''Arbitrary SEC actions'' affecting stock market

The capital market is passing through an uncertain phase because of arbitrary intervention by the regulators, according to market experts, reports bdnews24.com.
"General investors are quite nervous and uncertain due to frequent regulatory moves," mutual fund operator Yaweer Sayeed told bdnews24.com on Monday when the prime bourse of the country fell by 2 per cent.
Dhaka Stock Exchange saw its highest ever turnover of Tk 16.92 billion on Feb 2. But on Tuesday it dropped to Tk 6.29 billion, a 37 percent fall in 25 trading sessions.
Under the law, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is obliged to protect the interest of the investors.
However, its recent move to intervene in the Dhaka Stock Exchange''s board election is seen by experts as unjustified.
In a directive issued on Feb 14, the SEC made obtaining a ''no-objection'' or ''clearance'' from them mandatory before filing nominations in the board elections.
The directive reads that the market regulator took the decision according to the section 20A of the Securities and Exchange Ordinance, 1969, which empowers the SEC to take such action.
According to the aforesaid section of the ordinance, the commission can issue any order or directive to all stakeholders ''in the interest of investors or securities market or for the development of securities market''.
Market observer and research director of BIDS Zaid Bakht said that such type of intervention over who can sit on the board of a company is not desirable.
"It amounts to interfering in a company''s autonomy."
The Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) is a public limited company, which is responsible for listing of companies, operating the market and facilitating trade of shares.
The move does not ensure protecting investors'' interest, Bakht told bdnews24.com.
"It is more like interfering in a company''s operation and in no way it can benefit the investors," added Bakht, who also is member of the SEC''s advisory committee.
There are allegations from some quarters that the current DSE president Rakibur Rahman was behind the SEC move in an apparent effort to influence the DSE board.
The board elections were scheduled for March 3 and the deadline for filing nominations was on Feb 15. The SEC directive came just a day before that deadline.
The SEC move prompted the current DSE board to postpone the elections, which will now be held on March 21.
On March 3, the market watchdog cleared 10 out of 13 aspirants for filing nominations. The three who didn''t get cleared were ex-DSE president Ahmed Iqbal Hasan, ex- senior vice president Ahmed Rashid Lali and Anwar Hossain.
Despite several attempts, the SEC chairman Ziaul Haque Khondker could not be reached for comments on the matter; members of the commission also declined to comment.
Speaking to the press, Ahmed Rashid Lali said that the decision would hurt the market badly.
"As an aspirant for the DSE polls, I have the right to know why I was not cleared," he said.
Transparency and accountability in all the realms of the capital market is needed to protect investors'' interest, added Lali.
According to market watchers, the SEC appears to be acting irrationally after the current chief took office in May 2009.
On November 2009, the regulator asked issuers to refund IPO subscriptions directly to the investors'' bank accounts rather than handing or posting the refund warrant.
The move created a huge hassle for a good number of IPO aspirants of Golden Son, who are yet to get their refund, almost after four months. The same thing happened with some other mutual funds.
Following the incident, the SEC recently directed issue managers to refund the IPO subscription according to investors'' preferences.
In another example regarding the High Court ruling on mutual funds'' bonus and rights shares, the SEC said that it would appeal against the ruling. It caused a slump in mutual fund prices, affecting many investors.
The regulator also seemed to shuffle decisions regarding margin loans to trade shares.
Between October last year and February this year, the SEC gave at least six directives regarding issuing margin loans, which hugely affected the market.

Samsung keen to set up cell phone manufacturing plant

News Report

The Samsung Electronics Co Ltd., a reputed electronic company, wants to set up a manufacturing plant in Bangladesh but so far it did not receive any supportive response from the government.
K.H. Lee, Managing Director, Samsung''s Dhaka Branch office Tuesday disclosed this at a press conference at the Pan Pacific Sonargaon Hotel. The press conference was arranged launching its new mobile set ''Samsung Genoa'' in Bangladesh market.
Responding to a query Lee said they have submitted a proposal to the government for revising tariff wall, which would facilitate them to set up a manufacturing plant of one of its electronic product but till the day we did not receive any response from the government.
He said that Samsung Electronics developed manufacturing plant in all the neighboring countries of Bangladesh, which included India, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia and Malaysia. It was earnest desire to have the manufacturing plan in Bangladesh too, he added.
Pointing to the new mobile set Lee said: "Genoa is in the line with the Samsung''s strategy of designing an array of stylish ''Touch'' phone to match every one, especially youth life style".
With a single touch, one can easily and intuitively navigate Genoa''s simplified menus to access its amazing features. It has three pages extended menu with loads of widgets and option.
The wide range of incredible applications helps to connect to a vast world, whether its''s social networking like face book or twitter, web surfing, instant messaging or just listening to music.
With easy-to-access, ever-ready multimedia capabilities, snapping great photos and turning into favorite FM station make it that much user friendly. It has a cool interface, which is intuitive and simple to use with the applications. Additionally the cartoon feel makes using the interface more fun and blast.
The price of the new mode would around Tk 10,000.

