Economic headwinds hit pound

Economic headwinds hit pound

By Shyamantha Asokan and Peter Garnham

Published: August 29 2008 11:21 | Last updated: August 29 2008 18:42

The pound continued its recent slide this week as evidence mounted that the UK economy was headed for recession.

Earlier this month, a string of sobering economic data – including news the UK economy ground to a halt in the second quarter – weighed on the pound.

Sterling’s woes were compounded this week as figures showed UK house prices fell at their fastest pace since 1991 in August, while UK retail sales plunged to their lowest level in 25 years.

This raised expectations that the Bank of England, which is due to meet next week, would move to cut UK interest rates, further undermining the pound’s appeal to investors. “Sterling remains under broad based pressure following further bad news from housing and retail,” said Gabriel de Kock at JPMorgan. “The recent UK data have been universally bearish for the pound and the path of least resistance remains further weakness.”

The pound on Friday dropped to $1.8188 against the dollar, its weakest level in two years and taking its losses over the week to 1.7 per cent.

In August, the pound lost more than 8 per cent against the dollar, its weakest monthly performance since sterling’s ejection from the European Exchange Rate Mechanism in September 1992. Trade-weighted sterling, which measures the pound’s value against the currencies of the UK’s leading trading partners, dropped to a 12-year low.

Meanwhile, the pound dropped 1 per cent to £0.8075 against the euro on the week, within touching distance of the record low of £0.8097 it hit in April after the Bank of England cut interest rates.

Elsewhere, the dollar maintained its recent strong run, hitting a fresh six-month high of $1.4570 against the euro as the Ifo index of German business sentiment reported its worst results in three years.

The dollar has rallied during the past month as investors realised the credit crunch was having a more serious effect on countries outside the US than was previously thought. The dollar gave back some of its gains later in the week but still stood 0.7 per cent higher at $1.4670 on the week. Over the month, the dollar has risen 5.4 per cent against the euro, its strongest monthly rise since the creation of the single currency in 1999.

“The trend has turned,” said John Higgins at Capital Economics. “After a couple of weeks the dollar rebound appeared to be more than a blip, and investors are reconsidering fundamental currency valuations.”

Over the week, the dollar also rose 0.2 per cent to SFr1.1009 against the Swiss franc, climbed 1.2 per cent to $0.8562 against the Australian dollar and gained 1.6 per cent to C$1.0635 against the Canadian dollar.

The dollar lost ground against the yen, however, easing 1.2 per cent to Y108.63 as data showed Japanese consumer spending and industrial production rose by more than expected in July.

The data raised hopes for a rebound from the economic contraction of the second quarter. Tokyo also on Friday announced a $107bn fiscal stimulus package, which includes tax cuts and larger government-guaranteed loans.

The yen rose 2.8 per cent over the week to Y197.73 against the pound and gained 2 per cent to Y159.48 against the euro.

“The data, along with the evidence that at least the government is being pro-active in supporting the economy, are likely to keep the yen on a firm footing,” said Derek Halpenny at Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ.

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LEX: Sterling

Published: August 29 2008 14:51 | Last updated: August 29 2008 23:00

The pound has suffered its worst monthly fall against the dollar since the UK left the European Exchange Rate Mechanism in 1992. Sterling has dropped 8.2 per cent in August, not far off its 8.6 per cent tumble of October 1992. Back then, Norman Lamont, the chancellor of the day, sang in his bath, delighted at the liberation of the UK currency, which later proved a turning point for the economy. There is little today to prompt a similar reaction from Alistair Darling, his successor. At a 12-year, trade-weighted low, a weak pound will help stimulate exports, benefiting FTSE-100 companies more than domestically orientated FTSE-250 companies. But it will slow the pace at which the Bank of England can lower rates to head off the looming recession. The only song Mr Darling might usefully practice is perhaps the government’s funeral lament.

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Pound likely to continue fall

By Peter Garnham

Published: August 29 2008 22:39 | Last updated: August 29 2008 22:39

Currency analysts expect the pound to continue falling against the world’s major currencies, as speculation grows that the UK could be headed for recession.

Sterling has already confirmed pessimists’ fears by gradually sliding since the credit crunch started in 2007. It reached a 12-year low on a trade-weighted basis on Friday.

Ian Stannard of BNP Paribas thinks the pound will fall even further. He predicts sterling will be the worst-performing major currency over the next year as Bank of England rate cuts undermine sterling’s appeal to currency investors.

Central banks tend to lower interest rates when recession chances are high, because recessions usually reduce inflation.

Mr Stannard said: “So far, most of sterling’s losses have come against the dollar. But now we see its losses broadening out.”

The pound has dropped by more than 7 per cent against the dollar to $1.83 since the beginning of August. This reflects a turnround in the once ailing dollar’s fortunes, as the economic effects of the credit crisis – initially largely concentrated in the US – spread more deeply than first expected across the globe.

But recession fears also helped push the pound to a low of £0.8075 against the euro on Friday – within touching distance of April’s record trough of £0.8098.

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Sterling falls as recession fears grow

By Peter Garnham and Norma Cohen

Published: August 29 2008 22:03 | Last updated: August 29 2008 22:03

The pound has suffered its worst month against the dollar since sterling’s ejection from the European Exchange Rate Mechanism in September 1992 – a development certain to have knock-on effects for the UK economy.

Sterling has fallen over 8 per cent against the dollar since the start of August because of a growing conviction that the economy is headed for recession, according to currency traders.

The pound dropped to $1.8188 against the dollar on Friday. Trade-weighted sterling, which measures the pound’s value against the currencies of Britain’s main trading partners, dropped to a 12-year low.

Earlier this month, a string of sobering economic data – including news that economic growth ground to a halt in the second quarter – weighed heavily on the pound. The pound’s woes were compounded this week as figures showed house prices fell at their fastest pace since 1991 in August, while retail sales plunged to their lowest level in 25 years.

This raised expectations that the Bank of England, which is due to meet next week, would move to cut interest rates, further undermining the pound’s appeal to investors. A weaker pound is not necessarily all bad news for the economy. In June, British exports rose by 2.1 per cent month-on-month, suggesting that sterling’s decline over the past year is already kicking in.

Stephen Radley, economist for the EEF manufacturers’ body, said his members have benefited from the currency move. “Over the last year, there have been benefits to being weaker against the euro,” he said.

But a weaker pound also makes imported goods more expensive. If that rise in prices seeps into CPI inflation, it could discourage the Bank of England’s monetary policy committee from cutting rates to invigorate the economy.

“There is no hard and fast rule about the relationship between inflation and currency,” says George Buckley, UK economist at Deutsche Bank. Economies that depend little on imported goods may see little imported inflation. For the UK, where imports are nearly 30 per cent of GDP, the impact is greater than for the US, where imports account for around half that level.

There has been one clear benefit for the UK from a weaker pound, Mr Buckley said – although it is one which few businesses are talking about.

While import prices are growing at about 15 per cent annually, export prices are rising 20.3 per cent year on year, according to the latest data, as companies earn more in sterling terms from foreign sales. “Those firms who are experiencing growth in competitive terms are keeping their prices the same,” he said. “Most likely, suppliers who bill customers in euros see little reason to offer a price cut.”

But, while exporters may try to improve profit margins as the pound falls, this is unlikely to be sustainable, says Neville Hill, economist at Credit Suisse. The eurozone, which accounts for 50 to 60 per cent of UK exports, is looking very weak.

“Europe is going into a recession, too,” he said Exporters who cut prices to gain market share are only doing so in a flagging eurozone economy.

On the domestic front, he said, the lift to export demand from a weaker pound is only “marginally stimulative” at best. “

Few observers expect the pound to recover from its current slump so briskly.

“Sixteen years on and the backdrop is different,” said Simon Derrick at Bank of New York Mellon. “With growing evidence that the next move from the Bank of England will be to cut interest rates and difficult times ahead for the economy, it seems sterling’s downtrend could continue for some time yet.”

