Monday, April 28, 2008

Business: Emmis Interactive extends digital services to media companies

Radio industry leader in interactive revenue now serving other media customers

Chicago - PRNewswire-AsiaNet/ - Emmis Interactive, the U.S. radio industry's leader in generating interactive revenues, today announced plans to begin marketing its services to radio broadcasters and other local media companies. To that end, Emmis Communications Corporation (Nasdaq: EMMS) has announced the formation of Emmis Interactive, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Emmis Operating Company.

Created five years ago and now operating as a stand alone entity, Emmis Interactive has formed partnerships with several broadcast companies and publishers to help them reinvent their brands. Emmis Interactive's ground-breaking technology and approach gives local media a competitive edge in an environment of changing expectations.

Formulated especially for the needs of local media, Emmis Interactive's platform provides high-quality, engaging interactive experiences for advertisers and listeners. In its sixth year of operation, Emmis Radio's interactive revenues already account for nearly five per cent of domestic radio revenues and have delivered a compounded annual growth rate of 30 per cent over the past three years.

"Emmis Interactive has been a true pioneer and innovator in the interactive space," said Emmis CEO Jeff Smulyan. "I take great pride in what we've built, and we look forward to providing other media companies the benefits of our interactive platform, sales solutions and know-how."

Pittsburgh-based Renda Broadcasting, owner of 25 radio stations in eight medium to small U.S. markets, has a contract with Emmis Interactive to set up their entire interactive operations, including consulting on the organizational setup; designing the web sites and providing the technology to power the sites; and training and developing the entire Renda sales and station management team.

"This is one of the most exciting initiatives to happen at Renda Broadcasting since we first started operations over 25 years ago," said Tony Renda, owner of the privately held Renda Broadcasting. "We chose Emmis Interactive because they understand our needs and have a proven model for success. Emmis Interactive has over-delivered on their commitments to us and is truly acting as a partner in business. They are committed to our success as if they were members of our management team."

"There is a real hunger for the kind of answers Emmis Interactive has found," Smulyan added. "Their expertise could not be more vital to the entire media industry as we all seek to transition our businesses and pursue new revenue streams."

Based in Chicago, Emmis Interactive is led by founders Rey Mena and Deborah Esayian, who have been named co-presidents of the stand-alone operation.

Emmis Interactive has 41 employees, including a full software development team, designers, animators, technology support, an affiliate relations team, interactive sales specialists and an affiliate sales support team.

Emmis Interactive generated considerable attention in June of 2006 when it announced a landmark deal with iTunes, making it the first company in the nation to integrate the iTunes Music Store into its radio station web sites.

The integration of the iTunes Music Store reflects the programming of each radio station, allowing listeners to shop from playlists of station artists as well as top picks from on-air talent and celebrity guests.

Emmis Interactive, Inc., an award-winning global software and consulting company, provides local broadcasters and publishers with profitable, sustainable interactive businesses.

Combining years of broadcast and publishing experience with cutting-edge technology and unparalleled service, Emmis Interactive empowers local media companies with a comprehensive digital strategy to maximize the value of their media brands. Services include interactive strategy for executive management, interactive sales training, content management consulting, proprietary technology platform and hosting services, custom web-site design and interactive product development.

Emmis Interactive Inc. is an Emmis Communications Company.
For more information about Emmis Interactive, visit emmisinteractive.com.

Certain statements included in this report or in the financial statements contained herein which are not statements of historical fact, including but not limited to those identified with the words "expect," "will" or "look" are intended to be, and are, by this Note, identified as "forward-looking statements," as defined in the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Such statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future result, performance or achievement expressed or implied by such forward-looking statement. Emmis does not undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements because of new information, future events or otherwise.

SOURCE: Emmis Interactive
CONTACT: Chris Campbell, Director of Sales Marketing of
Emmis Interactive, +1-312-986-7338,
ccampbell@emmisinteractive.com
Web site: http://www.emmis.com
http://www.emmisinteractive.com

COPYRIGHT © 2008

Health/Medical: Nucletron announces Oncentra Brachy treatment planning solution

New Anatomy-Based Solution for HDR/PDR Brachytherapy Represents the Next Generation in DICOM-compatible, Integrated Cancer Treatment Planning

Veenendaal, (ANTARA News/PRNewswire-AsiaNet) - Nucletron, a knowledge-based leader in radiation oncology, today announced the introduction of Oncentra(R) Brachy*, a comprehensive volume-based treatment planning system to optimize cancer treatment planning with brachytherapy.

Oncentra Brachy, the world's first fully DICOM-compatible treatment planning system, features state-of-the-art optimization algorithms to ensure efficient treatment. The new solution provides excellent 3D contouring and margining tools to identify Regions of Interests (ROIs) on CT or in multimodality imaging environments using image registration for CT, MR and PET data.

Oncentra Brachy provides many benefits to clinicians allowing for faster and easier creation of treatment plans, ranging from simple to complex, in user-defined workspaces that allow for adaptation to specific clinical workflows. Real-time information-sharing provides immediate access for the entire medical team and facilitates the exchange of treatment plans over vast distances with decentralized planning capabilities. Physicians are able to evaluate and authorize treatment plans
remotely.

"The release of Oncentra Brachy marks the first of some new and exciting treatment planning innovations forthcoming from Nucletron," said Jeroen Cammeraat, chief operating officer of Nucletron.

"We have set a new benchmark in technological achievement with Oncentra Brachy that represents the future of brachytherapy treatment planning. We have worked with our clinical partners to develop a state-of-the art solution that includes many sophisticated and powerful new tools to improve patient care."

"Oncentra Brachy opens new possibilities to explore new treatment techniques for brachytherapy planning that could not be considered before," according to the radiation oncology department of the Academic Medical Center (AMC) in Amsterdam.

"As reconstruction and planning on MR data becomes reality, the user-friendliness of the system provides clinicians and physicists all the flexibility they need. We are able to create optimal and accurate plans to yield better treatment for our patients."

Oncentra Brachy is a part of fully integrated solution for brachytherapy treatment of a wide variety of cancers, giving medical professionals the most advanced systems to optimally treat patients using brachytherapy.

"As one of the original gamma testing sites for Oncentra Brachy, I am very pleased with the efficient and flexible tools of this new treatment planning system from Nucletron," said I-Chow Hsu, M.D., University of California San Francisco. "After testing the system thoroughly, we are planning to use Oncentra Brachy exclusively in our center."

Nucletron will have Oncentra Brachy on display at the 2008 World Congress of Brachytherapy in Boston, MA, May 4-6, Booth # 120.

* Regulatory clearance in North America is pending.

About Nucletron

Nucletron is a knowledge-based leader in Radiation Oncology, working with clinical teams to realize innovative solutions that improve patient care.