RMG, textile sectors have huge potential: Minister

Textiles and Jute Minister Abdul Latif Siddiqui said that there is a huge potential for the country’s Readymade Garments (RMG) and Textile sectors as China started increasing its concentration on hi-tech instead of RMG and Textile sector, reports UNB.
He said: “China is attaching more emphasis to hi-tech than RMG and Textile. We can avail of this advantage.”
The minister made the remarks while addressing a seminar on ‘Italian Textile Technology’, which was organized by Italian Trade Commission (ICE) at Sonargaon Hotel on Tuesday morning.
Italian Ambassador to Dhaka Itala Maria Occhi, ICE Representative Erica Di Giovancarlo, President of Association of Italian Textile Machinery Manufacturers (ACIMIT) Dr Sandro Salmoiraghi and President of Bangladesh Textile Mills Association (BTMA) Abdul Hai Sarkar also addressed the function.
ACIMIT Vice Presidents Rino Morani and Raffaella Carabelli were present in the seminar.
An Italian business delegation came to Bangladesh on Monday on a three-day visit aimed at offering Italian new technologies to Bangladeshi companies and boost export of Italian textile machineries.
In his address, Abdul Latif Siddiqui said we can fulfill the demands for machineries and accessories of RMG and textile sectors and develop the sectors by maintaining a good business link with Italy. We have been using Italian products since long, he said.
On power crisis, the minister blamed the BNP-led alliance government and the interim government, saying that they did not add a single megawatt of power to the national grids in last seven years.
He said the power crisis would not be solved overnight. He criticized the past BNP-Jamaat alliance government for power crisis, terming them as anti-state and anti-liberation forces.
Speaking on the occasion, BTMA president Abdul Hai Sarkar stressed the need for strong relations between textile companies of Italy and that of Bangladesh for bringing latest and advanced technologies from Italy.
He asked the visiting Italian delegation to translate brochures about Italian companies into Bangla for better understanding to the officials of Bangladeshi textile companies.

Sustainable banking pioneers plan to touch billion lives by 2020

News Report

The three-day conference of Global Alliance for Banking on Values (GABV) summit hosted by BRAC Bank concluded on Monday with a commitment to take their values-based banking mainstream and a note of cross cultural and intellectual exchange for the future.
The sustainable banking leaders, who have gathered in Bangladesh to see the work of BRAC in a bid for setting goals and an action plan in future.
The visiting bank representatives had the opportunity to get a firsthand look at the businesses and entrepreneurs that have benefitted from BRAC Bank SME loans as well as BRAC’s micro finance loans, to better understand the people and communities that their increasingly popular type of banking reaches.
“Seeing the extraordinary difference that BRAC makes is inspiring,” says GABV Programme Manager, James Niven. “BRAC is a catalyst for change, just as the other members of the Global Alliance for Banking on Values are. But while together they are already achieving a great deal, we believe we can do much more. The last two days have helped us to focus on these ambitions and how we will deliver them.”
The GABV, a network of eleven of the world’s leading sustainable banks came together in Bangladesh to try to build a viable future for the financial industry. At its close, the organisation is pledging to touch the lives of one billion people by 2020.
It expects the growth to come from expanding the network’s membership significantly by supporting banks looking to adopt genuinely values-driven models, and the creation of new sustainable banks.
The members of the GABV spent three days near Dhaka working together to help grow sustainable banking and its impact globally, focus on joint capital raising efforts, and build an infrastructure to support the development of a new generation of sustainable bankers to use it. The network’s members plan to promote and demonstrate the impact of business models which focus on solutions to the world’s most urgent social and environmental problems.
Speaking at the closing ceremony of the conference, Sir Fazle Hasan Abed –co-founder of the GABV and founder and Chairperson of BRAC and the meeting’s host, says: “The members of the Global Alliance for Banking on Values have committed to touch the lives of one billion people by 2020. This is a major new pledge that could transform lives on a truly global scale, and make a substantial difference in our efforts to combat climate change.”
“We believe sustainable banking – which focuses on people and the environment as well as profit – should reach one billion people by 2020 when a number of key international targets converge,” said Peter Blom, Chair and co-founder of the GABV, and CEO of European sustainable bank, Triodos. “We need to raise more money and invest in the sustainable bankers of the future so we can use this finance to its full potential. This commitment is an important line in the sand. We believe values-led banking can and should make a positive difference to the lives of one in six people within ten years.”
The GABV, which uses finance to deliver sustainable development for unserved people, communities and the environment, represents seven million customers in 20 countries, with a combined balance sheet of over $14 billion. It was launched in March 2009. Its members are profitable and many are growing rapidly during the financial crisis. But they are conspicuous in the banking industry for using their profits to deliver financial, community and environmental ends.
The GABV has already announced a commitment to raise $250 million in new capital over three years to support the expansion of $2 billion in lending to green projects and unserved communities around the world, at the 2009 Clinton Global Initiative in New York. The money will be raised by investors – including existing individual customers, institutions and new investors. Extending this capital substantially in future years will help to reach the one billion targets.

BRTC to import 300 CNG-run buses

The Bangladesh Road Transport Corporation (BRTC) will import 300 CNG-run buses from Korea to make its services more efficient, reports BSS.
The Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) at a meeting today approved the project under which the state-run organisation will get necessary funds from Korea at as low as five percent interest.
The ECNEC meeting, chaired by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at the NEC Bhaban in the city, also approved nine other development projects involving Taka 7,844 crore.
Building a concrete grain silo at Mongla Port with a capacity of 50,000 tonnes is one of the major projects, which will help the country to ensure food supply during any crisis period.
The ECNEC approved another important project of Taka 4,691 crore under which all the constituencies would be allocated Taka 15 crore each for rural infrastructure development.
“Members of parliament will only be allowed to choose the projects for their area when the respective government department will be the implementing authorities,” Planning Minister Air Vice Martial (retd) AK Khandakar told journalists after the meeting.
He said the members from the opposition also got the same amount of funds for their constituencies.

