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HANOI, Feb 6: Vietnam's foreign debt rate has fallen to 34 per cent of the country's gross domestic product (GDP) now, according to local newspaper Vietnam Investment Review today. Vietnam's GDP is estimated at 58 billion US dollars this year, and its external debts will be around 20 billion dollars, a report of the Vietnamese Finance Ministry was quoted as saying. "Such an amount is actually small in comparison to the safe limit of less than 50 per cent stipulated by international financial institutions, and reflects the economy's sustainable growth," said Vice Finance Minister Tran Van Ta. According to ratings of the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and international rating institutions, Vietnam's foreign debt is relatively sustainable and manageable.---AFP
ANZ banking on Asia push
SYDNEY, Feb 6: The Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ) is stepping up its push into Asia, with plans to begin exporting staff and technology to markets including Cambodia and Vietnam, a senior ANZ executive said today. ANZ Asia chief, Bob Edgar, who took over the position late last month, told The Australian newspaper in an interview that Australia's third largest lender wanted to ramp up the "post-investment phase" of its involvement across Asia. He said the group was shifting its priority from making exploratory investments in joint ventures to exporting manpower and skills. ---AFP
Australian job growth flat
SYDNEY, Feb 6: Job advertisements in major metropolitan newspapers in Australia fell 0.9 per cent in January in a further sign of a softening of employment growth in the country, the Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ) said today. Releasing its monthly survey of job advertisements, ANZ said the seasonally adjusted fall in newspaper employment ads was offset by a 6.2 per cent increase in internet job ads. Overall, job advertisements in both media rose 5.3 per cent in January from December to an average of 180,791 per week-a 24 per cent increase from a year earlier. ---AFP
Nikon top-line profits triple
TOKYO, Feb 6: Japan's Nikon reported Monday a three-fold increase in operating profit in the third quarter and raised its full-year outlook thanks to rising sales of digital cameras. At the same time, however, an absence of the one-off gains seen a year earlier led to a fall in net profit at Nikon, which last month announced plans to end production of all traditional film cameras in a shift to digital. Nikon is riding high on a wave of interest in single-lens reflex (SLR) digital cameras that has allowed it to weather cut-throat competition in the market for cheaper digital compacts. ---AFP
Ryanair sees Q3 profits dip
LONDON, Feb 6: Ryanair, the Irish no-frills airline, said Monday that net profits sank 21.2 per cent during its third quarter due to a soaring fuel bill and flat average fares. The Dublin-based also maintained a cautious outlook for the rest of its financial year. Net profit fell to 36.8 million euros (44.2 million dollars) in the three months to December 31, compared with 46.7 million euros in the same period the previous year, the group said in an official earnings release. ---AFP
JAL axes routes as quarterly losses triple
TOKYO, Feb 6: Japan Airlines, Asia's largest carrier, said Monday net losses almost tripled in the third quarter, forcing it to axe more routes to cope with soaring fuel costs and falling passenger numbers. JAL has been hit hard by waning public confidence following a series of safety lapses last year, while passenger numbers on routes to China have slumped in the wake of anti-Japan protests that broke out there in April. The airline posted a net loss of 11 billion yen (93 million dollars) for its third quarter to December, up from a loss of 3.7 billion a year earlier.---AFP
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