Nucletron strives to offer the best possible choice of radiation modalities through integrated products, software and services. Critical to the Nucletron philosophy is the establishment of close working relationships with individual clinical teams - reconfiguring traditional boundaries between customer and solution provider. Many Nucletron employees have clinical experience delivering oncology care, providing an in-depth understanding of the complex needs of clinicians. For more information, visit http://www.nucletron.com

SOURCE: Nucletron B.V
CONTACT: Danielle Davis, +1-443-834-6725,
ddavis@rosecomm.com
Web site: http://www.nucletron.com

COPYRIGHT © 2008

Technology: MemoryLifter - the fastest way to memorize

Houston, (ANTARA News/PRNewswire-AsiaNet) - LearnLift announces a new release of MemoryLifter, a popular flashcard freeware. The study software is based on the scientific boxcard method developed by Sebastian Leitner, a pioneer in the field of learning.

MemoryLifter employs controlled repetition, timed spacing, and mnemonic elements (like images and audio) to greatly speed up the memorization process and "lift" the information into the long-term memory.

"What really sets MemoryLifter apart from similar programs on the market, is its science based approach and its ability to incorporate multimedia elements," says Rainer Aberer, LearnLift Manager, "and the new version of MemoryLifter makes it very easy to create and handle flashcards with images, audio or even videos." Additionally, MemoryLifter 2.1 comes with a number of smart, new learning features, like an enhanced multiple-choice mode and a clever audio book generator, which can boost learning performance significantly.

The freeware allows users to create their own Learning Modules and offers ready-made high quality learning packages in a large variety of subject areas. Because of its functionality and effectiveness, MemoryLifter has been an insider tip among US students for years. The new release has also been localized into 5 different languages (English, French, German, Portuguese, and Spanish), which is sure to increase its following worldwide.

It just goes to show that the old adage really does seem to be true: "The best things in life are free!"

For additional information and to download the program, visit the MemoryLifter website: http://www.memorylifter.com

Contact:
Rainer Aberer
LearnLift
12 Greenway Plaza, Suite 1510
Houston, Texas 77046
Phone: +1-713-830-4660
rainer.aberer@learnlift.com
Daniela Smith
LearnLift Corporate Communication Office
OMICRON electronics GmbH
Oberes Ried 1
A-6833 Klaus /Austria
Phone: +43-5523-507-404
daniela.smith@learnlift.com

SOURCE: LearnLift
CONTACT: Rainer Aberer of LearnLift,
+1-713-830-4660,
rainer.aberer@learnlift.com;
Daniela Smith of LearnLift Corporate Communication Office,
OMICRON electronics GmbH,
+43-5523-507-404,
daniela.smith@learnlift.com
Web site: http://www.memorylifter.com

COPYRIGHT © 2008

Science: Taiwan Universities Ranked Among the Top 1% of Research Institutions in the World

TAIPEI, April 27 (ANTARA/PRNewswire-AsiaNet) --

-In Five of 22 Categories at Least One Taiwan Institution Ranks Within the World's Top 100 for 2003-2007 Period

Universities in Taiwan are ranked amongst the top one percent of research institutions from around the world over a period of five years from January 2003 to December 2007. According to data derived from the (1)Essential Science Indicators(SM) (ESI) database of the Scientific business of Thomson Reuters, at least one Taiwan institution is ranked among the world's top 100 in five of 22 categories, namely Agricultural Science, Chemistry, Engineering, Materials Science, and Pharmacology & Toxicology. Engineering and Materials Science were two fields in which more than one Taiwan university was represented within the top 100.

(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080424/NYTH069LOGO)

Essential Science Indicators is a bi-monthly compilation of the (2)Web of Science(R), the world's most authoritative citation database used at more than 3,500 research institutions around the world and in more than 40 countries. Derived from ISI Web of Science and monitored in Essential Science Indicators, this ranking of Taiwan universities allows for variations and changes of university names to be managed in a consistent manner. The ranking is based on each institution's research output in high-standard international scholarly journals and is considered as evidence of their academic excellence. This approach differs from that used in other university rankings, most of which are consolidated based on multiple aspects of university research and education using both objective and subjective criteria.

The ranking derived from ESI below shows up to five Taiwan universities that appeared in each of the five categories along with their world standing. Ranking of the universities is based on the total number of citations of their published research papers from January 2003 to December 2007.


Average
cites
Taiwan World per
rank rank Institution Cities Papers paper

Agricultural Science
1 82 National Taiwan University 774 260 2.98
2 104 National Chungsing University 652 256 2.55
3 299 National Taiwan Ocean University 200 95 2.11

Chemistry
1 85 National Taiwan University 8377 1905 4.4
2 143 National Tsing Hua University 6071 1279 4.75
3 269 National Cheng Kung University 3928 1035 3.8
4 327 National Chiao Tung University 3155 733 4.3
5 365 National Sun Yat-sen University 2811 720 3.9

Engineering
1 51 National Taiwan University 3089 1718 1.8
2 52 National Cheng Kung University 3085 1832 1.68
3 69 National Chiao Tung University 2775 1673 61.6
4 146 National Tsing Hua University 1627 1013 1.61
5 235 National Central University 1112 650 1.71

Materials Science
1 37 National Tsing Hua University 3347 883 3.79
2 52 National Taiwan University 2740 819 3.35
3 53 National Cheng Kung University 2726 1154 2.36
4 98 National Chiao Tung University 1835 496 3.7
5 221 National Central University 991 282 3.51

Pharmacology & Toxicology
1 61 National Taiwan University 1638 334 4.9
2 135 Taipei Medical University 1122 226 4.96
3 237 National Yang Ming University 711 164 4.34


In summary with the collating of all 22 categories, the top 10 Taiwan universities appear as follows:

All Fields
Average
cites
Taiwan World per
rank rank Institution Cities Papers paper
1 171 National Taiwan University 53,185 14,623 3.64
2 372 National Cheng Kung University 24,162 8,463 2.86
3 467 National Tsing Hua University 18,514 5,649 3.28
4 507 National Yang Ming University 16,459 3,680 4.47
5 584 National Chiao Tung University 14,057 5,929 2.37
6 737 National Central University 10,251 3,488 2.94
7 766 National Sun Yat-sen University 9,651 3,721 2.59
8 808 Chang Gung University 8,926 2,847 3.14
9 881 National Chungsing University 7,760 3,177 2.44
10 890 Kaohsiung Medical University 7,617 2,257 3.37

"The ranking result derived from ESI reflects the citation impact of Taiwan universities which has been growing significantly these past five years," said Mr. Mark Garlinghouse, Vice President, Asia Pacific for the Scientific business of Thomson Reuters. "Methodological consistency is important to maintain statistical validity, especially for research evaluation. Since 2001, Scientific has been applying consistent methodology in ESI and continuously improving its quality. As the leading global provider of authoritative information to research communities, we are committed to ensuring the integrity of our information in research evaluation and supporting the local research community with value-added resources such as informed and balanced analysis to help them evaluate their academic positioning."

Ms. Nobuko Miyairi, Senior Information Analyst for the Scientific business of Thomson Reuters, commented, "When interpreting these university rankings, it is important to consider the size of the universities as well as the research focus in their academic pursuit. Universities with a large number of researchers, such as National Taiwan University and National Cheng Kung University, tend to dominate these rankings if ranking is based on the number of papers published or citations received as a total. National Chiao Tung University, National Tsing Hua University and National Central University compete with these two biggest institutions in physical science and applied sciences."