Int''l tourism fair begins tomorrow

News Report

A three-day International Tourism Fair, the Dhaka Travel Mart-2010, is set to begin at the Dhaka Sheraton Hotel on Thursday.
GM Quader, Minister for Civil Aviation and Tourism will formally inaugurate the exhibition at 11.30 am at the Marble Room of the hotel.
The Bangladesh Monitor, premier travel and tourism publication of the country, will be organising this international tourism fair for the seventh time.
While Engr. Mosharraf Hossain, chairman of Parliamentary Standing Committee on Civil Aviation & Tourism will be present on the occasion as the special guest.
This was disclosed by Kazi Wahidul Alam, editor, The Bangladesh Monitor and chairman of the DTM-2010 organising committee at a press meet held in the city on Monday.
"We have been arranging the Mart regularly for the last seven years to promote travel, tourism, hospitality and aviation sector of the country. The exhibition has been attracting more and more visitors every year, leading to increased business volume of the participants," Alam said.
"It is heartening to see that the sector is growing in the country. New hotels and resorts are coming up as have new service organisations. People are travelling more and more," he added.
Taufiq Uddin Ahmed, president of Tour Operators Association of Bangladesh (TOAB), Nazeem A. Choudhury, head of marketing and cards of Eastern Bank Ltd, Khwaja Junaed, director, marketing, Shafiqur Rahman, general manager, marketing, Biman Bangladesh Airlines and Anowarul Azim, assistant manager sales, GMG Airlines were present at the press meet.
National Carrier Biman Bangladesh Airlines is the official carrier and premium partner of DTM-2010, while leading commercial bank Eastern Bank Ltd. And leading private sector airlines of the country GMG Airlines are playing host as-the premium partners.
A total of forty-five organisations from seven countries, Malaysia, Nepal, UAE, Kuwait India, China and host Bangladesh are taking part in Dhaka Travel Mart-2009.
The event will includes national tourism organisations (NTOs), airlines, tour operators, hotels, resorts, travel trade bodies, financial and educational institutions.

WHO to help Bangladesh develop vaccines locally

The World Health Organization (WHO) today committed Bangladesh to provide technical support for developing vaccines locally and strengthen comprehensive service through one-stop community clinics, reports BSS.
“WHO has sent three teams of experts to Bangladesh last year and gave a roadmap to the government how to develop vaccines locally,” Margaret Chan, director general of WHO, told journalists at a crowded press conference in the health ministry hours before she leave Dhaka after two-days official visit.
Chan, who was flanked by Health Minister Dr AFM Ruhal Haque, State Minister for Health Mujibur Rahman Fakir and other government and WHO officials, said the government has to invite private sector investment in the development of vaccines, the market of which can initially be in Bangladesh due to its huge population.
“You have to meet international requirement and provide quality assurance before you think of exporting vaccine made in Bangladesh,” Chan said adding Bangladesh has every facilities to develop vaccines. She, however, said the country would be required high investments for it and WHO would try to woo international agencies like USAID to fund for such projects.
The WHO chief executive said the H1N1 vaccines would reach Bangladesh by this month under WHO’s technical supports programme, but warned Bangladesh that it should not be complacent against swine flu virus. She said the country should remain vigilant against the novel flu that gripped almost every country in the world but now in a declining trend.
Chan, who visited model community clinics in Chowgachha in Jeassore and cyclone Aila affected areas in Ashashuni in Satkhira on Monday, said the one- stop centres in Chowgachha has impressed her. Now the challenge is, she said, is to replicate the good practices to other parts of the country and world as well.
“What I saw on the ground was very good,” she said adding Bangladesh has not only made progress in primary healthcare and millennium development goals 4 and 6 but also achieved certain progress in disaster management. She said the country is on the track to attain MDGs on child survival and infectious disease control.
“It would certainly be able to attain MDG 5 on mother survival if the good practices are replicated in other parts of the country,” Chan opined, appreciating the present government’s pro-poor health policy, programmes to empower women and save newborns. She said the present government has a very good policy, but the policy needs to be backed by adequate funding.

Euro down in Asia

TOKYO, Mar 9: The euro was weaker in Asian trade today as investors waited for fresh details on Greece’s plans to resolve its debt crisis, reports AFP.
The euro fell to 1.3614 dollars in Tokyo afternoon trade from 1.3631 in New York late Monday, and to 122.52 yen from 123.07. The dollar declined to 89.99 yen from 90.27.
Persistent uncertainty over Greece’s debt crisis weighed on European currencies as investors waited for specific measures on tackling the country’s public deficit woes, dealers said.
“People just don’t feel like buying the euro or sterling,” Mamoru Arai, a senior trader at Mizuho Corporate Bank, told Dow Jones Newswires. “The outlook is just weak for both of them.”
The market was cautious ahead of talks later Tuesday between Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou and US President Barack Obama.
Papandreou arrived in Washington Monday after visits to France and Germany as part of efforts to drum up international backing for his debt- crippled nation, which has adopted new austerity measures to pull out of its crisis.
Investors were also eyeing upcoming events in Asia, including three central bank meetings and Chinese inflation data due this week.
Although the central banks of South Korea, the Philippines and Thailand will probably leave their interest rates unchanged, analysts said they may withdraw some of their stimulus measures as regional growth picks up.
The prospect of eventual interest rate rises in those countries is likely to support their currencies against the lower-yielding dollar and the yen, dealers said.
Japan has kept its interest rates at 0.1 percent since December 2008 and is expected to be one of the last industrialised nations to tighten monetary policy as the country faces deflation and weak domestic demand.
Speculation is mounting that the Bank of Japan will extend its special corporate funding facility when it meets next week.
Against regional Asian currencies, the dollar rose to 1,134.67 South Korean won from 1,133.20 on Monday, to 1.4008 Singapore dollars from 1.3992 and to 32.73 Thai baht from 32.67.
It also gained to 9,198 Indonesian rupiah from 9,192, but fell to 31.85 Taiwan dollars from 31.87 and to 45.75 Philippine pesos from 45.93.

