■ Enegy
TAITRA to lead oil mission
The Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA, 外貿協會) is scheduled to lead a trade promotion delegation to several oil-exporting countries including Kazakhstan, Iran and Jordan in September, TAITRA officials said yesterday. The tour, slated for Sept. 12 through Sept. 23, will target the information technology, electronics, machinery, textile and construction material markets of these countries, with destinations covering Alma-ata, Tehran and Amman, the officials said. As international oil prices have continued to soar since the 2003 US-Iraq war, major oil exporters that have made huge profits in the past three years have become important markets for businesses around the world, they pointed out. They said the brilliant economic performance of these countries has significantly boosted their buying power.
■ Labor
World Cup drive succeeding
Mounting numbers of companies in Singapore are giving their employees extra time off on July 10 to sleep in and go into work later after the World Cup final, organizers of the drive said yesterday. More than 700 employees have permission to start work at 11am or after lunch the day after the World Cup final. It will be 2am in Singapore when the final is being played in Germany. The Straits Times and Asia Pacific Breweries Singapore (ASBS) are behind the Extra Time Off movement. "With the raging World Cup fever, this is the best time to reward our sales staff for their hard work," the newspaper quoted APBS assistant general manager Cheng Tin Suan as saying. The 100-strong salesforce have permission to start work after noon. Also participating in the flexi-time initiative is the Straits Times. "We have many soccer fans in our newsroom," said editor Han Fook Kwang. Included among the other companies is sportswear firm Nike.
■ Steel
Arcelor merger support slim
Mittal Steel Co said on Friday that just 0.03 percent of Arcelor SA shareholders have so far accepted its US$33 billion takeover offer for its nearest steel rival. The company needs to win 50 percent of Arcelor's capital by July 5 for its bid to succeed. In a filing to the Spanish market regulator CNMV, Mittal said by June 15 it had managed to buy 193,212 Arcelor shares in its offer, which runs in Belgium, France, Luxembourg, Spain, the Netherlands and the US. Mittal said that the acceptance level figure is a preliminary estimate "which doesn't show exactly the number of Arcelor shares that have effectively accepted the offer." Arcelor rejected Mittal's revised bid on Monday, saying it was inadequate and undervalued the company.
■ Real estate
HK builder postpones REIT
Sun Hung Kai Properties Ltd (新鴻基地產), Hong Kong's largest builder by market value, said it had postponed a US$600 million real estate investment trust listing, becoming the third company to pull a REIT sale in the city within a week. The company postponed listing its Sun Millennium Real Estate Investment Trust because of "market conditions," it said in a statement filed to the stock exchange on Friday. It didn't say when the listing procedure will resume. REITs often yield more than government bonds while offering potential capital appreciation with less volatility than stocks. Henderson Land Development Co (恆基地產), indefinitely delayed the IPO of their Sunlight Real Estate Investment Trust on June 12.
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