She added, "A strong focus in certain disciplines will give some universities an advantage in specific fields such as Pharmacology & Toxicology in the case of Taipei Medical University and National Yang Ming University. University administrators and evaluators are encouraged to consider not only domestic rankings but also the world ranking of their institutions, and the time-series change in these rankings to assess their academic progress as part of their strategic decision making process."

The Scientific business of Thomson Reuters provides information and knowledge to accelerate research, discovery and innovation. Our authoritative, accurate and timely information is essential for drug companies to discover new drugs and get them to market faster; researchers to find relevant papers and know what's newly published in their subject; and businesses to optimize their intellectual property and find competitive intelligence. We create the research platforms and services of the future that will power our customers toward business and personal success. For more information, visit scientific.thomsonreuters.com.

About Thomson Reuters
Thomson Reuters is the world's leading source of intelligent information for businesses and professionals. We combine industry expertise with innovative technology to deliver critical information to leading decision makers in the financial, legal, tax and accounting, scientific, healthcare and media markets, powered by the world's most trusted news organization. With headquarters in New York and major operations in London and Eagan, Minnesota, Thomson Reuters employs more than 50,000 people in 93 countries. Thomson Reuters shares are listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: TRI); Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX: TRI); London Stock Exchange (LSE: TRIL); and Nasdaq (Nasdaq: TRIN). For more information, go to www.thomsonreuters.com.

CONTACTS
Pamela Lim
Manager, PR & Communications
Scientific
+65 6879 4117
pamela.lim@thomsonreuters.com

NOTES TO EDITOR: (1)Essential Science Indicators (SM) (ESI) is a resource that enables researchers to conduct ongoing, quantitative analyses of research performance and track trends in science. Covering a multidisciplinary selection of more than 11,000 journals from around the world, this in-depth analytical tool offers data for ranking scientists, institutions, countries, and journals. This unique and comprehensive compilation of science performance statistics and science trends data is based on journal article publication counts and citation data from Scientific databases. Available as a 10-year rolling file, ESI covers 10 million articles in 22 specific fields of research, and is updated every two months.

(2)The Web of Science(R) provides seamless access to current and retrospective multidisciplinary information from nearly 10,000 of the most prestigious, high impact research journals in the world. Web of Science also provides a unique search method, cited reference searching. With it, users can navigate forward, backward, and through the literature, searching all disciplines and time spans to uncover all the information relevant to their research. Users can also navigate to electronic full-text journal articles.

SOURCE: Thomson Reuters

CONTACT: Pamela Lim,
Manager, PR & Communications, Scientific,
+65-6879-4117, pamela.lim@thomsonreuters.com

Photo: NewsCom: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080424/NYTH069LOGO
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com/

Web site: http://www.thomsonreuters.com
(TRI TRI. TRIN)

COPYRIGHT © 2008

Technology/Manufacturing: Stars in the Industrial Technologies cector celebrate their success

Outstanding players in the industrial technology sector honoured at the 2008 Frost & Sullivan Industrial Technologies Awards

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia -(BUSINESS WIRE) - It was an evening of excitement and celebration as 27 outstanding organisations in the industrial technology sector were honoured at the 2008 Frost & Sullivan Industrial Technologies Awards.
Outstanding manufacturers, vendors and operators of the Industrial Process Control, Electronics & Security; Energy & Power Systems Measurement and Instrumentation and Environment & Building Technologies (EBT) industries where amongst the beaming award recipients.

Guest of Honour for the evening was Yang Berbahagia Dato' Abdul Hanan Alang Endut, Secretary General, Ministry of Science Technology and Innovation. This year the awards banquet was attended by the industry's most influential including YBhg Tan Sri Datuk Zainal Abidin Sulong, Chairman, Malaysian Industrial Development Authority; YBhg Tan Sri Dr Augustine Ong Soon Hock, Founder President of the Malaysian Invention and Design Society (MINDS), YBhg Dato' S H Wong, Chairman, Malaysian American Electronics Industry (MAEI), Mr Tiong Khe Hock, Chairman - Automation Technology Industry Group (ATIG), Mr Benny Yeo Group Chairman IA - Community (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd. besides chief executive officers, country managers, executive directors, and presidents from a multitude of vertical industries from industrial technologies in Asia Pacific.

Sanjay Singh, Vice President, Industrial Technologies at Frost & Sullivan, says "We believe that often the ASEAN perspective is underplayed in the overall APAC developments especially with the greater visibility of China and India in addition to the North Asian countries. Hence, Frost & Sullivan has focused on the ASEAN region to identify such performances and contribution of the recipients in the chosen industry verticals."

Sanjay adds, "In recent years, Southeast Asia has witnessed significant investments in the electronics and manufacturing sectors. While China has seen rapid growth, Indonesia, Malaysia, The Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand have become key participants in the global electronics industry/production networks.

"Singapore and Malaysia are focusing on high-value products, which in the past have been low-cost assembly centers. In the area of semiconductors, South East Asia accounts for about 8% of the global wafer fabrication capacity and countries like Singapore, Malaysia, The Philippines, and Thailand export more than half of the semiconductors produced or processed in their countries to countries across the world." Further to his analysis, Sanjay points that Malaysia is currently amongst the world's leading sites for semiconductor assembly, testing, and packaging.

The awards which seek to identify and credit the best practices in the industry segments are synonymous with Frost & Sullivan's in-depth analysis and coverage of these industries.
In keeping with the company's commitment of excellence and innovation, the awards offered are carefully reviewed and evaluated to reflect the current market landscape inclusive of the emerging technology trends.

The Industrial Technologies Awards are based on the extensive market engineering tools evolved by Frost & Sullivan over the years.

Industry analysts compare market participants and measure performance through in-depth interviews, analysis, and extensive secondary research in order to identify best practices in the industry.

According to Satish Lele, Director, Industrial Practice at Frost & Sullivan, Industrial Automation continues to be an area of focus for Frost & Sullivan. "This year we launched country specific analysis of the markets in Southeast Asia, which allowed us to understand the dynamics and future trends of the region and its implication for automation companies. As 2007 was another strong year for business, many automation players have responded with significant investment in the region.
Through these awards we recognise some of these best companies who have demonstrated excellence in products, service and technology to emerge as market leaders."

This year the Industrial Process Control Awards saw multinationals like Siemens and Yokogawa striding off with more than one title, while homegrown names like Carotech Bhd and Integrated Recycling Industries Philippines Inc also received some coveted awards.

"Environmental technologies markets in Asia are growing across segments in wake of increased awareness and concerns over issues such as air pollution and energy management", said Sapan Agarwal, Head, Environment and Building Technologies Consulting Practice at Frost & Sullivan. Sapan also points out that Green technologies, a result of increasing global awareness about the environment is the key to success in today's business settings. He continues, "Organisations across nations are aligning their products to serve the higher cause of environment stewardship as this is truly the next big thing that is about to change the way we live and work."