Mega plan underway to bring 4,500 unions under ICT network

The government has undertaken a mega plan to bring the country’s 4,500 unions under modern information communication technology (ICT), reports BSS.
Bangladesh Telecommu-nications Company Limited (BTCL) will soon invite tenders to install optical cable in 1,000 unions. Installation of the cable has already been completed in 259 upazilas.
Installation of the cable is an important step toward the implementation of the government’s election pledge for a digital Bangladesh, BTCL Managing Director ASM Khabiruzzaman told BSS.
He said that a high-level meeting was held at the Prime Minister’s Office on Sunday with PM’s Principal Secretary MA Karim in the chair to review the progress of the work.
The PM’s principal secretary is the coordinator of Domestic Network Coordination Committee while the BTCL managing director member of the body.
The meeting authorized Bangladesh Telecommunications Regulatory Commission (BTRC) Chairman Maj Gen (Retd) Zia Ahmed to monitor cable installation by the public and private companies.
Concerned sources said the BTCL has undertaken a project to install a 200-line digital exchange and optical fibre cables in all unions at an initial cost of Taka 5,000 crore.
This project would provide technical assistance to connect all unions with capital Dhaka via internet, the BTCL managing director said.
The BTCL has already taken some more projects, including Taka 290-crore ‘Infophone’, to bring the country’s 4,498 unions under a single network, he added.
Taka 1700-crore Next Generation Network (NGN) project is awaiting approval of the Planning Commission.
A meeting was held at the post and telecommunications ministry last week to review progress of the work on installation of digital exchange and fibre optic cable at the union level.

Pubali Bank managers'' confce held

News Report

The managers'' conference-2010 of Dhaka Region of Pubali Bank Limited held at the bank''s head office in the city recently.
Helal Ahmed Chowdhury, managing director presided over the ceremony.
In his speech Chowdhury urged all managers to increase deposit and advance export-import business of the bank and to achieve the target fixed for the year 2010 through better customers service.
He stressed on selection of potential borrower and try to enhance bank business. He emphasised on recovery of overdue, classified and write off loan on priority basis.
For building an enrich Bangladesh, he urged to avail the facilities provided by PBL such as education loan, agricultural loan, export-import loan, SME Loan and so on.
Khurshid-UI- Alam, deputy managing director, M. Mustafizur Rahman, MA Halim Chowdhury and Safiul Alam Khan Chowdhury, general managers of head office, regional heads and branch managers from Dhaka Central, Dhaka North and Dhaka South Regions of the bank were also attended at the conference.

World’s biggest oil trader ends supplies to Iran

LONDON, March 9: The largest oil trader in the world, Vitol, said yesterday it had stopped dealing with Iran, following a report that traders were pulling out of the country as sanctions and US pressure took their toll, reports AFP.
The Financial Times said Vitol and its fellow trading giants Glencore and Trafigura had stopped supplying petrol to Iran.
A spokesman for Vitol told AFP: “I can confirm that our position is as covered in the Financial Times today.”
One unnamed executive familiar with Iran’s trade told the newspaper that Vitol had “consciously decided not to participate in Iran’s tenders”.
Another industry executive told the paper Switzerland-based Trafigura stopped selling to Iran about three months ago because “they have concluded that there’s too much political and financial risk”.
Glencore distanced itself from Iran late last year.
Although Iran is one of the world’s largest oil producers, it is forced to import petrol because its refineries are dilapidated and it suffers from intense demand because of generous subsidies.

Standard Chartered holds seminar

News Report

Standard Chartered Bank organized a seminar on "Managing Commodity Price Risk in the Changing Global Economy" at a local hotel recently.
Ziaul Hasan Siddiqui, deputy governor of Bangladesh Bank, inaugurated the seminar. Top officials of the leading corporate houses as well as Bangladesh Bank officials were present on the occasion.
In the back drop of the global economic turmoil and unprecedented volatility in the commodity markets, this seminar was organised to raise awareness in the local market about the outlook of the global economy as well as the nature and fundamental drivers of the commodity markets.
In his speech, Jim McCabe, CEO of Standard Chartered Bank Bangladesh said, "This initiative is yet another demonstration of our continued commitment to developing the local market. Standard Chartered has a proud history of involvement in the commodity markets. Commodity prices play a critical role in Bangladesh''s overall macroeconomic balance given the significant exposure that Bangladesh has to global commodity prices."

