京大で１００人雇い止めへ 非常勤職員、１０年度から

京大で１００人雇い止めへ　非常勤職員、１０年度から

2009年1月23日 09時55分

　契約期限を迎える非常勤職員を「雇い止め」にする京都大＝京都市左京区
写真

　京都大が２０１０年度中に契約期限を迎える非常勤職員約１００人について、契約を更新せず「雇い止め」にすることが２３日、分かった。

　厳しい財務状況を背景に、各地の国立大でも同様の動きがあり、学内からは「非常勤職員が教育、研究活動を支えている職場の実態を考慮していない」と反発の声が上がっている。

　雇い止めの対象となるのは、０５年度に採用された非常勤職員。京大は０５年３月に就業規則を改定し、同年４月以降に採用された職員の契約期限を上限５年としたため、１０年度以降は契約満了となる職員がいる。

　京大によると、昨年１２月現在、時給制で働く非常勤職員は約２６００人。うち約１３００人は就業規則の改定後に採用された。京大職員組合の調査では、少なくとも９０人が勤務継続を希望しているという。

　国から京大への運営費交付金は毎年約１０億円ずつ減額され、常勤職員数や人件費も抑制傾向が続いている。

　一方で研究室などの職場では、削減された常勤職員の仕事を肩代わりし、非常勤職員の負担が実質的に増えているという。

　京大人事企画課は「非常勤職員の業務は臨時的で補助的。雇用期間の上限は採用時に個別に伝えており、トラブルにはならない」としている。

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apanese Housewives Desperate After Currency Scheme Collapses
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By Masatsugu Horie

Jan. 22 (Bloomberg) -- Allied LLC, an Osaka-based asset manager, is under investigation on suspicion it bilked Japanese investors, mostly housewives, using a currency trading fund, a police official said.

Investigators said a woman they declined to name who ran Allied seminars has disappeared after getting 300 people to invest 2.4 billion yen ($26.57 million) in the fund. The company stopped paying dividends in November last year.

“Allied was raided on Jan. 15 on suspicion of running a business without a license in violation of the Financial Products Trading Law,” said Kiyotaka Kawamura, a police investigator in Kochi prefecture, on the western island of Shikoku. The police confiscated computers and documents. No arrests have been made, he said. Allied’s phone number was disconnected when called by Bloomberg News.

Officials handling complaints from investors say Allied, which promised risk-free returns of as much as 5 percent a month, may have operated as a Ponzi scheme, in which early investors are paid with money received from new ones. While the scale of the suspected fraud is small compared with the $50 billion scam New York-based Bernard Madoff has allegedly admitted to running, it taints a market that was growing as low interest rates limit fixed income returns.

“We’ve had 37 victims come in seeking help,” said Yuriko Asai, deputy head of the Kochi Prefecture Consumer Center, adding that more than half of them were women.

“There are people who lost 20 million yen and some who lost all their financial assets,” Asai said. She said investors were told they would receive a finder’s fee for introducing new clients.

“Those who got in early probably weren’t hit that badly, but those who got in late were hurt,” she said.

Mrs. Watanabe

Currency trading emerged in recent years as an outlet for thrifty housewives in Japan, whom traders came to refer to as “Mrs. Watanabes,” looking to make extra money.

They specialized in carry trades, where investors get funds in countries with low borrowing costs and buy assets in countries with higher rates, earning the spread between the two. The risk is that currency moves erase those profits.

So-called margin trading of currencies in Japan using borrowed funds rose 141 percent in the July-September quarter to a record 446 trillion yen, figures from the Financial Futures Association of Japan showed in November.

The Osaka incident highlights a gap in Japan between demand for new financial instruments and knowledge of how they work.

“There’s a limit to what the police can do, so people need to be aware of risks when they invest,” said Yoshiki Aragaki, an official at the Financial Services Agency’s Securities Business Division. “There’s no investment that can only earn money, and yet we see so many victims.”

Victims

Allied’s head office, overlooking the Kyocera Dome baseball stadium from the 31st floor of the Kokusai Building, is now empty, save for a desk and a calendar on the wall showing January 2008.

“We haven’t been able to make contact, so it’s a problem,” said Tatsuhiro Matsumoto, an official in the Tokyo branch of Regus Plc, which manages the office space used by Allied.

Allied operated between June 2007 and November 2008, with an office in Kochi Prefecture, on the western island of Shikoku, in addition to the one in Osaka, and a third of the victims were in Shikoku, said Kawamura of the Kochi police.

Meantime, Asai at the Kochi Prefecture Consumer Center continues to deal with the damage.

“Some of them were in tears as they worried about how they would make ends meet,” she said.

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Australia’s Richest Woman Seeks Chinese Mine Partners (Update1)
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By Andrew Hobbs, Jason Scott and Stephen Engle

Jan. 22 (Bloomberg) -- Australia’s richest woman, Gina Rinehart, has a team in China seeking partners to finance her second iron ore project and a coal mine, betting the Asian nation will turn around the economy.

“I have confidence that China will get it right and it will be booming again soon,” Rinehart, 54, told Bloomberg Television in an interview at the Perth head office of closely held Hancock Prospecting Pty, partner in the Hope Downs project with Rio Tinto Group. “This dip that we are seeing right now is a great time to focus our thoughts on how we should be doing things better.”

Rinehart, daughter of the man who discovered the mines that made Australia the world’s biggest iron ore exporter, expects to sign partners for both projects this year. She also wants labor laws changed to allow hiring of lower-cost overseas workers to help develop projects to increase the nation’s mineral exports.

China, the world’s biggest steelmaker and buyer of iron ore, is spending 4 trillion yuan ($585 billion) to stimulate an economy that grew at the slowest pace in seven years in the fourth quarter amid a global recession that’s sent commodity prices plunging. The Asian nation wants to keep investing in Australian mines to avoid supply shortages when its economy rebounds, Rinehart said.

“We’ll probably see more of these types of deals from the Chinese this year given current prices,” said Brad Shallard, an equities trader at Bell Potter Securities Ltd. in Perth.

Shrinking Fortunes

Global demand for iron ore, driven by China, made Rinehart and fellow iron ore magnate Andrew Forrest the richest woman and man in Australia, according to BRW Magazine’s annual rich 200 list, which was published in May. Rinehart had personal wealth of A$4.4 billion ($2.9 billion), which may rise more than A$500 million annually because of the development of the Hope Downs iron ore mine in Western Australia, BRW said before the collapse in commodity prices that’s seen fortunes shrink.

Production at both the Roy Hill mine in Western Australia and the Alpha coal project on the other side of the continent in Queensland is targeted to start by 2012, Rinehart said. Western Australia has A$29 billion of iron ore and steel projects being planned or built, according to its government. Australia’s commodity forecaster predicts iron ore exports to rise 52 percent to A$31 billion this fiscal year and expects a recovery in demand for energy and minerals late this year. Chinese government measures to boost demand in the world’s second-biggest automobile market are also positive for steel demand, Rinehart said.

IPO Shelved

To be sure, the deterioration in the global economy prompted Rinehart to shelve plans for an initial public offering of Roy Hill in favor of a sale of less than 50 percent.

“We hope to see an Asian partner in that project,” Rinehart said, declining to disclose whom she’s in talks with. She’s looking to maintain control with a stake of just over 50 percent.

Rinehart is chairwoman of Hancock, founded by her father Lang Hancock, which has already spent A$100 million on exploration at Roy Hill as part of the recently completed financing study. She wouldn’t say what it would cost to develop, though the first stage of the nearby Hope Downs iron ore joint venture with Rio Tinto cost A$1.3 billion to build.

Rio Tinto, the world’s second-largest iron ore exporter, cut shipments by 18 percent in the fourth quarter as steelmakers idled furnaces. Forrest’s Fortescue Metals Group Ltd., which last year started production at an iron ore mine adjacent to Hancock’s Roy Hill, has also failed to meet output targets. Baosteel Group Corp., China’s biggest steelmaker, said last year it may buy a stake in Fortescue to cut reliance on its bigger Australian rivals.

“The crisis is not just an economic one, it’s also a financial one, and it’s got some real teeth,” she said. “From an Australian perspective, so much depends on China.”

China Slowdown

China’s economy grew 6.8 percent in the fourth quarter of 2008, according to figures released today by the statistics bureau in Beijing, the slowest pace in seven years.

BHP Billiton Ltd., the world’s biggest mining company that’s forecasting 8 percent growth, said yesterday the outlook for the world’s third-largest economy was still uncertain. Annual contract iron ore prices will likely fall this year after rising the last six years as China expanded steel output, Rinehart said.

Roy Hill may have an iron ore resource of 1.6 billion metric tons, making it big enough to develop a railroad and dedicated port facility similar to Australia’s three biggest exporters, BHP, Rio Tinto and Fortescue.

Guest Laborers

Developing that kind of infrastructure would be easier in Australia if the government relaxed regulations that bar companies from employing overseas workers at less than Australian minimum wages, Rinehart said.

“It won’t matter so much to Australians what the guest laborers get if they’re employed at worldwide conditions,” Rinehart said. She has written twice to Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, leading the campaign that also has support of companies including Woodside Petroleum Ltd., the nation’s second-biggest oil producer.

Rinehart is also confident of securing a partner for the Alpha coal project in the Gallilee Basin. Exploration is continuing at the resource, which holds in excess of 3.5 billion tons of thermal coal, according to a presentation on Hancock’s Web site.

The size of the reserve, and its location further away from the coast, means Hancock would need a partner to take a greater than 50 percent stake in order to develop it, Rinehart said.

“China and others in Asia don’t want a shortage situation,” Rinehart said. “Most of these mines, you can’t just increase their size at the flick of a button.”

