The surge in China’s steel production has brought the global output level close to what it was before the start of the global economic crisis, the World Steel Association said on Friday.
   Production in the 66 members of the association, which includes the main metal producers in the world, has been growing since April and was 0.6 per cent lower in September than in September 2008 at 107 million tons, it said.
   Output in China grew 28.7 per cent in September on a 12-month comparison to 50.7 million tons, while Japan’s output was down 18 per cent, Germany’s was 21.7 per cent lower and the US level was 31.4 per cent below last year’s.
   Global steel production for the first nine months of this year was 866 million tons — 16.4 per cent lower than for the same period in 2008.

South Korea will recruit more Bangladeshi workers from next year as the country is recovering from the economic crisis, a government official has said.
   Syed Nasir Ershad, first secretary to the Bangladesh Embassy in Seoul, said Thursday that frequent change in work places by some workers had tarnished the positive image of Bangladeshis ‘to some extent’ in Korea.
   ‘Korea was hard hit by the global economic downturn. Its annual demand for foreign workers has come down to around 17,000 from the previous 42,000.
   ‘But the resilient people of that country are recovering fast from the economic crisis,’ Ershad told a special interactive session of labour attaches to Bangladesh missions abroad.
   A total of 15 labour attaches attended the training session organised by International Organisation for Migration (IOM).
   Foreign minister Dipu Moni addressed the concluding session at Hotel Westin.
   He said Korea was recruiting lower number of foreign workers including Bangladeshis.
   ‘As per my interactions with the officials, I can tell you that Korea will recruit more foreign workers from next year.
   ‘The number of Bangladeshis will be much higher,’ said Ershad.
   As per an agreement with Bangladesh government, signed in 2007, Soul is supposed to recruit 5,000 Bangladeshis every year starting in June 2008.
   According to the figures of Bureau of Manpower Employment and Training, Korea recruited 1,521 Bangladeshis in 2008.
   The bureau says there are about 20,000 Bangladeshi workers in South Korea.
   In her address as the chief guest, Dipu Moni suggested embassy officials to listen to the problems of the expatriate workers and take remedial measures.
   She said the officials of all Bangladesh missions must work under the overall guidance of the ambassadors.
   ‘Many of the recent incidents that jeopardised our national interest in terms of market prospect for our expatriate workers were the results of lack of coordination among different wings of the mission and the tendency of some to work independent of the head of the mission.
   ‘Our government will not tolerate such attitude anymore,’ said Dipu Moni.
   ‘Stern actions will be taken against those officers found responsible for such behaviors irrespective of their administrative affiliation’.
   IOM’s Regional Representative Rabab Fatima also addressed the concluding session.

‘For more than 100 Indian villages cut off from grid electricity, life no longer comes to an end after dark thanks to an innovative solar-powered lantern that offers hope to the nation’s rural poor.
   While cooking, farming and studying after sunset were once a struggle using inefficient kerosene or paraffin lamps, the solar lantern now provides a cheap and practical source of light.
   The simple device, which is charged during the day from a communal rooftop solar panel, uses between five and seven watts of power and has a battery that lasts up to eight hours.
   It also boasts a socket for charging mobile phones and a hand
   crank for topping up the power.
   Villagers pay between three and six rupees a day to rent the lantern under the ‘Lighting a Billion Lives’ scheme, which was launched last year to promote solar energy as the environmentally friendly answer to India’s energy shortages.
   ‘I keep my shop open as late as 9:00 pm. All my fish get sold by that time,’ a fish seller in Govindorampur district in West Bengal state who uses the lamp told researchers.
   He is one of those whose lives have been transformed by the first wave of 5,000 lanterns distributed across nine states in India.
   Organisers say each lamp should work for ten years, saving between 500 and 600 litres of kerosene which would produce about 1.5 tonnes of carbon dioxide.

Negotiations to open up global commerce have made no real progress lately and are moving too slowly to hit the target of a Doha Round deal by 2010, the head of the World Trade Organisation said on Friday.
   ‘We have not yet seen tangible progress in the negotiations and, overall, I would say that the current speed with which we are advancing is too slow ... to be in a position to wrap this round next year,’ WTO Director-General Pascal Lamy said.
   He was addressing a meeting of the WTO’s 153 members after a week of intensive meetings and negotiations aiming for a breakthrough in the talks, now in their eighth year.