On the other hand, Environment and Building Technologies recipients across South East Asia were recognised in building automation, residential air purification equipment and hazardous waste management market.

Recipients of the Energy & Power Systems category provided no lesser challenge for the analysts in concluding on the recipients. The fast growing renewable energy industry and a very dynamic oil & gas sector in the Southeast Asian region meant the competition was tough.

"Recipients of the energy and power industry awards represent a diverse set of growth focused organisations that have excelled by their ability to identify and implement appropriate strategies based on individual market dynamics," says Ravi Krishnaswamy, Director for Asia Pacific Energy & Power Systems group.

"Organizations like Actaris, Petra Energy Bhd. and SolarWorld, though representing different segments of the energy & power industry, have benefited by carving a niche for themselves. Vyncke, SolarWorld and Tanjung Offshore Bhd. have excelled by forging strong partnerships - be it with principals, vendors, distributors or installation contractors.
Both Chloride Batteries and EnerSys, which operate in the mature batteries industry, have gained competitive edge through product innovation and targeting new vertical markets," sums Ravi.

While most of the awards under Industrial Process Control category were presented out to country specific operations, recipients of awards under Automatic Identification, Measurement & Instrumentation, Energy & Power Systems and Environment & Building Technologies categories were a blend of multinationals and local corporations.

The 2008 Frost & Sullivan Asia Industrial Technologies Awards is supported by the Industrial Automation Community.
Supporting Media of the awards are Industrial Automation News, Industrial Automation Annual Directory, Business Today, Home Finder and Reed Business Information titles - EDN Asia, ECN Asia, Electronics Asia and Wireless Design and Development Asia. For further information, please visit - www.frost.com itakl2008.

Frost & Sullivan, the Growth Partnership Company, partners with clients to accelerate their growth. The company's Growth Partnership Services, Growth Consulting and Growth Team Membership empower clients to create a growth focused culture that generates, evaluates and implements effective growth strategies. Frost & Sullivan employs over 45 years of experience in partnering with Global 1000 companies, emerging businesses and the investment community from more than 30 offices on six continents. For more information about Frost & Sullivan's Growth Partnerships, visit http://www.frost.com.

Frost & SullivanCorporate CommunicationsDonna Jeremiah, 603-6304-5832 djeremiah@frost.com or Neethiya Sadagopal,
65-6890-0966 neethiya.sadagopal@frost.com

Entertainment: JTB's Travel Site for foreign visitors to Japan - JAPANiCAN.com

JTB's Travel Site for foreign visitors to Japan, JAPANiCAN.com, delivering local information in Japan through blog: Its first topic is rice-farming

Tokyo, Kyodo - JBN-AsiaNet/- JTB Group will distribute real-time information about the rice-farming process of one farmer in Tome City, Miyagi, from April 25 on the JTB-operated site, "JAPANiCAN.com", which is the English travel website designed for foreigners visiting Japan. URL: www.japanican.com *It will be posted on the top page of JAPANiCAN.com On JAPANiCAN.com, many activities have been conducted in cooperation with local governments to contribute to the revitalization of local communities. Partnership with Takayama City, Gifu Prefecture, was established and a collaborative campaign with Kyoto City was implemented in 2007.

"JapanQuest", in which foreign travelers introduce the Hokkaido / Tohoku region and Kyushu, was also issued. This time around, for the first time, real-time information will be delivered through the blog of people living in the area. The aim of this blog is to broadly distribute information on each area in Japan to the world and to facilitate deeper understanding of Japan. The Tohoku region, in particular Sendai City, has actively worked on inviting international visitors. The number of tourists to Tohoku in 2007 showed an increase of 0.7% over last year. This project expects to expand the number of foreign travelers to Miyagi and the Tohoku region by enhancing interest in Japanese rice-farming and local life.

In Tome City, the site of this rice-farming blog, there are many sightseeing spots such as "Izunuma (Izu Marsh)," which is the designated wetland under the Ramsar Convention and to which many migratory birds such as swans and ducks come flying, "Miyagi Meiji Village / Toyoma Area" in which there are precious buildings such as an old elementary school house and a police station building of the Meiji era (1868-1912), and the historic site of "Clandestine Christians" which arouse foreigners' interest. The city is also the hometown of "immigrants to Canada" who crossed the Pacific Ocean by a migrant-smuggling boat during the Meiji era.

This rice-farming blog tells real-time stories from rice planting to harvesting with the cooperation of one farmer.
Sightseeing spots of the city described above, local events such as festivals, and other features of people's lives involving farmers will be included accordingly.

*Outline Period: From April 2008 to September 2008 (the rice planting to harvesting season) Contents: The rice-farming process in real time. The description of the process of growing rice and agricultural work, and photo images will constitute the main contents. Also introduced will be products made from rice (such as rice cake and Japanese sake).

Next Step: Tours to experience rice-harvesting, opportunities to communicate with the local community through food (food-tasting events of local rice, etc.), and the mail-order sale of harvested rice will also be organized.
Information on accommodation, events and sightseeing facilities outside Tome City (such as Sendai, Akiu, Matsushima, Naruko, Ishinomaki and Kesennuma) will also be introduced.

[Writer] Mr. Seikoh Sasaki (Toyoma-machi, Tome City / Tome Internationalization Promotion Supervisor) [Farmer] Mr. Kanichi Onodera (Towa-cho, Tome City / Tome City Council member)

Source: JAPANiCAN Inc.
Contact:
Tomoe Suzuki
Corporate Communications
JAPANiCAN Inc.
Phone: +81-3-5796-5668
Fax: +81-3-5796-5686
E-mail: suzuki@japanican.jp
URL: www.japanican.com

Business: Sterlite Industries (India) Limited results for q4

(Full text of this release can be found at http://www.businesswire.com)

Sterlite Industries (India) Limited results for the fourth quarter and full year ended 31 March 2008

Mumbai, India -(BUSINESS WIRE) - Sterlite Industries (India) Limited today announced its results for the fourth quarter ("Q4") and full year ended 31 March 2008 ("FY2008").

Highlights
Highest ever annual production across all metals Costs lower across all operations, inspite of a challenging environment

Chanderiya II hydro smelter achieves rated capacity in very first quarter after commissioning

HZL to become world's largest integrated zinc-lead producer by 2010 - announces expansion projects that will take its total integrated zinc-lead capacity to 1,065,000 tonnes per annum with fully integrated mining and captive power generation capacities

Exploration success at Hindustan Zinc Limited ("HZL") increases in reserve and resources by 28.7 million tonnes containing 4.0 million tonnes of zinc - lead metal, prior to depletion The first phase of the 500,000 tpa Jharsuguda Aluminium smelter is in the final stages of commissioning with first metal tapping expected shortly, more than a year ahead of schedule

Work on the 2400 MW independent power plant is progressing on schedule 320 mt coal block allocation secured during the year, including largest and single allocation of 210 mt

Contribution of strong volumes and lower operating costs to EBITDA were offset by lower zinc LME prices and the appreciating Indian rupee Strong balance sheet with net cash position of approximately Rs 12,000 crore

Proposed dividend of 200 per cent or Rs 4.00 per equity share

Copper Business
Copper cathode production at the Tuticorin custom smelter was 339,000 tonnes for FY?2008 compared with 313,000 tonnes in the corresponding prior year. Overall the plant performance was good, with copper recoveries highest ever at 98per cent plus in FY 2008.

