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China reschedules Three Gorges reservoir plan
November 5, 2009--China has postponed a plan to raise the Three Gorges reservoir to its ideal height of 175 metres due to a lack of water, the firm running the dam said.
There has been less water than expected flowing into the reservoir from the upper reaches of the Yangtze River.
More water than anticipated has also been let out of the reservoir because of drought further down river. Filling the reservoir will mark the end of the multi-billion-dollar project that was started in 1993.
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Source: BBC
SGX Reschedules Implementation Of New Settlement Processes And Penalty Framework
November 5, 2009--Singapore Exchange Limited (“SGX”) will be rescheduling the implementation of the new settlement processes and refined penalty framework from 6 November 2009 to a later date. The subsequent implementation of buy-in for failed securities due on T+3, which was scheduled for 30 November 2009, is also under review. The revised dates will be announced in due course after consultation with market participants.
The rescheduling is due to an isolated incident experienced today in the pre-settlement matching system (PSMS). This incident affected settlement of less than 1% of institutional trades. Settlement for retail trades is not affected. The trading and settlement of securities remain orderly in the marketplace. This incident is unrelated to the changes planned for implementation on 6 November 2009*. SGX is working to resolve the matter expeditiously.
As a prudent measure, the rescheduling of the implementation of the new settlement process will allow more time for the full stability of the PSMS environment.
Source: Online News
DB Index Research -- Weekly ETF Reports -- Asia-Pacific
November 4, 2009--Highlights
Market Overview
There are 188 equity based ETFs in the Asia Pacific region with 247 listings across 12 countries and 15 exchanges. Japan has the largest market share by AUM accounting for 41.43% of the whole market, whilst China has the largest market share by turnover with 42.67%.
There was one new listing in the last week. BOCI-Prudential Asset Mgmt Ltd listed a new ETF on the Korean Stock Exchange.
Turnover
Monthly average daily turnover rose 11.6% in the last week. Turnover for the previous week was USD 893m. The largest ETF by turnover was the China 50 ETF issued by China Asset Management with USD 212m accounting for 23.7% of total turnover.
Assets Under Management
AUM declined 1.7% in the previous week. AUM as of Nov 3rd were USD 59.0bn. The largest ETF by AUM is the iShares Asia Trust - iShares FTSE/Xinhua A50 China Tracker, managed by BGI, with AUM of USD 6.6bn.
To request a copy of the report click here
Source: Aram Flores and Shan Lan -DB Index Research
Japan investors keep close eye on dividends
November 4, 2009--With Japan’s reporting season still in progress, investors are keeping a close eye on dividend payments as some of the country’s biggest companies start to emerge from the economic downturn.
While Nomura last week resumed dividends after skipping one payment, Aiful suspended its payment.
Dividend payouts this financial year are projected to reach Y5,800bn ($64bn), according to Nomura.
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Source: FT.com
China hints at move to rein in growth
November 4, 2009--China's recent decision to increase the number of domestic funds that can invest in overseas securities may be a prelude to a tightening of monetary policy for the fast-growing economy, while also signaling confidence in the domestic share market, analysts said.
E Fund Management was granted a quota of US$1 billion and China Merchants Fund Management a limit of $500 million under the Qualified Domestic Institutional Investor (QDII) program by the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE) last month.
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Source: Asia Times
India's central bank buys 200 tons of IMF gold for $6.7 billion
November 2, 2009--India's central bank confirmed Tuesday it had purchased 200 tons of gold bullion from the International Monetary Fund, effectively boosting its holdings by more than 50% and diversifying its $285 billion foreign-exchange stockpile.
The sale was part of the IMF's previously announced plan to sell 403.3 metric tons of bullion as part of efforts to shore up the institution's finances.
India paid $6.7 billion for the bullion, which was purchased during a two week period ending Oct. 30.
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Source: MENFA
S Korea’s banks report sharp rise in profits
South Korea’s banks reported a sharp rise in profits in the third quarter, highlighting the extent of the recovery in Asia-Pacific’s fifth-largest economy in recent months.