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Britain in grip of worst economic crisis for 60 years, admits Alistair Darling

By Andrew Porter, Political Editor
Last Updated: 10:58am BST 30/08/2008

Britain is in the grip of its worst economic crisis for 60 years, Alistair Darling has admitted.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer warns that the slump is going to be "more profound and long-lasting than people thought".

In an astonishingly frank interview, Mr Darling admits that voters are "p***** off" with Labour and says the party must recover the "zeal" which won it three successive general elections.

Since taking up the post, Mr Darling is said to have faced a crisis "every week", including the collapse of Northern Rock and the loss of millions of people's personal details from HM revenue & Customs.

Such is the public concern over the economic crisis, Mr Darling said that he has been challenged while filling up his own car by motorists demanding to know how he intends to improve the situation.

A wine waiter also warned him from ordering a second bottle of wine during a restaurant meal, he reveals.

The Chancellor, who had been tipped for a move in a possible Cabinet reshuffle later in the Autumn, also candidly admits that he is "not a great politician."

The article in The Guardian is a clear sign that Mr Darling is determined not to be blamed for Gordon Brown's troubles.

During the interview he claims people are trying to take his job and says they are "actively trying to do it," a remark that will be widely interpreted as a sideswipe at the Prime Minister.

There have been clear tensions between the Treasury and Number 10 in recent months and many of his comments will be read with dismay in Downing Street.

Mr Darling makes clear that he was not the source of a story earlier this month that he might temporarily suspend stamp duty in order to stimulate the housing market. The leak - which the Treasury suspects came from Downing Street - backfired and led to accusations that the uncertainty caused had actually caused home sales to stall.

The Chancellor says he has spent all his political life trying to avoid "this kind of interview". But his advisers have long claimed that he does not conform to his "boring" caricature and have chosen the eve of the new political season to improve his public image. However, many of his comments will be seized upon by his opponents.

Mr Darling says the economic times we are facing "are arguably the worst they have been in 60 years." "And I think it's going to be more profound and long-lasting than people thought," he adds. Further evidence that Britain is on the brink of recession emerged this week.

A report into house prices showed they had dropped 10 per cent in the last month - the biggest drop in prices since 1990.

And on Thursday David Blanchflower, a member of the Bank of England monetary policy committee, warned unemployment would hit two million by Christmas. Mr Darling admits Labour - currently 19 points behind the Tories in the latest Telegraph opinion poll - is in trouble.

He says: "We've got our work cut out," he said. "This coming 12 months will be the most difficult 12 months the Labour party has had in a generation, quite frankly.

"In the space of 10 months we've gone from a position where people generally felt we were doing ok to where we're certainly not doing ok.

"We've got to rediscover that zeal which won us three elections, and that is a huge problem for us at the moment - people are p***** off with us."

He adds: "I was at a filling station recently, and a chap said, 'I know it's to do with oil prices - but what are you going to do about it?' People think, well surely you can do something - you are responsible - so of course it reflects on me."

The Chancellor also said he heeded a warning from a waiter when out for dinner with friends recently not to have a second bottle of wine, seemingly because it would look like he was pushing the boat out while others were being forced to live more frugally.

A year on from the start of the credit crunch Mr Darling admits that the first time he really became aware of a problem was while on a Mediterranean holiday when he read a newspaper report about the European Central Bank ploughing billions of pounds into the money market.

In addition to the economic problems he has faced, Mr Darling also recalls the moment he discovered that millions of child benefit records contained on computer disks had been lost by the government.

"I just thought this is a disaster. This is terrible...I phoned Gordon up....We knew it was bad."

He takes aims at two of Labour's senior female figures, calling former Scottish leader Wendy Alexander "not likeable at all" and Cherie Blair's memoirs "awful."

And recalling the celebrations at the Millennium Dome - a project championed by New Labour - he says: 'Thank God I didn't have to go there on Millennium night."

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New data cast doubt on house price falls

By Norma Cohen

Published: August 29 2008 14:14 | Last updated: August 29 2008 23:09

The outlook for UK home prices was muddied on Friday by the release of official Land Registry data indicating that values have fallen far less than the high-profile Halifax and Nationwide surveys suggest.

According to the Land Registry, house prices in England and Wales were down only 0.6 per cent on the month in July, and down only 2 per cent on the year.

Although the annual drop was the highest since the series began in 2000, it is far lower than the double-digit declines for the UK shown by Halifax and Nationwide, the country’s two biggest mortgage lenders.

The differences persist even after allowing for the fact that the Land Registry does not include Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Selwyn Lim, managing director of Calnea Analytics, the consultancy that compiles the Land Registry and other indices (though not the Nationwide and Halifax offerings), said the discrepancies were worrying.

“It doesn’t seem to add up,” he said. “Even when data are adjusted to take time lags into account, the data do not match.

“With the current trajectory, I don’t see us catching up within three months,” Mr Lim added.

The Land Registry measures prices after the transactions are completed, whereas the Halifax and Nationwide survey prices when mortgages are approved.

Moreover, transactions may not be reported to the Land Registry for as long as three months after completion. That means there may be a lag until transactions are reflected in its survey, compared to the ones produced by the lenders.

In the statistical argument about which index to rely on, economists point out that lenders’ surveys have track records going back several decades and tell roughly the same story, adding to their credibility.

Both indices are based on similar methods, but use slightly different ways to transform the raw figures into indices intended to give a true picture of the market.

The advantage of the Land Registry data is that is is based on actual, completed transactions. However, it is a relatively small part of the total UK housing stock, as it only records houses that have changed hands at least once already since 2000.

Only 2 per cent of the nation’s housing stock turns over in an average year, a figure which is currently likely to be even lower.

Mr Lim said that current smaller number of transactions may be the single most significant variable. “This causes any biases to be exaggerated,” he said.

According to the latest data, the average price of a house in England and Wales stood at £178,364. Among property types, detached houses showed the biggest year-on-year drop, falling 2.3 per cent from July 2007.

In London, house prices are continuing to rise, albeit at a slower pace than before. London prices stood 1.7 per cent higher than those achieved a year ago.

The biggest year-on-year declines in English house prices were 5.1 per cent in the East Midlands and 3.8 per cent in the West Midlands. In Wales, house prices dropped by 4.4 per cent.

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Long View: Europe’s woes put paid to decoupling thesis

By John Authers, Investment Editor

Published: August 29 2008 20:18 | Last updated: August 29 2008 20:18

The axis of anxiety has crossed the Atlantic. For years, the source of greatest concern for the world’s economy was the US. After years of sustaining its very high standards of living only by going on a borrowing binge and letting its currency silently weaken, logic called for the American economy to lead the rest of the world into recession.

Meanwhile, Europe was supposed to keep the developed world’s economy afloat. Excess there may have been at its periphery – notably in Spain, Italy, Ireland and the UK – but the engine room of the European economy was supposed to be in good shape. The German corporate sector had gone through the necessary pain of restructuring, its housing market was well-behaved and it stood to benefit from the emergence of the former communist bloc nations to its east.

All of this formed part of the great decoupling thesis – that the rest of the world no longer relied on the US and its consumers to keep growing. Hence a slowdown in the US need not bring down the rest of the world with it.

This week brought the news that the German economy contracted in the second quarter. If the Ifo business survey is to be believed, confidence among industrialists has collapsed. That, in turn, implies the risk of an imminent recession.

Another casualty appears to be the popularity of the European Central Bank, which navigated the shoals of the credit crisis better than its counterparts. While the US Federal Reserve cut rates, risking a renewed dose of inflation in the process, the ECB concentrated on keeping money markets liquid and never dropped its guard against inflation.

Only in June, the ECB was prepared to shock the market by promising to raise its base rate, which is now 4 per cent, double the Federal Reserve’s target rate in the US.

But beyond showing its zeal against inflation, this also implied that it did not expect a sharp fall in growth. So, while the ECB may have dealt well with the initial credit crisis, its methods now appear to be counterproductive when it comes to dealing with the second stage of that crisis. Now that the contraction of credit has led, as widely expected, to a contraction in activity in the real economy, it becomes easier to question whether the ECB’s inflation-fighting zeal is appropriate.

