and even took the bus to work to help cut costs but he couldn stop the once
venerable carrier financial tailspin
his anointed successor kazuo inamori respected entrepreneur and ordained
buddhist monk is expected to oversee much more radical cutbacks at the debt
ridden airline which is widely expected to file for bankruptcy this week
inamori the honorary chairman of japanese high tech maker kyocera corp is
being parachuted into jal cockpit by the government to replace nishimatsu who
is set to step down despite being hailed for his humble management style
inamori admitted this week he was novice in the airline industry
but he is one of japan most well respected business executives and management
gurus having founded both kyocera and company that later became part of kddi
corp now japan number two telecommunication company
he great entrepreneur and perhaps entrepreneurship is what jal badly
needs said geoffrey tudor principal analyst at japan aviation management
research and former jal employee
inamori is very successful man in his own right he didn have any personal
connections with important or influential people he worked hard he has great
personal ability said tudor
think mr inamori will help boost the morale of jal employees he added
inamori who turns years old on january is champion of deregulation and
philanthropist who entered the buddhist priesthood at temple in kyoto in
after retirement
the kyocera founder created his own amoeba management theory whereby each unit
of company makes its own plans under the guidance of an amoeba leader
members of the unit pool their knowledge and effort to achieve business targets
giving all employees an active role
in one of his books respect the divine and love people inamori says his
management philosophy is based on the many obstacles he has overcome
in both my professional and personal life have struggled with many dead end
situations which caused me endless agony he wrote according to excerpts on
his website
in those difficult circumstances would always go back to the fundamentals
and ask myself what is the right thing to do as human being everything
do in my work is based upon this fundamental principle
after contracting tuberculosis at age when his home was also destroyed in an
air raid inamori went on to study engineering and started small ceramics
company that he would transform into leading high tech maker
now he is japan th richest person with an estimated wealth of million
dollars according to forbes rich list
he faces daunting task turning around jal which is expected to file for
bankruptcy protection on tuesday to make it easier to overhaul its debts and
implement other measures likely to include about job cuts
while the airline deep in the red is expected to keep flying during its
restructuring equity investors are expected to lose most or all of their money
many shareholders have already bailed out and jal market value now stands at
just million dollars having plummeted by billion dollars in week
jal financial implosion analysts say is the result of decade of industry
crises management missteps and burdensome government policy that has seen the
former state owned flag carrier lurch from crisis to crisis
if you look back there is trail that leads to pretty much where we are now
said peter harbison executive chairman of the centre for asia pacific aviation
sydney based consulting firm
it combination of years of protectionism of being too close to government
of not taking the really difficult decisions not all of jal decisions are
taken in fully brutally commercial way
jal is hamstrung by heavy costs stretching back to its days as state owned
flag carrier as well as japan high landing fees and political pressure to
service unprofitable routes to small domestic airports experts said
jal has had troubled record since its privatisation and complex merger
with domestic carrier japan air systems which was finally completed in
after years of negotiations and integration difficulties
asia biggest airline was also hit hard by the worst global recession in
decades because it has sizeable international flight operations
the japanese market is ultra sensitive in times of financial crisis the money
goes under the futon said tudor
desperation in haiti as scale of disaster grows
port au prince jan afp
desperate haiti quake survivors pleaded saturday for vital supplies amid anger
over the chaotic aid effort while the true extent of the disaster beyond the
capital began to emerge
four days after magnitude earthquake brought death and misery on an
unprecedented scale to the impoverished and dysfunctional caribbean nation aid
was trickling in but failing to reach many of those most in need
us helicopters crews flew in and unloaded boxes of vital supplies as massive
queues formed at distribution points where the un world food programme wfp
handed out high energy biscuits
an afp journalist witnessed one us helicopter dropping half dozen small
cartons into stadium of starving haitians some brandishing machetes as they
fought for the items
as the fate of whole towns and villages around the capital in western haiti
remained unclear the united nations said it had never before faced such