Mined metal production at our Australian mines was 28,000 tonnes for FY2008 and in line with our expectations.

Revenues for FY 2008 were Rs 12,658 crore, an increase of 7.9 per cent compared with the prior year, primarily on account of higher volumes and better LME prices, mainly offset by an appreciating Indian rupee.

EBITDA for FY 2008 was Rs 1776 crore, a decrease of 2.1 per cent as compared with the corresponding prior year, in spite of better operating efficiencies and by-product management, which were more than offset by lower TcRcs and an appreciating Indian rupee.

Aluminium Business Aluminium production in Q4 was highest ever at 92,000 tonnes, taking the full year production to 359,000 tonnes. This increase in production is attributable to a gradual increase in current density and current efficiency at the BALCO II smelter.

Revenues and EBITDA for FY?2008 were Rs?4,170?crore and Rs?1,435?crore respectively. The positive impact of higher volumes on sales in FY2008 was primarily offset by the appreciation of the Indian rupee. Whilst the costs of production were lower in FY2008, full year EBITDA was adversely impacted by the aforesaid factor.

Zinc Business Mined zinc metal production in FY?2008 was 551,000 tonnes, an increase of 9.1 per cent compared with the previous year.

HZL achieved record zinc and lead metal production in FY2008 of 426,000 tonnes and 58,000 tonnes respectively, an increase of 22 per cent and 31 per cent compared with the previous year.

The increase in production was primarily on account of the production from the newly commissioned Chanderiya II hydro smelter and the improved performance from the existing smelters. The Chanderiya II hydro smelter was commissioned in a record time of 20 months from ground-breaking, setting a new world record and also achieved its rated capacity in the very first quarter after its commissioning.

Sales were augmented by the sale of surplus zinc and lead concentrate of 297,000 dry metric tonnes in FY2008.

Revenues and EBITDA for FY2008 were Rs 7,878 crore and Rs. 6,223 crore compared with Rs. 8,560 crore and Rs. 6,644 crore, respectively in the corresponding prior year. The positive impact of higher volumes on sales and EBITDA in FY2008 was offset by adverse impact on account of a decline in zinc LME prices and the appreciation of the Indian rupee vis-a-vis the US dollar.

HZL has announced expansion projects that will take its total integrated zinc-lead capacity to 1,065,000 tonnes per annum with fully integrated mining and captive power generation capacities, thereby making HZL the world's largest integrated
zinc-lead producer by 2010. HZL will continue to maintain its superior cost leadership position among the zinc producers in the world.

Two brownfield smelter projects, which will increase the production capacities of zinc and lead by 210,000 tonnes and 100,000 tonnes respectively, will be undertaken at Rajpura Dariba in Rajasthan, India.

HZL's ongoing exploration activities have yielded significant success with an increase of 28.7 million tonnes to its reserves and resources, prior to a depletion of 5.8 million tonnes in FY 2008. Contained zinc-lead metal has increased by 4.0 million tonnes, prior to a depletion of 0.6 million tonnes during the same period. Total reserves and resources at 31 March 2008 were 232.3 million tonnes containing 27.5 million tonnes of zinc-lead metal. The reserves and resources position has been independently reviewed and certified as per JORC standard.

During the quarter, HZL obtained LME registration for zinc ingots produced from the Chanderiya Hydro I Smelter. The company has also received permission to fully convert the Hydro I smelter to a 100 per cent Export Oriented Unit.

Consolidated Net Profit After Taxes and EPS
Consolidated Net Profit After Taxes, attributable to equity shareholders for FY 2008 was Rs 4,399 crore compared with Rs 4,386 crore in the previous year. EPS in FY 2008 was Rs 66 per equity share compared with Rs.81 per equity share, due to the fresh issue of shares during the year on account of the ADS offering.

The board of directors has recommended a dividend of 200 per cent i.e. Rs. 4.00 per equity share of Rs.2 each for the current year.

Expansion ProjectsVedanta Aluminium Limited
The alumina production, out of single stream operation, at the Lanjigarh refinery was 267,000 tonnes in FY 2008 with a production of 124,000 tonnes in Q4, the highest achieved so far.

With regards to the environmental clearances for the Lanjigarh bauxite mines, we are now proceeding as per directions provided by the Honourable Supreme Court of India and are hopeful of a positive resolution of the matter soon.

The first phase of the 500,000 tpa Aluminium smelter at Jharsuguda and the associated captive power plant is in the final stages of commissioning with first metal tapping expected shortly, more than a year ahead of schedule.

Zinc
The 88,000 tonnes debottlenecking project is progressing well and is expected to be completed shortly, ahead of schedule.
As part of our commitment to green energy, out of a total planned capacity of 124 MW of wind power, 107 MW has been successfully commissioned as of 31 March 2008 and the remaining 17 MW is expected to be commissioned by June 2008.

Commercial Energy Work on our 2400 MW (4x600 MW) coal based independent thermal power plant is progressing well with equipment deliveries on schedule.

Construction activities are in full swing and the project is on schedule for progressive commissioning from December 2009.

About Sterlite Industries

Sterlite Industries is India's largest non-ferrous metals and mining company with interests and operations in aluminum, copper and zinc and lead. It is a subsidiary of Vedanta Resources plc, a London-based diversified FTSE 100 metals and mining group.

Sterlite Industries' main operating subsidiaries are Hindustan Zinc Limited for its zinc and lead operations; Copper Mines of Tasmania Pty Limited for its copper operations in Australia; and Bharat Aluminum Company Limited for its aluminum operations. The company operates its own copper operations in India. The company has entered the commercial energy generation business and is in the process of setting up a 2,400MW independent power plant through its wholly owned subsidiary, Sterlite Energy Limited. Sterlite Industries is listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange and National Stock Exchange in India and the New York Stock Exchange in the United States.

For more information, please visit
www.sterlite-industries.com.

Disclaimer This press release contains "forward-looking statements"? that is, statements related to future, not past, events. In this context, forward-looking statements often address our expected future business and financial performance, and often contain words such as "expects," "anticipates," "intends," "plans," "believes," "seeks,""should" or "will."

Forward looking statements by their nature address matters that are, to different degrees, uncertain.

For us, uncertainties arise from the behaviour of financial and metals markets including the London Metal Exchange, fluctuations in interest and or exchange rates and metal prices; from future integration of acquired businesses; and from numerous other matters of national, regional and global scale, including those of a political, economic, business, competitive or regulatory nature.

These uncertainties may cause our actual future results to be materially different that those expressed in our forward-looking statements. We do not undertake to update our forward-looking statements.