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10:31 GMT, Friday, 23 January 2009
UN 'shocked' by Gaza destruction
A Palestinian boy sits on a cart in front of his destroyed house in Gaza

The UN's humanitarian chief has told the BBC the situation in Gaza after a three-week Israeli offensive against Hamas was worse than he anticipated.

Sir John Holmes, who visited Gaza on Thursday, said he was shocked by "the systematic nature of the destruction".

He said that the territory's economic activity had been set back by years.

Meanwhile, Israeli PM Ehud Olmert is reported to have placed his justice minister in charge of defending Israel against any accusations of war crimes.

Daniel Friedman will lead an inter-ministerial team to co-ordinate a legal defence for Israeli civilians and the military, a government source was quoted by AFP as saying.

Richard Falk - the UN special rapporteur for human rights in the Palestinian territories - has said there was "a prima facie case" that Israel gravely breached the Geneva Conventions during its 22-day campaign.

Israel responded by saying that Mr Falk's "bias against Israel was well known".

Future of Gaza

Mr Holmes, the top UN official responsible for emergency relief and humanitarian affairs, said the scale of destruction would have "disturbing" repercussions for the people of Gaza.

CONFLICT IN FIGURES

* More than 1,300 Palestinians killed
* Thirteen Israelis killed
* More than 4,000 buildings destroyed in Gaza, more than 20,000 severely damaged
* 50,000 Gazans homeless and 400,000 without running water

Bowen diary: Rafah rebuilds

Special report: Gaza conflict

Who are Hamas?

Middle East conflict: History in maps

In an interview with the BBC's Today Programme, he described an industrial area where every building within a square kilometre had been levelled, by bulldozers and shells.

He told of broken pipes pumping out raw sewage onto the streets.

"I'm sure the Israelis would say that's because there were people there firing shells and rockets from there, or perhaps manufacturing them.

"But the nature of that destruction means that any kind of private economic activity in Gaza is set back by years or decades," he said.

"That's very disturbing for the future of Gaza, for the future of the people of Gaza, who are forced to fall back on the public sector and indeed on Hamas, who control the public sector."

Israel said it launched its offensive to stop cross-border rocket attacks by militants in Gaza against its civilians.

The intense fighting ended on Sunday, with both sides declaring a ceasefire.

Palestinian medical officials said about 1,300 Palestinians were killed and thousands more were injured. Thirteen Israelis died during the conflict.

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19:21 GMT, Thursday, 22 January 2009
Libya's wireless web access leap
Generic pic of laptop computer

Libya's only internet service provider is launching its first commercial wireless network which it says is one of the most advanced in the world.

The state-owned firm said only a handful of countries have rolled out the advanced internet connection known as WiMax on such a wide scale.

Libya Telecom and Technology aims to start with WiMax coverage, including a mobile feature, in 18 cities.

Africa is seen as a potentially huge market for WiMax technology.

The network is meant to be cost effective in the long run and does not depend on often poor conventional wire infrastructure.

Anyone with a simple USB device which can be plugged into a laptop can connect to the internet within 50km (30 miles) of any WiMax tower.

The BBC's Rana Jawad in Tripoli says six years ago most Libyans depended on internet cafes to connect to the web, but technology has moved a long way since then.

The new WiMax network, which has a capacity for 300,000 subscribers, will begin taking on business clients from next week and individual customers the week after.

Massive pressure

Our correspondent adds that other African countries like the Democratic Republic of Congo and Nigeria also have WiMax networks, but their coverage is more fixed and limited.

There are an estimated 51,000 broadband subscribers in Libya and some 170,000 still depend on the much slower dial-up internet.

Both of these connections need a fixed phone-line, a service that has come under massive pressure in recent years because the available infrastructure is outdated and limited in coverage.

As well as rural areas cut off from modern technology, new housing - even in the capital Tripoli - is being built in areas with poor land-line infrastructure, says our correspondent.

The WiMax network is meant to do away with all these hurdles and bridge the digital divide, making the internet available to people across the country.

Libya Telecom and Technology said the new service would cost $30 (£21) per month - twice the existing cost of broadband - although prices are expected to drop in the long-run.

But our correspondent says it will be difficult for the average Libyan to afford the initial cost of the new WiMax service.

It requires a one-year advance payment of around $400 (£290), including the cost of a USB device.

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04:58 GMT, Friday, 23 January 2009
Final salary schemes 'face axe'
Pensioners protesting

A quarter of major private sector firms expect to close their final salary pension schemes to existing members in the next few years, a survey suggests.

Many companies have already closed their schemes to new members, saying they are too expensive to finance.

But barring current contributors will become more common, says the National Association of Pension Funds, which is pressing for more government help.

It found 25 of the 100 firms which replied to its study expected to do so.

'Death knell'

Final salary schemes, which offer guaranteed benefits to members, are facing pressure from plunging stock markets, falling interest rates and growing life expectancy.

The latest estimate of total company pension deficits is nearly £200bn.

"Over the next few years the onus will be on personal responsibility rather than the company taking responsibility"
Mark Wood, ex-Prudential UK chief
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Many final salary schemes have already closed to new recruits - not much more than a quarter of private sector employers still hold them open.

But the NAPF's finding that some of Britain's biggest private companies, employing tens of thousands of workers, are planning to close them to existing members points to a new trend.

Ros Altmann, a former government adviser, said the "death knell" had been sounded for the final salary pension system.

"Employees cannot afford to fund these long term, open-ended commitments anymore," she said.

Closing schemes open to new members will be more likely because of the credit crunch, according to the NAPF survey.

The most recent official figures showed that 2,240 of the 8,490 private sector final salary schemes (26%) in the UK were open to new members.

So far, only a small minority of final salary pension schemes have been closed to existing members, with Rentokil being among the most high profile firms to do so.

When such a scheme is closed, members are generally told they can no longer contribute and must pay into another scheme instead - which is cheaper for the firm.

Pension savings which have already been accrued are protected, but contributions made to the new fund tend to be more risky as they are tied to financial markets, rather than salary.

There is also the potential for people to save less, because when taken out of a final salary scheme, workers have discretion over how much they put aside.

Shut out

Former UK chief executive of the Prudential, Mark Wood, who now runs the Paternoster pensions business, told the BBC that more people being shut out of their final salary pension scheme was "almost inevitable in the current economic crisis".

"If we are serious about giving everyone a decent income in retirement, we must end the over-reliance on private occupational pension schemes which are governed by a volatile stock market"
Joe Harris, NPC

"The impact could be very dramatic depending on someone's age and where they are in the career," he said.

"Over the next few years, the onus will be on personal responsibility rather than the company taking responsibility.

"People will have to take guidance on how much money to set aside. With low interest rates, the amount of money you need to pay into a pension is far greater than it was a year ago."

Joe Harris, general secretary of the National Pensioners Convention, said a "living state pension" was the best security in old age.

"If we are serious about giving everyone a decent income in retirement, we must end the over-reliance on private occupational pension schemes which are governed by a volatile stock market," he said.

Collective deficit

In 2007, open and closed, private sector final salary schemes had 2.7 million members - and 47% of those people were in schemes open to new members.

The collective deficit of the UK's final salary pension schemes hit £195bn in December, according to the official pension scheme safety net.

The Pension Protection Fund (PPF) said the deficit rose by 43% from the £136bn recorded at the end of November.

The deterioration in their finances since then has been largely due to the international credit crunch, the worldwide economic slowdown and the accompanying slump in share prices.

This has gone alongside poorer returns on bonds, which are used to calculate the value of the assets that pension schemes need to be able to pay pensions in the future.

Last month, both the PPF and the Pensions Regulator warned that final salary schemes were becoming riskier.

They pointed to both the declining value of scheme assets and the increasing possibility that more firms will go bust in the next year or so, leaving a hole in their pension funds.

But despite the huge wave of pension scheme closures seen in the UK in the past decade or so, nearly 29,000 schemes of all types were still open to new members last year.

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10:22 GMT, Friday, 23 January 2009
Vitamin D 'is mental health aid'
Older woman

Vitamin D, found in fish and produced by sun exposure, can help stave off the mental decline that can affect people in old age, a study has suggested.

UK and US researchers looked at 2,000 people aged 65 and over.

They found that compared to those with the highest vitamin D levels, those with the lowest were more than twice as likely to have impaired understanding.

Alzheimer's charities said the research was interesting, but more work was needed to understand vitamin D's role.

"It would be interesting if a low level of vitamin D was found to be a risk factor for cognitive problems as it is cheap and easy to remedy"
Dr Susanne Sorensen
Alzheimer's Society

Vitamin D is important in maintaining bone health, in the absorption of calcium and phosphorus, and in helping the immune system.

People obtain the vitamin from exposure to sunlight, foods such as oily fish, and foods that are fortified with vitamin D, such as milk, cereals, and soya drinks.

But older people's skin is less able to absorb vitamin D from sunlight so they are more reliant on obtaining it from other sources.

Supplements

Animal and lab studies have previously suggested that the vitamin can have a beneficial effect on cognitive function.

The team from the Peninsula Medical School in Exeter, the University of Cambridge and the University of Michigan, assessed people's cognition, or comprehension skills.

People who have impaired cognitive function are more likely to develop dementia.

The researchers looked at people who had taken part in the Health Survey for England in 2000.

Just over 200 had significant cognitive impairment, assessed by looking at people's attention, orientation in time and space and memory.

The study found that as levels of vitamin D went down, levels of cognitive impairment went up.

The paper will appear in a forthcoming issue of the Journal of Geriatric Psychology and Neurology.

