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World Business Quick Take

■ TRADE
US wants to revise FTA
The US wants to revise a free-trade agreement (FTA) with South Korea to reflect new US trade policy guidelines, Seoul's foreign ministry said yesterday. The US Trade Representative office on Saturday presented a revised pact which had April's original agreement partly modified, added or deleted, the ministry said in a statement. US trade negotiator Wendy Cutler will visit Seoul on Thursday and Friday to explain those changes, it said. "The government will decide on how to respond after scrutinizing the US proposal and consulting with relevant ministries and agencies," it said. The US measure has been expected since last month when Congress and the White House agreed to a bipartisan deal that sets social and environmental standards for FTAs.

■ TRADE
WTO boss in China for talks
WTO Director General Pascal Lamy arrived in China yesterday for a four-day visit aimed at helping to revive momentum in the Doha round of trade talks. Lamy is to meet senior commerce, finance and agricultural officials, Xinhua news agency reported. "At present, the Doha global trade negotiations have entered a crucial stage, and under these circumstances, he hopes to discuss with Chinese officials how to achieve progress in the negotiations," Xinhua reported, citing an interview with Lamy. This week top trade officials from the US, EU, Brazil and India are due to meet in Potsdam, Germany, seeking progress in the talks.

■ BANKING
Resona nears agreement
Resona Holdings Inc, Japan's fourth-largest banking group, and Dai-Ichi Mutual Life Insurance Co, the nation's No. 2 life insurance company, are close to agreement on a tie-up, reports said yesterday. The two firms have entered final negotiations for concluding a capital and operational tie-up, which will be the first time for a major bank and an insurance firm to forge an alliance, the Yomiuri Shimbun reported, without clarifying sources. Under the proposed deal, Dai-Ichi Mutual would acquire preferred shares amounting to around ?300 billion (US$2.48 billion) to be issued by Resona, the paper said. The companies are also eyeing a tie-up in the sale of insurance policies at bank counters, the paper said.

■ INVESTMENT
Indian interest in US grows
Indian companies invested more than US$2 billion in the US last year and this year and completed 48 deals with US firms, a joint study by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry and professional services' firm Ernst & Young said. Information technology and IT-enabled services' industries accounted for 48 percent of the deals, which included large contracts in other sectors such as pharmaceuticals, hospitality, agricultural products and the automotive industry, the study said. The report also noted that Indian outbound deals crossed US$15 billion last year, and projections suggested this year's value could surpass US$35 billion.

■ REAL ESTATE
Prices `not sustainable'
A sharp surge in property prices is not sustainable in the long-run, Singaporean Minister for National Development Mah Bow Tan (馬寶山) said yesterday. Home prices in Singapore surged by 10 percent last year on the back of a robust economy and are expected to increase this year. Rents in the wealthy city-state have also doubled this year.

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