China's economy healthy: Zhu

China's foreign reserves grew to dlrs 193.5 billion by mid-September and economy growth maintained "good momentum" this year, Premier Zhu Rongji said recently.

Zhu said China will honor promises to open its markets as a member of the World Trade Organisation, state media reported. WTO negotiators approved terms for Chinese membership in the global rule-making trade body.

"We will open our service sector step by step, including banking insurance, telecommunications, trade and tourism, and explore new forms and channels to use foreign funds," the Xinhua News Agency quoted Zhu as saying at a conference of Chinese entrepreneurs.

Despite signs of world slowdown, China's economy grew by 7.9 percent in the first six months of 2001 compared to the same period last year, Zhu said.

China "has continued to develop along the healthy track of fast growth, high efficiency and low inflation, Zhu said.

China received foreign investment of dlrs 27.44 billion in the first eight months of the year, a 20.4 percent increase over the same period last year, Zhu said. By mid-September, foreign exchange reserve were dlrs 193.5 billion.

The government had said its foreign reserves were dlrs 180.4 billion at the end of June, up from dlrs 165.6 billion at the end of 2000.

China-investors safe haven despite domestic risks- Dutch Bank

China is Asia's safe haven for investors as its smaller neighbours succumb to the US-led global economic slowdown, but domestic risks remain, Dutch-based bank ABN Amro said in a report.

The risk come from a projected fall in exports to the United States as consumer confidence plummeted following the September 11 terror attacks, and a slowdown in investment demand it said.

"Relatively speaking, China is still the safe haven in the region thanks to a less trade-dependent economy However, investors should not ignore the risk within," ABN Amro said.

China's low reliance on high technology industries has insulated it from the fall-out of the slump in the world's electronics industry, even as the down-swing hammered its neighbours like Singapore, Taiwan and Malaysia.

Its gross domestic product (GDP) growth far exceeds the rest of Asia and domestic demand is still robust.

But China sells a lot of consumer goods such as toys, sporting goods and footwear to the United States and a fall in US consumer spending after the attacks on New York and Washington is likely to affect these exports.

"It is worth noting that among the toys, sporting goods and footwear imported by the US, 60 percent are from China," the report said. The three items accounted for one fifth of the US's total imports from China.

China's projected GDP growth this year was also trimmed to 7.2 percent from 7.5 percent. In 2002, GDP is forecast at 7.0 percent, down from the original 8.5 percent. "Apart from the expected slowdown in external demand, we also see initial signs of a slowdown in investment demand, which has been supported by the government's pump-priming over the past few years," the bank said.

Profit growth of industrial enterprises rose by 15.8 percent in the eight months to August this year, sharply down from 86 percent in the same period last year.

Japan launches world's first 3G mobile phones

Japan's NTT DoCoMo launches recently the world's first third generation (3G) mobile phone service hoping to snap up six million domestic subscribers by March 2004 as well as conquering the European and American markets.

Capable of downloading 40 times more data than that of the popular i-mode-a mobile phone service providing Internet access users will be able to surf the web while on the phone as well as seeing pictures of who they are speaking to. In the long run, it will also be possible to watch films and listen to music on DoCoMo's 3G handsets.

Christened FOMA (freedom of mobile multi-media access), the service will initially be limited to a 30 kilometer radius around the center of Tokyo and some other specified zones in the capital.

NTT DoCoMo, Japan's first mobile phone operator, intends to sell 150,000 handsets by March 2001 and to sign up six million 3G subscribers by March 2004.

The company also plans to invest 1,000 billion yen (8.4 billion dollars) into the network during the first three years of service while expecting no returns on its money for the first four years.

Japan eyes tax reforms to boost economy

Japan is considering tax reforms to boost the economy as Tokyo's self-imposed fiscal discipline leaves little room for major pump priming, Finance Minister Masajuro Shiokawa said recently.

The government approved the framework of a three-trillion-yen extra budget focusing on ways to deal with a record jobless rate and massive banking bad loans.

The level of the latest spending is considerably lower than in recent years when extra budgets have ranged between four and 12 trillion yen. Japan's national debt has exploded to around 130 percent of gross domestic product, the highest ratio of all industrialised nations.

Bank of Japan slashes GDP growth

The Bank of Japan slashed its growth forecast for the world's second largest economy recently warning it would shrink by as much as 1.2 percent in the year to march amidst the global economic slump.

Japan's gross domestic product (GDP) would decline between 0.9 percent and 1.2 percent, compared to an earlier forecast of 0.3 percent to 0.8 percent growth, the central bank said in a report published twice yearly. "Greater uncertainty than usual exists. Such uncertainty includes the effects stemming from the terrorist attacks in the United States and subsequent developments on the global economy, the content and pace of forth coming structural reform and the fiscal reform," it said.

Thailand plans campaign to revive tourism

Thailand will launch an international public relations campaign to shore up its tourism industry, which has been badly affected by the terrorist attacks in the United States, reports said recently.

The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) governor Pradech Phayakvichien said the campaign will focus on reassuring tourists that Thailand remains a safe destination.

The promotional effort will be aimed at "major markets where tourists are sensitive to the September 11 events," and will include an international roadshow by Thai officials, the National daily reported.

Among other plans to boost Thailand's flagging tourism is a bid to furnish the island resort of Phuket with an international convention centre.

Singapore targets 1m tourists

Singapore is targeting one million tourists from China by 2005, Trade Minister George Yeo said a 150 percent increase from year 2000 levels.

"Due largely to China's strong internal economy, the ST (Singapore Tourism Board) targets to achieve one million visitor arrivals to Singapore by 2005. This will place (China) as one of our largest tourism markets," he told parliament.

"We intend to tap this market to the fullest extent possible. This large flow will feed our tourism sector and provide many jobs for Singaporeans", he said.

Singapore received 400,000 visitors from China in 2000. In the eight months to August 2001, arrivals from China totaled 331,092 people, up 11.4 percent from the same period last year.

Yeo said that during the financial crisis in 1997 and 1998, tourist arrivals from China grew at a double-digit level while other markets shrank.

In the two weeks after the September 11 terrorist attacks on the United States, tourist arrivals from China still rose 12.87 percent, he said.