Sterlite Industries (India) Limited Sumanth Cidambi, +91 22 6646 1531 Associate Director - Investor Relations
sumanth.cidambi@vedanta.co.in
or Sterlite Industries (India) Limited Sheetal Khanduja, +91 22 6646 1427 Manager - Investor Relations
Sheetal.khanduja@vedanta.co.in

Business: Performance review - year ended March 31, 2008: ICICI Bank's

(Full text of this release can be found at http:://www.businesswire.com)

Performance review - year ended March 31, 2008: ICICI Bank's profit after tax crosses US$1.0 billion

Mumbai, India - (BUSINESS WIRE) - The Board of Directors of ICICI Bank Limited (NYSE: IBN) at its meeting held at Mumbai today, approved the audited accounts of the Bank for the year ended March 31, 2008 (FY2008).

Highlights
Profit after tax for the quarter ended March 31, 2008 (Q4-2008) increased 39 per cent to Rs. 1,150 crore (US$ 287 million) from Rs. 825 crore (US$ 206 million) for the quarter ended March 31, 2007 (Q4-2007).

Profit after tax for FY2008 increased 34 per cent to Rs. 4,158 crore (US$ 1.0 billion) from Rs. 3,110 crore (US$ 775 million) for the year ended March 31, 2007 (FY2007).

Net interest income increased 30 per cent to Rs. 7,304 crore (US$ 1.8 billion) for FY2008 from Rs. 5,637 crore (US$ 1.4 billion) for FY2007.

Fee income increased 32 per cent to Rs. 6,627 crore (US$ 1.7 billion) for FY2008 from Rs. 5,012 (US$ 1.2 billion) for FY2007.

Current and savings account (CASA) deposits ratio increased to 26 per cent at March 31, 2008 from 22 per cent at March 31, 2007.

At March 31, 2008, ICICI Bank and its subsidiaries had consolidated total assets of Rs. 485,830 crore (US$ 121.1 billion).

Dividend on equity shares

The Board has recommended a dividend of 110 per cent for FY2008 i.e. Rs. 11 per equity share (equivalent to US$ 0.55 per ADS) as compared to 100 per cent for FY2007. The declaration and payment of dividend is subject to requisite approvals. The
record/book closure dates shall be announced in due course.

Operating review
Deposit growth
Current and savings account deposits increased 27 per cent to Rs. 63,781 crore (US$ 15.9 billion) at March 31, 2008 from Rs. 50,214 crore (US$ 12.5 billion) at March 31, 2007 and constituted 26 per cent of total deposits at March 31, 2008 compared to 22 per cent at March 31, 2007. The Bank is significantly expanding its branch network to expand its reach and further enhance its deposit franchise. At April 23, 2008 the Bank had 1,308 branches and extension counters as compared to 755 branches and extension counters at March 31, 2007. This increase of 553 branches and extension counters includes about 190 branches on account of the merger of Sangli Bank. The Bank had 3,950 ATMs at April 23, 2008.

Credit growth
Consolidated advances of the Bank and its overseas banking subsidiaries and ICICI Home Finance Company increased 19 per cent to Rs. 252,071 crore (US$ 62.8 billion) at March 31, 2008 from Rs. 211,660 crore (US$ 52.8 billion) at March 31, 2007.
This reflects robust growth in the loan book of the Bank's international branches, its international subsidiaries and ICICI Home Finance Company.

International operations
ICICI Bank's international business is focused on: Building a retail deposit base which gives the Bank access to low cost deposits on sustainable basis: Aggregate retail deposits of ICICI Bank UK and Canada increased 90 per cent from Rs. 15,740 crore (US$ 3.9 billion) at March 31, 2007 to Rs. 29,861 crore (US$ 7.4 billion) at March 31, 2008.

Building a global syndication network which enables the Bank to syndicate its foreign currency assets across a wide variety of investors: The Bank was ranked #1 in offshore loan syndications of Indian corporates in 2007.

Being the preferred advisor and financier for overseas acquisitions of Indian corporates Achieving the status of the preferred bank for non-resident Indians in key markets of UK and Canada.

ICICI Bank UK PLC achieved profit after tax of Rs. 155 crore (US$ 38.4 million) for FY2008 and increased its balance sheet by 80 per cent to Rs. 35,300 crore (US$ 8.8 billion) at March 31, 2008. Its retail deposit base almost doubled to Rs. 17,250 crore (US$ 4.3 billion) on the back of the successful internet savings product and a 25 per cent penetration in the bankable Indian community.

At March 31, 2008 the Bank's international operations accounted for about 25 per cent of its consolidated banking assets.

Capital adequacy
The Bank's capital adequacy at March 31, 2008 as per Reserve Bank of India's revised guidelines on Basel II norms was 13.97 per cent (including Tier-1 capital adequacy of 11.76 per cent), well above RBI's requirement of total capital adequacy of 9.0 per cent. At March 31, 2008, the capital adequacy ratios of ICICI Bank's UK and Canada subsidiaries were 18.6 per cent and
22.9 per cent respectively.

Asset quality
At March 31, 2008, the Bank's net non-performing assets constituted 1.49 per cent of net customer assets.

Performance highlights of key non-banking subsidiaries
ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Company (ICICI Life) significantly increased its overall market share from 9.9 per cent in FY2007 to 13.1 per cent during April-February 2008 on the basis of retail new business weighted received premiums.
ICICI Life's new business weighted received premium increased by 68 per cent in FY2008 compared to industry growth of 37 per cent during April-February 2008.

The growing operations of ICICI Life had a negative impact of Rs. 1,032 crore (US$ 257 million) on the consolidated profit after tax of ICICI Bank in FY2008. However, ICICI Life's unaudited New Business Profit (NBP) in FY2008 was Rs. 1,254 crore (US$ 313 million).

The assets held by ICICI Life increased from about Rs. 15,818 crore (US$ 3.9 billion) at March 31, 2007 to Rs. 28,578 crore (US$ 7.1 billion) at March 31, 2008.

ICICI Lombard General Insurance Company (ICICI General) maintained its overall market share of 12.3 per cent during April-February 2008. ICICI General's premiums increased 11.4 per cent to Rs. 3,345 crore (US$ 834 million) in FY2008 despite
the impact of de-tariffing. ICICI General's profit after tax increased by 51 per cent to Rs. 103 crore (US$ 26 million) in FY2008 from Rs. 68 crore (US$ 17 million) in FY2007.

ICICI Securities' unconsolidated revenues and profit after tax for FY2008 were Rs. 750 crore (US$ 187 million) and Rs.150 crore (US$ 37 million) respectively. ICICI Securities Primary Dealership's profit after tax for FY2008 was Rs. 140 crore (US$ 35 million).

ICICI Prudential Asset Management Company's (ICICI AMC) average mutual fund assets under management was Rs. 54,355 crore (US$ 13.5 billion) in March 2008. ICICI AMC's profit after tax increased by 70 per cent to Rs. 82 crore (US$ 20 million) in FY2008 from Rs. 48 crore (US$ 12 million) in FY2007.

ICICI Venture Funds Management Company (ICICI Venture) is the largest Indian private equity company with assets under management of about Rs. 9,550 crore (US$ 2.4 billion). ICICI Venture's profit after tax for the year ended March 31, 2008 was Rs. 90 crore (US$ 22 million).