Kia Motors Corp. said net profit swelled to a record 402 billion won ($339 million) in the third quarter boosted by a weak South Korean won and global efforts to spur demand for vehicles, sending its shares sharply higher.
   South Korea’s second-largest automaker, maker of the Sportage compact SUV and Forte small sedan, said Friday that quarterly sales rose 32 per cent to 4.51 trillion won from 3.43 trillion won a year earlier. It posted a net loss of 22.1 billion won in the third quarter of 2008.
   The net profit result was Kia’s highest on a quarterly basis, said Pamela Munoz, a company spokeswoman.
   Investors cheered the news, sending Kia’s share price up 6.7 per cent to 18,300 won. The shares have surged 179 per cent so far this year.

World stock markets rose Friday, spurred by another batch of optimistic quarterly reports from major companies in the U.S. and Asia even as worries remained that this year’s rally has overshot reality.
   The broad advance followed an overnight rise on Wall Street, where investors were heartened by stronger profits and upbeat outlooks from companies seen as bellwethers of consumer demand in an economy emerging from recession.
   The string of encouraging quarterly results continued in Asia, with South Korean auto maker Kia Motors Corp. and chip maker Hynix Semiconductor Inc. reporting higher profits that suggested global demand was turning for the better.
   Oil prices, meanwhile, held near $81 on hopes the global economic recovery is gathering pace. The dollar rose modestly against the yen and the euro in the aftermath of a weekslong drop.
   As trading got underway in Europe, benchmarks in Germany, France and Britain were up 1 per cent or more. Stock futures pointed to muted gains Friday on Wall Street. Dow futures were up 4 points at 10,042.
   Earlier in Asia, Japan’s Nikkei 225 stock average gained 15.82, or 0.2 per cent, to 10,282.99 and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng jumped 379.21, or 1.7 per cent, to 22,589.73. South Korea’s Kospi advanced 0.6 per cent to 1,640.17, while China’s Shanghai index climbed 1.9 per cent.
   Global stock markets have rocketed higher since March, lifting benchmarks in the U.S. and Asia to new yearly highs in recent weeks, amid a weakening dollar and massive liquidity.
   But there are fears markets may have overestimated the strength of recovery. The possibility governments will start withdrawing lavish monetary and fiscal stimulus could also lead investors to rethink the strength of the rally.
   ‘People are still somewhat jittery,’ said Song Seng Wun, an economist at CIMB-GK research in Singapore. ‘The market has done relatively well. The question is how much has been priced in.’
   ‘There’s still concern about the potential drag of the U.S., inflation and the weaker dollar ... And there are signs governments may pull some of the liquidity. And that won’t be so great news for equities,’ Song said.
   Elsewhere in Asia, Australia’s index gained 1 per cent, Taiwanese shares rose 0.5 per cent and Indonesia’s benchmark climbed 1.3 per cent.
   On Wall Street Thursday, the Dow rose 131.95, or 1.3 per cent, to 10,081.31. The index is 11 points below its highest close of the year, which it reached on Monday.
   The broader Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 11.51, or 1.1 per cent, to 1,092.91. The Nasdaq rose 14.56, or 0.7 per cent, to 2,165.29.
   In oil, benchmark crude for December delivery was down 11 cents to $81.08 a barrel. The contract rose 18 cents to settle at $81.19 on Thursday.
   Among currencies, the dollar rose to 91.87 yen from 91.31 yen. The euro fell to $1.5012 from $1.5020.

Oil prices held above $81 a barrel Friday in Asia, just below a one-year high, as signs the global economic recovery is gathering pace fueled investor optimism.
   Benchmark crude for December delivery fell 2 cents to $81.17 a barrel at late afternoon Singapore time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract rose 18 cents to settle at $81.19 on Thursday.
   Investors have taken heart from evidence that recovery from the global recession is gathering pace. China said Thursday that its economy grew 8.9 per cent in the third quarter, building on recent improvements in industrial production, retail sales and commodity imports.
   ‘So far the path of recovery has surprised to the upside,’ Barclays Capital said in a report. ‘The groundwork for a sustainable move into higher price ranges has been laid.’
   Crude traders are also eyeing gains on global stock markets, which tend to reflect overall investor sentiment. The Dow Jones industrial average jumped 1.3 per cent on Thursday and most Asian indexes rose Friday.
   Prices soared to $82 a barrel earlier this week, the highest since October 2008, from $32 in December.
   In other Nymex trading, heating oil was steady at $2.09 a gallon. Gasoline for November delivery held at $2.05 a gallon. Natural gas for November delivery jumped 6.0 cents to $5.01 per 1,000 cubic feet.

