world-class waster. University of Alberta political economist Wenran Jiang calculates China spends three times the world average on energy -- and seven times what Japan spends -- to produce $1 of gross domestic product. It also is far more inefficient than nations like Brazil and Indonesia. "China needs to shift from a high energy-consumption model of development to a green model," says Hu Angang, director of Tsinghua University's China studies center. Chinese steelmakers on average use about twice as much energy as Japanese or Korean rivals per ton of output. Only 5% of the country's office and residential towers meet China's own minimal energy-conservation standards. China's waste has big implications for global oil prices: In 2004, China imported 2.4 million barrels per day. By 2030, the U.S. Energy Dept. estimates China will have to import 8.4 million bbl. NO QUICK FIXES President Hu Jintao's government has mapped out a plan that calls for hiking reliance on natural gas from 3% to 10% by 2020. Plants fired by gas burn fuel twice as efficiently as turbines fired by coal, which now accounts for two-thirds of China's fuel. The plan also calls for building 30 new nuclear reactors. John Watkins, president of East Asian operations for diesel engine maker Cummins Inc. (CMI ), says nearly every government official he meets stresses "greater efficiency and cleaner air." Cummins imports and makes diesel engines for mainland buses that are 30% more efficient than gas engines. Royal Dutch/Shell Group (RD ) is licensing technology to fertilizer plants that converts coal into synthetic gas, which burns more efficiently. General Electric Co. (GE ) is making a killing selling gas turbines. All this helps. But it will take years to make a difference. China has many wasteful steel, paper, chemical, and power plants relying on decades-old coal-fired turbines. Some steelmakers, such as Shanghai Baosteel Group Corp., boast modern facilities. But China is still dotted with the blast furnaces and smelters of many minor players. "There are instances of steel plants set up just to meet local needs," notes Jonathan E. Sinton, a China energy expert at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. "These are terribly inefficient." Partly as a result, fuel consumption in China grew 1.5 times as fast as its economy in 2004. In most developed nations, the ratio is one-to-one or lower. China's consumer boom is stoking the appetite for energy-guzzling air conditioners, refrigerators, and bigger houses. Since 2001, Chinese cities have enacted new building standards that aim for 50% less energy use per square foot. But enforcement is weak. Then there is China's auto boom. By 2020, vehicles on its roads are expected to swell from 24 million now to 100 million. By then, transportation will account for 60% of China's energy use, up from 33% now. Fuel efficiency rules have been weak. Starting in July, though, auto makers will have three years to boost efficiency by 5%. Now, only 44% of cars and 4% of sport-utility vehicles meet the new standards, estimates Washington's World Resources Institute. Still, skeptics doubt China has the regulatory muscle to punish violators. Meanwhile, China is paying an onerous price for its profligacy. The World Bank figures inefficient fuel use is costing China upwards of $120 billion in lost industrial output annually and health costs related to pollution. Not even fast-growing China can afford the long-term bills that will come due from the way it burns through energy. By Brian Bremner in Hong Kong, with John Carey in Washington