$63b FDI in China

BEIJING: FDI in China totalled $63 billion last year, a state news agency cited the commerce minister as saying on Monday at a trade meeting. That appeared to be well below the record-high $72.4 billion in foreign investment reported for 2005 by the commerce ministry in June. However, the Xinhua News Agency, citing commerce minister Bo Xilai, said the figure was a five per cent increase over 2005. — AP

Oil prices increase

SINGAPORE: Oil prices rose above $53 a barrel on Monday amid reports that OPEC may hold an emergency meeting to try to reverse the 13 per cent plunge in oil prices this year. Light, sweet crude for February delivery posted $53.25 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange mid-afternoon in Singapore. — AP

Cambodian tourism

PHNOM PENH: Cambodia on Monday re-opened its long-dormant airport near the seaside resort of Sihanoukville in a bid to spur tourism on the country’s coast. The airport, some 230-km southwest of the capital Phnom Penh, will initially only service domestic flights, but officials said they hoped to add international routes by late 2007. — AFP

BoJ to keep rate stable

TOKYO: Japan’s economic and fiscal policy minister called on the central bank on Monday to hold steady its super-low interest rates to stimulate the economy and decisively beat deflation. Japan is facing an extremely critical moment as it is finally getting out of deflation. — AFP

Boosting investment

SEOUL: South Korea on Monday announced a set of measures to boost outbound investment by local companies as part of efforts to curb the won’s rise against the dollar which has been putting pressure on exports. Finance Minister Kwon O-Kyu said the government would ease a cap on overseas property purchases by South Korean investors and exempt local investors from capital gains tax on earnings from equiy investments abroad for three years. — AFP

BBTA gets new team

KATHMANDU: The 22nd AGM of Bishal Bazaar Trade Association (BBTA) has formed a new executive committee under the chairmanship of Ashokjiv Tuladhar. The executive committee has Gautam Lal Shrestha, Promod Kumar Agrawal, Sunil Ratna Tuldhar, Kumar Rajbhandari, Rajshiromani Tuladhar as vice-president, general secretary, treasurer, secretary, co-treasurer and public relations and marketing manager, respectively. Its members include Naresh Shrestha, Mahendra Kumar Parakha, Prakash Shrestha and Sunil Kumar Agrawal, according to a press release issued today. — HNS

SFDB posts profit

THIMI: Small Farmer Development Bank (SFDB) has registered a net profit of Rs 4,69,000 during the fiscal year 2005-06. At the fifth AGM of the bank, Gyanendra Baral, chairman of SFDB informed that the bank has 182 shareholders including the ministry of finance, Agricultural Development Bank, commercial banks and 178 Small Farmers Co-operative societies. Established under the Agricultural Development Bank five years ago, the bank aims to develop the small farmer cooperative organisations in rural areas in an integrated manner. — RSS

Industrial output up

BRUSSELS: Eurozone industrial output grew less than expected in November, expanding by 0.2 per cent from October and 2.5 per cent over 12 months. Private economists had forecast that output from the eurozone’s factories, energy plants and mines would expand by 0.7 per cent over one month and 3.1 per cent over 12 months. The figures, which had seasonal variations smoothed out, marked an improvement from October when output eased by 0.1 per cent over one month and rose by 3.6 per cent over a year. — AFP