Australia inflation gauge slows further in April: TDMI

A private-sector gauge of Australian inflation moderated further in April as prices rose at the slowest pace in over a decade, suggesting inflation alone should be no bar to a cut in interest rates this week. 

PHOTO: AFP

4 May8:38 AM

[SYDNEY] A private-sector gauge of Australian inflation moderated further in April as prices rose at the slowest pace in over a decade, suggesting inflation alone should be no bar to a cut in interest rates this week.

The TD Securities-Melbourne Institute's monthly measure of consumer prices rose 0.3 per cent in April, from March when it rose 0.4 per cent.

The annual pace ticked down to 1.4 per cent, from 1.5 per cent and well below the floor of the Reserve Bank of Australia's (RBA) target band of 2 to 3 per cent.

The central bank holds its monthly policy meeting on May 5 and markets are undecided on whether it will follow up a February easing with another quarter point cut to 2.0 per cent.

Interbank futures imply around a 64 per cent probability of a move, while a Reuters poll of 27 analysts found 20 expected a cut on Tuesday.

The TDMI survey showed a marked moderation in non-tradable prices, those for goods and services not determined by international competition. That was a notable shift as home-grown inflation has been stubbornly high for some years.

The annual pace of non-tradable inflation braked to just 1.8 per cent in April, down from 2.5 per cent the month before and the lowest reading in at least a decade. "For the RBA Board meeting, the combination of sub-trend economic growth, lower terms of trade and a low inflation environment all tilt the odds towards the RBA delivering a cut to 2 per cent," said Annette Beacher, chief Asia-Pac macro strategist at TD Securities.

Measures of underlying inflation also eased in April.

The trimmed mean CPI was up 1.4 per cent on a year ago, compared to 1.6 per cent in March. Inflation excluding fuel, fruit and vegetables slowed to 1.4 per cent from 1.9 per cent.

The official measure of consumer prices (CPI) rose at an annual pace of 1.3 per cent in the first quarter, with underlying inflation at 2.3 per cent.

For April alone, the TDMI gauge showed price rises for medical, dental and hospital services, holiday travel and accommodation and petrol.

These were partly offset by falls in alcoholic beverages, garments and audio, visual and computing equipment and services. Prices for fruit and vegetables also retreated after an increase in March.

REUTERS

    
 

WE Holdings requests for lifting of trading halt

By

Claire Huanghuangjy@sph.com.sg@ClaireHuangBT

Electronic components distributor and manufacturer WE Holdings on Monday requested Singapore Exchange to lift its trading halt. 

PHOTO: REUTERS

4 May8:32 AM

ELECTRONIC components distributor and manufacturer WE Holdings on Monday requested Singapore Exchange to lift its trading halt.

It follows the company's April 28 request for a trading halt.

The company said it had requested for the trading halt to facilitate a discussion for a proposed transaction.

As the discussion between WE Holdings and the party cannot be finalised, it decided to lift the trading halt on Monday.

    
 

Japan and Malaysia: Financial markets closed Monday for public holidays

Financial markets in Japan and Malaysia are closed Monday for public holidays. 

ST PHOTO

4 May6:52 AM

[HONG KONG] Financial markets in Japan and Malaysia are closed Monday for public holidays.

AFP

    
 

Swiber repurchases S$0.75m of senior perpetual securities

By

Claire Huanghuangjy@sph.com.sg@ClaireHuangBT

4 May8:27 AM

SWIBER Holdings said on Monday it has repurchased S$0.75 million of the principal amount of Senior Perpetual Securities in the open market.

The payment for this will be settled on Tuesday.

Following the settlement, the repurchased securities will be cancelled, Swiber said in a filing to Singapore Exchange.

The remaining outstanding aggregate principal amount of the securities following the cancellation of the repurchased securities would be S$79.25 million.

The announcement comes after Swiber in September 2012 issued an aggregate principal amount of S$80 million 9.75 per cent Senior Perpetual Securities.

    
 

Ramba to sell 15% stake to Indon tycoon for S$18.4m

By

Kenneth Limkenlim@sph.com.sg@KennethLimBT

3 May9:24 PM

Ramba Energy plans to sell a 14.9 per cent stake in itself to an Indonesian tycoon for S$18.4 million in gross proceeds to repay debt and other uses, the oil and gas company announced late Sunday.

Ramba will place out 68 million shares, or 14.9 per cent of Ramba's post-placement share capital, at 27 Singapore cents apiece to British Virgin Islands-incorporated Wing Harvest.

Wing Harvest is fully owned by one Dr Clement Wang Kai, who is holding the shares of Wing Harvest in trust for Tahir, the founder of the Indonesian conglomerate Mayapada Group.

The placement price represents a 9.1 per cent discount to Ramba's volume-weighted average price of 29.7 Singapore cents on April 29.

About S$10.9 million of the net proceeds will be used "for the oil and gas business", Ramba said. Another S$4 million will be used to fully repay loan and interest from Ortus Holdings, a related party. The remaining S$3 million will be used for general working capital.

"The group offers its investors the unique opportunity to benefit from Indonesia's robust energy sector and increasing domestic demand for energy resources," Mr Tahir said in a statement. "As the group operates a proven portfolio of lower-risk assets located in energy-rich Sumatra and Java, I am confident in the group's strategy and management team, and am highly optimistic for what the future holds for Ramba."

Ramba chief executive David Aditya Soeryadjaya said that Mr Tahir "has a proven track record across a wide range of business sectors, and his investment in Ramba further affirms investor confidence in our strategy".

    
 

Elektromotive's investment chairman quits amid restructuring review

By

Kenneth Limkenlim@sph.com.sg@KennethLimBT

3 May9:21 PM

The chairman of Elektromotive Group's investment committee has resigned amid a restructuring review at the electric vehicle recharging solutions company.