humanitarian catastrophe
we have never been confronted with such disaster in the un memory it is like
no other elisabeth byrs spokeswoman of the un office for the coordination of
humanitarian affairs told afp in geneva
the destruction found saturday in the town of leogane just kilometers
miles west of port au prince was staggering street after street of homes
and businesses torn apart
it the very epicenter of the earthquake and many many thousands are dead
said wfp spokesman david orr nearly every house was destroyed here the
military are talking about to dead
the latest overall toll from the haitian government is at least people
dead and million homeless but those figures could soar once the full extent
of the tragedy is known early estimates had spoken of dead
the un said increasing numbers of haitians were trying to cross the border into
the dominican republic to the east and reported surge of quake survivors
fleeing to northern cities
crammed onto overflowing buses or on foot thousands fled the flattened capital
where the stench of decomposing bodies hung in the air and fears grew of angry
riots
the streets smell of death said talulum saint fils who sold her jewelry for
one way bus tickets for her husband and children out of port au prince
go to any place but away from this city she told afp there is no
assistance of any kind and our children simply cannot live like animals
there were complaints of major coordination problems at the us controlled
airport in port au prince the main destination for aid flights
french secretary of state for cooperation alain joyandet said he had lodged an
official complaint with the united states after french plane carrying field
hospital was turned away this was later denied by his own foreign ministry
secretary of state hillary clinton became the highest ranking us official to
visit haiti since the quake warmly embracing president rene preval after
highlighting the urgent need to clear the logistical hurdles
as president barack obama has said we will be here today tomorrow and for
the time ahead she told haitians
you have been severely tested but believe that haiti can come back even
stronger and better in the future
despite obvious organizational failures significant amount of aid was getting
through either through port au prince airport by road from the dominican
republic or from us helicopter flights
red cross coordinator mauricio bustamante said the group had sent planeloads
of personnel and humanitarian aid while fleet of choppers made regular air
drops
but after isolated reports friday of machete wielding gangs terrorizing
survivors there were growing signs saturday of despondency and unease in
country with checkered past of rioting and unrest
exhausted police fired in the air in vain attempt to scare off armed looters
pillaging shops in the capital
barricades of burning tires rubble and corpses blocked the main road out of the
city to nearby carrefour as residents called for the dead bodies to be removed
they already took some bodies away but there are more many more said
charles weber year old voodoo priest in the crowd surrounding roadblock
un chief ban ki moon confirmed saturday the death of his haiti mission chief
hedi annabi as the body faced its biggest ever loss of life with dead and
close to unaccounted for ban was to visit haiti sunday
the un security council will meet monday to discuss the coordination of the
international aid operation for haiti
syria open to foreign banking investors
damascus jan afp
syria is offering foreign investors majority stake in its private banks as the
country pushes ahead with efforts to boost economic reforms and move away from
its socialist legacy
the move also comes as syria steadily sheds its image as radical in the
political arena with ties warming up with former foes such as the united
states france and saudi arabia
central bank governor adib mayala told afp on wednesday that under january
banking law the maximum capital stake for foreign investors was being raised to
percent from the current percent
it is an important measure which will boost the capacity of syrian banks
mayala said
private banks were authorised in syria under law passed in year
after president bashar al assad replaced his late father hafez al assad at the
head of the country but with syrian nationals holding the majority stakes
that law was part of efforts by the younger assad to push for reforms and
market economy in syria departing from some of the socialist constraints which
were mark of his late father baathist rule
over the past six years more than private banks have been opened including
banque bemo saudi fransi sa which launched operations in january becoming
the first private bank to operate in syria
other private banks that have opened shop in syria include the jordan based arab
bank and lebanese establishments such as byblos bank and audi liban
the january law also allows private banks to raise their capital to
million dollars from previous cap of million while the limit for private
islamic banks is being tripled to million dollars
according to mayala this will inject some billion dollars into the private