Dr Iain Lang from the Peninsula Medical School, who worked on the study, said: "For those of us who live in countries where there are dark winters without much sunlight, like the UK, getting enough vitamin D can be a real problem - particularly for older people, who absorb less vitamin D from sunlight.

"One way to address this might be to provide older adults with vitamin D supplements.

"This has been proposed in the past as a way of improving bone health in older people, but our results suggest it might also have other benefits.

"We need to investigate whether vitamin D supplementation is a cost-effective and low-risk way of reducing older people's risks of developing cognitive impairment and dementia."

Risk factor?

Rebecca Wood, chief executive of the Alzheimer's Research Trust, said: "Many foods that contain vitamin D, such as oily fish, eggs and breakfast cereals, are also good sources of vitamin B12, which, as previous studies have shown, can help protect the brain.

"Diet is known to influence dementia risk. The best way of reducing your risk of developing dementia is to maintain a balanced diet with regular exercise and frequent social interactions."

She added: "These findings may be significant, but much more research is needed."

Dr Susanne Sorensen, head of research at the Alzheimer's Society, added: "One in three people over 65 will die with dementia so research into how we can reduce risk is to be encouraged.

"There was some previous evidence to suggest that people with dementia may have a lower level of vitamin D in their blood but it was not clear if this happened after the onset of disease.

"It would be interesting if a low level of vitamin D was found to be a risk factor for cognitive problems as it is cheap and easy to remedy.

"We look forward to seeing the published results of this new research to help us better understand the potential role of vitamin D in reducing risk."

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三井住友海上・あいおい・ニッセイ同和、経営統合を正式発表

　損害保険業界2位の三井住友海上グループホールディングス、4位のあいおい損害保険、6位のニッセイ同和損害保険は23日、2010年4月に経営統合することで合意したと正式発表した。統合が実現すれば損保最大手の東京海上ホールディングスを抜いて国内最大の損保会社が誕生する。

　三井住友海上の江頭敏明社長は23日の記者会見で「保険料、利益とも世界のトップテンに常に入る保険グループを目指す」などと語った。3社は今後、お互いの資産査定をして統合比率を決定。10年1月をメドに臨時株主総会を開いて、統合を正式に決める。(23:00)

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Three Japanese insurers plan mega-merger

TOKYO, Jan 23 - Major Japanese non-life insurers Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Group Holdings, Aioi Insurance and Nissay Dowa General Insurance said on Friday they aim to merge operations in April 2010. Japan’s non-life insurance industry is under pressure from slumping demand for car and housing insurance coverage, as well as the financial market turmoil.

The three firms aim to achieve growth within and outside of Japan by teaming up with Toyota Motor Corp, which holds a 33 per cent stake in Aioi, and Nippon Life Insurance, which owns 35 per cent of Nissay, the insurers said in a statement.

Aioi and Nissay will swap shares with Mitsui Sumitomo, the holding company, under which Aioi and Nissay will merge, the companies said.

The new insurance group will be given a ”neutral” name instead of inheriting one from the three insurers, they said.

The merger of Mitsui Sumitomo, Japan’s second-largest non-life insurer, with No.4 Aioi and No.6 Nissay Dowa would create the country’s top non-life insurer by revenue, topping Tokio Marine Holdings.

The three insurance firms together had net premium revenue of about 2,700bn yen ($30.4bn) in the year to March 2008, surpassing Tokio Marine’s 2,200bn yen.

Mitsui Sumitomo and Nissei Dowa forecast their net profits will fall by nearly half their year-ago levels in the current financial year. Nissay Dowa aims to return to profit after hefty investment losses last year.

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Cameron warns on risk of IMF plea

By Jean Eaglesham, Chief Political Correspondent

Published: January 22 2009 23:44 | Last updated: January 22 2009 23:44

Britain is “running the risk” of being forced to go to the International Monetary Fund to prop up its economy, David Cameron, the Conservative leader, said on Thursday.

Warning about a possible repeat of Labour’s 1970s economic humiliation and speaking in unusually apocalyptic tones for a senior political figure, Mr Cameron lambasted the “frightening” and “worrying” levels of public debt. The money needed to service that debt could “run out very soon”, he asserted.

The opposition leader’s decision to raise the spectre of Britain being forced to go cap in hand to the IMF will infuriate Labour, which accused the Tories last year of talking down the economy by warning of a potential run on the pound. Ministers at that time invoked a convention that politicians avoided commenting on sterling, although the nature, and indeed existence, of this agreement was immediately disputed.

The government’s sensitivity about economic forecasts has been heightened by a spate of gloomy predictions from analysts and investors, allied to a further pressure on the pound. Jim Rogers, chairman of Singapore-based Rogers Holdings, this week advised investors to “sell any sterling you might have. It’s finished. I hate to say it, but I would not put any money in the UK.”

Mr Cameron was careful to avoid a concrete prediction of a repeat of the 1976 crisis when Denis Healey, the Labour chancellor, was forced to seek a loan from the IMF as an alternative to imposing “savage” economic cuts. But the Tory leader warned that the country could “very soon” come to this parlous position.

“I am not saying that there is some date by which the government will have completely run out of money and we will end up back at the IMF. What I am saying is that we are running the risk of those things happening,” Mr Cameron told a London event organised by the Demos think-tank. “If we continue on Labour’s path of fiscal irresponsibility then at some point – and it could be very soon – the money will run out,” he said. “Then you will see the return of what happened under Labour in the 1970s, including emergency cuts to many of the public services.”

The Tory leader said the government’s forecast for public debt – 8 per cent of gross domestic product in the next financial year – was “the same percentage that Denis Healey was borrowing when he went to the IMF”.

He warned the “frightening and worrying thing” was that the Treasury forecast was predicated on an assumption that the recession would end this summer. “I hope that [rapid economic recovery] does happen,” said the Tory leader. “But a lot of people think it probably won’t, in which case in the March Budget there will be some pretty shocking debt figures.”

An incoming Conservative government would face “incredibly difficult decisions”, Mr Cameron said. But he did not set out a detailed prescription of measures, such as tax rises and overall spending cuts, that might be needed.

Instead, he set out a vision of the “new economy” his party would aim to create. Mr Cameron said the economy should in future be “better balanced” towards the north and manufacturing sectors, as well as encouraging green technologies – a similar strategy to that being advocated by Lord Mandelson, the business secretary.

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Saudis warn of threat to relations

By Roula Khalaf in London

Published: January 22 2009 23:40 | Last updated: January 22 2009 23:40

A prominent member of the Saudi royal family is warning the Obama administration that failure to radically alter US attitudes towards the Arab-Israeli conflict would threaten the kingdom’s “special relationship” with the US and could force Riyadh to abandon its own support for a peaceful resolution of the dispute.

In an article in Friday’s Financial Times, Prince Turki al-Faisal, former Saudi intelligence chief and former ambassador to Washington, says that, if the US wants to continue playing a leadership role in the Middle East and maintain its strategic alliance with Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest oil producer, it “will have to drastically revise its policies vis a vis Israel and Palestine”.

Writing days after the end of Israel’s three-week Gaza offensive, he says the Bush administration, which supported the onslaught, has left a “sickening legacy in the region”. And while Saudi Arabia has so far resisted Iranian calls to lead a “jihad” against Israel, “eventually, the kingdom will not be able to prevent its citizens from joining the worldwide revolt against Israel”.

The prince holds no official position in the Saudi government at this time but his views reflect the mounting frustrations within the al-Saud royal family, and the apparent need to exert immediate pressure on the Obama administration for a more even-handed Middle East policy.

President Barack Obama has signalled a readiness to work for peace between Arabs and Israelis and called Palestinian, Israeli, Jordanian and Egyptian leaders on his first day in office in an effort to help consolidate Gaza’s fragile ceasefire.

Last week King Abdullah warned that the Arab peace initiative that he had sponsored in 2002 – offering Israel normal relations with the whole Arab world if it withdrew from all lands occupied in 1967 – was still on the table, but would not remain forever.

The statement came after weeks of turmoil in the Arab world as the images of Gaza fuelled widespread outrage, embarrassing Saudi Arabia and other states that have been committed to peace negotiations yet have little to show for their efforts.

The pressure intensified when Mahmoud Ahmadi-Nejad, the Iranian president, wrote to King Abdullah, asking him to take action to end the Israeli offensive.

In his FT article, Prince Turki calls on Mr Obama to address the “disaster” in Gaza and its “causes” and condemn Israel’s “atrocities” against Palestinians, not only Hamas’s firing of rockets at Israel.

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Prince Al-Waleed reviewing portfolio

By Abeer Allam in Riyadh

Published: January 21 2009 14:23 | Last updated: January 21 2009 14:23

Saudi Arabia’s Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, whose Kingdom Holding Co reported a record loss in the fourth quarter, has said that he is reviewing his portfolio .

In response to a question about selling his shares in local companies such as Samba Financial Group, a bank, and Savola Group, a conglomerate, the prince told local journalists on Tuesday, that the financial crisis has prompted a “rebalancing” and “redirecting” of his company. He gave no further details.

A series of large Saudi companies, including Sabic, the state-controlled petrochemical giant, have recently reported sharp declines in profit or losses, demonstrating that the oil-rich nation is not insulated from the global financial turmoil. But the prince’s Kingdom Holding losses have surpassed the others.

On Tuesday the company, in which Prince Alwaleed has a 94 per cent stake, posted a loss of SAR31bn ($8.26bn) in the fourth quarter because of the drop in the value of its global investments, including a 3.4 per cent stake in Citigroup.