1. Consolidated advances of the Bank and its overseas banking subsidiaries and ICICI HFC increased 19 per cent to Rs. 252,071 crore at March 31, 2008 from Rs. 211,660 crore at March 31, 2007.
Except for the historical information contained herein, statements in this release which contain words or phrases such as 'will', ?expected to', etc., and similar expressions or variations of such expressions may constitute 'forward-looking statements'.
These forward-looking statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results, opportunities and growth potential to differ materially from those suggested by the forward-looking statements.

These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the actual growth in demand for banking and other financial products and services in the countries that we operate or where a material number of our customers reside, our ability to successfully implement our strategy, including our use of the Internet and other technology and our rural expansion, our ability to integrate recent or future mergers or acquisitions into our operations, our ability to manage the increased complexity of the risks we face following our rapid international growth, future levels of impaired loans, our growth and expansion in domestic and overseas markets.

The adequacy of our allowance for credit and investment losses, technological changes, investment income, our ability to market new products, cash flow projections, the outcome of any legal, tax or regulatory proceedings in India and in other jurisdictions we are or become a party to, the future impact of new accounting standards, our ability to implement our dividend policy, the impact of changes in banking regulations and other regulatory changes in India and other jurisdictions on us,

including on the assets and liabilities of ICICI, a former financial institution not subject to Indian banking regulations, the bond and loan market conditions and availability of liquidity amongst the investor community in these markets, the nature of credit spreads, interest spreads from time to time, including the possibility of increasing credit spreads or interest rates, our ability to roll over our short-term funding sources and our exposure to credit, market and liquidity risks as well as other risks that are detailed in the reports filed by us with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission.

ICICI Bank undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date thereof.

For further press queries please call Charudatta Deshpande at 91-22-2653 8208 or e-mail:
charudatta.deshpande@icicibank.com.
For investor queries please call Pankaj Jain at 91-22-2653 6379 or Rupesh Kumar at 91-22-2653 7126 or email at ir@icicibank.com.

1 crore = 10.0 millionUS$ amounts represent convenience translations at US$1= Rs.40.12
2. "Retail Banking"
includes exposures of ICICI Bank Limited (?the Bank') which fulfill the four criteria of orientation, product, granularity
and low value of individual exposures for retail exposures laid down in the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision document
"International Convergence of Capital Measurement and Capital Standards", as per the RBI guidelines for the Bank.
3. "Wholesale Banking"
includes all advances to trusts, partnership firms, companies and statutory bodies, by the Bank which are not included under the "Retail Banking" segment, as per the RBI guidelines.
4. "Treasury"
includes the entire investment portfolio of the Bank, ICICI Eco-net Internet and Technology Fund, ICICI Equity Fund, ICICI
Emerging Sectors Fund and ICICI Strategic Investments Fund.
5. "Other Banking business"
comprises the Bank's banking subsidiaries i.e. ICICI Bank UK PLC., ICICI Bank Canada and ICICI Bank Eurasia LLC. and ICICI Wealth Management Inc.
6. "Life Insurance"
represents ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Company Limited.
7. "General Insurance"
represents ICICI Lombard General Insurance Company Limited.
8. "Others"
comprises the consolidated entities of the Bank, not covered in any of the segments above.

Notes 1. The Sangli Bank Limited (Sangli Bank) has merged with ICICI Bank Limited effective April 19, 2007 as per the order of RBI dated April 18, 2007. Pursuant to the merger of Sangli Bank with ICICI Bank Limited, the shareholders of Sangli Bank were allotted 3,455,008 equity shares of Rs. 10.00 each on May 28, 2007. The merger has been accounted for as per the purchase method of accounting in accordance with the scheme of amalgamation.

2. The Bank issued 75,686,388 equity shares (including green shoe option) of Rs. 10.00 each to Qualified Institutional Bidders and Non-Institutional Bidders at a price of Rs. 940.00 per share and 32,912,238 equity shares of Rs. 10.00 each to
Retail Bidders and existing Retail Shareholders at a price of Rs. 890.00 per share, pursuant to a public issue of equity shares, aggregating to Rs. 10,043.71 crore on July 5, 2007. During the year ended March 31, 2008 the Bank allotted 36,675,326 partly paid shares of which 35,644,107 shares have become fully paid after receipt of call money.

3. The Bank issued 49,949,238 American Depositary Shares (ADS) including green shoe option of 6,497,462 ADSs at US$ 49.25 per share, representing 99,898,476 underlying equity shares of Rs. 10.00 each, aggregating to Rs. 9,923.64 crore on July 5, 2007.

4. During the three months ended March 31, 2008, the Bank allotted 146,697 equity shares of Rs. 10.00 each pursuant to exercise of employee stock options.

5. Status of equity investors' complaints / grievances for the three months ended March 31, 2008.
Opening balance ? Additions ? Disposals ? Closing balance 4 ? 668 ? 665 ? 7

6. Provision for current period tax includes Rs. 6.22 crore towards provision for fringe benefit tax for the quarter ended March 31, 2008 (Rs. 39.20 crore for the year ended March 31, 2008).

7. RBI vide its circular DBOD.No.BP.1658/21.04.118/2005-06 dated May 30, 2006 had advised banks having operational presence outside India to compute capital adequacy ratio (CAR) as per the revised capital adequacy framework (Basel II) effective March 31, 2008. As per the current CAR framework, CAR as on March 31, 2008 was at 14.92 per cent of which Tier I was 11.32 per cent. Due to the revised guidelines, previous year CAR figures are not comparable.

8. As required by RBI general clarification dated July 11, 2007, the Bank has deducted the amortisation of premium on government securities, which was earlier deducted from "Other income", from "Income on investments" included in "Interest earned", amounting to Rs. 239.94 crore for the quarter ended March 31, 2008 (Rs. 265.65 crore for the quarter ended March 31, 2007), Rs. 897.62 crore for the year ended March 31, 2008 (Rs. 998.70 crore for the year ended March 31, 2007). Prior period figures have been reclassified to conform to the current classification.

9. The Board of Directors have recommended a dividend of Rs. 11.00 per equity share (110 per cent) for the year ended March 31, 2008 (previous year dividend Rs. 10.00 per equity share).
The declaration and payment of dividend is subject to requisite approvals. The Board of Directors have also recommended a dividend of 0.001 per cent, i.e., Rs. 100 per preference share on 350 preference shares of the face value of Rs. 1 crore each for the year ended March 31, 2008.

10. Previous period / year figures have been regrouped / reclassified where necessary to conform to current period classification.

11. The above financial results have been approved by the Board of Directors at its meeting held on April 26, 2008.

12. The above unconsolidated and consolidated financial results for the year ended March 31, 2008 have been audited by the statutory auditors, BSR & Co., Chartered Accountants.