The dollar gained in Asian trade Friday as investors took profits on its recent decline fuelled by worries about the weak US economy, dealers said.
   The euro fell to 1.5001 dollars in Tokyo afternoon trade from 1.5027 in New York late on Thursday. It rose to 137.69 yen from 137.20. The dollar climbed to 91.81 yen from 91.28.
   The euro slipped against the dollar as investors locked in gains ahead of the weekend, Hachijuni Bank forex strategist Masatsugu Miyata said, adding that overall, however, the European currency’s ‘upward trend continues.’
   The greenback had started the day on a backfoot after data showed new claims for jobless benefits in the United States rose by 11,000 to 531,000 in the week to October 17, having fallen for the previous two weeks.
   The disappointing figures suggest ‘there is a risk that the US recovery will be a tepid one because private consumption is being capped by deteriorated job market conditions,’ said Calyon analyst Sebastien Barbe.
   Some analysts expect the euro to rise to 1.60 dollars by the end of the year.
   The currency breached the key 1.50 dollars level earlier this week for the first time since August 2008.
   Investors were anticipating an improvement in the German Ifo business climate index for September as well as data showing manufacturing activity in the eurozone.
   Players were also waiting to see if Britain exited recession in the third quarter, with its gross domestic product figure due out later in the day.
   The dollar was mixed in regional Asian trade. It rose to 9,480.63 Indonesian rupiah from 9,477.50 and to 47.21 Philippine pesos from 47.13, while holding steady at 32.40 Taiwan dollars.
   The greenback fell to 1,181.25 South Korean won from 1,189.75, to 1.3927 Singapore dollars from 1.3962 and to 33.44 Thai baht from 33.47.

The European Union on Friday approved the proposed tie-up of US drug makers Merck & Co. and Schering-Plough Corp. which would create the second-biggest global producer of prescription medicines.
   The EU’s antitrust authorities said in a statement Friday that the ‘transaction would not significantly impede effective competition’ in Europe.
   The $41.1 billion acquisition of smaller Schering-Plough will allow Merck to leapfrog to No. 2 worldwide in prescription medicine, just behind Pfizer Inc., which last week bought Wyeth for $68 billion. The new Merck-Schering company would have about $42.4 billion in annual sales.
   The two companies hope to fully close the deal in the fourth quarter after shareholders approved it on Aug. 7. The deal still needs approval from the US Federal Trade Commission.
   The EU said the overlap would not pose significant problems in Europe even though both companies have operations in prescription pharmaceuticals.
   Merck is a research-driven company that also makes vaccines, while Schering is a health care group also centering on prescription pharmaceuticals as well as over-the-counter and animal health products.
   In its checks for overlaps in Europe, specifically in the areas of asthma and allergic rhinitis, the EU Commission found the products were not close competitors and that the tie-up would not prevent enough other companies from competing.
   In the animal health market, concerns were assuaged when Merck sold its 50-per cent share in the joint venture Merial to rival Sanofi-Aventis.
   Merck and Schering-Plough have been partners for several years on the cholesterol drugs Vytorin and Zetia, but their once-surging sales have been declining steadily since January 2008.
   That partnership between the New Jersey neighbors helped set up the deal. Merck really needed Schering-Plough’s much stronger stable experimental drugs in development. Buying Schering-Plough gives it a strong biotech operation, more veterinary medicines and a host of well-known consumer health products such as the Coppertone sun care and Dr. Scholl’s foot care lines.

Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said Friday his new economic team was aiming to achieve seven per cent growth by the end of his final term in office.
   On the first full day at the helm of his new cabinet, which was sworn in Thursday after July presidential polls, Yudhoyono promised to return Southeast Asia’s biggest economy to pre-crisis growth levels by 2014.
   He also promised ‘growth that is inclusive and fair’ and reduces poverty in the mainly Muslim archipelago of 234 million people.
   The government has predicted growth of 4.0-4.5 per cent this year, third only to China and India in the G20 club of rich and major developing countries. The economy grew 6.1 per cent in 2008.
   The local stock market has soared almost 80 per cent in 2009, but about half the population continues to live on less than two dollars a day, according to the Asian Development Bank.
   Addressing the inaugural session of the new cabinet, Yudhoyono said seven per cent growth could have been reached this year but for the impact of the global downturn on the domestic economy.
   Yudhoyono’s new coordinating minister for the economy, Hatta Rajasa, earlier said that while the government was aiming for seven per cent growth by 2014, a longer-term eight per cent target was ‘achievable’.
   His comments reflect the view among many investors that Indonesia’s economy is poised to emerge from years of underperformance.
   The liberal former general Yudhoyono, who was inaugurated Tuesday having won a landslide election victory in July, has compiled a rainbow coalition of six parties controlling 423 out of 560 seats in parliament.
   He has come under fire for handing most seats to party-political figures rather than competent experts more likely to improve governance and fight corruption in the world’s third biggest democracy.
   The choice of former transport minister Rajasa as economy minister raised some eyebrows, but the all-important posts of finance and trade stayed with incumbents seen as reliable technocrats.
   Former International Monetary Fund senior executive Sri Mulyani Indrawati keeps the finance portfolio, while Mari Pangestu stays in charge of the trade ministry, where she has been a steady advocate of open markets.

Malaysia slashed government spending in the 2010 budget, moving to rein in a fiscal deficit swollen by stimulus measures aimed at pushing the economy out of recession.
   Prime Minister Najib Razak said an extensive fuel subsidy system, extremely popular with the public but a drain on national coffers, would be revamped next year but did not give details of the cuts.
   He said the economy would shrink by 3.0 per cent this year, less than a 4.0-5.0 per cent contraction tipped earlier, but that it could bounce back and post modest growth of 2.0-3.0 per cent in 2010.
   ‘Major indicators suggest the economy is on track to recovery,’ said Najib, who is also finance minister, adding that ‘Malaysia’s economic fundamentals remain resilient, despite the more challenging environment in 2009.’
   But he said the downturn, which hit Malaysia’s export-dependent economy hard, showed it needed to address its long-term competitiveness and shift to a new model ‘based on innovation, creativity and value-added activities’.
   ‘We are now at a critical juncture, either to remain trapped in a middle-income group or advance to a high-income economy,’ he said.
   Najib said Malaysia needed to strengthen domestic demand, lose its reliance on cheap imported labour, and introduce liberalisation measures to enhance competitiveness.
   The 2010 budget allocation totalled 191.5 billion ringgit (56.6 billion dollars), 11.2 per cent lower than the revised allocation of 215.7 billion ringgit for 2009.
   ‘This allocation reflects prudence in government spending and gives priority to value-for-money,’ said Najib, adding that the cuts would not harm public sector delivery.
   Operating expenditure will be slashed by 13.7 per cent to 138.3 billion ringgit in an unprecedentedly large cut, helping reduce the fiscal deficit from 7.4 per cent this year to 5.6 per cent next year—much lower than expected.
   Wan Suhaimi Saidie, an economist with Kenanga Investment Bank, was cautious about the ambitious move to rein in spending.
   ‘It’s a big surprise for me because, in spite of the economic recovery, the government is already consolidating its fiscal deficit by substantially cutting down the operating expenditure as well as reducing development spending.’
   ‘My view is that (the cut) will affect the efficiency of the government machinery. My view is that the maximum you can cut is 5.0 per cent,’ he told AFP.
   Opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim applauded the move to cut costs but said he doubted whether it would be achieved, and that the budget did not address rampant corruption which was one of the causes of overspending.
   ‘I have no qualms about the stated pronouncement on the attempt to ensure Malaysia becomes more competitive and reduces waste, but actions speak louder,’ he told AFP.
   Najib said the government, which was hit with severe criticism over past cuts to petrol subsidies, would implement a ‘fuel subsidy management system’ in early 2010 but gave no further details.
   He also said the government is ‘at the final stage’ of a study into implementing a long-considered goods and services tax to replace the current tax and services tax.