It was an apparent acknowledgement by the ECB’s Jean-Claude Trichet that rates would not need to rise more that sent the euro into a sudden reverse earlier this month. After years of inexorable gains, the euro stabilised at a level close to $1.60 in March. At this point, it was more than double its level of late 2000, a remarkable shift in the world’s two most important currencies.

Its August fall has been swift and it has shed more than 9 per cent, dropping below $1.46 this week.

Similar trends are at work in the stock markets. Last spring, Absolute Strategy Research of London pointed out that European stocks overtook US stocks by market capitalisation for the first time. This used Datastream indices that, it should be noted, include all of Turkey and Russia in “Europe”. At one point this year, Europe’s equities were worth more than a trillion dollars more than the US.

Since the oil price turned down in mid-July, this trend has also been emphatically reversed. The S&P 500 has gained almost 9 per cent since then while the FTSE-Eurofirst has fallen slightly in dollar terms. According to Datastream, the US market is now worth $900bn more than Europe.

Hence it is tempting to ditch the decoupling thesis. However, the European and US economies do appear to have decoupled. The US economy managed to grow at more than 3 per cent in the second quarter of this year, far ahead of forecasts, and consumers’ confidence buoyed by cheaper oil prices, is strengthening.

So the two economies do appear to have decoupled. It is just that, against expectation, it is the US and its consumers that have grown and Europe that is in decline. This European slowdown cannot be blamed on the US consumer.

Where Europe and the US remain tightly coupled is in their financial systems. Europe’s problems stem from the high commodity prices and overvalued euro that came in the wake of the rate cuts that the Fed administered in at attempt to deal with the problems of the US banking system.

They could not take this action in a vacuum; while the Fed’s medicine seems to have kept economic activity going for now, it has sideswiped Europe.

And the advantage the Fed’s cheap money has gained for the US may be transitory. The buoyancy in US growth comes almost entirely from exports, which accounted for more than three percentage points of growth in the second quarter. Those gains owed much to the weak dollar, which has acted as a huge stimulus.

But that same weak dollar also critically damaged German exporters’ competitiveness. Now that this logic is playing out in a lower euro.

The European and US economies may find themselves coupled together again before long.

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Regional neighbours shiver alongside euro

By Shyamantha Asokan and Peter Garnham

Published: August 29 2008 22:17 | Last updated: August 29 2008 22:17

Just last month, a report by HSBC described the central and eastern European currencies as “rocket-fuelled”, noting that they were rapidly appreciating as the dollar fell.

As the euro stormed to record highs against the dollar in July, the currencies of countries such as Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic were faring even better. The Polish zloty, the Hungarian forint and the Czech koruna, seen as leveraged bets on the strength of the eurozone, even managed to notch up all-time highs against the rampant euro.

This is because a robust eurozone created a healthy export market for Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary while eurozone investors with money to spare were attracted by the high interest rates of their neighbours. But the euro has since fallen dramatically, losing more than 5 per cent against the dollar this month, as a series of poor eurozone economic data has heightened fears that the region is entering a recession.

This has hit the Polish zloty, the Hungarian forint and the Czech koruna even harder, pushing them down by 10.5 per cent, 8.2 per cent and 9.8 per cent respectively against the dollar, during August.

Tolga Ediz, of Lehman Brothers, says these countries benefited from eurozone buoyancy – during the boom time of the past five years, and also during the credit crunch. But now this is changing. “I don’t think investors have woken up to this change yet,” he says. “We have seen these currencies start to fall over the past two weeks but this trend will get a lot of traction in 2009.”

With exports accounting for up to 80 per cent of GDP in Hungary and the Czech Republic, according to the International Monetary Fund, such countries are vulnerable to a drop in demand from a slowing eurozone. The eurozone economy contracted in the second quarter for the first time since the single currency’s inception in 1999, according to figures released this month.

This has undermined the prospect of the European Central Bank increasing interest rates further from the current 4.25 per cent.

Central and eastern European homebuyers and companies have also been borrowing from western European banks to obtain credit at relatively low interest rates, thus creating further exposure.

“You have Hungarian mortgages in Swiss francs and Polish corporates borrowed as well,” says Mr Ediz. “The leverage has increased dramatically, so if those banks pull out they [the CEE countries] are in trouble.”

Central banks in the region have stopped raising interest rates, after a series of moves earlier this year to tackle inflation.

The Czech National Bank cut interest rates by 25 basis points to 3.5 per cent earlier this month. Meanwhile, Poland and Hungary both kept rates on hold this week, at 6 per cent and 8.5 per cent respectively, indicating that their tightening cycles had come to end. Many analysts expect the next move in interest rates to be down, as the focus of central banks shifts from inflation to fighting slower growth. But the prospect of lower yields will make these currencies less appealing to foreign investors.

Some analysts believe the CEE countries could welcome a depreciation in their currencies. “Czech exporters especially were feeling the pinch of a strong currency, so it was actually welcome when the koruna started weakening,” says Alan Rendell, of RBC Capital Markets. But they may not be happy if the process went too fast.

“These currencies are a geared play on the euro – and when the the euro goes down, people pull out of these positions quite dramatically,” says Mr Rendell.

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Wealth brings weighty problem for the Gulf

By Robin Wigglesworth in Abu Dhabi

Published: August 30 2008 03:00 | Last updated: August 30 2008 03:00

A few miles outside Dubai in the middle of the arid, shrub-dotted desert, scientists are doing their best to combat an unwelcome side-effect of the rapid modernisation of the Gulf - obesity.

Food engineers at Al Islami Foods, a halal foods company based in the Emirati city-state, are trying to boost the protein and cut carbohydrates and fat in their chicken burgers, sausages and sandwiches because of mounting concern over the health effects of unhealthy diets in the Gulf.

Generations ago, Gulf Arabs generally lived an ascetic, active lifestyle. Now, hydrocarbon wealth has bought access to luxury, household help, motorised transport and, above all, a carbohydrate rich diet. The result has been bulging waistlines and a proliferation in obesity associated diseases.

"Obesity is really affecting the population. As a stakeholder in this society we have to do something," says Saleh Abdullah Lootah, Al Islami's chief executive.

While many countries are struggling to contain the rise in overweight and obese inhabitants, and the resulting health implications, the Gulf's challenge is particularly acute.

In Kuwait, nearly three quarters of the population above the age of 15 are overweight or obese, the eighth worst rate in the world. Kuwait is closely followed by the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Qatar, according to statistics from the World Health Organisation.

Only the Pacific island of Nauru has a higher diabetes rate than the United Arab Emirates, which is closely followed by Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Kuwait.

"It's already an extremely serious problem considering that heart diseases and strokes are the number one killer," says Ala Alwan, assistant director-general of the WHO. "The prevalence of obesity in [the Gulf states] is among the worst in the world."

Physicians attribute the swift rise in obesity to increasingly sedentary lifestyles and a proliferation of cheap, easily accessible and unhealthy food.

The problem is worsened because Gulf Arabs have a genetic predisposition to develop diabetes at a lower BMI than other races, says Maha Barakat, an endocrinologist at Imperial College London Diabetes Centre in Abu Dhabi, the UAE capital. Doctors say diabetes is at the crux of the crisis. It acts as an accelerator for obesity related diseases such as high blood pressure, cardiovascular diseases and arthritis from carrying excessive weight. It can even cause blindness, as fat clogs up blood arteries in the eyes.

This is worrying Gulf governments, as healthcare costs are already expected to increase fivefold to $60bn by 2025, according to a report by McKinsey & Company, the consultancy. "It's very dangerous. They could end up spending fortunes treating [the side-effects of obesity]," says Maurice Faber, the head of Siemens Healthcare in the Middle East.

The authorities are starting to react. "We realise this is a serious problem," says Haidar Al Yousuf, a senior director at the Dubai Health Authority. As prevention is cheaper than treatment, "we want to prioritise more health awareness, talking about eating healthily, living healthily".

The UAE Ministry of Health has started a "comprehensive lifestyle modification programme" in schools, according to media reports, and campaigns encouraging healthy eating and exercise are proliferating.