banking sector in syria
the legislation encourages european banks to enter the syrian market whereas
holding minority stake had represented an obstacle for foreign investors
mayala said
he said five more private banks have applied to open branches in syria and are
awaiting green light
such measures have been adopted in order to back up economic reforms in syria
as well as the development process mayala said
the central bank has also eased restrictions on foreign monetary transactions
for syrian citizens who can now transfer up to dollars in foreign
currency each month mayala said
the new regulation went into effect less than month ago he said
current accounts have also been totally freed up for businessmen who
previously had to deposit all foreign currency in special account held by the
state run commercial bank of syria mayala said
syrian economist samir seifan said the drive to bolster economic reforms had
attracted small increase in the number of foreign and local investment in
the country but this was not enough
damascus needs at least billion dollars in investments each year to guarantee
seven percent growth and tackle poverty and unemployment officially estimated
at percent and twice as high by western experts seifan said
the easing of restrictions has led to greater involvement by private banks in
major development projects in syria according to mayala
in french cement giant lafarge signed contracts to build two cement
plants with private syrian banks investing million dollars in project
that has the backing of the european investment bank he said
tajikistan dam sale opens torrent of controversy
dushanbe jan afp
the ten year old girl proudly waved her share certificate new young
shareholder in tajikistan giant rogun hydro electric dam and participant in
seemingly improbable privatization drive
bought this share for somoni dollars with my savings from the money
my father gives me for school she chanted proudly on state television
poverty stricken tajikistan this month started mass share sale in drive to
raise billion dollars to complete construction of the soviet era
hydroelectric power plant in the midst of severe energy crisis
but some tajiks have complained they are being forced to buy shares out of
meager pensions and that state employers have diverted pay in the all out
campaign to raise funds
you can be fired from your job or blacklisted if you complain to the
management an employee at state ministry who gave his name only as jamshed
told afp
this is worsening the financial burden on families when the nation average
income is barely dollars per month we are being forced to finance the
government he deplored
the mountainous central asian state says the massive rogun dam which aims to
double its power output will resolve its chronic energy shortages
it plans to make up its lack of funds for the project by selling its citizens
share packages ranging from dollars to
rogun means heat and light in every home it means higher standard of living
and social wealth for all president emomali rakhmon enthused in speech on
state television to launch the share sale
supporting rogun is the duty of every muslim in tajikistan we must pay for it
all as one we must tighten our belts and win
in the days after his speech long queues formed to buy shares sold at banks and
the ticket offices of theatres circuses and cultural centres across the ex
soviet state
popular actors and musicians in national dress greeted prospective buyers as
shares went on sale and mobile phone holders received state adverts asking for
donations as small as dollar cents via text message
amid the national hype newborn girl was named sakhmya share after the sale
and baby boy rogunshokh king rogun after the planned plant local media
reported
but elderly pensioner marusya was outraged as local authorities withheld part of
her scant stipend to invest in the power plant
they said we ll take only little from you not more than somoni
to dollars she told local paper
but she added her monthly pension amounts to all of dollars per month
haven seen meat on my table in three years they should be ashamed to ask this
of pensioners who are dying of hunger as it is
an predominantly muslim nation of million tajikistan has struggled in
recent years to meet the basic energy requirements of its mostly rural
population and industry
with few fossil fuel reserves the country suffers chronic blackouts even in the
capital dushanbe in winter months electricity is rationed to only one hour
day in villages
tajikistan has tried in the past to draw foreign financing to rogun which was
first conceived as gigantic soviet dam project construction stalled as the
country plunged into civil war in the early after the breakup of the ussr
attempts to find foreign backers have fallen short and promised financing from
russia has failed to materialize amid tajikistan dispute with neighboring
uzbekistan over the power plant
uzbekistan which provides for over percent of tajik energy imports fears
the rogun dam will dry up water supplies to its cotton fields
moscow meanwhile is competing for influence with the energy rich state for
access to uzbekistan natural gas resources
