LONDON, March 17 — Zhejiang Geely Holding and Ford said they were still on track to sign a deal this month for Ford’s Volvo cars unit, after a Chinese newspaper said Geely’s planned US$2 billion (RM6.8 billion) purchase faced hurdles.
Spokesmen for Ford and Geely said today the plan remained to sign a sale and purchase agreement (SPA) by the end of this quarter, and to complete a deal in the second quarter.
VIENNA, March 17 — Opec ministers agreed not to change oil output targets they are already exceeding, anticipating that demand will pick up later in the year to mop up extra barrels.
But with economic recovery still fragile as powerhouse China considers curbs on credit, members discussed today their adherence to production levels set in December 2008 to keep supply at 24.84 million barrels per day (bpd).
Opec Secretary-General Abdullah al-Badri said the producers would next meet on Oct 14 in Vienna, pushing back slightly from the usual September slot.
KUALA LUMPUR, March 17 — Billionaire Ananda Krishnan is leading a US$2.57 billion (RM8.7 billion) buyout offer for pay-TV monopoly Astro All Asia Networks plc after loss-making overseas expansion bled the company.
Astro today said it has received an offer from Astro Holdings, a special purpose vehicle controlled by Ananda and state investment firm Khazanah Nasional, to buy out the remaining 28 per cent of shares in the company at RM4.30 a share.
The offer marks a 21 per cent premium to Astro’s market value of US$2.08 billion or its last price of RM3.56 a share before trading in the shares were suspended on Monday.
GENEVA, March 17 — A top Chinese diplomat today dismissed US lawmakers’ calls for duties on Chinese exports if Beijing does not revalue the yuan, saying they were ill-founded.
“I don’t think the call by over 100 congressmen from the US is well founded on facts. They should not blame the problems they have by finding a scapegoat in China,” He Yafei, China’s new ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva, told a briefing.
Lawmakers introduced a bill in the US Senate yesterday that would penalise some Chinese goods with extra duties if Beijing does not allow the yuan to rise.
BRUSSELS, March 17 — Leading global economies should boost cooperation to overcome imbalances, improve financial regulation and speed up recovery, the International Monetary Fund’s chief today.
Speaking at the European Parliament, IMF Managing Director Dominique Strauss-Kahn said the appreciation of China’s yuan currency would help remove global economic imbalances, but it could come naturally if domestic consumption is boosted.
“Working together we can lay the groundwork for stronger and more stable growth,” Strauss-Kahn said.