But government sponsored awareness programmes might not be enough, the WHO warns. "It's a complex, multifaceted problem, and everyone has a role to play," says Dr Alwan.

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Alitalia seeks administration under rescue plan
AFP
AFP - Friday, August 29 09:33 pm

MILAN (AFP) - Alitalia said Friday that it has asked to be declared bankrupt and placed under special administration, the first step in a rescue plan that will see the struggling Italian flag carrier relaunched.
(Advertisement)

The airline said in a statement it had submitted a declaration of bankruptcy to a Rome court for approval.

Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's government named former finance minister Augusto Fantozzi as the special administrator for Alitalia following the announcement.

On Thursday, the government adopted a new bankruptcy bill which laid the groundwork for Alitalia's rescue by allowing failing companies to speed up certain procedures such as selling shares and laying off workers.

The bill also relaxed certain anti-trust rules so as to allow Italy's second carrier Air One to take part in Alitalia's rescue which will see its profitable operations moved into a new company financed by a series of new investors.

This company will form the basis for the new airline.

Its unprofitable businesses and debt will be taken over by another company.

On Thursday, Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi said the plan meant Alitalia would remain under Italian control, allowing foreign participation only on a minority basis.

"The management of Alitalia will remain in the hands of Italians," Berlusconi said. "Prospective foreign partners will take a stake (in the new company) only as minority shareholders."

Air France-KLM, which was spurned as a buyer in April, said Thursday it was ready to take a minority stake in the new company being set up to relaunch Alitalia.

Talks between Air France-KLM and Alitalia on a full takeover and rescue collapsed in April when the airline's future became an issue in elections won by Berlusconi who promised voters an 'Italian solution' to its problems.

Alitalia's debt reached 1.7 billion euros (2.5 billion dollars) by July 31, the company said in a statement Friday.

Italian media reported Tuesday that 16 investors had pledged to support the new company, including top names in Italian industry and finance, with a total commitment likely to be worth around one billion euros.

Economic daily Il Sole 24 Ore said Thursday the new company was expected to turn an operating profit of 250 million euros (370 million dollars) in 2011.

The daily La Repubblica said it would focus on short- and medium-haul routes, serving 140 destinations rather than the current 190, while up to 7,000 jobs would be cut.

Alitalia employs 11,100 people in its air transport operations and a further 8,300 in maintenance and services.

The company, in which the Italian state has a 49.9 percent stake, has been surviving on a loan of 300 million euros made in late April from public funds after the collapse of the takeover talks with Air France-KLM.

Roberto Colaninno, head of the Piaggio manufacturing group and designated to head the new company, told media on Friday that other than Air France-KLM, Germany's Lufthansa was also in line for minority participation.

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Minister reportedly sees Alitalia job losses under 5,000
Reuters
Reuters - 1 hour 5 minutes ago

MILAN (Reuters) - Layoffs at Alitalia should be less than 5,000, Italy's labour minister Maurizio Sacconi told la Repubblica newspaper in an interview published on Saturday.
(Advertisement)

Alitalia sought bankruptcy protection on Friday after nearly two years of hunting for a buyer, paving the way for its rescue by a group of Italian investors in a coup for Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.

The labour minister's estimate of layoffs is lower than reports have suggested for the collapsed airline.

"I hope they will be less" than 5,000, Sacconi said. He added that he could not give a figure for the cost of the layoffs because it would depend on the number and age of people leaving as well as other factors.

Alitalia filed for bankruptcy protection under a revised law that will facilitate the sale of its slots, planes and other usable assets to Italian investors.

The group could also take on about 88 million euros of debt, Il Sole 24 Ore newspaper said on Saturday.

The group is expected to put in as much as 1 billion euros -- well above Alitalia's last value on the stock market before its shares were suspended from trading.

Sacconi, who will kick off talks with Alitalia's unions on Monday, said it was up to adviser Intesa Sanpaolo, administrator Augusto Fantozzi and the Italian investor group to decide on a deadline for the discussions.

Private companies will be offered incentives to take on workers leaving Alitalia and Sacconi said public sector jobs would only be available on merit.

"Openings in the public sector will be on a competition basis. For the rest, it is up to the private sector," he said.

The group of investors, led by turnaround expert Roberto Colaninno, is likely to express formally its interest in Alitalia's assets in the next few days, newspapers reported on Saturday.

Il Messaggero said the offer would be valid for 45 days.

Air France-KLM , whose own bid to take over the flagship carrier was blocked by unions earlier this year, could invest about 200 million euros, Il Sole 24 Ore newspaper reported on Saturday, giving it a stake of 20 percent.

Corriere della Sera newspaper said Air France-KLM could take 20-25 percent.

Germany's Lufthansa is also tipped as a possible partner for a revived Alitalia.

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民も官も海外投資家詣で　資生堂など、中東アジアでＩＲ

　国内に収益の基盤を置く内需型企業が海外での投資家向け広報（ＩＲ）に力を入れている。資生堂ではＩＲ担当者が8月末にアラブ首長国連邦（ＵＡＥ）の機関投資家を訪問、伊藤園も中東やアジアでＩＲ活動を強化している。高成長が続く新興国は消費市場だけでなく、マネーの調達先として期待が大きい。日本国債でも財務省が海外で営業活動を積極化する。

　資生堂ではＵＡＥのアブダビで現地の有力投資家に事業内容や経営戦略を説明し、自社の株式の魅力を訴える方針。伊藤園は6月にＩＲ担当者がドバイとアブダビの機関投資家を訪問。「オイルマネーの存在感が高まっているうえ、将来のお茶の販売市場としての調査も兼ねた」という。

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合併自治体、特例債で交付税「稼ぐ」　07年度末までに326市町村

　「平成の大合併」で誕生した合併自治体の間で、合併特例債による基金で地方交付税を受け取る手法が広まっている。2007年度末までに43道府県の 326市町村が基金を設立、総額は4700億円に上る。基金積み立てに充てる特例債の元利償還の7割は国の交付税によって賄われ、最終的に交付税分は手元に残る。わずかな元手で“利益”を得られる格好の運用手段となっている。

　既に交付税の算定基準に繰り入れられる総額は3100億円を超える。国の財政事情が厳しく、交付税の総額を増やすのが困難な状況の下では、ほかの財政需要を削ってつじつまを合わせる必要が出てくる。

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消費者物価10年半ぶり高水準　年内2％台の見方

　7月の全国消費者物価指数（ＣＰＩ、生鮮食品を除く）の前年同月比上昇率がほぼ10年半ぶりに2％台に乗った。資源高を背景に相次ぐ食料品の値上げと、ガソリンなどエネルギー関連商品の価格高騰が家計を直撃した格好。市場では当面2％台に高止まりするとの見方が強く、家計の持久力が試されつつある。景気後退も鮮明になり、政府・日銀は警戒感を強めている。

　総務省が29日発表した7月のＣＰＩは前年同月比2.4％上昇。10カ月連続のプラスで、事前の市場予測（2.2％）も上回った。与謝野馨経済財政担当相は同日の記者会見で「物価上昇の打ち止め感はもてない」と指摘した。

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新銀行東京、最終赤字37億円　4―6月

　経営再建中の新銀行東京（東京・新宿）が29日発表した2008年4―6月期決算は最終赤字が37億円（前年同期は36億円の最終赤字）だった。金融庁が5月に着手した検査の内容を一部しか反映していないため、不良債権の処理損失は19億円と前年同期とほぼ同額にとどまった。09年3月期は従来予想通り 126億円の最終赤字の見通し。

　本業のもうけである実質業務純益は17億円の赤字（同12億円の赤字）だった。店舗集約や人員削減で経費を減らしたが、多額の不良債権を生んだ金利の高い中小企業向け融資を圧縮し、利ざやが減った。

　6月末の不良債権残高は325億円と、3月末から20億円増えた。不良債権比率は12.63％（3月末は12.7％）だった。

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三菱重、原発機器を増産　150億円投資、期間も短縮

　三菱重工業は原子力発電機器の生産体制を増強する。兵庫県明石市の主力工場に約150億円を投じて、原子炉容器など主要機器の生産能力を2倍に高める。高速加工機の導入や設計の見直しで、生産期間も約3割短縮する。2010年代半ば以降に海外で原発の建設が活発になるため、受注増に備えて生産面での競争力を高める。

