Malaysia and India ink free trade pact

By EILEEN NG
Associated Press

(AP:KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia) India and Malaysia signed a free trade agreement Friday, the second this week for Southeast Asia's third-largest economy as it seeks to deepen its economic ties in the region.

The economic partnership agreement came just two days after India sealed a similar pact with Japan, and will pave the way for trade between Malaysia and India to reach $15 billion by 2015.

The deal signed by Indian Commerce Minister Anand Sharma and his Malaysian counterpart Mustapa Mohamed, expands upon a trade pact that came into effect January last year between India and the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

Mustapa said in a statement that the Malaysia-India agreement is more extensive _ covering services, investments, technical barriers to trade and other areas that were excluded in the regional pact. It will also give better tariff concessions including for Malaysia's palm oil exports, and advance the timetable for reduction or elimination of tariffs, he said.

Under the pact, the two countries will allow up to 100 percent foreign shareholding in more than 80 areas in health care, telecommunications, retail, environmental services and other areas, the Malaysian trade ministry said in a statement.

It will also make it easier for engineers, accountants, technology experts and other professionals from both countries to gain temporary entry for contract work, it said.

Last year, India was Malaysia's 13th largest trading partner with exports amounting to $6.5 billion and imports valued at $2.4 billion. Officials have said trade between the two countries, which grew at an average 14.9 percent between 2004 and 2009, was expected to hit $15 billion by 2015.

European Economics Preview: UK Retail Sales Due

(RTTNews) - Retail sales data from the UK and business sentiment data from France are due on Friday, headlining a busy day for European economic news.

Finance chiefs from G20 group of nations meet for a two-day summit in Paris, in which measures to reform the global financial system and address rising global food prices are set to be high on the agenda. All times in ET.

Major economic reports released on Thursday were mixed. Consumer confidence in the eurozone rose more than expected in February, while the region's current account deficit widened.

At 0200, the German statistical office is due to release producer price inflation figures for January. Economists expect the producer price index to rise by 0.6% on a monthly basis and by 5.1% on an annual basis.

Finland is scheduled to release inflation figures for January at the same time. Consumer prices are expected to rise 0.2% on a monthly basis and 3% on an annual basis.

At 0245, French business confidence data for February is due. The indicator is forecast to climb to 109 from 108 in the prior month.

Monthly gross wage figures for December are due from Hungary at 0300.

Turkish state minister Mehmet Zafer Caglayan delivers a speech at a think tank in Brussels simultaneously.

At 0330, the Dutch statistical office is slated to release consumer confidence data for February. The consumer confidence index is expected to edge higher to -7 from -8 in the previous month.

Statistics Sweden is due to release house price data for January at the same time.

At 0400, Italy is set to release industrial new orders data for December. Orders are forecast to rise by 2.1% on a monthly basis and by 9.3% on a yearly basis.

At 0430, the UK's Office for National Statistics is due to release retail sales figures for January. Sales are forecast to rise by 0.5% on a monthly basis and by 4% on an annual basis.

Swedish central bank deputy governor Lars Nyberg is to speak at a seminar in Stockholm at 0630.

At 0800, the Bank of France releases its financial stability review report at an event in Paris, in which Bank of England Governor Mervyn King participates as a panelist.

Meanwhile, Bank of Italy deputy director Anna Maria Tarantola speaks at a conference in Bari, Italy.

Elsewhere, Poland is expected to release industrial production data for January. Economists expect production to rise by 9.8% on an annual basis but fall 5.3% on a monthly basis.

Producer price inflation data for January is also due from the Polish statistical office. The producer price index is forecast to rise by 0.6% on a monthly basis and 6.3% on a yearly basis.

At 0900, the Belgian central bank is due to release consumer sentiment data for February.

At 1200, UK Financial Services Authority Chairman Adair Turner and Bank of England deputy governor Paul Tucker participate in a debate on reforming the financial system at London.

Finally at 1330, the Bank of England's Paul Tucker speaks at an event in Cambridge.

China Car Sales Jump 16% In January

(RTTNews) - Chinese automakers delivered 16.2% more cars to auto dealerships compared the same period a year earlier in January, reports said on Friday citing government figures.

A total of 1.53 million units were shipped last month, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.

New passenger car sales had risen 18.6% on a yearly basis to 1.3 million in December.

SGX implements all-day trading from March 1

SGX will introduce continuous all-day trading from 9am to 5pm from March 1. -- ST PHOTO: JOYCE FANG

 

THE Singapore Exchange (SGX) has decided that the fast pace of modern share trading means there is no longer time to stop for lunch.

The bourse operator on Tuesday said that on March 1, it is pressing ahead with its previously flagged controversial move to scrap its 90-minute lunch break.

This will allow trading to continue uninterrupted from 9am to 5pm.

In doing so, it will join the Korea Exchange, the Australian stock exchange ASX and India's National Stock Exchange in the region - all of which also have no break from trading during lunch-time.

SGX chief executive Magnus Bocker said the move will make Singapore one of the most accessible markets in Asia, and allow its trading hours to have more overlap with other Asian markets.

'Singapore's leading position as an international financial centre depends on its ability to stay nimble and meet customers' needs.