dushanbe hopes the rogun plant will not only resolve its energy crisis but allow
it to sell output to afghanistan and pakistan boosting the central asian
state regional influence local economist firuz saidov said
for us the most important thing is the construction of this hydroelectric
plant nothing else exists the development of the countries entire economy is
tied to it saidov told afp
it will allow tajikistan not only to dictate to its neighbors but to assert
its economic interests
figure skating denney and barrett win us pairs
spokane washington jan afp
caydee denney and jeremy barrett captured the pairs competition and qualified
for the upcoming vancouver olympics at the us figure skating championships on
saturday
denney and barrett were easy winners in the free skate programme over the
second place pairing of amanda evora and mark ladwig
the winners also placed first in the short programme friday for combined score
of well back in second was evora and ladwig who finished with
points
that put denney and barrett the us team for next month winter games while
the other olympic spot went to evora and ladwig
two time reigning national champions keanua mclaughlin and rockne brubaker were
the favourites going in but they stumbled to disappointing fifth overall and
missed out on the olympics
they got off to horrific start with seventh in the short programme and then
followed it with fifth in the free skate
rena inoue and john baldwin were runner up in the free skate and placed third
overall inoue and baldwin competed for the us at the turin olympics
caitlin yankowskas and john coughlin finished second in the short program but
ended up distant sixth in the free skate saturday to finish sixth overall
british bank sector hails obama bank levy as fair
london jan afp
british bankers have welcomed us president barack obama announcement of levy
to raise billion dollars to recoup the wall street bailout saying it
restores parity to the global banking sector
obama plan appeared to catch european governments and central banks by
surprise as did the president aggressive tone he called corporate bonuses
obscene and vowed we want our money back and we are going to get it
the proposals also raised eyebrows because the united states has shown great
reluctance to impose global rules governing bankers bonuses
but the announcement appeared to be timed to tap into public anger at the paying
of billions of dollars of bonuses over the next few weeks in sector which had
to be rescued by governments worldwide just months ago
until now bankers in the city of london the other main financial centre along
with wall street have claimed they were unfairly penalised by the tough
conditions imposed by the british treasury when it intervened to prop up banks
british banks have also argued that the government imposition of percent
tax rate on bonuses until april could cause high performers to pack their bags
and head for jobs in countries with less restrictive rules
combination of the two factors british banks have warned risks leaving them
at disadvantage compared to their colleagues in other financial centres
so the british bankers association bba an industry body representing the
sector welcomed the obama plan as levelling of the playing field
the us has moved up to the playing field that we are already on bba chief
executive angela knight said
these are two distinctly different situations the us has deficit that it
wants banks to meet in the uk we are paying more and we started paying earlier
and uk taxpayers will get back more than they contributed which think is only
right
knight said the real competition for global banking jobs now was not between
the us and the uk but between the rest of the world and the fast developing
finance sector in china and elsewhere in asia
if you are at headquarters and you are deciding on strategic plans for the
next two or five to years what we don want to see is action here in the
uk that would see those centres being moved to the far east
she told afp that however much people in britain were concerned about the
bonuses issue they would be even more concerned if all the other jobs that hang
off the sector and the tax that comes from them were to move elsewhere
but some analysts think banks are deliberately exaggerating the potential risks
of staff fleeing the traditional centres because it allows them to argue that
they should continue paying themselves the multi million salaries
keith pilbeam professor of international finance at city university in london
praised the obama plan for spreading the repayments levy over to years
but said it failed to address the central issue
the market failure is banking pay the share prices are down massively and yet
the bonuses and high pay are continuing he said
something does need to be done about that and it might be necessary to bring in
pay caps through legislation
he scoffed at suggestions that bankers were likely to flee the city and wall
street if stricter restrictions were clamped on their pay and bonuses
it is just scaremongering from the banks there is no way these guys are
leaving london and new york some people around the margins might leave but so
what