　原子炉容器などを製造する二見工場（兵庫県明石市）で工場棟を拡張、増設する。生産スペースを現在の2.5―3倍に広げ、大型工作機械など設備も増強する。2009年1月に着工し11年半ばに完成する予定。年間生産能力を現状の1基から2基に引き上げる。

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飲料大手が輸送効率化　アサヒ飲料は自販機の補充量予測

　ビール・飲料大手各社は相次いで商品の輸送効率向上に取り組む。アサヒ飲料は自動販売機への補充量を予測する情報システムを10月に導入、補充を合理化する。サントリーなどは工場の生産品目を拡充することで輸送距離を短縮する。原材料と燃料の価格上昇が続くなか、生産工程でのコスト削減が難しいため、輸送費を削減する。

　アサヒ飲料は13億円を投じて自販機管理システムを刷新、10月から全22万台の自販機に導入する。配送担当者が持つ携帯端末が営業所のサーバーから過去の販売データを無線で受け取り、販売量を予測する。通常は1週間に1―2回行う補充が不必要な商品を確認できる。

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松下、海外事業強化へ　福井前日銀総裁が助言

　松下電器産業は9月に新設する経営諮問機関「グローバルアドバイザー会議」のメンバーに、前日銀総裁の福井俊彦氏を招くことを決めた。新興国など海外展開を加速する際に、マクロ経済や世界情勢に精通する福井氏に助言してもらうのが狙い。メンバーには福井氏のほか海外の閣僚経験者や有識者ら計5人程度が就任する見通し。

　福井氏は1958年に日銀に入行し94年に副総裁に就任。富士通総研理事長を経て、2003年から今年3月まで日銀総裁を務め、ゼロ金利解除など金融政策の転換を主導した。

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ＮＴＴ東、全社員対象に在宅勤務　次世代ネット活用

　ＮＴＴ東日本はグループの全社員約5万人を対象にした在宅勤務制度を2009年度にも導入する。安全性の高いとされる次世代ネットワーク（ＮＧＮ）を活用して機密性を高めた上で、営業や通信設備の保守要員など全職種に適用する。間接部門の社員3万人が対象の松下電器産業などを上回り、国内最大規模となる。働く時間を自由に選んでもらい、社員の意欲を引き出すことで生産性を高める。多様な働き方を促す仕組みがさらに広がりそうだ。

　在宅勤務を希望する社員には自宅に情報が残らないようにするため、記憶装置のない「シンクライアント」と呼ばれるパソコンを貸与し、職場と同じ環境で業務ができるようにする。報告書の作成など職種ごとに在宅でできる業務を具体的に示して在宅勤務を促す。

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三菱地所や清水建設など、企業に不動産の活用提案

　建設・不動産各社が、企業の土地や建物を活用した再開発などのコンサルティング事業に参入する。三菱地所が開発を提案・受注する総合サービスを始めたほか、清水建設や日本土地建物は資産価値を高める支援事業を拡充する。国際会計基準への対応から土地・建物など資産の有効活用をめざす企業が増えている。マンションなど不動産市況の冷え込みで取引が低迷するなか、建設各社は新たな市場を開拓する。

　三菱地所は企業の保有不動産を一元管理できるソフトを開発。ビルや工場、土地などの収益力を算定し、簿価に見合った稼働状況にあるかどうかを割り出す。適正水準を満たしていない場合は、地価の低い場所への移転や資産処分、再開発などを提案する。

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ダイキン、独暖房メーカーを買収　欧州事業売上高5倍めざす

　ダイキン工業はドイツの暖房機メーカー、ローテックス（ギュグリンゲン市）を約100億円で買収する。10月1日までに同社の全株式を取得する方針で、欧州での販路を拡大するのが狙い。欧州では環境対策として暖房を燃焼式から空調式に切り替える動きが広がる見通しで、ドイツ以外でも同様の買収を進める。 2010年度には欧州での暖房分野の売上高を現在の5倍となる500億円に引き上げる。

　ローテックスはミュンヘンやシュツットガルトに工場を持つ中堅の暖房機メーカー。売上高は約100億円で、熱の回収効率が良い石油・ガスストーブをドイツ全域で生産・販売している。

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陸自隊員24人が火薬なめ入院　茨城で訓練中

　29日午後5時10分ごろ、茨城県城里町の陸上自衛隊の訓練場で、陸自古河駐屯地（同県古河市）の2等陸士24人が訓練中に火薬を口に入れ、うち5人が中毒でけいれんを起こした。14人が救急車で病院に運ばれたが、いずれも命に別条はないという。

　防衛省によると、訓練中に教官の3等陸尉が「爆薬をなめてみたい者がいるか」と聞いたことが原因と分かった。なめた24人が検査のために入院したという。

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“ぶって姫”拘束強奪…「マダムキラー」菅

新党夢散、民主ニンマリ

　「ぶって姫」の異名をとる姫井由美子参院議員をめぐり、小沢一郎代表率いる民主党と、反小沢の急先鋒・渡辺秀央代表が立ち上げた新党「改革クラブ」が前代未聞の姫強奪バトルを展開した。新党側が、不倫騒動を引きずる姫を取り込もうとした背景は、約１億２０００万円という“輿入れ金”（政党助成金）目当てだったともされる。「平成の関ヶ原」に備える民主党としても、自民党の援軍となりそうな新党側の軍資金を増やすことは許せなかったようだ。

　「姫井氏は、くノ一ばりの活躍をしてくれた」

　民主党幹部は一連の姫強奪バトルを総括して笑った。その真意は後述するとして、２９日の改革クラブ結成会見は見ものだった。

　代表の渡辺氏が新党の理念などを延々と説明したが、記者団の関心は「女性局長」の肩書を得ながら、無断欠席した姫井氏に集中した。

　渡辺氏は「姫井さんが、なぜ遅れているのか分からない。昨日の夜、テレビに出るので美容院の方をホテルに呼んでいたのだが…。私たちは一昨日、署名し捺印した。血判と同じだ。みんなで誓い合った。何かの事故があったんだろう」と困惑気味に語り、会場からは失笑が漏れた。

　ひな壇に並んだ大江康弘、荒井広幸、松下新平の３参院議員も首をひねり、緊張感のかけらもない船出となった。

　２８日夜、渡辺氏や姫井氏らは東京・紀尾井町のホテルニューオータニで食事をしながら打ち合わせをした。２９日午前零時ごろ会合は終わり、姫井氏はタクシーで帰宅した。これが新党側が姫井氏と接触した最後だった。２９日朝から、姫井氏の携帯電話がつながらなくなったのだ。

　会見終了後、渡辺氏らは警察に姫井氏の捜索願まで提出した。参院での与野党逆転に苦しみ、新党結成を歓迎していた首相官邸も情報収集にあたった。

　実はそのころ、姫井氏は民主党の説得工作に応じていた。

　２９日朝、民主党の菅直人代表代行が電話で姫井氏に接触。同日午後、鳩山由紀夫幹事長と輿石東参院議員会長を交え、４人で話し合った。

　菅氏は言葉を尽くして、「普通の見方では、自民党が民主党から引き抜いたように見える」「岡山の支援者も納得しないだろう」「姫井氏には今後、民主党で大いに活躍してほしい」と優しく口説いた。

　不倫騒動などが響き、姫井氏は民主党内で完全に孤立していた。同僚の女性議員からも敬遠され、党内に居場所がなかった。

　そうした姫井氏の寂しさに、新党側やそれを支援した自民党の二階俊博経産相らが巧みにつけ込み、一度は籠絡した。

　対して、菅氏らは「離党の第２弾」を防ぐため、姫井氏に翻意を促した。姫井氏は、かつて「マダムキラー」と呼ばれた菅氏の説得を受け入れて、２９日夜、離党を撤回する会見に臨んだ。

