Asia-Pacific

Global economy hobbled by coordination failures

15 Oct 2012

Political wrangling in the euro zone and United States dominated debate at last week’s IMF meetings. But a longer-term concern is the slowdown in emerging markets. Though the developed world needs to work off its excess debt, it’s hard to see other countries picking up the slack.

Softbank-Sprint tie-up gets bad signal from market

12 Oct 2012

Investors wiped $6.9 bln off the Japanese telco’s value on Oct. 12, three times the boost to its U.S. target. The deal would stretch Softbank financially, and may preclude smaller purchases closer to home. CEO Masayoshi Son has shown chutzpah; he must show discipline too.

TPG’s pulled bid leaves Billabong investors adrift

12 Oct 2012

After the private equity house walked away from a $700 mln bid the shares fell to 40 percent below the level before takeover talks were revealed. There’s no word on why the bid failed, but Billabong’s business is challenged. The high-profile failure will leave a big stain.

Softbank catches Japanese overseas M&A bug

11 Oct 2012

The $40 bln group may take control of $17 bln Sprint Nextel. Aside from pooling iPhone purchases, combining the No. 3 cellphone carriers in the U.S. and Japan has little industrial logic. It looks like another “get out of Japan” deal fueled by cheap money and docile shareholders.

Bumi should grit teeth and engage with Bakries

11 Oct 2012

The troubled acquisition vehicle has a rescue bid of sorts from its Indonesian backers. The Bakries would cancel their holding in return for a stake in coal assets they sold to Bumi last year. It’s awkward in every sense. But the Bumi board has to maximize value and should talk.

BOJ’s conundrum is how to be more irresponsible

11 Oct 2012

When Japan’s central bank pioneered quantitative easing in 2001 it was the apogee of monetary adventurism. But the bar for unusual policy is set much higher today. If the BOJ wants to stay in the game, it needs to make brazen promises with a straight face – and be believed.

HK art market shines, Beijing enters blue period

11 Oct 2012

Mainland China’s arts auction revenue plunged 67 percent in the first half, having grown to be the world’s largest in 2011. That has driven domestic auction houses across the border to Hong Kong. There, taking on Sotheby’s and Christie’s will be the big challenge.

New recall narrows Toyota’s recovery window

10 Oct 2012

It may take just 40 minutes to replace the gizmo responsible for the Japanese automaker’s latest embarrassment, but with 7.4 million cars to fix, that’s 565 years of mechanic time. With the China boycott, the tsunami, and previous recalls, Toyota’s problems seem never ending.

China’s IMF boycott undermines quest for clout

10 Oct 2012

For China’s top bankers to bail on the Tokyo summit amid a territorial fight suggests public feeling is governing policy. But the IMF is supposed to be just about finance - and Japan has strongly backed a bigger role for Asian countries. Maybe China isn’t ready for a bigger say.

Asian equities may defy region’s gloomy outlook

10 Oct 2012

The IMF and World Bank both cut forecasts for Asian growth. Vital signs are waning. But with central banks pumping out cheap cash amid glimmers of U.S. recovery, investors may turn from the haven of Asia’s bonds to the promise of its stocks.

Japan’s banks are in danger of turning European

10 Oct 2012

So warns the International Monetary Fund, which worries the country’s lenders are loading up with too much sovereign debt. Unlike Greece or Spain, Japan controls its own currency. Even so, there’s a risk the government is drawing its banks into a toxic embrace.

IMF’s long-term worry: decades of higher rates

9 Oct 2012

Don’t get too comfortable with low borrowing costs, is the downbeat message from the normally overoptimistic fund. Slightly feebler 3.3 pct growth for 2012 is the short-term concern. But past fiscal excesses and an ageing population could push up interest rates for a generation.

Forecasting faults don’t change need for cuts

9 Oct 2012

The International Monetary Fund is fretting about big “fiscal multipliers” - how much GDP moves on government spending or cutting. On that basis, austerity is always bad. But the science is imprecise and countries facing spiralling debt must make savings. Growth will come later.

China’s telco suppliers can’t escape spying row

8 Oct 2012

American lawmakers warn that Huawei and ZTE pose a threat to U.S. national security because they are too close to the Chinese state. Such accusations are almost impossible for the targets to contradict. Unless relations improve, the playing field will remain tilted against them.

How do India’s markets spell relief? Chidambaram

8 Oct 2012

Stocks have soared since word broke that the urbane Harvard man might take a third turn as finance chief. His return has been an antidote to predecessor Mukherjee’s errors, and has revived foreign buying. But the rally will only last if reform manages to boost flagging growth.

India’s insurance reform sends strong signal

5 Oct 2012

New Delhi has decided to allow foreigners a bigger stake in its insurance industry. Unlike recent retail and airline reforms, the eight-year-old proposal needs parliamentary approval. If successful, it’s a clear sign to investors that India’s new finance minister means business.

West still rules in global education

5 Oct 2012

The original homelands of modernity - Europe, the U.S. and their close cousins - account for 90 percent of the world’s top 200 universities in the new Times Higher Education rankings. Developing nations are trying to catch up, but this cultural advantage is likely to persist.

Even one-sided Chinese investment has its benefits

5 Oct 2012

Canadian politicians mulling CNOOC’s $15 billion bid for Nexen want equal rights for their companies to pile into China. That seems only fair. But workers and investors in the west gain even if money flows only one way. It’s the Middle Kingdom that misses out by being closed.

Anti-Japan protests reshape China’s auto market

5 Oct 2012

The spat over disputed islands may help German carmakers overtake their Japanese rivals in China. The likes of Audi and BMW have been luring customers with price cuts and attractive technology. If memories of protesters smashing Japanese cars linger, Germans stand to benefit.

Nixed Chinese wind-farm builder deserves answers

4 Oct 2012

Ralls sued Barack Obama after he took the rare step of blocking its project. Security may be a real concern, but with a costly investment at stake, the veto rationale should be explained clearly. Even if China wouldn’t reciprocate, due process still matters in America.