Pre-budget tariff talks end inconclusively

Business leaders on Tuesday called for an appropriate tariff structure in the next budget with a view to shoring up the country’s manufacturing sector, reports bdnews24.com.
Representatives from different trade bodies, at a ‘pre-budget workshop’, also requested the government to eliminate the existing tax on import of capital machinery in the light engineering sector and VAT imposed on renting space and machinery bought from leasing company in the ready made garments sector.
However, the workshop on tariff and non-tariff structure in the upcoming budget and expectation of the industries sector, ended inconclusively apparently because many of the guests did not turn up and the small number of participants who attended came unprepared to make any significant suggestions.
The workshop, organised by the ministry of industries, was conducted by the additional secretary. Others who attended were industries minister, secretary and members from the FBCCI, MCCI, DCCI, associations of jute mills, engineering and ceramics.
The workshop decided to arrange another meeting on March 23 to discuss the issues in detail.

Sony to roll out 3D TVs in Japan in June

TOKYO, March 9: Sony said today it would start selling 3D televisions in Japan in June, aiming to ride a new wave of interest in the technology thanks to recent movies such as sci-fi blockbuster “Avatar”, reports AFP.
The Japanese giant said its first 3D liquid crystal display TV models would hit the Japanese market on June 10, with a price tag of about 350,000 yen (3,535 dollars) for a 46-inch version.
Viewers will wear electronic glasses that open and close rapidly in time with images designed for the right and left eye, creating a three-dimensional effect.
Sony said its overall television business would shift into high gear in the fiscal year to March 2011, targeting sales of more than 25 million liquid crystal display TVs — up two thirds from its forecast for this year.
It aims for 10 percent of the sets to be capable of viewing 3D images.
The next 12 months are “really a year when we think we can attack,” Yoshihisa Ishida, senior vice president in charge of Sony’s home entertainment business, said at a press conference.
Sony has been caught off guard in recent years by innovative new products such as Apple’s iPod and Nintendo’s Wii, but it has high hopes for 3D televisions.
The TVs are key to chief executive Howard Stringer’s goal of converging Sony’s strengths in electronics, such as Bravia televisions and PlayStation game consoles, and content generated by its movie studio and music label.
Blockbusters such as James Cameron’s science fiction 3D opus “Avatar” have fuelled the buzz around images that appear to jump out of the screen.
But many experts think consumers are unlikely to rush to buy the premium- priced 3D TVs due to the need for special glasses and because many people have already upgraded to high-definition sets in recent years.
Sony is lagging behind some rivals. Panasonic plans to launch a 3D TV in the United States on Wednesday, ahead of its rollout in Japan, as it goes head- to-head with South Korea’s Samsung Electronics.

Profit-taking pulls mkts lower ahead of China data

HONG KONG, March 9: Easing concerns over the release of key Chinese economic data later this week overshadowed a bout of profit- taking to leave Asian stocks mostly higher Tuesday, reports AFP.
Regional markets had fallen in the morning after recording strong rallies the previous day on the back of better-than- expected jobs figures in the United States at the end of last week.
Dealers had been looking ahead at inflation and trade figures from Beijing Thursday, fearing leaders could use the data to introduce credit-tightening measures.
However, rumours that Beijing may not be as stringent as feared lifted stocks, with Shanghai up 0.64 percent and Hong Kong up 0.19 percent by the break.
Zhao Jianxing from China Merchants Securities said: "The current news flow regarding policies to curb property prices was within expectations, nothing too painful. The rally in that sector probably also helped to lift bank stocks."
Eyes have been on a key parliamentary session in China for any policy clues, as leaders plan to rein in lending and bring an end to huge stimulus measures introduced to overcome the global downturn.
Beijing has for some time fretted over the liquidity it says is leading to asset bubbles that could burst and hammer the economy.
Sydney was 0.25 percent, or 12.2 points, higher at 4,820.1, marking its eighth consecutive gain helped by gains in the banking sector.
Commonwealth Bank of Australia rose 0.7 percent to 55.21 Australian dollars and Westpac rose 0.5 percent to 26.97.
However, miner BHP Billiton lost 0.3 percent to 45.22 and rival Rio Tinto was off 1 percent at 76.15.
Tokyo stocks slipped 0.17 percent, or 18.27 points, to 10,567.65 after hitting a six-week high the previous day.
Singapore was flat.
Wall Street provided no direction, falling 0.13 percent on
Monday, despite Friday''s rally that was caused by data showing
unemployment in the world''s biggest economy holding steady at 9.7
percent in February.
The US Labor Department said 36,000 jobs were lost in February. Most economists had forecast about 67,000 job losses and a 9.8 percent unemployment rate.
That news had helped Asian markets post strong gains on Monday.
The Greek debt crisis continued to hurt the euro as dealers showed caution ahead of meetings between Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou and US President Barack Obama and his Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner.
Papandreou is expected to call for a crackdown on speculators he has accused of trying to undermine his country''s struggle to get rid of its debt crisis.
The euro fell to 1.3614 dollars in Tokyo afternoon trade from 1.3631 in New York late Monday, and to 122.52 yen from 123.07. The dollar declined to 89.99 yen from 90.27.
Oil was lower, with New York''s main contract, light sweet crude for April delivery, off 45 cents to 81.42 dollars a barrel, while Brent North Sea crude eased 42 cents to 80.05 dollars.
Gold opened at 1,123.30-1,124.30 US dollars an ounce in Hong Kong, down from Monday''s close of 1,136.00-1,137.00 dollars.
In other markets:
-- Seoul ended flat, edging up 0.79 points to 1,660.83.
-- Taipei rose 0.11 percent, or 8.32 points, to 7,770.59.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co was 0.16 percent higher at 61.3 Taiwan dollars.
-- Manila rose 0.40 percent, or 12.37 points, to 3,107.35.
Philippine Long Distance Telephone was unchanged at 2,675 pesos while Aboitiz Power Corp. led gainers, rising 6.82 percent to 11.75 pesos.
-- Wellington ended 0.30 percent, or 9.61 points, to 3,213.21.
The loss ended a nine-day winning streak for the index.
"The market has had a reasonable patch the last few days and to be off a handful of points is no big deal," UBS New Zealand managing director Campbell Stuart told Dow Jones Newswires.
Telecom fell three cents to 2.21 dollars, Fletcher Building was flat at 8.10 and Contact Energy added four cents at 6.15.

