Regional Bangla group asks Govt to sign Tata deal

DHAKA, July 20: A regional Bangladeshi group has urged the Government to sign the three billion dollar investment deal with Indian conglomerate Tata, saying it would have a "positive" impact on the country's northern region

The Uttarbanga Janakalyan Samity (UJS), representing inhabitants of nothern Bangladesh, said it would form an human chain on August 8 to push the government to clear the way for Tata's investment.

"The investment by the industrial giant will help change the life in the country's northern part, which has been deprived of the expected development," UJS President Khandaker Azadur Rahman said.

"The Tata investment will definitely create a momentum in the whole region, we will see some more investments," he said adding "we have become totally frustrated and angry after Tata suspended its investment plan due to delay by the Government."

Tata recently announced the "suspension" of its plan due to delays by the Bangladesh Government in giving a green signal to its investments. (PTI)

Intel shuffles top executives to simplify management structure

SAN FRANCISCO, July 20: Intel Corp is reassigning five top executives to new positions as part of a corporate restructuring designed to simplify the company's management, according to a memorandum circulated to employees.

The moves, which are effective immediately, will bring the number of senior managers reporting to Chief Executive Paul Otellini by two.

The reassignments come as Intel is nearing completion of a comprehensive 90-day review of its operations that's designed to save the company USD one billion in annual costs by rooting out inefficiencies and underperforming businesses.

Intel spokesman Robert Manetta declined to comment yesterday.

Executive Vice President Sean Maloney, who has been co-manager of the company's mobility group, will lead Intel's sales and marketing group, according to the memo, which was obtained by The Associated Press. Maloney's new group, which is responsible for Intel's entire product portfolio, had been run jointly by senior vice presidents Anand Chandrasekher and Eric Kim.

Senior Vice President David Perlmutter, the other general manager of Intel's mobility group, will now run the unit by himself. The mobility group is responsible for products aimed laptop PCs.

Chandrasekher will manage a newly created unit aimed at "ultra-mobile" PCs, which are smaller than typical laptop machines but are bigger and offer more features than handheld devices. He will report to Perlmutter. (AP)

Chinese monks begin historic journey to Nalanda

BEIJING, July 20: Tracing the footsteps of a famous Tang dynasty monk who undertook an arduous journey to Nalanda 1,300 years ago, two Chinese Buddhist monks have set out for the ancient seat of learning.

The visit of the two monks-- Mingxian from Donglin Temple in east China's Jiangxi Province and Monk Huizai from Taiwan is taking place as the two neighbouring nations are marking 2006 as the 'India-China Friendship Year.'

However, unlike Xuanzang (602-664), an eminent monk of Tang Dynasty who made the trip totally on foot to seek the Sutra from the birthplace of Buddhism, the two monks will go both on foot and by the modern alternatives of railway, bus and even air.

The more efficient choices will shorten the 25,000-km journey which Xuanzang spent 17 years to complete to only four months.

A special Buddhism ritual was convened yesterday in Guangzhou, capital of south China's Guangdong Province, to mark the start of the journey of the two monks.

About 7,000 Buddhist believers prayed for the two monks at the ceremony, Xinhua news agency reported.

After the ritual, the two monks, who were heaped with blessings from 108 eminent monks from the Chinese mainland, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, left Guangzhou by train for Xi'an in northwestern Shaanxi Province, the place where Xuanzang set off.

"In preparing for deserts and high mountains that we might cross on the journey, we have had received one month's special physical training for out-door subsistence," Monk Mingxian said.

However, they will not have so much solitude when they make the journey as their trip will be fully televised and they will even write blogs on the trip.

They will travel through Pakistan and Nepal and are expected to arrive at Nalanda, the ancient centre of Buddhist learning, in mid-November.

In addition to religious studies in Nalanda during their stay, the two monks will present a handwritten sutra by famous Chinese calligraphers to the Indian temple.