　大江氏は「（民主党は）こういうやり方で議員の信念を抑えつける、怖い政党だ。そういう体質が嫌だった」と無念さをにじませたが、後の祭りだった。

　前代未聞の姫強奪戦は、こうして一件落着した。

　お騒がせ姫をめぐり、民主党幹部がほくそ笑み、新党側が落胆したのには、単なる参院での１議席だけでない理由がある。姫井氏が参加しないことで、新党側に入るはずの政党助成金がなくなったのだ。

　政党助成金の対象政党は「国会議員が５人以上」、または「国会議員が１人以上かつ国政選挙で得票率２％以上」。当初、改革クラブはこの条件に合致しており、年内に衆院選がなければ、来年から年間約１億２０００万円が支給されるはずだった。

　渡辺、大江両氏にとって、民主党時代は国会対策費や会合費として徴収されていた立法事務費が全額（１人当たり月額６５万円）懐に入るのはうれしいだろうが、やはり政党助成金がこないのは痛い。

　大江氏は「新しい仲間を早急に集めたい」と語ったが、姫を籠絡できなかったことは、今後の新党の先行きに不安を残した。

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“ぶって姫”総スカン…岡山県連「裏切り」除名処分も

片山氏「特別な感情はない」

　事務所スタッフや後援会幹部にも一切知らせず突如、民主党に離党届を提出して新党「改革クラブ」への参加を表明した姫井氏＝岡山選挙区。昨夏の参院選で初当選し、民主党大勝利の象徴になったが、その後は一転、スキャンダルにさらされ続けてきた同氏の“ご乱心”だけに、関係者からは総スカン状態となっている。

　姫井氏は昨年７月の参院選で「姫の虎退治」をキャッチフレーズに、自民党の片山虎之助氏を破って初当選。しかし当選直後から、不倫相手に週刊誌上で「“ぶってぶって”とせがまれた」などと赤裸々な性癖を暴露されるなどスキャンダルが続出。これらの対応をめぐり党県連から厳重注意を受けたほか、年末には不倫問題に触れた著書出版をめぐり、執行部との対立が表面化していた。

　このため、今回の“姫のご乱心”を冷ややかに見る関係者は多く、民主党参院幹部は「県連副代表を辞任させられて以降、党に居づらくなり、今回の新党結成話に飛びついたのだろう」と話し、同党若手も「党に残っていても、次期参院選の当選は厳しいと考えただけ」と冷ややかに語る。民主党岡山県連内でも、今回の行動に理解を示す役員は皆無で、「１年で離党とは完全な裏切り行為だ」と除名処分を求める声が挙がっており、姫井氏の参加を容認した渡辺秀央代表の真意をはかりかねている。

　姫井氏ら新党メンバーは２９日午後に会見を行うが、姫井氏に敗れた片山氏は同日朝、夕刊フジの取材に応じ、「『虎退治』などという形で当選された以上、岡山県民が納得するまで説明をする義務があるはず。個人的には、あくまで姫井議員の信念に基づく行動であり、特別な感情はない」と語った。

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姫井参院議員：新党「ドタキャン」　切り崩し「水際阻止」　民主党に安堵感

　民主党の渡辺秀央参院議員らによる新党「改革クラブ」は、参加を予定していた姫井由美子氏が執行部の説得に応じて不参加を表明したことで、一夜にして政党要件を失った。自民党側の「切り崩し工作」を背景とする新党の動きに対し、民主党側が応戦に転じた形。渡辺氏らは欠けた１人分の穴埋めを急ぐ構えだが、小沢一郎代表の求心力低下を未然に防いだ鳩山由紀夫幹事長ら党執行部には安堵（あんど）感が漂った。【野口武則、山田夢留】

　２９日午後６時半から党本部で急きょ開かれた姫井氏の会見には、菅直人代表代行、鳩山幹事長、輿石東参院議員会長ら執行部がずらりと顔をそろえ、姫井氏の離党撤回表明に拍手を送った。

　「新党は自民党による民主党切り崩しの受け皿だと分かった」。姫井氏はこわばった表情で語り「軽率な行動だった」と反省の弁を述べた。

　民主党執行部はこの日、姫井氏への説得工作に動いた。まず菅氏が姫井氏と電話協議。菅氏が輿石、鳩山両氏に声をかけ、３人で姫井氏に翻意を促した。

　とりわけ、菅氏は言葉を尽くして姫井氏の説得にあたった。「姫井さんは民主党にプラスになると見たようだが、普通は『自民が民主から引き抜く』と見える」と指摘。「これから民主党の中で大いに活躍してもらいたいと思っています」と激励までした。

　この間、姫井氏は渡辺氏らと一切音信不通のまま会見も欠席。会見に備えてホテルに呼ばれていた美容師は待ちぼうけを食わされた。

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　渡辺氏らは携帯電話を鳴らしても反応しない姫井氏の捜索願を警察に出したが、新党参加撤回が分かって肩を落とした。

　大江康弘参院議員は東京都内で記者団に対し「民主党は怖い政党だ。そういう体質が嫌だ」と述べ、党執行部からの「巻き返し」が功を奏したことに悔しさをにじませた。

　渡辺氏らの新党結成の動きの背景にあったのは、参院での過半数を奪い返したい自民党側の働き掛けだった。中心となったのは、大江氏と同じ和歌山県議出身の二階俊博経済産業相とされる。参院側では、矢野哲朗前参院国対委員長が「参院に第３極を作る」と公言し、「中の島新党構想」を掲げていた。

　二階、矢野氏らは当初、今春の道路特定財源問題を巡る政局で「一本釣り」を画策。この時点では頓挫したが、「次のタイミングは臨時国会開会時」（周辺）と手ぐすねを引いていた。矢野氏は今月上旬、就任間もない麻生太郎幹事長に対し「バックアップしてほしい」と依頼。麻生氏も快諾したという。
　◇「参院本来のあり方追求」－－改革ク結成会見

　渡辺秀央元郵政相ら参院議員４人は２９日、東京都内の憲政記念館で新党「改革クラブ」結成の記者会見を開いた。代表に就任した渡辺氏は「参院の本来のあり方を追求したい」と決意を述べた。党の方針として「党議拘束を外す」などを掲げたが、具体的な政策は示さなかった。会見には、渡辺氏のほか大江康弘、荒井広幸、松下新平の参院議員３人も出席した。【小山由宇】
　◇政党交付金もらえず

　公職選挙法上、（１）国会議員５人以上（２）前回の衆院選・参院選の選挙区または比例代表の全国得票率が２％以上－－のいずれかを満たすことが政党の要件。「改革クラブ」から姫井由美子参院議員が離脱するとメンバーは４人となり、どちらの要件も満たさず、政党助成法上、政党交付金も受けられない。一方、参院で会派を作るには先例で「２人以上」となっている。

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ギョーザ事件：中国が捜査方針転換、「国内混入」を追及

　６月に中国国内でも発生していたことがわかった中国製冷凍ギョーザ中毒事件で、中国の捜査当局が従来の方針を転換し、中国国内での毒物混入の可能性を含めた捜査を進めている。胡錦濤国家主席が捜査の加速と真相究明を指示したことを受けたものだ。製造元の天洋食品工場内での混入かどうかが、焦点となっている。日中の外交当局は、捜査当局同士の連携を進めているが、「食の安全」にかかわる問題だけに、日本側の積極的な情報公開も求められている。

　中国公安部は２８日、日本に捜査情報を正式に伝達した際、冷凍ギョーザの生産過程を含めて調査していることを伝え、事実上、中国国内での混入の可能性を認めた。中国の中毒事件のギョーザが市場では流通しておらず、被害者が天洋食品関係者の可能性があることも伝えてきており、同社工場内での毒物混入の可能性も示唆した。また、日本の中毒事件と同じくメタミドホスが原因であることも認め、中国公安部は詳細な毒物分析を進めていることも明らかにした。

　中国は、北海道洞爺湖サミットでの日中首脳会談を控えた７月初めに、６月の中毒事件発生を日本側に通報。北京五輪が閉幕し、９月の日中韓首脳会談を控えたタイミングで、再び捜査情報を伝えてきた。日中関係の節目ごとに、中国の協力姿勢をアピールする狙いとみられる。