Executive director Tan Choon Wee resigned on May 1 because he could not "fulfil the duties of an executive director of the company due to his other commitments", Elektromotive announced on the Singapore Exchange.

The company said there are no disagreements between Mr Tan and the company's board of directors with regard to practices that will have an impact on the company's financial reporting, and that company sponsor PrimePartners Corporate Finance is satisfied that there are no other material reasons for Mr Tan's resignation.

Elektromotive in February announced that it is considering restructuring its business. The company appointed PrimePartners as its financial adviser in relation to potential acquisitions of new businesses.

Mr Tan has been a director at Elektromotive since 2006. He is currently a director at Advance Capital Partners, Energy Capital Partners, Lexicon Capital Holdings and Virago Capital.

He directly and indirectly holds 2.55 million shares and 3.15 million warrants in Elektromotive.

    
 

Twitter's streaming app creates piracy of year's biggest fight

Twitter Inc's video-streaming application Periscope enabled people to pirate Saturday's fight between Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao, getting the thrill of the year's biggest bout without paying the US$100 pay-per-view tab. 

ST PHOTO: ARTHUR LEE CH

4 May6:49 AM

[SAN FRANCISCO] Twitter Inc's video-streaming application Periscope enabled people to pirate Saturday's fight between Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao, getting the thrill of the year's biggest bout without paying the US$100 pay-per-view tab.

Many of these users posted about being able to watch the event on Twitter, where Dick Costolo, the social-media company's chief executive officer, pronounced Periscope the night's victor. Executives from HBO and Showtime asked Periscope and other live-streaming services such as Meerkat to take down the streams as the fight was happening, according to a person with knowledge of the matter who asked not to be identified while the matter is being investigated.

While Saturday's piracy is unlikely to dent the millions made by Time Warner Inc's HBO and CBS Corp's Showtime, which partnered to produce the fight, it augurs a potential problem if more people use live-streaming apps to watch pay TV. HBO previously asked the service to take down streams of the season premiere of its hit show "Game of Thrones" when it realised people had used Periscope to stream it for free.

"I watched last night's fight by just browsing through different Periscope streams," Shelly Palmer, an adviser to media companies such as Viacom Inc. and 21st Century Fox Inc, wrote in a note. "This kind of live-piracy is going to be hard if not impossible to regulate." Streaming Video People watching the fight, some of whom paid for it, used their mobile devices to capture the video and stream it for others to watch on Periscope. Periscope is one of a number of apps with this capability, and the most prominent given Twitter's ownership.

A representative for Showtime declined to comment on the use of Periscope during the fight, while a spokesman for HBO did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The two companies already filed a joint lawsuit against sites that were planning to stream the fight for free, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Mr Costolo wasn't the only one to boast about the use of Periscope on the night of the fight, which Mayweather won by decision to remain undefeated. Chris Sacca, an early investor in Twitter, called Periscope the night's winner "by a knockout," and someone posted a stream from inside Pacquiao's training room to the HBOboxing Twitter account.

BLOOMBERG

    
 

South Korea April manufacturing activity contracts further, PMI falls to 6-mth low

South Korea's manufacturing activity and new export orders both contracted for a second month in April, putting the economy's already sluggish recovery at further risk, a private sector survey showed on Monday. 

PHOTO: BLOOMBERG

4 May8:06 AM

[SEOUL] South Korea's manufacturing activity and new export orders both contracted for a second month in April, putting the economy's already sluggish recovery at further risk, a private sector survey showed on Monday.

The HSBC/Markit purchasing managers' index (PMI) on South Korea's manufacturing sector fell to a seasonally adjusted 48.8 in April, its lowest since October last year, data from Markit Economics showed.

The reading marked a sharper contraction than the 49.2 recorded in March. A level below 50 indicates activity during the month contracted from the previous month.

A sub-index on new export orders received by manufacturers in South Korea fell to 47.6, also the lowest in six months.

Policymakers have said in recent weeks there are positive signs of growth in South Korea, led by private consumption, and expect momentum to pick up in the second quarter.

South Korea's economy is however, export-led and shipments this year have been weak as economies in China and Europe struggle with their own growth troubles.

Exports in April suffered their sharpest fall in two years and their fourth straight monthly decline on lower oil prices and weak global demand, data showed on Friday, underscoring the need for more stimulus measures.

The Bank of Korea surprisingly cut the policy interest rate by 25 basis points to a record low of 1.75 per cent in March. It kept rates unchanged in April and will next meet on May 15.

REUTERS

    
 

German train drivers call week-long strike

      

Train drivers for German rail operator Deutsche Bahn announced a week-long strike to start Monday, their eighth work stoppage in 10 months of bitterly contentious wage negotiations. 

PHOTO: EPA

4 May6:56 AM

[BERLIN] Train drivers for German rail operator Deutsche Bahn announced a week-long strike to start Monday, their eighth work stoppage in 10 months of bitterly contentious wage negotiations.

The drivers' union GDL on Sunday called on workers to down tools from 3:00 pm Monday (1300 GMT) for freight and 2:00 am Tuesday for passenger trains, with the strike to end for both services 9:00 am on May 10.

After fresh talks failed to find an agreement GDL had warned on Wednesday of a "long strike". Its 43-hour walkout late last month led to the cancellation of two thirds of long-distance trains.

GDL has been locked in a bitter dispute with management primarily focused on the employees it wants to represent, but also on wages and working hours.

In September and October GDL called six other strikes, which Deutsche Bahn said cost the company 150 million euros (S$223.4 million).

Deutsche Bahn employs a workforce of 300,000, including 196,000 in Germany and transports around 5.5 million passengers in Germany every day.

AFP