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World Business Quick Take

■ PROPERTY

China to penalize hoarders

In a new effort to boost supplies of housing and cool surging costs, the Chinese government said yesterday it would penalize developers that hoard land to push up prices. Developers that acquire government land and leave it undeveloped for one year will be charged a tax of 20 percent of the purchase price, the Cabinet said on its Web site. It said parcels that go undeveloped for two years can be confiscated without compensation. The step adds to a string of government measures imposed in recent months to cool China's booming real estate market and ensure adequate supplies of housing for the poor.



■ ENERGY

Seoul to boost loans

South Korea's Ministry of Finance and Economy said yesterday it would increase lending by a state-run bank to finance overseas resources development projects by public firms to secure steady supply. "It is necessary for public corporations such as Korea National Oil Corp, Korea Gas and Korea Resources to expand their operations to overseas resources development to secure stable supply of energy resources," the ministry said in a statement. The Export and Import Bank of Korea plans to raise loans to overseas investment and resources development projects to 9.12 trillion won (US$9.7 billion) by 2015 from 2.47 trillion won last year, it said.



■ AIRLINES

China Eastern rejects bid

Shareholders in China's third-largest airline yesterday rejected a bid by Singapore Airlines to buy a minority stake after rival Chinese carrier Air China offered more money in an unusual takeover battle involving two state-owned companies. China Eastern Airlines supported the Singapore carrier's bid, made jointly with its parent, the government investment agency Temasek Holdings Ltd. A deal would have brought the struggling Chinese airline cash and foreign expertise, but shareholders voted against it at a meeting in China Eastern's home city of Shanghai, the airline said. The rejection was a blow to Singapore's efforts to gain a foothold in China's booming air travel market.



■ AUTOMOBILES

No new alliances: Chrysler

Struggling US automaker Chrysler LLC dismissed rumors of new alliances on Monday but said there was room to grow existing partnerships. "The Nissan rumored conversation is still not anything since there is no substance that exists at this point," Chrysler vice chairman Jim Press told a conference call with reporters. Press also waved off reports that Chrysler was in talks with Indian carmaker Mahindra & Mahindra. But he did not rule out future alliances. "We will continue to use the potential of affiliations to broaden our products line," Press said. He also reported that Chrysler sales outside of North America last year hit a record 238,215 units.



■ PROPERTY

US to address downturn

US Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said on Monday that the housing market's woes were far from over and that the government was studying fresh measures to minimize economic harm. Paulson said in a speech to securities analysts in New York that a housing correction had been "inevitable" following years of rocketing property prices, but that the government wanted to provide effective remedies to offset the housing downturn rather than providing quick fixes.
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