　今月１７日の日中外相会談では、中国が国内での毒物混入の可能性を否定し、連携がうまくいっていなかった両国の捜査当局間で、情報交換を促進することで合意。日中外交当局は、捜査の進展をにらみつつ、捜査結果を公表するタイミングを計っていくとみられる。

　外務省は３０日、一部報道を否定する形で、「中国政府が、中国国内で起きた中毒事件について、毒物が中国国内で混入した可能性が高いことを正式に認めた旨、日本政府として、中国政府から情報の提供を受けたことはない」とするコメントを発表。あくまで中国政府の正式な見解を待つ姿勢を示している。

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知りたい！：外国人観光客、５年で３００万人増　平成ジャポニスム？

　日本を訪れる外国人観光客が増えている。浅草など伝統的な観光地に加え、アニメやコミックといった「オタク文化」を目的としたツアーがはやり、１００万円単位の高額消費をするアジアの富裕層が増えるなど様変わり。ユーロ高・円安の影響で欧州からの旅行者も多いという。【中川紗矢子】
　◇ユーロ高欧州からアキバツアー／中国のニューリッチ、銀座で「散財」

　メイド喫茶のウエートレスたちがチラシを配る東京・秋葉原の繁華街に、外国人が多く訪れる人気スポット「アソビットキャラシティ」がある。１～５階すべてが、コミックやアニメグッズ、フィギュア（人形）など１万超のアイテムで埋め尽くされている。

　同店によると、客の３割は外国人で、欧米人が多い。インターネットで情報収集しては買いに来るらしく、４万～５万円分を購入していく人もいる。スペイン人の２０代男性２人組は「アニメやコミックが好き。キャプテン翼やドラゴンボールのグッズを買いました」と喜んだ。

　ＪＴＢグローバルマーケティング＆トラベルは今年３～４月の６日間、アニメ好きを対象にしたツアーを企画。米、ギリシャ、仏、スペイン、メキシコから２０～４０代の計３６人が参加した。

　ＪＴＢ広報室によると、外国人には浅草などの日本的な場所が好まれるが、２０～４０代の層には新しい日本の魅力を知る人が増え、コスプレ衣装やメイド喫茶といった秋葉原文化が人気を集めている。「ユーロ高・円安の影響で欧州からの旅行者が増えている」とも話す。

　一方で目立つのは、消費力のあるアジア富裕層だ。人気の買い物スポット・銀座には、アジア系外国人観光客が目立ち、三越広報によると、中国のキャッシュカード「銀聯（ぎんれん）カード」の０７年度の銀座店での売上額は前年度比約１０倍で、今年度も近い伸びを示している。旅行者は中国の景気が良くなった０６～０７年ごろから増えてきた。

　台湾などのアジア諸国で有名なＪＲ御徒町駅近くの総合ディスカウントショップ「多慶屋」には、連日多くの観光バスが横付けされる。食品や家電、ブランド品などアジア観光客が好む多様な商品を網羅しているのが魅力。北京の徐勝強さん（３１）は「国内の景気が良くて所得が増えている。お金を使うために日本に来た。デジカメとゲーム機を買った」と話した。

　同店によると、中国人観光客は数百万円の腕時計を複数買っていくなど単価も高く、免税実績の８割５分が中国人による。「中国語のネーティブスピーカー１４人（うち２人は韓国語もできる）で対応している」（スタッフ）

　日本政府観光局によると、外国人観光客は、０３年に政府が「ビジット・ジャパン・キャンペーン」を始めてからの５年間で計３００万人増加し、０７年は８３５万人。今年６月までの上半期で、前年同期比１０％増の４３３万７０００人が来日した。

　松本大学の佐藤博康教授（観光ホスピタリティー）は「外国の高評価で日本の若者のサブカルチャーが見直されている。観光客増加は、外貨獲得のお得な形でもある」と歓迎する。

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破たん：米地銀インテグリティー・バンク　今年１０件目

　米連邦預金保険公社（ＦＤＩＣ）は２９日、ジョージア州当局が同州の地方銀行インテグリティー・バンクの業務を停止したと発表した。銀行破綻（はたん）は今年１０件目。同行の６月末時点での総資産は１１億ドル（約１２００億円）、預金量は９億７４００万ドル。

　ＦＤＩＣとアラバマ州の地銀リージョンズ・バンクが資産の一部を引き継ぎ、連休明けの９月２日に業務を再開する。

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Population evacuated from zone near Ukrainian military base

28.08.2008, 11.22

KIEV, August 28 (Itar-Tass) -- A total of 6, 500 people have been evacuated from a three-kilometer zone around ammunition depots near Lozovaya railway station, the press service of the Ukrainian Ministry for Emergency Situations reported Thursday.

Railway trains pass through the troubled zone in accordance with an emergency reserve schedule; life support and medical centers were set up in the emergency zone. Preliminary reports said there were no casualties.

More than 1, 500 rescuers and army servicemen, around 270 fire fighting facilities and a helicopter have been deployed in the fire zone. By Thursday morning explosions continued with a different degree of force. Ammunitions fragments do not go beyond the territory of the Ukrainian base.

Passenger trains have been running to bypass the station of Lozovaya, Ukrainian Transport Minister Iosif Vinsky said on Thursday. The routes of a number of passenger trains have been changed "just in case, " but freight trains continue direct routes through Lozovaya, Vinsky said.

The Ukrainian Ministry for Emergency Situations keeps the situation in the zone of fire at the army ammunitions depots under control, said Kharkov regional department chief for emergency situations Vladimir Rasokha. Only armored vehicles can operate in the fire zone Thursday, Rasokha said. The Ukrainian Defense Ministry has sent five fire fighting tanks to the fire zone. The Losovaya railway stastion is situated five kilometers from the ammunition depots where the fire broke out on Wednesday.

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Georgia breaks diplomatic ties with Russia, to keep consular relations

TBILISI, MOSCOW, Aug 29 (Prime-Tass) -- Georgia has broken diplomatic ties with Russia but intends to keep consular relations, Georgian Deputy Foreign Minister Grigol Vashadze said Friday, ITAR-TASS reported.

"Georgia is cutting diplomatic ties with the Russian Federation," he said. "In such situations, Russian diplomats will have to leave Georgia."

Georgia’s decision to sever diplomatic ties with Russia comes in the wake of the military conflict between the two earlier this month.

The Russian Foreign Ministry responded to the move by saying that it wouldn't help ease tensions in the wake of that conflict.

"We regret this step from the Georgian side. It will not assist our bilateral relations," Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Andrei Nesterenko said, ITAR-TASS reported.

On Thursday, the Georgian parliament called for the government to cut diplomatic ties with Moscow over Russia's "occupation of Georgian territory."

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If EU introduces sanctions against Russia, Europe will have severe problems with fuel
29.08.2008 Source: Pravda.Ru URL: http://english.pravda.ru/russia/economics/106243-russia_europe-0

French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner stated that the European Union would be discussing two variants of sanctions against Russia at a forthcoming summit. The Polish variant stipulates the introduction of rather tough measures, whereas the Italian variant contains only abstract criticism of Russia’s actions.

The soft variant contains a requirement to pull out Russian troops from the territory of Georgia, from the port of Poti and buffer zones. In addition, the EU will ask for guarantees from Russia not to use its present line of behavior against other countries.

The tough variant of the document stipulates the introduction of financial and economic sanctions against Russia. According to this draft resolution, the EU may recommend large business to cut its financial investments in Russia and recognize the Russian market as highly unstable and risky. To make matters worse, the European Union may recommend European banks not to loan up Russian banks and companies.

Moscow hopes to conduct negotiations with several of its European partners in an attempt to push them to abstract formulations and abstain from sanctions.

The talks will most likely be conducted with Moscow’s potential allies – Germany, Italy, Spain, France and Finland. Russia may offer these countries a change of the Russian stance on the Iranian problem and economic preferences in return to their support.

Europe may suspend the talks on the partnership and cooperation agreement and activate efforts aimed to diversify fuel shipments to Europe.