“The US government has given great support (to Citi) and we hope these measures will soon stabilise the bank,” the prince said on Tuesday. He said that Kingdom’s losses include a SAR15bn provision on its investment portfolio to compensate for a possible decline in assets, and the actual loss represent only 20 percent of the company’s capital.

Kingdom Holding’s stake in Citigroup represented more than 40 per cent of the total value of the company in 2007 when it floated on the Saudi stock exchange.

By the end of 2008 the value of the assets dropped to SAR50bn from around SAR90bn in July 2007, according to Reuters.

In November last year, the prince said that he pumped $350m into the ailing Citigroup, along with other investors including the Kuwait Investment Authority, who injected a total of $5bn into the bank.

The billionaire prince said that, despite the financial crisis and the losses, there would be no delay in Alakarian real estate projects in Jeddah and Riyadh. The current drop in the prices of building materials provides good opportunity, he said, when local and international economies rebound.

“The company can take the losses and start afresh,“ Prince Alwaleed said. “We will soon announce the start of two giant real estate projects in Jeddah and Riyadh, which reflects the financial strength of the company and the opportunities available in the Saudi economy.”

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Short View: Currency interventions

By John Authers

Published: January 22 2009 22:02 | Last updated: January 22 2009 22:02

Tim Geithner, awaiting confirmation as the next US Treasury secretary, says China is manipulating its currency. It has such deep foreign reserves that it is capable of doing so. More or less every other leading economy must envy the Chinese.

Last year’s unprecedented shifts in forex markets have brought many countries to the point of attempting intervention.

Russia announced that the rouble, down 30 per cent since July, will be allowed to drop another 10 per cent against the dollar. Then it will try to bring the devaluation to an end.

The fall in sterling, which has halved in yen terms in the past 18 months, brought complaints from European politicians that the undervalued pound was an unfair advantage for the UK over the eurozone.

As for Japan, the 35 per cent fall in its exports last month was doubtless worsened by the 39 per cent rise in the yen against the dollar over the past 18 months, bringing it to a 14-year high. With western economies booming, Japan’s exporters could survive a strong yen. That is no longer the case. Asked on intervention, Japan’s finance ministry said it “should always be thinking about doing what may be necessary”.

What of China? The exchange rate of the renminbi to the dollar has barely budged since its appreciation halted last July. Amid market chaos, this was achieved only with careful management or, pejoratively, manipulation. But according to JPMorgan Chase, it has gained 12 per cent on a trade-weighted basis in the past year.

That might suggest that China is deliberately making life hard for US exporters. But with China’s exports last month falling 2.8 per cent, it is hard to say that China’s goods are being made artificially cheap.

Davos next week and the G7 meeting thereafter will be good venues to thrash all this out. The potential for big market disruptions is very great.

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Sprechen Sie Denglish? Germans hit at English invasion

By Helen Livingstone

Published: January 23 2009 12:35 | Last updated: January 23 2009 12:35

The German language is under threat. That’s the view of Angela Merkel’s ruling Christian Democrats party, which wants to change the country’s constitution to include German as the national language.

Although some interpreted the centre-right CDU’s move as an attack on Germany’s Turkish minority, it seems the invasion of English provided a more likely impetus. The debate is an on-going one. For years German linguists have despaired at the flood of incoming English words and the mixing of the two languages which has become known as ‘Denglish’; ’shoppen’, ‘chatten’ and ‘babysitten’ have become the norm.

The CDU’s call to make the German language an official part of the constitution at its party congress last month has added fresh fuel to the debate. Although the motion passed easily into CDU official policy, Angela Merkel, head of the party and Germany’s chancellor, was firmly against it: “I personally don’t find it good to write everything into the constitution”, she told German television channel RTL.

Professor Ludwig Eichinger of the Institute for German Language, who spoke on Germany’s place in a globalised world at a conference on foreign policy this week, is relaxed about the debate: “Words come in and out of fashion all the time and I don’t think that anybody is questioning that Germans speak German. It wouldn’t hurt to have something like that written into the constitution, but then again I don’t think that’s a strong enough argument in its favour.”

But many German language critics would welcome the move. While they say they have no problem with the natural absorption of English vocabulary in the same way as Latin or French words have been absorbed over centuries, they object to the exaggerated way in which English has been embraced in all areas of public life.

“It causes a problem in that whole areas migrate into English, for example on the stock exchanges, in the field of computing and within some companies,” says Holger Klatte, director of the Association for the German Language (Verein für Deutsche Sprache). “It’s not just whole sections of the population who can’t speak English who are then shut out, it means that in those areas hardly any new German phrases develop, that German is overtaken and loses further standing.”

The Federation of German Consumer Organisations specifically attacked advertisers at a recent debate, pointing to the use of English or Denglish advertising slogans which many consumers fail to understand. One of the most quoted is “Come in and find out”, used by the cosmetics chain Douglas, and interpreted by many Germans as “come in and find the exit”.

Wolf Schneider, the country’s foremost language critic, supports the idea of a constitutional change: “Yes the German language is under threat - if advertising language and business jargon continue to develop as they do, if German politicians and journalists in Brussels would rather speak bad English than good German, if German academics try to understand each other using bad English.”

But a change to the constitution may take a while in coming. No further discussions within the party or in parliament have been scheduled and the Social Democrats and Greens are opposed - any law would need a two thirds majority in parliament.

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Siemens plans to pull out of Areva venture

By Peggy Hollinger in Paris and Daniel Schäfer in Frankfurt

Published: January 23 2009 11:02 | Last updated: January 23 2009 11:02

Siemens plans to pull out of its nuclear joint venture with France’s Areva, in yet another blow to the often strained Franco-German attempts to build industrial partnerships.

The German conglomerate notified the state-owned Areva and French government officials two days ago of its intention to exercise its option to sell its 34 per cent stake in Areva NP, the nuclear engineering arm of the French group.

Siemens’ departure is likely to be viewed with a degree of relief inside the presidential Elysée Palace, as it lifts one significant obstacle to its hopes for a new French energy champion. At one stage, the government had considered merging Areva with French turbine maker Alstom, a direct competitor to Siemens, but this was considered unworkable under the status quo.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel had made clear to French President Nicolas Sarkozy back in 2007 her objections to any attempt to force Siemens out of Areva in order to enable a French solution.

Areva would not comment on Friday and Siemens would only say that the subject would be discussed at a supervisory board meeting on Monday.

But people close to the subject said the German group had become frustrated by the French government’s failure to decide on Areva’s future. Under a review that has been under way, on and off, since Mr Sarkozy’s election in May 2007, the government has also been looking at a capital increase with both French and foreign partners as well as a partial privatisation. Market conditions have ruled out the latter option and Paris has delayed any decision on a capital increase.

Siemens had wanted to swap its stake in the nuclear engineering subsidiary for a significant holding in the parent group, which has operations stretching from uranium mines to fuel reprocessing and waste management. Paris, however, has delayed any decision, and the global economic crisis may have encouraged the German group to pull out of this minority position.

According to the French financial daily Les Echos, the stake could be worth about €2bn.

The question of how Areva will finance its investments remains pressing. One government official told the Financial Times that though no decision on Areva’s future was imminent, the moment was “approaching”.

Areva has said it will need €14bn to meet its investment needs in the four years to 2012. Anne Lauvergeon, chief executive, has always favoured a partial privatisation, and has been fiercely opposed to any merger with Alstom. Siemens’ departure, however, weakens its defence against Alstom. Les Echos also reported that the group had approached oil services group Technip about a possible merger, but this was rejected by the government.

It is possible that Total, the oil group, already a 1 per cent shareholder, could form part of a French solution to Areva’s financing needs by increasing its holding. The oil major is keen to increase its knowledge of the nuclear industry and has a partnership with GdF-Suez, the French power group, to bid for nuclear contracts in Abu Dhabi.

On Thursday, Total said it would be prepared to take a minority stake alongside GdF-Suez in the next nuclear project in France – the country’s second EPR heavy duty reactor, designed by Areva – should its partner win the contract.

The government is expected to announce the winner in the coming weeks, and may even launch plans for a third project. EDF is lobbying hard to win the contract for building the first of the two new reactors, and reports suggest that the second will go to GdF-Suez.

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SocGen rogue trader ‘hit jackpot’ on London terror strikes

By Scheherazade Daneshkhu in Paris

Published: January 22 2009 20:26 | Last updated: January 22 2009 20:26

Jérôme Kerviel, the rogue trader blamed by France’s second biggest bank for a record €4.9bn loss a year ago, said he hit the “jackpot” on July 7, 2005 – the day of terror strikes in London.

Mr Kerviel told Le Parisien newspaper he had bet on a fall in the share price of Allianz, the insurer, days before the bombings, which killed 52 people. When news of the attacks emerged, shares in insurance companies fell.

“Everyone started losing money. Except me. Thanks to the positions I had taken, I made €500m in a few minutes. It was the jackpot. I was delighted,” said the 32-year-old ex-Société Générale marketmaker.

Celebrated in France as an anti-capitalist hero, Mr Kerviel said he had a fit of conscience. “It suddenly hit me that I was enjoying myself while other people had been affected by bombs. I ran to the toilets and I vomited. But that weakness did not last long – I returned to the trading room and got back to work.” His manager told him that SocGen’s best trading day had been September 11 2001, Mr Kerviel said.

Mr Kerviel described a world divorced from reality: “From August to December 2007 I made money every day. On a good day, a trader makes €30,000-€40,000. For me, €1m was nothing. I took crazy risks and I made astronomical gains.”

At the end of 2007, Mr Kerviel, who says his superiors had nicknamed him “the cash machine”, had made a profit of €1.4bn, a figure acknowledged by the bank. “I covered my colleagues’ losses. When I hear them say today that they didn’t know anything, I feel like I’m at a hypocrites’ ball.”