Korea’s financial watchdog said on Tuesday that profits at the 18 banks rose 53 per cent to Won2,300bn ($1.9bn) in the July to September period, from Won1,500bn a year ago. Loan-loss provisions fell 36 per cent to Won1,600bn.
Source: FT.com
Phase 2 of New Post-vetting Regime
October 30, 2009--The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited (the Exchange), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited (HKEx), will amend the Listing Rules to cease pre-vetting issuers' announcements for major transactions and connected transactions from 1 January 2010 as Phase 2 of the new post-vetting regime commences.
Phase 1 of the new post-vetting regime commenced on 1 January 2009. Pre-vetting requirements for some categories of announcements, including share/discloseable transactions and issues of securities, were removed from the Listing Rules.
Phase 1 of the new regime was implemented following market support in the consultation launched in January 2008. The consultation conclusion of the "Combined Consultation Paper on Proposed Changes to the Listing Rules" was published in November 2008.
The Exchange stated in the 2008 Consultation Conclusion that it would, subject to market readiness and the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC)'s approval, cease pre-vetting all announcements. Based on the proposed timetable, Phase 2 will be implemented on 1 January 2010 and will cover announcements for major transactions and connected transactions. It will take a further 12 months for the final phase to be implemented to cover all remaining categories of announcements.
Since the implementation of Phase 1 of the new post-vetting regime, 8,827 issuers' announcements were post-vetted between January and September 2009, including 2,014 announcements related to Phase 1. A majority of the post-vetted announcements (96 per cent) required no follow up or no further action given the issuers' responses to the Exchange's initial enquiry. Most issuers were able to comply with the Listing Rules when they announced their transactions under the new regime.
Pre-vetted announcements reduced substantially from 16 per cent in 2008 to 5 per cent in 2009 (up to September). The Exchange anticipates a further reduction to 1 per cent after implementation of Phase 2.
"We are very pleased with the market support and issuers' smooth transition to Phase 1 of the new post-vetting regime," Mark Dickens, HKEx's Head of Listing, said. "The change in vetting approach promotes issuers' self-compliance and facilitates timely dissemination of information to the market."
From January to September 2009, the Exchange handled 384 written enquiries from issuers on rule interpretation and listing matters (2008: 350). Issuers have sought the Exchange's guidance on Listing Rules compliance issues before they published their announcements.
The Exchange published a new series of Listing Decisions for notifiable transactions, connected transactions and other specific rules in October 2009. It will continue to provide guidance materials to assist issuers to meet their obligations under the Listing Rules. The Exchange encourages issuers to seek its guidance on rule interpretations in individual cases.
The rule amendments to implement Phase 2 have been approved by the Board of the Exchange and the SFC, and will become effective on 1 January 2010. The rule amendments can be downloaded from the "Regulatory Framework and Rules - Rules and Guidelines on Listing Matters - Listing Rule Update for Main Board Listing Rules" and "Regulatory Framework and Rules - Rules and Guidelines on Listing Matters - Listing Rule Update/Interpretation for GEM Listing Rules" sections of the HKEx website.
Source: Hong Kong Limited (HKEx)
Strong Start for China's 'Nasdaq'
October 30, 2009--The price of shares for all 28 firms on China's new Nasdaq-style stock market more than doubled when it opened for trading for the first time on Friday.
The ChiNext stock market is designed to attract financing for small to medium sized enterprises.
The 28 listed companies are almost all privately-owned outfits, in contrast with the state-owned firms that dominate China's main stock market.
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Source: BBC
Japan’s central bank to end corporate debt buying in December
October 30, 2009--Japan’s central bank said Friday it would stop buying corporate debt in December, ending some of the emergency credit measures implemented earlier this year as it battled recession, plunging markets and a lending freeze.
After keeping its key interest rate unchanged at 0.1 percent as widely expected, the Bank of Japan also predicted a sluggish few years for the world’s second biggest economy: tepid recovery and three straight years of deflation.
In its semiannual outlook report, the central bank forecast that prices would continue falling through March 2012. It estimates the core consumer price index will fall 1.5 percent this fiscal year through March 2010, retreat 0.8 percent next fiscal year and then lose 0.4 percent the year after.
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Source: Todays Zaman
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