China curbs banks' foreign borrowing

BEIJING - CHINA has cut the amount banks can borrow overseas, to curb risks and stem foreign-currency inflows that have put pressure on the yuan to appreciate.

Chinese banks' quotas for short-term foreign debt will be reduced to 45 per cent of last year's level by June 30 and then to 30 per cent by March next year, the State Administration of Foreign Exchange said on its website yesterday. For foreign banks, the reduction is to 85 per cent and then 60 per cent.

'Hot money has been flooding into the country because investors are betting on a yuan appreciation,' said China International Capital chief economist Ha Jimin in Beijing. 'The new policies are aimed at supervising and better managing the short-term foreign debt inflows.' China has the world's biggest foreign-currency reserves at US$1 trillion (S$1.5 trillion) and is trying to prevent the overheating of the economy.

Short-term foreign debt was US$169 billion as of September last year. That is about 4 per cent of the 35.3 trillion yuan (S$6.97 trillion) deposits held by the nation's financial institutions at the end of January.

The measures 'may hit two birds with one stone' by reducing capital inflows and helping to develop the domestic money markets, said Lehman Brothers economist Sun Mingchun.

BLOOMBERG NEWS

News Today

Speculation mounts over form of new Thai charter
BANGKOK - SPECULATION is intensifying in Thailand over the shape of the next Constitution, after the election of a controversial former intelligence chief to chair the 35-member drafting committee.Mr Prasong Soonsiri, 79, was among 10 members of the committee handpicked by... [Read more]

HK group calls for total ban on fa cai
HONG KONG - A GROUP of Hong Kong researchers has called for a total ban on the sale of fa cai - a hair-like sea moss that is widely consumed during Chinese New Year. The team from the Chinese University's department... [Read more]

Indonesia not ready to prevent future disasters
JAKARTA - AS THE flood waters in Jakarta continued to recede yesterday, questions were being raised whether the government is doing enough to protect Indonesia from what seems like an unending series of disasters. The issue has assumed greater urgency in... [Read more]

Quick-thinking pilot, passengers foil hijack
LAS PALMAS (SPAIN) - PLUCKY passengers of a Mauritanian plane overpowered a suspected armed hijacker with help from a quick-thinking pilot. The Air Mauritania Boeing 737 was on an internal flight in the north-western African country on Thursday when the hijacker,... [Read more]

Malaysia's Camerlin to give out BIL stock
KUALA LUMPUR - MALAYSIAN investment firm Camerlin Group unveiled plans yesterday to hand almost all of its 22.3 per cent stake in Singapore investment house BIL International to its shareholders.Camerlin said the move would allow it to restructure its own share... [Read more]

Scouting out residents in case of emergencies
BEHIND the robust turnout at Sembawang's Emergency Preparedness Day yesterday were people like volunteer coordinator Rafiah Yan and her colleagues. The grassroots volunteers' efforts helped draw about 100 residents from HDB blocks in Madam Rafiah's neighbourhood to witness the annual event... [Read more]

Move bus exit door to rear
ON FEB 12, the Move To The Rear campaign was launched at Pasir Ris Interchange, to remind passengers to move to the rear so more people can board.One reason why passengers don't move to the rear is they have to move... [Read more]

Concerts to bring home 'green' message
LOS ANGELES - ENVIRONMENTAL activists led by former US vice-president Al Gore announced plans for a worldwide string of pop concerts in July to mobilise action to stop global warming.The Live Earth concerts on July 7 will take place in Shanghai,... [Read more]

Jakarta backs down from tough stand
JAKARTA - TOP Indonesian officials yesterday appeared to have backtracked on claims that the recent ban on sand exports to Singapore was linked to negotiations on the extradition treaty and border issues.Foreign Minister Hassan Wirajuda told the Indo Pos daily that... [Read more]

Let?s have a dream match between the New and the Old Lions at Kallang Stadium before it gets torn down
Last Wednesday, nearly 55,000 fans witnessed what seemed like the last competitive match at the Kallang National Stadium between Singapore and Thailand in the first leg of the Asean Football Championship final. The match was highly controversial and was marred by... [Read more]

A reunion dinner for visitors from China
TRAVEL agency boss Lin Deng Li and her family will spend their reunion dinner tonight with more than 100 artists, craftsmen and performers from China and their relatives. Fourteen tables have been booked at Simply Peranakan Cuisine, at the Malay Village... [Read more]

Singapore Virgin

Fed officials see no rate cut, citing inflation risks
WASHINGTON - UNITED States Federal Reserve officials, armed with figures showing inflation picking up, made it clear that they are not close to cutting interest rates. Hours after the government reported on Wednesday that consumer prices rose more than forecast last... [Read more]

More grads and skilled workers in workforce
ONE in four working adults here is now a university graduate, almost double the proportion a decade ago.And nearly half of the graduates now earned their degrees and mortarboards overseas. Comparative figures for 1996 are, however, unavailable from the Ministry of... [Read more]

A study of chinese temples
A book recording the history and development of 40 temples in Singapore was released yesterday. Chinese Temple and Culture Volume 2, produced by Shin Min Daily News, also features articles by 10 local experts on Chinese customs. It was launched by... [Read more]

Wrong speech at the wrong time
GEN Sonthi Boonyaratkalin spoke unwisely last week in his speech to young volunteers about the nation and its military. The vow to recapture national assets sold to Singapore in the Shin Corp deal was as poorly phrased as it was incorrect.... [Read more]

Eight more schools to be upgraded
STUDENTS and teachers in eight schools are looking forward to 2010 - by which time they will have bigger classrooms, media resource libraries, IT learning centres and sports halls.The schools will be the next to benefit from the Ministry of Education's... [Read more]

How a 5-star dream turned into a 3-star nightmare
BANGKOK - STRUCTURAL engineer Tortrakul Yomnak has been spending a lot of time lately gloomily sticking his fingers into cracks in the taxiways at Thailand's Suvarnabhumi International Airport. When he isn't doing that, he chases paper trails and studies contracts to... [Read more]

IEA raises oil demand forecast
PARIS - THE International Energy Agency (IEA) yesterday raised its world oil demand estimates for this year, citing a major revision to forecasts of China's needs.It also warned the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) that its production cuts might seriously... [Read more]

Liquid curbs likely on all flights from Singapore
SINGAPORE is seriously considering limiting the amount of liquids, aerosols and gels that passengers can carry aboard aircraft, joining the United States, Canada and European Union states that already have the anti-terror restrictions in place. The move is in line with... [Read more]

Alwyn Lim likely focus of claims against third parties
FORMER National Kidney Foundation (NKF) vice-chairman Alwyn Lim is expected to take centre stage as the next chapter of the NKF saga unfolds. Mr Lim, an accountant, is one of the third parties former NKF chairman Richard Yong and former treasurer... [Read more]

Beijing slams Chen's name-change move
BEIJING - BEIJING condemned Taiwan's President yesterday for dropping 'China' from the names of state-run firms and introducing 'distorted' history books, saying the moves were aimed at severing links with the mainland.But President Chen Shui-bian of Taiwan told reporters yesterday that... [Read more]

MRT mishap: Train officer didn't have details at first
I REFER to the letter, 'Where is compassion for MRT accident victim?' by Ms Natalie Yee Zimin (ST, Jan 30).We regret the inconvenience caused to passengers in the affected train at Clementi MRT station on Jan 27. As a woman's leg... [Read more]