The first measure does not seem to be of much importance to Moscow, although the second one can be quite dangerous. Russia may have severe problems with its gas pipeline projects known as the Northern Stream and the Southern Stream. In addition, Europe will most likely decide to accelerate the implementation of the Nabucco project that will deliver Caspian hydrocarbons to Europe bypassing Russia.

If Europe eventually decides to introduce sanctions against Russia, at least one Russian oil company may reduce crude shipments to Europe at Russian government’s request.

Russia may cut its oil shipments particularly to Poland and Germany. A reduction may occur already on September 1, Reuters reported with reference to British media. It is worthy of note that Prime Minister Putin stated in his recent interview with CNN that Moscow would not reduce its oil and gas shipments to Europe because Russia depends on its customers, just like the customers depend on Russia’s resources.

Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov described the idea of European sanctions against Russia as “a product of ill imagination.” Russia’s ambassador to the European Union, Vladimir Chizhov, urged the EU to abstain from the sanctions against Moscow.

It has just been reported that the European Union leaders will not decide on sanctions against Russia at a summit Monday in Brussels.

A high-ranking official in President Nicolas Sarkozy's office says that for now "we don't foresee any sanctions decided on by the European Council,” the AP reports.

The official acknowledges that some countries are pushing for sanctions against Russia over its crisis with Georgia. But Sarkozy's office believes Europe must concentrate now on pressuring Russia to apply a cease-fire agreement. France currently holds the EU presidency. The official spoke Friday on condition of anonymity because of office policy. He elaborated on remarks by France's foreign minister, who has said sanctions were being considered.

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Moscow court annuls 2nd marriage of late Georgian tycoon

13:16 | 29/ 08/ 2008

MOSCOW, August 29 (RIA Novosti) - A Moscow court has ruled to annul the second marriage of the late Georgian tycoon Badri Patarkatsishvili to a Russian woman, a lawyer for the tycoon's widow said on Friday.

Patarkatsishvili's total wealth was estimated at around $12 billion at the time of his death in Surrey, England on February 12.

Inna Gudavadze had demanded that the court annul Patarkatsishvili's 1997 marriage to Olga Safonova, as the businessman had married Gudavadze in 1979, and the first marriage remained in effect.

"The court has met our appeal and recognized the marriage with Olga Safonova as illegitimate," Ivan Kochubei said.

Gudavadze's lawyers earlier said the lawsuit was aimed at clarifying claims to the late businessman's estate.

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秋田弁ピンチ　子どもは共通語使う傾向　明海大調査

2008年8月30日18時1分

　秋田弁がピンチだ。秋田の子どもたち（少年層）は都市部を中心に方言を話さなくなり、青森や山形と比べ共通語化が進んでいると、専門家が調査をもとに指摘している。

　調査は、明海大の井上史雄教授（社会言語学）らが０４年、０５年に実施、この春、結果がまとまった。青森から富山まで主に日本海沿岸の鉄道駅周辺７３地点で、中学生主体の少年層、２０、３０歳代の若年層、４０、５０歳代の中年層、６０、７０歳代の高年層の４世代別に１人ずつ、普段使っている言葉を聞いた。調査総数は約２５０人。

　「かわいい」を何というか。青森はほぼ全世代で、「めごい」だった。山形は「めんこい」や「めっこい」が目立つ。一方、県内では、若年層以上は「めんけ」が多いが、少年層は「かわいい」がほとんどだった。

　「見ている」はどうか。青森では「みてら」、山形は「みっだ」が全世代で多い。県内は、若年層以上で「みてら」や「みった」が交ざるが、少年層は「見ている」か「見てる」だった。

　「分からない」についても、「わがんね」や「わがらね」などの方言が残っているのは、青森、山形の全世代と県内の若年層以上。県内の少年層は「分かんない」が多数派だった。

　そのほか、「とうもろこし」や「びり」「さようなら」「強かった」など、多くの調査項目で、主に秋田市中心部の１０歳代が共通語または、それに近い言葉を使う傾向が見られた。

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月刊現代が休刊へ　ネット普及で部数低迷、週刊誌も態勢見直し
2008.8.30 18:24
「月刊現代」の休刊を決めた講談社＝東京都文京区音羽「月刊現代」の休刊を決めた講談社＝東京都文京区音羽

　講談社発行の月刊誌「月刊現代」が休刊することが３０日わかった。読者が高齢化し、部数低迷が続いたことなどが理由という。同社は１日にも発表する。

　インターネットの普及で、紙媒体の読者離れが進み、月刊誌だけでも５月に「主婦の友」（主婦の友社）が休刊。「論座」（朝日新聞社）が９月、「ＰＬＡＹＢＯＹ日本版」（集英社）が１１月に休刊する。

　関係者によると、現代の休刊は講談社の幹部が８月下旬に編集部員に伝えた。１０月１日発売の１１月号が最終号となる見通し。「読者の高齢化に伴い部数減が続いたため休刊を決めたようだ」（関係者）という。

　同社は週刊誌「週刊現代」、写真週刊誌「フライデー」の編集態勢も見直す予定で、１１月までに結論を出すもようだ。

　「月刊現代」は昭和４１年１２月創刊で、日本雑誌協会公表の発行部数は８万５８３３部（１８年９月－１９年８月の平均）。「早耳・空耳・地獄耳」「音羽人事観測所」など名物連載がある。話題となった記事も多く、１７年９月号ではＮＨＫの番組改変問題をめぐる「『政治介入』の決定的証拠」と題する記事を掲載した。

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固定電話の赤字膨らむ、昨年度は１２５４億円…ＮＴＴ東西

　固定電話で全国一律のユニバーサルサービスを維持するための利用者負担が、２００９年から重くなる見通しとなってきた。

　ＮＴＴ東日本と西日本の固定電話事業で赤字額が拡大しているためで、１番号当たりの負担金が現在の６円から８円程度に上がる可能性がある。

　ユニバーサル制度に関連する両社の赤字額は０７年度、計１２５４億円になり、０６年度に比べ４０５億円も膨らんだ。公表を始めた０５年度以降で最大だ。

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医療関係者から批判の「５分ルール」、中医協が調査へ

　厚生労働相の諮問機関「中央社会保険医療協議会（中医協）」が、医師が外来患者の問診や身体診察、指導などを５分以上行うと診療報酬を上乗せできる「５分ルール」について、調査を実施することになった。

　医療関係者から「医療機関の収入減につながる」などの批判が出ていることを踏まえたものだ。１０月から調査を始め、来年１月にも調査結果を公表する。医療機関への影響を見極めたうえで、ルールの見直しも検討する。

　「５分ルール」は今年４月の診療報酬改定で、診療所と中小病院の外来の再診料に導入された。「３時間待ち・３分診療」などといわれる患者の不満を解消し、「患者を懇切丁寧に診察してもらう」との狙いがあった。診察時間が５分未満だと、「外来管理加算」（５２０円）という診療報酬が支払われず、５分以上だと支払われる。

　しかし、医療関係団体から、「不要なのに無意味に長く診察し、診療報酬をもらう医師が出てくる」「一日に診察できる患者の数が不当に制限される」などの批判が相次いでいる。

　調査は医療機関と患者を対象に実施する。医療機関については一日当たりの患者数や診療時間、患者への説明内容などを調べる。患者に対しては、医師の説明内容への理解度と満足度などを聞くことにしている。

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中堅ゼネコンのりんかい日産建設が会社更生法の適用申請＝帝国データ
2008年 08月 30日 09:08 JST

　［東京　２９日　ロイター］　帝国データバンクによると、中堅ゼネコンのりんかい日産建設（東京都港区）が２９日、東京地裁へ会社更生法の適用を申請した。負債総額は７５７億円。今年に入って倒産したゼネコンでは、真柄建設を抜いて最大の負債規模となった。

　公共工事の縮小に加え、防衛施設庁談合問題で断続的に指名停止を受け、売り上げが落ち込んでいた。また、市況の悪化から不動産開発事業でファンドへの売却が思うように進まなかったほか、複数の焦げ付きが発生し、資金繰りが急速にひっ迫した。