A year ago SocGen found Mr Kerviel had placed €50bn of allegedly unauthorised bets on futures markets. He has admitted faking documents and exceeding trading limits but says his managers knew what he was doing.

SocGen has acknowledged risk control failures that allowed Mr Kerviel to build up his trades, but denies complicity and asks why he faked documents if managers knew what he was doing.

Mr Kerviel yesterday appeared before investigating magistrates in what may be a concluding session before a probable trial. He is being investigated for breach of trust, falsifying documents and hacking SocGen’s computers.

He lashed out at the legal process, saying he felt as if the investigation was “sponsored by SocGen”, and the bank’s evidence was accepted by the magistrate while independent experts suggested by his legal team were refused.

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Russia sets new floor under rouble

By Charles Clover in Moscow

Published: January 22 2009 23:42 | Last updated: January 22 2009 23:42

Russia’s central bank set a new floor under the rouble today, 10 per cent lower than its present trading level, and declared it would be the last time for several months that the limit would be changed.

The move heralds an end to the bank's policy of allowing gradual devaluations of the currency. Since November, the central bank has lowered the trading floor in slow increments of 1 per cent, allowing the rouble to fall a total of 22 per cent, under pressure of falling oil prices and a plunging stock market.

“The Bank of Russia is concluding the large scale gradual correction . . . begun on November 11 2008,” said the central bank.

The announcement was a formality, however, as the rouble has rallied over the last few days and was trading far above the lowest limit set by the bank, which was 41 to a “basket” of euros and dollars, that corresponds to a rate of 36 to the dollar. The floor was previously 39.30, but the rouble was trading at 37.1 to the basket and 32.7 to the dollar.

Alexei Moisseev of Renaissance capital said that Russian banks were “clearly oversold in roubles” and have had to buy roubles back in to pay taxes. Thus banks that have “shorted” the rouble in expectation that it will fall are being “squeezed” by the central bank, which has bought $8bn (€6.2bn, £5.8bn) in the past few days, according to Mr Moisseev.

But he expected the situation to be temporary and that the central bank would likely have to defend the new floor.

“I think they are serious this time,” Mr Moisseev said about the bank’s intention to set the new floor, “at least they think they are serious. But everything depends on the oil price. If it is stable then it is entirely possible that they succeed [at defending the new level]. But if oil prices fall then they have no chance of course.”

The bank defended the policy of gradual devaluations over the past two and a half months, for which it has been criticised by economists, for needlessly costing the bank tens or even hundreds of billions of dollars in reserves. Partly due to intervening in the market to prop up the gradually declining rouble, Russia’s official reserves are down from a high of $597bn in August to $396bn last week – and last week, the bank reserves fell by $30bn partly owing to central bank dollar sales.

“The gradual correction in the currency rate gave the subjects of the Russian Federation the opportunity to react to the currency risks, and avoid negative consequences” the bank said.

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Gaza injuries put focus on phosphorus

By Anna Fifield in Gaza City

Published: January 22 2009 19:55 | Last updated: January 22 2009 19:55

Sabah Abu Halema lies on her bed in Gaza’s Shifa hospital, her arms and legs covered in once-white bandages, and her hands covered in brown scabs.

“You should tell everyone about these scandalous acts by the Israelis,” she told the Financial Times on Thursday.

Palestinian woman Sabah Abu Halema at the Shifa Hospital in Gaza City ,Gaza January 22,2009. Doctors believe that Sabah, 45, a mother of nine children , is suffering from phosphorous burns . Four of her children where killed including her husband during an Israeli F-16 bombing raid on their home in Beit Lahiya, Gaza.

“My house, my family, everything, is destroyed. And I can’t sleep at night or during the day. I can’t even get up from my bed,” says the 45-year-old from Beit Lahiya, in northern Gaza.

Mrs Abu Halema is a victim of white phosphorus burns after being caught in a bombing early in the 22-day Israeli assault on Gaza, doctors in Shifa hospital say.

White phosphorus shells – commonly used in combat as an obscurant – were among the controversial weapons used that are against international law, according to Amnesty International, the human rights organisation.

Investigations are also under way into the alleged use of Dense Inert Metal Explosive (Dime) weapon – which sprays sharp pieces of charged tungsten dust over a four-metre radius, causing localised but horrific injuries – and of depleted uranium, which enables munitions to penetrate armour.

“We are seeing very, very serious violations of international law, including violations that could constitute war crimes,” said Donatella Rovera of Amnesty.

Israel has this week conceded that it “may” have used white phosphorus in Gaza, but denied allegations it used other prohibited weapons, including depleted uranium. The International Atomic Energy Agency, the United Nations’s nuclear watchdog, is investigating.

Mrs Abu Halema and her family were eating lunch during the second week of the conflict when three bombs hit her house. Her husband and four of their nine children were killed.

But those who survived soon found themselves burning in the cloud of white dust that rained down with the missiles. “There was no sound, no warning, it just landed on the ground around us,” she said, and described a smell like rotten eggs that clawed at her throat. Israeli soldiers then shot and killed her two cousins who came to rescue them, she said.

Her 21-year-old daughter-in-law Ghada and three-year-old granddaughter Farah were burnt so badly that they were evacuated to Egypt, where they remain in a critical condition.

“Her case is severe,” said Nafez Abu Shaban, head of the burns unit. “The area is not big but the burns are very deep. We operated on her to excise the burnt tissue and we will do skin grafts later on.”

Doctors at Shifa, Gaza’s main hospital, said they had not encountered white phosphorus before, but that Egyptian and Iraqi doctors with experience of it said the injuries bore the same hallmarks.

“The behaviour of the burn is completely different from anything we have ever seen. When we receive the victim we notice that the burning process continues for hours,” Dr Abu Shaban added.

The doctors have taken specimens from the victims and sent them to a laboratory for analysis.

All over the Gaza Strip, kicking the ashes of destroyed buildings ignites smouldering ashes that produce an acrid-tasting smoke. The substance could also be seen and smelt burning in the United Nations food storage facility in Gaza City that was bombed during the war.

Phosphorus munitions are fired by long-range artillery and explode in the air, blanketing the ground below.

International law prohibits the use of white phosphorus shells near civilian populations, unless there is a large space between the military targets and “all feasible precautions” are taken to avoid civilian casualties.

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Eurozone companies slash jobs as recession bites

By Ralph Atkins in Frankfurt

Published: January 23 2009 10:21 | Last updated: January 23 2009 12:40

The eurozone’s plunge into deep recession is leading companies to slash jobs at an ever faster rate even though the speed of the downturn has eased, a closely-watched survey has shown.

Purchasing managers’ indices for the 16-country region rose slightly in January, but remained consistent with a pace of economic contraction not seen since the launch of the euro more than a decade ago.

Eurozone businesses, meanwhile, cut employment for a seventh consecutive month – and at the steepest rate since the survey began in 1998. Germany – the eurozone’s largest economy – continued to perform particularly badly, hit by the slump in global demand for its exports.

The indices showed the eurozone downturn reached maximum intensity at the end of last year but that the recession was far from over, with its effect now spreading more broadly into the labour market.

“The near-term outlook for the Eurozone remains very bleak. Not only was the fourth quarter a disaster, the first quarter of this year does not look a lot better,” said Carsten Brzeski, European economist at ING in Brussels.

Chris Williamson, chief economist at Markit, which produces the survey, said this month’s readings were consistent with eurozone gross domestic product contracting by 0.7 per cent a quarter. “Job losses continued to mount as firms scaled back capacity at a pace never seen before,” he added. Earlier this week, the European Commission forecast eurozone gross domestic product would contract by 1.9 per cent this year, with German GDP plunging by 2.3 per cent – which would be the country’s worst performance by far since the second world war.

With the eurozone economic outlook continuing to decline, the European Central Bank is under pressure to cut interest rates further. But Jean-Claude Trichet, ECB president, made clear last week that it had already factored-in a further deterioration when announcing its latest cut of 50 basis points, and that no reduction was likely at its February meeting. Since early October, the ECB has slashed its main policy rate by 225 basis points to 2 per cent.

The “composite” eurozone purchasing managers’ index, covering manufacturing and services, rose from the record low of 38.2 in December to 38.5 in January. Manufacturers continued to report a much faster rate of decline than services. In Germany, the composite index hit a new low of 38, down from 39.5 in December.

The indices are regarded as offering a good, up-to-date guide to trends in economic activity. A figure below 50 indicates a contraction in output.

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Quarter of final salary pensions face axe

By Nicholas Timmins Public Policy Editor

Published: January 23 2009 10:50 | Last updated: January 23 2009 10:50

A quarter of final salary pensions plan to close their pension scheme to existing members over the next five years, a survey by the National Association of Pension Funds has shown.

And a further 1,000 are set to close to new members - around 52 per cent of those still willing to let new employees join the scheme.

The move would represent the beginning of the end of final salary pensions, at least in the private sector.

A snapshot survey of 100 companies that included some of the largest, by the NAPF, showed that 25 said they are likely to close their scheme to existing contributors over the next five years, Joanne Segars, the NAPF’s chief executive, said. Ninety two per cent said the recession made scheme closures more likely, with 72 per cent saying such action was much more likely.

Just 26 per cent of the 8,500 private sector final schemes are still open to new members. So far only a tiny percentage have closed to further contributions from existing members.

“Some 2.7m people are still actively saving in defined benefit pension schemes and there are many large employers who still have their DB schemes open,” Ms Segars said. “In the past we have seen lots of small employers close their schemes, but it now looks as though many larger employers could do the same thing, affecting large numbers of people”.

