IN BRIEF (Page 16)

Plant's future

Mitsubishi Chemical Holdings Corp, which halted output at an ethylene plant last week because of a fire, may not resume operations before the end of this fiscal year on March 31, 2008, the Nikkei newspaper reported.

The disruption will produce a loss of 100 million yen ($876,000) a day, potentially causing losses exceeding 10 billion yen, the newspaper said, citing Mitsubishi Chemical President Yoshimitsu Kobayashi.

Russian order

Samsung Heavy Industries Co, the world's second-largest shipyard, said it signed a contract to build two floating drilling rigs valued at 1.08 trillion won ($1.15 billion).

The semi-submersible rigs will be delivered to a customer in Russia by September 20, 2010, Seoul-based Samsung Heavy said in a regulatory filing yesterday.

Confidence slides

South Korea's consumer confidence declined from a five-year high, signaling spending may slow and crimp growth in Asia's fourth-largest economy.

The sentiment index fell to 106 in the fourth quarter, the lowest in three quarters, from 112, the Bank of Korea said yesterday in a report in Seoul. A reading higher than 100 indicates optimists outnumber pessimists.

Christmas commerce

Some 3.6 million Britons shopping online on Christmas Day may spend as much as 52 million pounds, the Interactive Media in Retail Group said.

That would be two-thirds higher than last year, the online retailers' body said in an e-mailed statement today. Online shoppers are expected to spend an average of 14.56 pounds each. A record 3.37 million shoppers hit online stores on Christmas Day last year.

Employee opposition

Employees of La Tribune, France's second-biggest financial newspaper, opposed the publication's sale to Alain Weill by LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SA, Le Figaro said, without naming the source of its information.

Tribune staff voted unanimously against the sale to Weill, chief executive officer of Paris-based media company NextRadioTV SA, Le Figaro said. French merger law requires the workers' committee of the target company to give an opinion on a proposed takeover.

Kenyan job boost

Kenya's call center industry may create 100,000 jobs in the next four years and rival India's leading position, the London-based Times reported, citing Bitange Ndemo, an official at the country's communication's ministry.

Kenya's agreement with Alcatel-Lucent to build a fiber-optic cable linking the port town of Mombasa with the United Arab Emirates will help cut Internet connection fees for the industry, the Times quoted Ndemo as saying.

Indian bid

Wipro Ltd, India's third-biggest software exporter, is expected to bid for France's Capgemini by the end of January, the Hindustan Times said yesterday citing unnamed sources.

The report pushed up Capgemini shares, which were the top gainers on France's benchmark CAC-40 index. Capgemini shares were up 6.9 percent at 43.50 euros in early

morning trade - the stock's highest level since early November.

Forecast raised

Babcock & Brown Ltd, Australia's second-biggest investment bank, raised its full-year profit forecast after selling a company that owns 11 Portuguese renewable energy assets for 38 million.

Babcock forecast earnings per share will increase 45 percent in 2007, from a May estimate for a 30 percent gain, according to a statement to the Australian stock exchange yesterday.

Agencies-Bloomberg News

(China Daily 12/25/2007 page16)