■ Crude oil
OPEC may boost output
The OPEC said yesterday it would make up for any oil shortage from the attack on Iraq, using spare output capacity to ensure supply continuity. OPEC President Abdullah al-Attiyah of Qatar said he had spoken with members of the 11-strong cartel following the US attack on Iraq. "As a result of those consultations, I am herewith reiterating OPEC's resolve to make up for any supply shortfall resulting from developing events," he said in a statement carried on OPEC's official news agency. "To this end, Member Countries have pledged to use, in the interim, their available excess capacities to ensure continued supply."
■ Money market
S Korea may inject cash
South Korea's central bank said it may inject more cash into the money market via repurchase agreements in the event financial markets show signs of instability as a US-led invasion of Iraq gets underway. "We will seek stability in the financial markets by injecting more liquidity through repurchase agreements and adjusting the size and timing of issuing monetary stabilization bonds," the bank said in a statement. The central bank, however, "isn't considering" cutting the benchmark interest rate for now, deputy governor Park Cheul said. The bank's overnight call rate is at 4.25 percent, a quarter percentage point above its record low. The bank may directly buy treasury bonds from the market, if there are signs of a credit crunch. The bank will also encourage financial institutions to extend financial support to smaller companies, which may face a tighter credit environment because of the war, it said.
■ Internet
ICANN picks president
The group that oversees the Internet's traffic system said on Wednesday that it had picked Australian Paul Twomey as its new president, marking the first time a non-US resident will head the global body. Twomey said he would try to reach out to developing countries over the next three years as he heads the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, or ICANN. The nonprofit body was created in 1998 to take control of the Internet's operating framework from the US government. Since then the group has introduced competition into the sale of Internet domain names like example.com, and introduced several new domain suffixes such as .info to compete with .com and other established domains. Twomey, who formerly served as the Australian government's representative to ICANN and chaired its government committee, said he would try to change that focus.
■ Hutchison
Net profit up 19 percent
Hong Kong-based conglomerate Hutchison Whampoa said yesterday its net profit last year rose 19.3 percent to HK$14.29 billion. The company, controlled by Asia's wealthiest tycoon Li Ka-shing, said sales rose to HK$111.13 billion from HK$89.04 billion. Pre-tax profit rose to HK$18.88 billion from HK$16.07 billion. The result was above Multex Global Estimates' forecasts of a net profit of between HK$9.39 billion and HK$13.03 billion. Hutchison's interests include ports, telecommunications, property and supermarket chains.
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