and anyway where is the talent they talk about when these guys have just
destroyed shareholders companies
kevin young fellow in global politics at the london school of economics said
neither the obama plan nor british premier gordon brown bonus tax would lead
to the wider reform of the financial system that many think is necessary
it is inevitable that many banks and their associations won like it the
levy but ultimately it is very minor measure designed to recoup funds and
does so over long period of time he said
it is more than drop in the ocean but is not an ambitious plan for reform
rather just way for the us taxpayer to recoup their cash
what the introduction of both measures would change the most he said is the
public perception that these leaders are addressing systemic problem
greek shadow over euro darkens
brussels jan afp
it won leave it won be kicked out and yet it can be trusted the
budgetary mess greece has landed itself in has never looked more serious for
europe core continental economy
the countries at the heart of the european union those who share the decade
old euro currency and whose influence eventually is supposed to suck in the
remaining bloc members and any newcomers are deeply worried
german chancellor angela merkel broke from standard discourse this week to
articulate the depth of the strain when she said the greek crisis was placing
the ties that bind the eurozone under huge huge pressures
warning of very difficult adolescence ahead although she subsequently
said she meant no direct criticism merkel pessimism set sombre tone for
euro finance ministers gathering in brussels on monday
an emergency action plan was unveiled in athens on thursday aimed at curbing the
debt and deficit that has undermined greece credibility on financial markets
and unnerved its partners
the program submitted to brussels watchdogs on friday will essentially involve
pushing greece to do even more the euro area political figurehead jean claude
juncker said on friday
it would be false to let greece believe the other eurozone countries will help
it resolve its problems the luxembourg premier contended noting that
bailout is legally impossible under eu treaties
european central bank head jean claude trichet on thursday dismissed the notion
that greece could leave the eurozone because of its debt crisis but told athens
it had to get its finances in order
trichet said suggestions that greece might resign or be expelled from the
eurozone because of its soaring deficit and debt reflected an absurd
hypothesis
but he warned no government no state can expect from us any special treatment
the problem is not to get help the problem is to help oneself
beware greeks bearing gifts may come from military antiquity but in today
market terms such lack of confidence is seen as the crucial component with
economists lining up to share their inner doubts
damning brussels report on greece unreliable economic figures published
on the eve of an international monetary fund team probe in the country will be
the focus of talks among all eu nations on tuesday
the incoming european commissioner for economic and monetary affairs olli rehn
articulated fears of potential spillover effect for the entire euro area
during his european parliamentary confirmation hearing
former imf and wall street analyst desmond lachman went much much further in an
opinion piece penned in the financial times this week which raised the spectre
of greece going the way of argentina
much like argentina decade ago greece is approaching the final stages of its
currency arrangement he predicted adding that after much official money is
thrown its way greece euro membership will end with bang
natixis jesus castillo said very ambitious promises did little to banish
quite pessimistic markets amid fears that interest payments on greek
government bonds already double those for german loans will again rise
ireland italy portugal and spain each have their own troubles but greek bonds
will also become irredeemable at current ratings after trio of downgrades
when the european central bank reverts to pre crisis criteria at the end of
greek finance minister georges papaconstantinou has admitted that huge
credibility gap exists and his prime minister george papandreou warns that
unless we plug these gaping wounds we will be constantly looking for money
athens bond issues this week exceeded billion euro billion dollar
borrowing target for but as the euro slid further at friday close from
month november high against the greenback fears of contagion were rife
greece faces eu grilling
athens jan afp
greek officials are bracing for european union grilling next week over faulty
national statistics as the country awaits approval of national crisis plan on
its debt hit economy
european finance ministers on tuesday are to tell athens to clean up its
accounting practices and improve the administration of key institutions
according to draft statement seen by afp
the commission last week published damning report on greece unreliable
economic figures increasing chances the eu executive will launch infringement
proceedings against the country in the near future