Australia Friday approved coal-miner Yanzhou’s takeover of Felix in a deal worth 3.5 billion dollars ($43.2 billion), the country’s biggest by a Chinese company and ending months of wrangling.
   Assistant Treasurer Nick Sherry set strict conditions for Yanzhou, including operating its Australian mines through an Australian-headquartered company which would be listed on the local stock exchange by the end of 2012.
   ‘The Australian Securities Exchange listing of all of Yanzhou’s Australian assets ... is a significant development,’ Sherry said in a statement.
   ‘It represents the first time a Chinese state-owned enterprise operating in Australia will list on our stock exchange.
   ‘As such, it demonstrates the strength of the developing bilateral economic and investment partnership between Australia and China.’
   Australia’s Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB) twice ordered Yanzhou to resubmit the takeover bid after it was approved by Felix in August, following 12 months of negotiations.
   The deal seemed in doubt after the FIRB’s chief told Chinese businessmen he preferred investments below 50 per cent for new ventures and 15 per cent for big producers, urging more transparency and a less heavy-handed approach to acquisitions.
   ‘This investment also means jobs for Australians, especially in regional areas,’ Sherry said.
   ‘Yanzhou will continue all four of the Felix mining operations, including completing the development of the Moolarben mine—this will create more jobs for both New South Wales and Queensland.’

Janata Bank, country’s second largest state-owned bank, has begun offering money transfer service of the Western Union Company, a leading name in the world.
   According to an announcement made on Thursday, initially the service will be available through 500 of Janata Bank’s 845 branches.
    ‘With its expansive global network, Western Union is uniquely positioned to deliver fast, reliable and convenient money transfer services to its consumers across remote geographical locations globally,’ said Anil Kapur, managing director, South and South East Asia, Western Union.
    ‘With the addition of the Janata Bank, one of the largest Government Banks and highly preferred by non resident Bangladeshi’s, we will further expand our reach and strengthen our commitment to provide easy accessibility of our services to our consumers in Bangladesh’, he added.
   While speaking at the signing ceremony, SM Aminur Rahman, managing director and chief executive officer of Janata Bank, said, “We are really happy to sign up with Western Union, a global leader in money transfer business. Now people across the world can send money through Western Union and relatives of these NRBs can receive money from Janata Bank quickly.’

A ten member delegation of EMORY University School of Medicine, Atlanta, USA on Wednesday visited different facilities of Apollo Hospitals Dhaka.
   During their visit, the delegation headed by Gary Hauk was briefed about the hospital infrastructure, patient safety measures, infection control procedure, medical records repository and waste management system by Shagufa Anwar, general manager, business development of the Apollo Hospitals.
   The members of the delegation also met the chief executive officer, Shahjahan Majumder, and Tareak-Al-Nasir, senior consultant of Lab Medicine.
   Hauk and his team expressed their desire to work with the Apollo in the future.

Holcim (Bangladesh) Limited, one of country’s leading cement companies, has gathered the members of jury and advisory board at a local hotel for Holcim Green Built Bangladesh Contest, an initiative of the organization.
   The members are Jamilur Reza Choudhury, vice chancellor of Brac University, Sarwar Jahan, president of Bangladesh Institute of Planners, Rajnish Kapur, managing director of Holcim, architect Bashirul Hoq, Prof Hamiduzzaman Khan of Dhaka University Prof Shaheda Rahman of Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology, Prof Roxana Hafiz of BUET and Prof Fuad H Mallick of BRAC University.
    ‘Holcim Green Built Bangladesh’ contest is an initiative of Holcim (Bangladesh) Ltd, with the mission to create a culture of sustainable development by promoting the concept of ‘Green Built’, said a press release.
   It is a national level contest and is open to all Bangladeshi Nationals above 18 years of age. The Total Prize value of the contest is BDT 20 lacs and under two categories — Built Projects and Idea projects.
   Apart from these, there will be a special prize for the special projects. The last date of project submission is Dec 31, 2009.