Obama, Greek PM set to discuss financial reforms

WASHINGTON, March 9: US President Barack Obama and Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou hold talks today on economic issues amid concerns that speculators are undermining Greece''s efforts to overcome a severe debt crisis, reports AFP.
Papandreou arrived in Washington Monday after visits to France and Germany as part of efforts to drum up international backing for his debt- crippled nation, which has adopted new austerity measures to pull out of its crisis.
In his first public address on arrival, Papandreou called on the United States to crack down on speculators, apparently referring to reports that some US funds have placed big bearish bets against the euro, the sole currency of 16 European Union member states, including Greece.
"Unprincipled speculators are making billions every day by betting on a Greek default," he said.
The single European unit has come under market pressure since it was disclosed that Greece''s public debts have mushroomed to 300 billion euros (408 billion dollars), well above its annual economic output.
Papandreou warned that the repercussions of any coordinated speculative attacks on the euro would also be detrimental to the United States.
"That is why Europe and America must say ''enough is enough'' to those speculators who only place value on immediate returns, with utter disregard for the consequences on the larger economic system -- not to mention the human consequences of lost jobs, foreclosed homes, and decimated pensions," he said.
The Greek leader is scheduled to meet with Obama at the Oval Office Tuesday.
The White House said that "economic issues will be an important part of the discussion" between Obama and Papandreou and that they were expected "to discuss their shared commitment to financial reform and economic recovery," among other topics.
Papandreou is unlikely to ask for financial aid from the United States although his hard-pressed Socialist government, which faces a mounting barrage of strikes over its austerity cuts, has suggested it could appeal to the International Monetary Fund for help if rebuffed by the European Union.
"Neither the prime minister nor Greece has asked the United States for anything," Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said after talks with the Greek leader on Monday.
She said Papandreou wanted the United States to lobby for financial reforms in the Group of 20 industrialized and emerging nations.
"What I think Greece is looking for, as the prime minister alluded to, is that the United States, working in the G20, will make some of the changes in regulatory regimes governing some of these financial instruments that have been used to the detriment not only of Greece, but of other countries, including our own," Clinton said.
She cited as an example credit default swaps or CDS, which function like a an insurance contract for bonds.
US and European regulators are scrutinizing such contracts in the wake of the Greek debt crisis amid concerns that excessive speculation could have exacerbated the country''s fiscal woes.
Clinton said the United States wanted to work with other nations to reform the "unregulated financial market that globally moves money at the speed of sound, if not light, and leaves in its wake all kinds of consequences that governments have to contend with."

UAE economy to grow 3.2 pc in 2010

DUBAI, March 9: The United Arab Emirates economy is expected to expand by 3.2 percent in 2010, in sharp contrast to an International Monetary Fund forecast of 0.6-percent growth, a minister said Tuesday, reports AFP.
"The coming period will witness gradual growth, initially, picking up momentum," UAE Economy Minster Sultan al-Mansuri told a forum in Dubai.
He also said the oil-rich Gulf state''s economy grew by an estimated 1.3 percent last year, although the IMF said last month that the UAE economy had contracted by 0.7 percent in 2009 due to the global financial crisis.
"Our GDP (gross domestic product) grew 6.2 percent in 2007 and 7.4 percent in 2008 and (had) an estimated growth of 1.3 percent in 2009 and (is expected to grow) 3.2 percent in 2010," he said.
The IMF said last month that the UAE''s economy was "adversely affected by a series of external and domestic shocks in 2009."
These shocks included the global economic slowdown, the shutdown of international capital markets for borrowing and the impact of the "bursting Dubai property bubble in mid-2008," the IMF said.
The economy was also affected by plummeting oil receipts, and a contraction in global trade, logistics and construction activities, it added.
And it was disrupted in the final quarter by Dubai''s multi- billion-dollar debt woes, when the emirate''s government announced it would seek to freeze debt payments by its largest and most- indebted group -- Dubai World.

ECB economist rejects idea of a ''European IMF''

FRANKFURT, March 9: The European Central Bank''s head economist took aim yesterday at a proposal to create a "European IMF" that would come to the aid of heavily indebted countries like Greece, reports AFP.
"Such a mechanism would not be consistent with the founding principles of the monetary union" to which Greece belongs, Juergen Stark told the financial daily Handelsblatt in comments to appear on Tuesday but released in advance.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has the financial clout and experience to step in and help indebted countries but has been held at arm''s length by eurozone leaders like French President Nicolas Sarkozy and ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet.
In Brussels, a European Commission official said Monday it would float a proposal within 24 hours to "reinforce economic coordination and country surveillance" across the 16 nations that share the euro, which most observers felt would in essence create a European version of the IMF.
Over the weekend, German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble told the Welt am Sonntag newspaper that "for the internal stability of the eurozone, we need an institution that has the experience and power of the IMF."
For Stark however: "It would be the start of a European financial scheme that could be very expensive, create the wrong incentives and finally, burden countries with more solid public finances."

