Ezra founder steps back into chairmanship; firm gets nod for Chiyoda JV

By

Melissa Tanmelissat@sph.com.sg@MelissaTanBT

Offshore services provider Ezra Holdings has gotten the green light from shareholders at an extraordinary general meeting for a 50:50 subsea joint venture (JV) with Japan's Chiyoda Corporation, it said in a press release on Friday. 

PHOTO: EZRA HOLDINGS

DEC 11, 201510:58 PM

OFFSHORE services provider Ezra Holdings has gotten the green light from shareholders at an extraordinary general meeting for a 50:50 subsea joint venture (JV) with Japan's Chiyoda Corporation, it said in a press release on Friday.

Chiyoda will invest in Ezra's subsea services business, EMAS AMC, to form EMAS Chiyoda Subsea. The JV will be able to use Chiyoda's technical expertise and global experience to tender for larger and more complex projects, Ezra said.

Group chief executive officer and managing director Lionel Lee said the company wants to accelerate the growth of its subsea business. Ezra expects the proposed JV to be completed in the first half of its financial year 2016.

Separately, Ezra said in a Singapore Exchange filing that the group's founder, Lee Kian Soo, will become chairman again after its current non-executive chairman Koh Poh Tiong steps down on Feb 1, 2016.

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Mr Koh will also relinquish his role as senior advisor to Ezra so that he can focus on his work with other organisations he is involved in, the group said. He joined the board in 2011 and became chairman in 2013, taking over from Mr Lee Kian Soo.

Mr Lee Kian Soo had been Ezra's executive chairman until he stepped down from the role on Dec 31, 2012, in line with what Ezra had said were "long-term leadership-renewal plans" in a December 2012 bourse filing.

Mr Lee Kian Soo is Mr Lionel Lee's father.

Ezra shares fell 0.3 Singapore cent to S$0.10 on Friday.

    
 

Raffles City Singapore remains jointly owned by CCT and CMT

By

Mindy Tantanmindy@sph.com.sg@MindyTanBT

DEC 11, 20157:33 PM

CAPITALAND has issued a clarification that the entire Raffles City Singapore - which includes a shopping mall, an office tower, two hotels and a convention centre - is jointly owned by CapitaLand Commercial Trust (CCT) and CapitaLand Mall Trust (CMT) in the proportions of 60 per cent and 40 per cent, respectively.

The real estate group issued the statement in response to media reports relating to AccorHotels' announcement earlier this week that it had acquired Fairmont Raffles Hotels International (FRHI) Holdings.

"The two hotels and convention centre are on a long-term lease to RC Hotels, in which FRHI and CapitaLand Limited have a stake. The hotels, which operate under the brand names Fairmont Singapore and Swissôtel The Stamford, are managed by RC Hotels," said CapitaLand.

"The sale of FRHI to AccorHotels will not change the current ownership structure as the operations of the hotels will continue to be managed by RC Hotels, while the hotel buildings remain jointly owned by CCT and CMT."

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• G4S +138%
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Accor said earlier this week that it is buying FRHI Holdings for US$2.9 billion.

The acquisition is the largest in the hotel group's history after the US$1.3 billion purchase of Motel6 more than two decades ago.

    
 

China: Stocks drop on weaker yuan, IPOs

China stocks ended at a nearly two-week low on Friday, with a sliding yuan and widening problems at conglomerate Fosun Group hurting investor sentiment. 

PHOTO: REUTERS

DEC 11, 20154:14 PM

[SHANGHAI] China stocks ended at a nearly two-week low on Friday, with a sliding yuan and widening problems at conglomerate Fosun Group hurting investor sentiment.

Financial magazine Caixin late on Thursday quoted unidentified sources saying the billionaire founder of Fosun Group could not be reached. The news potentially affects a large number of the group's listed entities.

The market was also weighed down by a new batch of initial public offerings that begin subscriptions from Friday.

The CSI300 index of the largest listed companies in Shanghai and Shenzhen fell 0.4 per cent, to 3,608.06, while the Shanghai Composite Index lost 0.6 per cent, to 3,434.58 points.

For the week, the CSI300 was down 1.9 per cent while the SSEC was off 2.6 per cent.

Investors, already cautious ahead of a possible US rate hike next week, were concerned about a further weakening in the Chinese currency, which hit its lowest level against the dollar in nearly four and a half years. "A US rate hike would have a major impact on money flows out of emerging markets including Hong Kong and China," said Linus Yip, chief strategist at First Shanghai Securities. "Also, if the yuan continues to depreciate, that's negative to stocks as well, because it means investors are not confident about China's economic restructuring." The market mood was further soured by media reports that Guo Guangchang, chairman and founder of Chinese conglomerate Fosun could not be reached, raising fears that Guo had become the latest victim in China's deepening anti-corruption probes.

Shares of a bunch of mainland-listed companies with ties to Fosun, including Shanghai Fosun Pharmaceutical Group and Shanghai Guanglian E-commerce Holdings were suspended from trading on Friday, pending announcement containing "inside information."

REUTERS

    
 

US: Stocks open sharply lower as oil prices plunge

PHOTO: REUTERS

DEC 11, 201510:45 PM

[BENGALURU] Wall Street opened sharply lower on Friday as crude oil prices plumbed levels not seen in seven years on growing oversupply concerns.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell 175.25 points, or 1 per cent, to 17,399.5, the S&P 500 lost 18.17 points, or 0.89 per cent, to 2,034.06 and the Nasdaq composite dropped 64.40 points, or 1.28 per cent, to 4,980.77.

REUTERS