Last July, when the NAPF surveyed its membership, many said they intended to try to keep schemes open, she said. But there has now been “a big shift” in sentiment in the face of falling stock markets and the arrival of recession.

Employee confidence in work place pensions has also collapsed, according to the survey.

Latest figures from the Pension Protection Fund showed that at the end of December schemes had a deficit of more than £200bn, jumping 43 per cent in just on month.

Ros Altman, the independent pensions expert, said the survey signalled “the death knell” of final salary schemes, saying employers could not longer afford them.

Ms Segars said: “We can either say that the end of the world is nigh, or we can do something about it.

“Exceptional times calls for exceptional action. We, the government, the industry and regulators need to build an action plan so that when we come out of the recession there are still some defined benefit schemes out there, and they remain part of the pension landscape”.

It was, she said, “a now or never moment” if schemes are to survive.

Action the NAPF is calling for includes “optional indexation”, where companies would no longer have to raise pensions once they are in payment in line with prices, doing so only when scheme funds were strong.

The government should explicitly state that it is the ultimate guarantor for the Pension Protection Fund, the pensions lifeboat that rescues schemes when companies go under. Many more calls are expected on the PPF as a result of the recession.

The Treasury could issue long dated gilts to let pension funds more easily match their long term liabilities. Pension schemes could be given longer to plug their deficits and get back into balance - 15 years rather than the 10 years that The Pension Regulator has pushed for to date. Other measures could also be taken that would ease the cost of regulation on pension schemes and help rebuild confidence in final salary schemes, she said.

Both the NAPF and pension advisers have been warning for months that many more schemes are likely to close this year this year, either to new members or existing members, because of the credit crunch and the economic crisis.

The current survey, while small, underlines just how dramatic that shift could be over the next few years. Five years ago, 80 per cent of schemes were still open to new members, and at the peak around 8m people were saving in defined benefit schemes against fewer than 3m now.

When schemes close to existing members, pension rights that have already been built up remain protected and due for payment. But existing employees as well as new ones would be switched to money purchase pensions where it is usually the employee who takes all the investment risk, and the risk over how long they will live once they do retire.

In addition, employers usually take the opportunity of the switch to put far smaller employer contributions into such pensions than they have traditionally put in to final salary schemes.

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ヘッジファンド資産残高２割減、運用能力の格差広がる

　世界のヘッジファンドの運用資産残高が、２００８年の１年間で約２割減少したことが、シンガポールの調査会社ユーリカヘッジの推計で分かった。

　９月の米証券大手リーマン・ブラザーズ破綻(はたん)以降、ヘッジファンドに投資している年金基金や金融機関などの機関投資家が相次いで資金を引き揚げたためだ。

　０７年末時点で約１兆８８００億ドル（約１７０兆円）だった運用資産残高は、０８年末に約１兆５０００億ドル（約１３５兆円）に落ち込んだ。０８年は、ファンドの運用成績を示す指数が００年以降では初めてマイナスに転落しており、運用環境の悪化も残高減につながった。

　ただ、全体の約４割のファンドは運用成績がプラスだった。株の空売りなど、相場の下落局面で利益を出す手法などを駆使したためとみられ、ファンド間の運用能力格差が広がっている現状がうかがえる。

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米ロッキードの第4四半期決算は予想上回る3％増益
2009年 01月 23日 10:58 JST

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　［ニューヨーク　２２日　ロイター］　米防衛・航空機大手ロッキード・マーチン(LMT.N: 株価, 企業情報, レポート)が２２日発表した第４・四半期決算は、予想を上回る３％増益となった。ただ、２００９年通年の業績見通しに関しては、年金コストの増大が予想されるとして大幅に下方修正した。

　０８年下期の金融市場の低迷で多くの米大手企業の年金基金が大きな損失を被っており、頭の痛い問題となっている。

　第４・四半期の利益は８億２３００万ドル（１株当たり２．０５ドル）で、１株当たり利益はロイター・エスティメーツが集計したアナリスト平均予想の１．９１ドルを上回った。前年同期は７億９９００万ドル（同１．８９ドル）の利益だった。

　同社は現在、０９年通年の利益を１株当たり７．０５─７．２５ドルと見込んでおり、昨年１０月時点の予想の同７．６５─７．９０ドルから下方修正した。アナリスト平均予想は同７．８５ドルとなっていた。

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Britain Officially In Recession

38 mins ago
SkyNews Sky News

* Print Story

Britain officially slid into recession today with shock figures confirming the worst quarterly contraction since 1980.

Experts said the figure was far worse than expected.

The economy shrunk by 1.5% in the final three months of 2008.

That is the worst performance in more than 28 years, according to the Office for National Statistics.

But retail sales grew by a shock 1.6% in December.

The last time Britain was in recession was in 1991.

And the last time GDP suffered a bigger fall quarter-on-quarter was between April and June 1980, when the economy was in a deep downturn.

London's leading share index plummeted back below the 4000 barrier at one stage in response to the figures.

Shadow chancellor George Osborne said the figures showed Britain faced its worst slump for a generation.

"I think we are facing an exceptionally difficult time and unfortunately the figures that have just come out today confirm this is now going to be the worst recession for a generation, " he told told Sky News.

The economy has been in what has felt like freefall for several months with thousands of jobs axed and a cull of high profile retailers.

A lending drought has hit the housing and constructions markets hard, with all sectors across the economy now suffering.

But a recession is called only after two successive quarters of negative financial growth.

Financial growth is measured by Gross Domestic Product, which refers to the total economic activity of the country.

Bank of England Governor Mervyn King warned this week that the recession would last into the first half of this year, with "further marked falls in output".

Business body the CBI warned the recession was set to be worse than that of the early 1990s.

John Cridland, CBI deputy director-general, said: "The intensity and speed of falling demand combined with the global credit crunch mean this recession is going to be more painful than the early 1990s and sadly one consequence of this will be much higher unemployment."

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アブダビ政府系ファンド、日本の太陽光発電関連に投資

　アラブ首長国連邦（ＵＡＥ）アブダビの政府系ファンド、ムバダラ開発が日本で太陽光など再生可能エネルギーに関連する企業への投資に乗り出す。ＳＢＩホールディングスと共同でファンドを設立し、投資額は数百億円規模に達する可能性がある。ＵＡＥは石油に依存する産業構造の改革を急いでおり、投資収益に加え、日本企業の技術を吸収する狙いもある。

　ムバダラ開発傘下の「マスダール・クリーン・テック・ファンド」とＳＢＩが折半出資し、約20億円の第1号ファンドを設立することで合意した。太陽光や風力発電に必要な製品の製造や、発電効率を高める技術などを開発するベンチャー企業を主な投資対象とする。1社当たりの投資額は2億円前後。(07: 00)

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刑事裁判、技術情報公開に配慮　流出防止へ特例検討

　経済産業省が企業の技術情報保護を目的に検討している刑事手続き上の特例措置が明らかになった。技術情報が公にならないよう裁判官が法廷で内容に言及しない秘匿措置や、公判廷外で証人を尋問する制度の導入などが柱。今の制度では技術情報が法廷で公になるのを恐れ、告訴に二の足を踏む企業が多かった。

　経産省は法務省との間で調整を進めて、特例措置を盛り込んだ改正不正競争防止法案を今通常国会に提出する方針。

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人権侵害：入所者の両手縛り拘束　静岡・伊東の介護施設

　静岡地方法務局は２３日、静岡県伊東市の民間介護施設「ぶるーくろす青晨楼（せいしんろう）」で、入所者３人を不当に拘束するなどの人権侵害があったとして、介護施設運営会社「ぶるーくろす健康開発協会」（東京都中央区、中原健次郎社長）に再発防止を勧告したと発表した。

　法務局によると、男性職員２人が、男性（当時５７歳）が施設外を徘徊（はいかい）するなどの理由で、昨年５月ごろから死亡した８月３日まで、両手をベッドの柵に綿布で縛り付けた。同部屋の男性（同６１歳）も昨年６月ごろから死亡した同９月１９日まで断続的に両手を縛り付けた。部屋のドアは外から金属棒を掛け、開かないようにしていた。

　施設側は２人の死因について「事件性がないので警察には届けておらず、死因は分からない」としている。

　さらに、別の男性（５４）に対しては、窓ガラスを壊したりするとして、昨年６月下旬から同１０月２７日まで個室に閉じ込め、月に数回浴びるシャワー以外は出さなかったという。

　法務局は、昨年７月に県から情報提供を受け、同１０月末までに３回調査。中原社長は「やむを得なかった」と事実を認めたという。職員１人は既に退職した。同社は「社長が不在で対応できない」と話している。同社は０７年、運営する千葉県浦安市の無届け有料老人ホームでも入所者に対する虐待が発覚。千葉地方法務局などから再発防止の勧告を受けた。

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東工取、専門業者に売買注文義務付け　流動性高め市場活性化

　東京工業品取引所は専門業者に売買注文を義務付けるマーケットメーカー（値付け専門業者）制を10月をめどに導入する。決められた相場の範囲内で売りと買いを同時に出させ投資家の注文に対応することで市場の流動性を高める。低迷する売買の活性化が狙いだ。

　専門業者には資金力のある外資系証券会社や海外トレーダー、商社を想定している。10―20社を秋までに選ぶ。専門業者は常に投資家の売買注文に応じることになるため、取引手数料の10―15％減や建玉制限緩和などの優遇措置をとる。(22:40)

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「鈴鹿８耐」ホンダが不参加　Ｆ１に続き二輪レースも見直し