Global financial regulators seek to unclog credit mkts

BASEL, Switzerland, March 9: Global financial regulators said yesterday that they were trying to unclog credit markets by reviving securitization, a form of debt financing that was blamed for precipitating the recent global crisis, reports AFP.
Financial Stability Board (FSB) chairman Mario Draghi said there was still a need to unblock credit flows that froze after the banking system came under pressure in 2008, squeezing loans.
"We are looking now how to restart securitization channels that dried up in the aftermath of the crisis," Draghi said after an FSB meeting at the Bank for International Settlements.
"This is a serious drag on the restart of credit flows to the economy."
He added that securitization -- where varying debt instruments, often with different risk profiles, were bundled together and then sold to investors -- should not take the same form as before the financial crisis.
"There should be greater transparency, less transferable risk. This channel need to be reactivated," Draghi told journalists.
The FSB, comprising central bankers and regulators from 24 countries and international financial bodies, was bolstered last year to lead reform of the global financial system in the wake of the crisis.
Draghi explained that over the next two to four years a considerable amount of corporate and banking debt would need to be renewed.
The FSB was trying to encourage bankers to a take a longer term approach to funding with longer maturity dates on bonds.
Mortgage-backed securities were blamed for fuelling the growth in sub- prime or higher risk home loans in the United States which then turned bad, burning the holders and many banks, including Wall Street giant Lehman Brothers in late 2008.

Toyota hits back at claims of electronic defects

LOS ANGELES, March 9: Toyota sought to discredit fears over the automaker''s electronics here yesterday but were forced onto the defensive hours later when a Prius went speeding out of control along a California highway, reports AFP.
The Japanese automaker insisted that the mechanical fixes it is applying to more than eight million vehicles recalled worldwide are sufficient and that its tests are rigorous.
It empanelled engineers from Stanford University and a top consulting firm to dismiss as "unrealistic" and contrived a study showing crossed wires could send a false signal that would cause Toyota cars to speed out of control.
David Gilbert, a professor of automotive technology at Southern Illinois University, told a US congressional investigation last month that some Toyota and Lexus vehicles may have an electronics design flaw.
Toyota dismissed his findings, saying he had re-engineered and rewired the signals from the accelerator pedal in order to create the flaw rather than analyzing "real world" evidence.
"If an electrical system is re-engineered and rewired it''s not surprising that subsequent testing of the system may cause unrealistic results," Toyota spokesman Mike Michaels told reporters.
"Speculation is easy. Science takes a lot more effort."
US regulators said last week that they had received more than 60 complaints from Toyota owners reporting sudden unintended acceleration despite having their recalled vehicle repaired by a Toyota dealer.
Toyota is in the process of investigating those complaints and has found that some of the incidents were a result of incomplete repairs, Michaels told reporters.
"We remain confident that if the modifications to the vehicle are deployed and done properly that they are effective," he said.
Yet just hours after Toyota''s trenchant criticism of Gilbert''s findings, the company was grappling with another public relations nightmare after a runaway Prius drama in California.
James Sikes, 61, was driving on the busy Interstate 8 freeway outside San Diego when he noticed his car was starting to accelerate of its own accord, the California Highway Patrol said.
The terrified motorist was helpless as the car raced along the road at speeds of more than 90 miles per hour.
Tragedy was only averted after Sikes was able to call police, and officers using a loudspeaker talked the driver through the process of slowing down by using his emergency brake and then turning off the engine.
Police then pulled in front of the car as it decelerated and rolled to a stop and put the rear bumper of the squad car against the front of the Prius.
"I was on the brakes pretty healthy," Sikes told NBC San Diego. "It wasn''t stopping, it wasn''t doing anything to it, and just kept speeding up."
Toyota later issued a statement saying technical specialist had been sent to San Diego "to investigate the report and offer assistance."
The drama was a chilling echo of the tragic accident last August where off- duty California Highway Patrol Officer Mark Saylor and three family members were killed when the accelerator of the Lexus ES350 they were in got stuck.
Minutes later, the Toyota-manufactured vehicle slammed into the back of a sport utility vehicle at about 100mph, veered off the freeway, overturned and burst into flames. All four family members died.
Toyota, which overtook General Motors in 2008 to become world number one automaker, has seen its reputation tarnished by a litany of complaints ranging from unintended acceleration to brake failure and steering problems.
The Japanese auto giant''s president, Akio Toyoda, met Monday with Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama, who urged the founding company scion to strive to restore confidence in its brand.

Taiwan''s Delta group plans solar cell plant

TAIPEI, March 9: Taiwan''s Delta Electronics is to spend 290 million US dollars on a new solar cell plant as the island moves to increase its use of renewable energy, a company spokeswoman said Tuesday, reports AFP.
Delta Electronics'' investment, via its subsidiary DelSolar Co, will make it one of the main players in the island''s rapidly evolving solar energy sector, said Austin Chiu of DelSolar.
"After the project is finished, we''ll become one of the biggest solar cell manufacturers in Taiwan," she told AFP.
The plant will be located near the city of Chunan in northern Taiwan and will be completed within three years, she said.
"The profit margin won''t be too high compared with some electronics products," she said.
"However, the demand for products like solar cells is expected to keep rising because of concern about global warming."
Taiwan''s government said in December it plans to boost its use of solar panels by a factor of 200 over the next 15 years in an effort to increase clean energy.