"The trip is of great significance in religious and cultural exchanges between the two nations," Monk Mingxian said.

Xuanzang's pilgrimage to India, which was full of trials and tribulations, has become known to more people of coming generations in China largely through the classical fiction "Journey to the west", commonly known to western readers as "Monkey King".

Written by Wu Cheng'en (1510-1582), "Journey to the west" is one of the four Chinese literary classics. (PTI)

Oil prices turn higher again in Asian trade

SINGAPORE, July 20: Oil prices turned higher again in Asian trade today, after a sharp reverse overnight on the latest US inventory figures, as the market kept a wary eye on the Middle East following heavy Israeli attacks on Lebanon, dealers said.

The price gains also came in line with a change in contract, from August to September.

At 10:57 am (0827 IST), New York's main contract, light sweet crude for delivery in September, was at 75.17 dollars per barrel, up 40 cents.

The August contract closed at 72.66 dollars (rpt 72.66 dollars) after dropping as low as 71.65 dollars -- the lowest since the end of June -- in New York.

Brent North Sea crude for September was up 40 cents at 74.30 dollars.

The price falls overnight followed the latest United States Department of Energy (DoE) snapshot on energy stockpiles showed a bigger than expected rise in key gasoline (petrol) inventories.

"I think prices fell earlier because of the market's knee-jerk reaction to the slightly bearish DoE report," said Tonoy Nunan, manager for energy risk management at Mitsubish Corp's international petroleum business in Tokyo.

The DoE weekly report showed US crude oil inventories rose 200,000 barrels to 335.5 million barrels in the week to July 14. Analysts had expected a fall of 650,000 barrels.

Gasoline stocks jumped 1.5 million barrels to 214.2 million, compared with a predicted decline of 800,000 barrels, the DoE said. (AFP)

Pakistan cuts export refinance rate by one percentage point

KARACHI, July 20: State Bank of Pakistan, the country's Karachi-based central bank, cut the export refinance rate by one percentage point to 6.5 percent, the first decrease in more than two years, to boost exports.

"Exporters are facing stiff competition from India, Bangladesh and China and to provide a level playing field and to maintain the competitiveness, the interest rate was cut,'' Governor Shamshad Akhtar said. The last time the central bank cut the rate by one percentage point was in June 2004, when it was lowered to 2.5 percent.

The export refinance rate is the rate at which the central bank lends to commercial banks for loans to exporters. The central allows banks to charge exporters a maximum of 1.5 percentage points more than the refinance rate. (AGENCIES)

China's population of netizens zooms to 123 million

BEIJING, July 20: The number of Internet users in China touched 123 million on June 30 this year, an increase of 19.4 per cent from last year.

The growth rate was one per cent higher than last year, the China Internet Network Information Centre (CNNIC) said adding that there were 77 million broadband users in the country.

In 2005, China had 103 million netizens.

The number of netizens was up by 12 million during the first half of this year, twice as much as the same period last year, it said.

The number of broadband subscribers totalled 77 million, up from 53 million, nearly two-thirds of the total Internet population.

China is the second largest country in the world in terms of both Internet population and the number of broadband users, after the United States.

CNNIC said 30 million of the country's 200 million middle and primary school students, or 15.4 per cent, have access to the Internet. Each netizen spends a record 16.5 hours per week browsing the web.

While 15 million people use the Internet for education, 25 million use it for online employment information, it said.

"It is a good start, but we still anticipate a shorter route between the two destinations without passing Hong Kong, which will reduce the flying time to just one and a half hours," Xinhua news agency quoted the captain with the China Airlines as saying.

The cargo flight was a result of the negotiations held a month ago between civil aviation associations of both sides.

Under the agreement reached on June 14, air carriers across the strait will be allowed to transport equipment used by Taiwan-funded plants in Chinese mainland.

The agreement also approved three more chartered passenger flight programmes during traditional Chinese festivals in addition to the Spring Festival flight, which was launched in 2003.