　ホンダは23日、業績低迷を受け、今年の国内最大規模の二輪車レース「鈴鹿8時間耐久レース（鈴鹿８耐）」へのチームとしての不参加を決めたことを明らかにした。二輪車レースの世界最高峰の「モトＧＰ」への参戦は継続する。昨年12月にフォーミュラ・ワン（Ｆ１）からの撤退を決めるなどホンダはレース事業の抜本的見直しを進めていた。

　鈴鹿８耐では他チームへの車両供給などは継続する予定で大会の運営には関与する。モトＧＰ以外の二輪車レースはチームとしての参戦を見送る方向で調整する。二輪車も国内外で新車販売が不振で、川崎重工業が既に今年からモトＧＰへの参加見送りを決めていた。(22:40)

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イオン、初の外国人執行役　米コンサルＣＥＯを招へい

　イオンは23日、米コンサルティング会社、カート・サーモン・アソシエイツの最高経営責任者（ＣＥＯ）を務めるジェリー・ブラック氏（49）を5月に執行役に迎えると発表した。ブラック氏はカート社を退任しイオン執行役に専念する。イオンは中期経営計画で、成長の軸足を国内から中国などへ移す方針を打ち出しており、外国人役員を据えて海外事業を強化する。

　前身のジャスコ時代も含め、イオンの役員級のポストに外国人が就くのは初めて。ブラック氏はカート社を3月20日に退任し同21日にイオン顧問に就く。イオンでは海外事業のほか、グループ戦略やＩＴ部門を担当する予定だ。

　カート社は米アトランタに本社を置き米国のほか欧州、インド、中国、東京などに拠点を持つ。米国ではウォルマート・ストアーズなどの大手小売りや消費財メーカーを顧客としており、イオンも利用している。(22:13)

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アサヒ、青島ビールに19.99％出資　中国事業拡大へ

　アサヒビールは23日、中国ビール2位の青島（チンタオ）ビールに約20％出資すると発表した。青島ビール株の27％を持つビール世界最大手アンハイザー・ブッシュ・インベブ（ＡＢＩ）から約600億円で取得する。中国で約13％のシェアを持つ青島の販売網を活用、世界最大のビール市場である中国での事業拡大を狙う。

　アサヒは3月中をメドに19.99％の株式を取得、青島　酒集団公司（30.7％）に次ぐ2位株主となる。アサヒと青島ビールは深センなどに合弁会社があり、中国で「スーパードライ」などの販売を拡大。原料の共同調達も検討する。(22:02)

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ペットボトルのリサイクル費用、3年ぶりプラスに

　日本容器包装リサイクル協会は23日、年末年始に実施した使用済みペットボトルの処理事業者の入札で、リサイクル費用が2005年度分の入札以来3年ぶりにプラスになったと発表した。使用済みペットボトルは繊維やシートの素材向けの需要が急減している。市場価格の急落がリサイクル費用の上昇につながった。

　入札で決まったリサイクル費用の全国平均は1トン1143円。素材価格が高騰していた今年度初めの入札では、逆に、落札した処理事業者が4万5000円強を協会に支払って、使用済みペットを購入していた。

　使用済みペットボトルは中国で雑貨の原材料としての利用が増え、日本からの輸出が拡大していた。市場価格が処理コストを上回っていたため、リサイクル費用がマイナスになる逆転現象が続いていた。(22:01)

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田崎真珠、養殖場７カ所を閉鎖　アコヤ真珠、生産量8分の1に

　田崎真珠は23日、国内にある同社の真珠養殖場8カ所のうち、7カ所を1月末で閉鎖すると発表した。閉鎖により主力のアコヤ真珠の生産量は約8分の1になる。同社は投資ファンドの傘下に入り経営再建をすすめている。同日の株主総会で新社長に就任した田島寿一氏は「フェンディ」などの高級ブランド品の輸入販売会社の出身。今後は小売りを重視する考えだ。

　奄美養殖場（鹿児島県瀬戸内町）や平戸養殖場（長崎県平戸市）など7カ所を閉鎖する。これらの養殖場に勤める社員は約120人。大半が同社が昨年末から募集していた希望退職に応募しており2月末までに退職する。養殖場跡を他社に売却するかなどは未定。

　九十九島養殖場（長崎県佐世保市）とミャンマーの養殖場は存続し、養殖から卸売り小売りまでの一貫体制は残す。(21:36)

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三洋と新日石、次世代太陽電池の合弁会社設立　1000億円投資へ

　三洋電機と新日本石油は23日、「薄膜型」と呼ばれる次世代太陽電池事業で共同出資会社を設立したと発表した。2015年度までに1000億円を投じ、年100万キロワットの生産体制を構築する計画で、10年度から8万キロワットで生産を始める。欧州に続き、米国でも環境対策として大規模発電所での太陽電池の導入が進むとみられ、両社は今春に三洋を子会社化するパナソニックとも連携して薄膜型での収益拡大を目指す。

　同日付で設立した新会社「三洋エネオスソーラー」は資本金が2億円で、三洋と新日石が折半出資、社長は三洋が派遣、副社長は新日石が派遣した。10年度に200億円を投資して三洋の岐阜工場（岐阜県安八町）内に年8万キロワットの工場を設立して生産を始める。15年度には年100万キロワットを生産する新工場を建設する計画で、建設予定地は国内外から選定する。

　両社は三洋の薄膜の研究をベースに、新日石の持つ原料シリコンを気化させたガスの開発成果を活用しながら、光を電力に換える変換効率が10％の商品開発を目指す。(21:18)

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ＮＴＴ東西、ＮＧＮの接続料を認可申請

　ＮＴＴ東日本と同西日本は23日、2008年3月末に商用化した次世代ネットワーク（ＮＧＮ）を他通信会社が利用する場合に払う接続料を総務相に認可申請したとそれぞれ発表した。現在は他社と相対交渉で接続料を決めており、ＮＴＴ東西がＮＧＮの接続料を公開したのは初めて。総務相の認可を得た後に今年4 月1日から新たな接続料を適用する。

　例えば、ＮＴＴ東のＮＧＮを使った固定電話「ひかり電話」に他社の電話から通話した場合、他社がＮＴＴ東に払う接続料は3分5.69円とした。相対による現在の接続料は平均で3分6.5円で、実質的な接続料の引き下げとなる。ＮＴＴ東西は新たな接続料の適用が09年度に計18億円の減収要因になると見込んでいる。(21:18)

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マツダ、賃金削減幅を3割に　2月から、国内2工場の正社員対象

　マツダが国内2工場の正社員約1万人を対象にした減産に伴う休業日の基本給減額について、2月から削減幅を2割から3割に引き上げることが23日分かった。3月末まで続ける見通し。同社は2工場で1月に停止した夜間操業を2月から一部再開したうえで、毎週金曜日を休業日とし賃金を一部削減するワークシェアリング（仕事の分かち合い）的な勤務体系導入を表明していた。(20:31)

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東電社長、柏崎刈羽原発７号機再開に意欲

　東京電力の清水正孝社長は23日記者会見し、一昨年7月の新潟県中越沖地震以降、運転停止が続いている柏崎刈羽原発について「７号機のタービン復旧工事が2月上旬に終了する。具体的な運転再開スケジュールは示せないが、いずれかのタイミングで地元自治体の了解を得なければならない」と述べ、2月上旬以降に７号機から運転再開時期を探る方針を示した。

　地震の被害が比較的軽微だった７号機は今後、工事終了後に経済産業省の原子力安全保安院の審査などを経たうえで、運転再開について地元自治体の了解を得たい考えだ。(20:10)

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新日鉄、粗鋼４割減産　１―３月、君津など高炉休止検討

　新日本製鉄は1―3月に、粗鋼の生産量を前年同期に比べ約4割減らす方針を固めた。すでに大分製鉄所（大分県）の高炉1基を2月から休止する方針を打ち出しているが、さらに君津製鉄所（千葉県）などで1基を休止する検討に入った。減産幅は過去最大の規模となる見通し。ＪＦＥスチールも高炉の休止を決めている。自動車などの販売減を背景にした減産拡大が、鉄鋼各社の収益に打撃を及ぼしそうだ。

　新日鉄は1―3月の生産量を500万トン前後とし、前年同期比で300万トン前後の減産とする見込み。すでに08年10―12月に約100万トン分を減産しており、今回の減産で今年度下期（2008年10月―09年3月）の生産量は1200万トン前後となり、減産幅は合計400万トンを超えるもよう。同社は昨秋に下期の減産幅を200万トン強にすると発表したが、減産幅は予定の2倍以上に広がることになる。(18:23)

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日立電線、米２工場を閉鎖　自動車部品の受注急減で

　日立電線は2011年までに、ブレーキ用ホースやワイヤハーネス（組み電線）など自動車部品を生産する米国の2工場を閉鎖する。ビッグスリー（米自動車大手3社）との取引拡大を狙って能力増強を進めてきたが、経営危機に陥ったビッグスリーの大幅な減産で受注が急速に減少した。09年3月期の北米の自動車部品事業は営業赤字に転落する見通しで、再編により黒字化を急ぐ。

　インディアナ州とケンタッキー州にある工場のうち二工場を閉じる。グループ全体の北米の自動車部品生産拠点は5カ所から3カ所に減る。閉鎖する2工場の人員約120人は一部に配置転換を提案するが大半を削減する見通し。(16:00)

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カブス、800億円で譲渡へ　シカゴの富豪と米紙報道

　【ニューヨーク22日共同】以前から球団譲渡の方針を打ち出していた米大リーグ、カブスの譲渡先として、シカゴの富豪リケッツ家が選ばれたと22日、複数の米メディアが伝えた。