China car maker shares jump after 2009 net profit soars

SHANGHAI, March 9: Shares in China''s Chongqing Changan Automobile were boosted today after the car maker said 2009 earnings soared more than forty-fold due to Beijing''s efforts to boost auto sales, reports AFP.
Shenzhen-listed Changan Automobile, China''s fourth-largest auto maker by sales, ended the morning session up 5.62 percent at 13.35 yuan.
The company recorded a net profit of 1.1 billion yuan (161.1 million dollars) last year, compared with 24.4 million yuan in the previous year, according to its annual results filed with the stock exchange.
Changan''s revenue jumped 88.4 percent to 25.2 billion yuan after it sold 1.37 million vehicles in 2009, up 64.1 percent year on year. Its market share expanded by 1.13 percentage points to 10.03 percent.
The company aims to sell 1.85 million units in 2010 for revenue of 39 billion yuan.

Malaysia eyes growth in palm oil exports for 2010

KUALA LUMPUR, March 9: Malaysia, the world''s second- largest palm oil producer, said today it expects exports to rise in 2010 thanks to higher pr
ices and an increase in the amount of land devoted to the commodity, reports AFP.
"Yes, we can surpass last year''s exports," plantation industries and commodities minister Bernard Dompok told reporters on the sidelines of a palm oil industry gathering.
"This year the prices are better. We are going to exceed what we achieved in 2009," he said.
In 2009, the palm oil exports amounted to 49.59 billion ringgit (15 billion dollars), a 24 per cent drop from the previous year due to prices falling to 2,244.50 ringgit per metric tonne from 2,856.50 as the global slump hit demand.
Dompok said the industry has forecasted output to increase to 18.1 million tonnes in 2010, up from 17.5 million tonnes last year due to a slight increase in palm oil acreage.
Malaysian palm oil -- used extensively across the globe for biofuel, processed food and toiletries -- is exported to more than 150 countries worldwide, with China the biggest market.
Dompok said oil palm cultivation in Malaysia occupies close to 4.67 million hectares (11.5 million acres).
The palm oil industry is facing a series of challenges including labour shortages, limited suitable land and demands from global markets for sustainably produced palm oil, he said.

Oil lower in Asian trade

SINGAPORE, March 9: Oil declined in Asian trade today amid fading euphoria over better-than-expected US jobs data, analysts said, reports AFP.
New York''s main contract, light sweet crude for April delivery, was off 32 cents to 81.55 dollars a barrel.
Brent North Sea crude for April delivery eased 23 cents to 80.24 dollars.
Oil struggled Monday to extend last week''s rally, which was driven by encouraging numbers from the US Labor Department showing a smaller-than-expected fall in non-farm payrolls of 36,000 in February.
Analysts were predicting about 67,000 job losses for last month.
"There was a lack of significant fresh news to drive the oil price strongly in either direction," analysts from the Commonwealth Bank of Australia said in a report.
Analyst Mike Fitzpatrick at MF Global noted that actual supply and demand data for oil remained weak.
"All this points to the possibility of corrective selling," he added.

Private university bill placed

The Private University Bill- 2010 was placed in the House today to facilitate the process of establishing private universities and their proper management to expand quality education in the country, reports BSS.
While placing the bill in the House, Education Minister Nurul Islam Nahid said the new bill appeared as necessary to create skilled manpower by fulfilling the demand for higher education, expansion as well as making it cost-effective.
The House sent the bill to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Education for further scrutiny and report back to the House within 15 days.

TRADE NOTES

New DMD
of Pubali
Bank

The board of directors of Pubali Bank recently appointed M.A. Halim Chowdhury as deputy managing director of the bank’s Chittagong Region, said a press release.
Prior to his appointment Chowdhury was general manager of credit division of the bank. He joined in Pubali Bank as principal officer in 1988.
He obtained B.Sc. (Hons) & M.Sc. Degree in Science from Chittagong University.

Etihad Airways offers special fares

News Report
Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, is offering an exclusive 15 per cent discount on its premium cabin tickets during the Dhaka Travel Mart 2010.
The special promotion offers discounted fares on flights from Dhaka to London, Manchester, Frankfurt, Munich, New York, Chicago, Toronto and Cairo.
Khondakar Kabir, of Etihad''s country manager in Bangladesh, said: "This is an excellent sales promotion for our customers in Bangladesh with 15 per cent discount on offer to some of our most popular destinations right across our network. We are anticipating great interest from our guests in Bangladesh and our visitors to the Dhaka Travel Mart."
Reservations can be made through either the Etihad Airways booth at the Dhaka Travel Mart. All reservations should be made from March 11 to March 13 and tickets should be purchased by March 15. The period of travel on the special fare tickets must commence by May 31.

WB lauds progress of works on Padma Bridge

The World Bank has appreciated the “rapid” progress of works on the proposed Padma Bridge while it sought the design and procurement methods a month after it confirmed the Bank’s intention to provide exceptional support of US$ 1.2 billion or more, reports BSS.
In a letter to Communication Minister Syed Abul Hossain, country representative of the bank Ms Ellen Goldstein said it appreciated the government’s concern to move rapidly and have “therefore, used our position as coordinating donor to prepare consolidated comments of all co- financials on the draft pre-qualification (PQ) documents”.
“I congratulate the Government, in particular the Ministry of Communication and the Bangladesh Bridge Authority (BBA) under your leadership, for the excellent efforts over the past months to expeditiously move with the preparatory works that lay the foundation for us, the cofinanciers, to proceed,” read the letter as it reached the ministry yesterday.