"What we are expecting is the regular cargo and passenger flights, which will greatly benefit businessmen and improve peoples' communications across the strait," Chen said.

Direct links have been cut for over 50 years across the strait, while direct air links have become an urgent issue with the boom witnessed in the economic and trade relations between the two sides.

Beijing has taken great efforts to push forward two-way and comprehensive "three direct links" in mail, transport and trade across the Taiwan strait, urging Taipei to give up political concerns over the issue.

"It is in favour of the fundamental interests of Chinese compatriots living on the two banks to develop cross-strait economic ties with great efforts and realise direct links of mail, trade and transport services across the strait as early as possible," a senior Chinese leader, Jia Qinglin, said yesterday during a meeting with a Taiwanese delegation here. (PTI)

First direct Taiwanese cargo flight lands in China

BEIJING, July 20: The first direct cargo charter flight from Taiwan touched down in Shanghai early today, boosting trade ties and marking a new breakthrough in the tense relations between Taiwan and China.

A Boeing 747-400 from China Airlines, Taiwan's largest air carrier, landed in Pudong International Airport after just over two hours and 10 minutes of flight, bringing 61 tonnes of chip equipment to a factory established by a Taiwan company.

"The non-stop cargo flight is a step forward in connections between Taiwan and the mainland," vice president with Shanghai-based Taiwanese Businessmen Association, Chen Luyi said.

Four more chartered flights will continue to ship equipment for Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Ltd (TSMC) to build its 8-inch chip plant in this eastern Chinese metropolis.

The last plane is scheduled to arrive in Shanghai on August 10.

The initiative is considered an active move to cut down transportation costs and save time for Taiwanese firms because all cargo charter flights do not need to land in Hong Kong from now on, although they still have to fly via Hong Kong's airspace.

China views Taiwan as a rebel province that must be reunified with the mainland, even by force.

"The non-stop flight reduced our flying cost by one fourth," Kuoliang Tung, chief representative of China Airlines' Shanghai office, said. (PTI)

Indian firm to start new tyre plant in Sri Lanka next month

COLOMBO, July 20: Indian tyre major CEAT will commission a Rs 350 million radial tyre plant at its Sri Lankan unit next month.

Built alongside the existing CEAT plant in Kelaniya, the plant will be the only radial tyre project in the country, with an initial installed capacity of 26,000 tyres per month, the company said today.

The plant will initially focus on two ranges of radials - for cars and vans (which is currently the most sought after sizes in the local market).

"These products will cater to most models of cars and vans, providing motorists with tyres of international standard, that are matched to local road and usage conditions," CEAT Sri Lanka Managing Director Oscar Braganza said.

The Indian company currently dominates the local market, commanding over 50 percent of the pie in segments like trucks, light trucks, farm tyres and three wheelers.

CEAT Sri Lanka has tyre manufacturing plants at Kalutara and Kelaniya, with its product portfolio including tyres for trucks, buses, forklifts and heavy vehicles like payloaders, graders and backhoe loaders.

The company has exported till date over 1800 container loads of tyres to India, Dubai, Singapore, Philippines, Egypt, Africa and countries in the SAARC region. (PTI)

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Man charged with threatening former President Bill Clinton

OKLAHOMA CITY, US, July 20: A man was accused in an indictment of making threats against former President Bill Clinton.

James L Williford, 57, faces up to five years in prison and a USD 250,000 fine for allegedly making threatening remarks about Clinton at a chiropractic clinic in Edmond, Oklahoma, on July 12, it said in yesterday's indictment.

Three employees at the Edwards Chiropractic Clinic told investigators they heard Williford threaten to "bust a cap," or shoot, Clinton, according to an affidavit.

During an interview with Secret Service agents, Williford denied threatening Clinton but said he believed Clinton was "a communist mole for the Red Chinese," the affidavit said.

Williford, of Oklahoma City, also made violent remarks about celebrity Paris Hilton during the interview, the affidavit said. (AP)