　カブスの親会社でもあるトリビューン紙（電子版）は、オンライン証券のＴＤアメリトレード・ホールディングスを創業した同家が、約９億ドル（約800億円）で売却先に選ばれたと伝えている。譲渡には、球団と本拠地のリグリー・フィールド、ケーブルテレビ局の25％の株などが含まれている。

　カブスは2007年に譲渡の方針を表明。昨年末には球団会長は３グループに絞り、今春のキャンプまでに決定するとの見通しを示していた。

　カブスには福留孝介外野手が所属している。(13:32)

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08年末の世界の時価総額、生活関連・医薬が上位浮上

　景気後退により世界の株式市場で企業の勢力図が変化している。2008年末の株式時価総額を1年前と比べると、資源・エネルギー企業が減少した一方、米ウォルマート・ストアーズが3位に浮上するなど安売り小売店や生活関連、医薬品が上位に入った。金融や通信、電機・ハイテク企業も順位を落とした。上位 100社のうち新興国企業は11社のみで1年前より5社減った。全般に成長期待の高かった企業が後退しており、投資家の運用が一段と難しくなったことを示している。

　野村証券の調べでは上位100社のうち、日用品や食料品など生活関連、医薬品企業は08年末は25社と1年前より8社増えた。これらの企業が100社の時価総額に占める割合も14％から25％に急拡大した。(16:00)

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別海町、業務のＩＴ化進む　システム経費30％削減

　根室管内別海町が情報関連の経費削減に取り組んでいる。道内の他の3町村とのサーバーの共有化や、職員用パソコン端末の機種変更などの措置で、管理・維持費用を抑える。2009年度のシステム経費は従来に比べて約3割減を見込む。新端末は記憶媒体を持たず必要最小限の機能しかないため、情報セキュリティー対策も向上する。

　別海町の面積は東京23区の約2倍、全国の市区町村のうち9位と広大だ。このため、出先機関にあるパソコンの維持・管理に費用と労力がかかっていた。「一回りすると1日で車の走行距離が300―400キロメートルぐらいになるときもある」（総合政策課）。

　このため、06年度から、パソコン内の基本ソフト（ＯＳ）やアプリケーションソフトを役場内のセンターサーバー1カ所で集中管理し、各職員はパソコンを使うたびにサーバーに接続するシンクライアント端末を採用した。同端末はＵＳＢやフロッピーディスクなどの外部記憶装置が使えず、ウイルス感染などによる情報流出も防げる。

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道内の農業法人が強化したい分野、「加工・マーケ」2―3割どまり

　北海道経済産業局とシンクタンクの社団法人北海道未来総合研究所（札幌市）は、道内の農業法人の経営多角化などに関する調査の中間報告をまとめた。将来強化したい分野として、「加工」や「マーケティング」を挙げた回答は2―3割にとどまり、付加価値の向上という課題に対し、まだ意識が薄い実態が浮かび上がった。

　調査は昨年9月から11月にかけて実施。経営規模が大きい農業法人約1000社を対象にアンケート用紙を送付し、357社（回答率35.2％）から回答を得た。

　将来強化したい分野として多かったのは「生産」や「後継者の育成」といった生産現場に関することで、全体の4―5割が回答に挙げた。多角化に向けた現在の取り組みや将来強化したい技術についても、「農畜産物の生産」が最も多く、収益を高める「加工」や「販売」は相対的に少ない傾向が出た。

　一方、経営タイプに関し、現状と目指す将来の目標を複数回答で尋ねたところ、現状で「新事業開拓経営」と答えたのは5.9％だが、2割が今後目指すタイプとし、多角化の必要性を感じる農業法人は少なくない。

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東京・台東区、４月に病院開院　老人保健施設を併設

　東京都台東区は4月、23区で初めて区立病院を開設する。120床で、糖尿病や脳卒中の回復期のリハビリテーションなど、高齢者の慢性期医療を担い、老人保健施設も併設する。整備費は約73億円で、同区は22日に発表した2009年度予算案で、病院や老健施設の運営費として約7億1900万円を盛り込んだ。

　同区千束の旧都立台東病院の跡地に建設する。敷地面積は約5000平方メートル。地上8階、地下1階建てで、延べ床面積は約1万 7000平方メートル。運営は各地の病院や老健施設の管理運営を手掛ける社団法人地域医療振興協会（東京・千代田）が指定管理者として担う。指定期間は 09年度から10年間。

　同区は65歳以上の人口の割合を示す高齢化率が24％（1月1日時点）に達し、23区で有数の高齢化地域。区は区立病院を「高齢者が安心して住み続ける」（吉住弘区長）拠点と位置付け、回復期や在宅で過ごす高齢者に軸足を置いた施設内容にする。

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静岡県内の自動車・部品各社、工場休止など相次ぐ

　静岡県内の自動車・部品工場で臨時休止日の設定や勤務時間削減の動きが相次いでいる。スズキは2月に3―10日、ヤマハ発動機は2、3月の2カ月で10 日間の臨時休止日を設定。トヨタ自動車など全自動車メーカーが減産しており、部品メーカーも生産調整を避けられない。非正規社員の削減の動きは広がり、正社員の雇用維持のために、国が賃金を一部補助する雇用調整助成金の支給を申請する動きも出てきた。

　スズキ、ヤマハ発のほか、トヨタ、ホンダ、日産自動車なども相次ぎ減産を打ち出している。連動して県内の部品メーカーも生産縮小に向けた追加の対策を導入する。

　日産やトヨタ車向けにステアリング部品やシート部品を生産する富士機工は2月、鷲津工場（湖西市）などで6日間の臨時休止日を設定するため組合と調整中。近く雇用維持を条件に国が賃金を補う雇用調整助成金の利用を申請するとみられる。ユニバンスも日産向けを中心に四輪駆動装置などの生産を削減し、２交代勤務から昼勤務のみに変更。1月に続き2月も稼働日を減らす。助成金の申請も検討する。

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公文書管理、内閣府に監視委　今国会に法案

　政府が3月中にも国会に提出する公文書管理の体制強化を図るための「公文書管理法案」（仮称）の骨子が22日、分かった。各府省共通の公文書管理のルールを設けるとともに、管理状況を監視する公文書管理委員会を内閣府に新設。必要に応じて各府省に管理体制の是正を求める権限を内閣府に与える。

　法案は昨年10月に政府の有識者会議がまとめた最終報告を踏まえたもの。公文書管理委員会は歴史学者や公文書管理の専門家らで構成し、毎年、各府省に管理状況を報告させる。(07:00)

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荒川大規模洪水なら銀座・霞が関など97駅が浸水　中央防災会議

　国の中央防災会議は23日、東京都の荒川堤防が200年に1度起きるような大洪水で決壊した場合の地下鉄の浸水被害予想を公表した。最大で地下走行区間の147キロ（17路線）と、銀座など97駅が水につかると試算。泥水は自然に排水されず復旧作業が長期化するほか、地下街などにも流れ込んで大きな被害を出すと警告した。

　荒川流域に3日で計550ミリの雨が降って北、足立、墨田区で堤防の決壊が起きた場合をそれぞれ想定。駅入り口から地下に流れ込んだ水が乗り換え駅を通じてほかの路線に広がるモデルを使った。試算の対象は東京メトロ、都営地下鉄など浸水危険のある22路線、137駅。

　被害が最も大きいのは、北区志茂で堤防が壊れた時。南北線、千代田線などの荒川に近い駅から順に浸水し、15時間後には東京、銀座、霞ケ関駅を含む都心の89駅が水につかる。最終的に17路線、97駅が浸水、うち74駅で泥水は天井に届く。(23:19)

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川会：移転先のビル、売却へ　東京・赤坂

　指定暴力団稲川会の本部事務所移転問題で、移転先としていた東京都港区赤坂６のビルを同会が売却する方針であることが警視庁への取材で分かった。既にビルには「売却物件」との張り紙があるという。警視庁は、横浜市にある同会の最大拠点「稲川会館」への移転の動きが今後本格化するとみている。

　警視庁によると、張り紙は、住民らによる暴力団追放決起集会があった２１日夜に張られた。明記された連絡先に赤坂署が問い合わせたところ、売却する方針を確認したという。

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院内感染：福岡大病院で４人死亡　２３人から多剤耐性菌

　福岡大学病院（福岡市）は２３日、ほとんどの抗生物質が効かない多剤耐性アシネトバクター・バウマニ菌に入院患者２３人が院内感染したと発表した。このうち４人が死亡したが、同病院はうち２人について「感染との因果関係はない」と説明している。残る２人については「感染との関係は低いが、断定はできない」として、国立感染症研究所（東京都）が調査する。厚生労働省によると、多剤耐性化したアシネトバクター菌による大規模な国内での感染例の報告はないという。

　同病院は福岡市の指導を受け、同日から救命救急センターの新規患者受け入れを当分の間中止する。

　病院によると、２３人は１０～８０代の男女。いずれも重症の病気で入院し、０８年１０月～今年１月にアシネトバクター菌が検出された。死亡者のうち２人については死因が判明していないが、複数の別の菌が検出されている。アシネトバクター菌による肺炎も見られないことから、感染が原因で死亡した可能性は低いという。

　感染した患者のうち２２人は救命救急センターの集中治療室で治療を受けたことがあり、センターで使われた気道確保の際に用いる医療器具から菌が検出されたという。

　病院は０８年１２月１日に集団感染を認知した。調査の結果、渡航中の韓国の病院から昨年１０月２０日に転院してきた男性が感染源とみられ、この器具などを通じて感染が広がったとみている。器具は消毒した上で複数の患者で使用していた。病院によると、消毒による再利用は一般的だという。