TWO former senior employees of UOB Kay Hian Private Limited (UOBKH) were charged on Wednesday for allegedly lying to the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) in relation to reports on a then Catalist aspirant. Lan Kang Ming, 38, and Wee Toon Lee, 34, each face three charges of providing MAS with false information in October 2018 in relation to due diligence reports on an unidentified company applying to list on the Catalist board of the Singapore Exchange. MAS said in a media statement on Wednesday that it was performing an onsite inspection of UOBKH between June and August 2018, to assess the latter's controls, policies and procedures in relation to its role as an issue manager for Initial Public Offering (IPOs). During the examination, Lan and Wee were said to have provided different versions of a due diligence report relating to background checks on a company applying to be listed on the Catalist board of the Singapore Exchange. UOBKH had acted as the issue manager
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Mainland shipbuilders encouraged to upgrade and focus on high-technology vessels in order to displace South Korean rivals as industry leaders
Reuters
13 August 2011
China should regain its status as the world’s leading shipbuilder in the next few years if suppliers such as China Rongsheng and Yangzijiang Shipbuilding quickly modernise and close the technology gap with South Korean competitors.
Korea surpassed China as the industry’s most sought-after shipbuilder this year as shipowners ordered more liquefied natural gas tankers, mega containerships and other complex vessels in which it specialises.
The industry has turned away from “cookie-cutter” dry bulk carriers and tankers, segments dominated by Chinese shipbuilders, because of an oversupply of vessels that has depressed freight markets and bankrupted many shipping firms. It is increasingly turning to sophisticated, environmentally friendly ships built in Korea.
“Market demand has shifted to mega containerships and offshore oil vessels, in which Korea is more competitive than China,” said Zhang Changtao, the chief researcher of the China Shipbuilding Economy Research Centre. “It will be very difficult for China to catch up or even surpass its Korean colleagues this year or next.”
Freight rates have plummeted this year, forcing shipowners to delay or cancel orders for dry bulk carriers and focus more on niche markets, such as LNG tankers. Fears of a double-dip recession in the United States and other developed economies also exacerbated the situation.
Orders for capesize dry bulk carriers fell about 60 per cent in the first half to June while demand for LNG tankers surged 11-fold, according to shipbroker Clarksons. Analysts expect the downturn for capesize ships, the largest category of dry bulk vessels, to continue until next year.
A typical LNG tanker costs US$200 million, almost four times more than a capesize vessel.
“Koreans are highly advanced in technology, which means that they can tap into high-value vessels such as drillships, LNG carriers and container ships,” said Arctic Securities analyst Erik Stavseth. “China, on the other hand, has been building giant bathtubs of fairly low complexity. There definitely is a quality difference between China and Korea.”
Korean yards were awarded shipping contracts totalling 8.9 million compensated gross tons worth US$31.4 billion in the first half, compared with China’s 5.2 million tons at US$8.8 billion, according to Korea’s Ministry of Knowledge Economy.
That puts Korea on pace to surpass China for the first time on an annual CGT basis since 2006. A CGT is a unit used to measure the amount of work necessary to build a given ship.
Shipowners are demanding not only more complex vessels, but more fuel efficient and less polluting ships because of volatile oil prices and tougher environmental standards.
The International Maritime Organisation last month agreed on energy efficiency design standards to substantially cut greenhouse gas emissions in new ships from 2013, although China and other developing nations have secured a waiver to extend that deadline by six years.
Korea’s Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering has contracts worth about US$3.8 billion to build 20 of the world’s largest container ships for industry leader AP Moller-Maersk for delivery from 2013.
The container vessels will be the largest of any type in the world’s global fleet and will produce 50 per cent less carbon dioxide per container than the typical vessel travelling between Asia and Europe, Maersk said.
“Most Chinese shipyards are likely to give this round of mega-container-ship orders a miss,” said Geoffrey Cheng, an analyst at Bocom International. “So, what they should do is try to think ahead, such as what kind of ships the market will need in the next few years.”
Samsung Heavy Industries and Daewoo Shipbuilding, which hold the world’s top two order books, have surged about 30 per cent this year.
In comparison, Rongsheng is down more than 50 per cent since its listing in Hong Kong in November last year. Yangzijiang is down 19 per cent this year.
Rongsheng’s chief executive, Chen Qiang, said China would probably not be able to surpass Korea in building the world’s largest container ships for at least five years.
But while Korea clearly has the lead, signs are emerging that major shipowners are beginning to trust Chinese firms with more sophisticated vessels.
Beijing, however, does not want to wait that long and has fed vast amounts of subsidies to domestic shipbuilders in hopes of becoming the world’s top builder of the most advanced ships by 2015.
“The government is formulating policy to encourage the shipyards to focus more on high-technology ships and many yards have taken steps to increase their [research and development] expenses,” Zhang said.
Rongsheng, China’s largest private shipbuilder, received 830 million yuan (HK$1 billion) in government subsidies last year. State-owned China Shipbuilding Industry Corp, China State Shipbuilding Corp and others are also reaping the benefits from government policies.
“In the long term, China will obviously catch up and take over. Everyone in the industry recognises that,” said Jung Shin, an analyst at HSBC.
“China is the perfect candidate for this type of industry, which is extensive in heavy capital, labour and an export industry. China also has bigger support domestically and bigger pocket in terms of financing.”