recession mired greece has public spending deficit that rose to percent
of output last year far above the percent ceiling permitted to countries
sharing the euro
it is also saddled with debt constituting percent of gross domestic
product gdp which last month prompted the leading rating agencies to
downgrade the country credit standing
the greek socialist government which came to power in october after over five
years of conservative rule on thursday unveiled three year crisis blueprint
to cut back public deficit of over billion euros and rein in general
government debt estimated to exceed billion euros this year
the plan aims to save more than billion euros billion dollars in
with improved tax collection cost cuts and reduced arms spending to bring the
public deficit to percent of output by
the european commission is expected to comment by late january on the plan
which the greek finance ministry said it drafted with assistance from eu and
european central bank officials who visited athens earlier this month
the council of eu finance ministers is also expected to discuss the plan at
scheduled meeting on february
this is document which we feel has all the prerequisites to be our pilot our
map for coming years greek finance minister george papaconstantinou said in
presenting the plan
in the first six months everybody will have realised whether we mean business
or whether we are drawing plans on paper he told reporters
news of the plan initially did little to encourage investors with the yield on
greece year sovereign bond rising to more than percent on thursday for
the first time since march
but tension eased on friday when the yield fell back to percent bond
prices and yields move in opposite directions
at citigroup global markets analysts said that although political pressure from
the european union will likely remain high we reckon that the probability
of greek default remains very small
we believe that the main drawback to the greek program is that it is too
focused on the deficit and too little on the following years we reckon
that this year target may be achievable but sizeable challenges remain on how
to reduce the deficit thereafter
the greek government has also pledged to restore the credibility of its official
figures having caused an uproar in brussels in october by announcing that the
previous conservative administration had under reported the deficit
across europe there is concern that serious fiscal problems in greece could
threaten the credibility of the eurozone and could be precursor to similar
debt crises in other weaker european economies
several of greece eurozone partners have also criticised athens as its
financial woes have put strong strain on the euro in recent weeks
the greece example is putting us under great great pressures german
chancellor angela merkel said on thursday adding the euro is in very
difficult phase for the coming years
greece troubles have given rise to suggestions that it might leave the
eurozone altogether notion discounted by european central bank head jean
claude trichet as absurd
but trichet warned last week that greece could count on no special treatment
from the bank and would ultimately have to solve its own problems
some analysts are meanwhile questioning whether leaving greece to default
another prospect aired in past weeks would be all that beneficial
greece is just the starkest example of the problems facing economies that have
lost competitiveness within the eurozone and now have weak public finances and
poor growth prospects simon tilford chief economist at the centre for
european reform wrote in the financial times on friday
greece problems cannot be solved by it alone he argued nor would greek
default be the cleansing experience that many people in the stronger member
states appear to imagine
canadian soldier killed in afghanistan
ottawa jan afp
canadian soldier was killed after stepping on an explosive device while on
foot patrol in afghanistan on saturday the commander of allied forces in the
southwestern province of kandahar said
canadian brigadier general daniel menard told his country media that sergeant
john wayne faught was the first canadian killed in afghanistan this year
after the incident in panjwayi district
faught was attached to the st battalion princess patricia canadian light
infantry based in edmonton alberta according to menard who commands
thousands of canadian and us troops
the death brings to the number of canadian soldiers killed in afghanistan
since
some canadian military personnel are deployed in afghanistan but they
will be returning home in in accordance with parliamentary decision to
withdraw forces
small contingent is expected to remain but will only participate in
reconstruction activities
kandahar province along with neighboring helmand is seething with an
insurgency which has intensified in the past year as international and afghan
forces have taken the fight to the taliban
the international troops leading the fight under us and nato command are
being supplemented with another over the course of this year
the afp sunday economics news advisory
paris jan afp
we shall shortly move the following economics business and financial news
stories