13. Rs. 1 crore = Rs. 10 million.

Place : Mumbai Chanda D. KochharDate : April 26, 2008 Joint Managing Director & CFO ICICI Bank Limited Press Charudatta Deshpande, 91-22-2653 8208 charudatta.deshpande@icicibank.com or Investor: Pankaj Jain, 91-22-2653 6379 or Rupesh Kumar, 91-22-2653 7126 ir@icicibank.com

Business: Tokyo Stock Exchange chooses NYSE Euronext Technology

Tokyo Stock Exchange chooses NYSE Euronext Technology for its options market
New dealings system will be based on LIFFE CONNECT

Tokyo, New York & London (BUSINESS WIRE) - Tokyo Stock Exchange Inc. (TSE) is proud to announce the introduction of Tdex+, a new trading system based on LIFFE CONNECT and AEMS technology and services, for its options trading market.

LIFFE CONNECT, which is already operational in Japan, is the advanced electronic trading system employed by Liffe, the NYSE Euronext subsidiary and Europe's largest derivatives exchange based on traded value, and is rated highly by investors worldwide for its performance, functionality and global distribution.

The selection of LIFFE CONNECT and NYSE Euronext Advanced Trading Solutions follows the Tokyo Stock Exchange's rigorous
evaluation of several electronic trading systems in use at major exchanges worldwide. Tdex+ is scheduled to start in the early first half of 2009.

TSE is also planning to introduce major operational and regulatory improvements, including new Market Maker functionality for the Japanese market, with the launch of Tdex+. The Market Maker functionality, a popular mechanism deployed in European and US markets, will populate buy and sell quotes across the options market, a necessity in providing sufficient liquidity to this market.

Through building and maintaining a state-of-the-art trading system that attracts investors worldwide, TSE demonstrates its commitment to developing a highly liquid options market that meets Japanese law and cultural practice, to benefit both institutional and public sector users. Details of the business rules for the new system will be made public as soon as the specifications for the system are laid out.

Atsushi Saito, President and CEO of the Tokyo Stock Exchange Group says, "The Japanese options trading market contains significant growth potential. We believe promoting this market will bring forth a great investment opportunity for not only the Japanese investor, but investors worldwide. We have chosen NYSE Euronext as a valued partner in developing this market.
NYSE Euronext's technical and operational expertise in various markets such as the capital and derivatives markets, within multiple localities in Europe and USA is of indispensable value to us."

"We greatly appreciate and thank the Tokyo Stock Exchange for choosing NYSE Euronext Advanced Trading Solutions," said Duncan Niederauer, CEO, NYSE Euronext. "This agreement builds on our alliance and partnership with the TSE, and we believe the TSE can make good use of our knowledge, leadership and technology advantage in derivatives trading. Together, we will develop and introduce a superior platform that serves the interests of customers, addresses the demands for speed and capacity, and ensures that Tdex+ proves beneficial to the Japanese investor and financial marketplace."

About the Tokyo Stock Exchange

Tokyo Stock Exchange, Inc. is the premier exchange for Japanese cash equities and derivative products from the perspective of investors both in Japan and abroad. In 2007, TSE recorded an average daily trading volume of 2,294 million shares, and daily average trading value of JPY 3,070.3 billion. This has positioned TSE as the central market of Japan.

In addition to its core Japanese equity market, TSE provides markets for derivatives products such as long-term Japanese government bond futures and TOPIX index futures. Japanese Government Bond (JGB) futures trading, the cornerstone of TSE's fixed income derivatives market and the benchmark of the Japanese bond market, continues to thrive on investor demand from across the globe.

The JGB futures contract is one of the most active long-term interest rate futures contracts in the world, with its annual trading volume in 2007 reaching 13,545 thousand contracts.

The TOPIX futures contract, which is actively traded by institutional investors, is the leading stock index futures product in Japan, with the largest open interest among Japanese stock index futures products. The annual trading volume of TOPIX Futures in 2007 was 16,578 thousand contracts.

About NYSE Euronext Advanced Trading Solutions

A unit of NYSE Euronext (NYX), NYSE Euronext Advanced Trading Solutions is a leader in providing complete connectivity, data management and transaction solutions for trading firms, vendors and financial markets throughout the world. Offering a suite of comprehensive, best-of-breed commercial technology solutions that include advanced end-to-end market data management, global exchange connectivity and matching technologies, co-location systems, and super low-latency order routing capabilities, NYSE Euronext Advanced Trading Solutions' products attract and enable the free flow of liquidity for high-volume markets around the world.

This unit operates SFTI, one of the world's largest, most reliable financial transaction networks; NYSE TransactTools, the high-performance, end-to-end connectivity software; and Wombat, offering the industry's most advanced platform for real-time market data distribution and integration. With offices across the U.S., Europe, Singapore and Japan, NYSE Euronext Advanced Trading Solutions' commitment to superior development, engineering and customer service has earned the trust to power the trading operations of hundreds of global financial institutions, including core technology for 17 of the world's 20 largest securities firms. For additional information visit: http://www.nyse.com/tradingsolutions.

In December 2007, NYSE Euronext and Atos Origin announced their agreement in principle for NYSE Euronext to acquire the 50% stake in AtosEuronext Market Solutions (AEMS) owned by Atos Origin. The transaction is subject to the satisfaction of several conditions and approvals and execution of final documents, upon which time AEMS will be fully owned by NYSE Euronext.

NYSE Euronext in Japan NYSE Euronext is committed to serving the Asia-Pacific region, which has experienced rapid growth in sophisticated electronic trading and increased demand for advanced trading technology with fast, reliable linkages between the U.S., Europe, and Asia.

To enhance its ability to quickly deliver technology services to clients in Japan, including the TSE, NYSE Euronext has expanded its Tokyo office to include representatives of its commercial technology unit, NYSE Euronext Advanced Trading Solutions. In addition to its recently expanded presence in Tokyo, NYSE Euronext has operations in Beijing, Hong Kong, and Singapore.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This press release may contain forward-looking statements, including forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements concerning NYSE Euronext's plans, objectives, expectations and intentions and other statements that are not historical or current facts. Forward-looking statements are based on NYSE Euronext's current expectations and involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in such
forward-looking statements.

Factors that could cause NYSE Euronext's results to differ materially from current expectations include, but are not limited to: NYSE Euronext's ability to implement its strategic initiatives, economic, political and market conditions and fluctuations, government and industry regulation, interest rate risk and U.S. and global competition, and other factors detailed in NYSE Euronext's reference document for 2006 ("document de reference") filed with the French Autorit des March's Financiers (Registered on June 6, 2007 under No. R.07-0089), 2007 Annual Report on Form 10-K and other periodic reports filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission or the French Autorite des March's Financiers.

In addition, these statements are based on a number of assumptions that are subject to change. Accordingly, actual results may be materially higher or lower than those projected.

The inclusion of such projections herein should not be regarded as a representation by NYSE Euronext that the projections will prove to be correct. This press release speaks only as of this date. NYSE Euronext disclaims any duty to update the information herein.

Tokyo Stock Exchange Group, Inc.: Mitsuo MIWA,
81-3-3665-1051 Media Relationsm-miwa@tse.or.jp
or NYSE Euronext:
+31.20.550.4488 (Amsterdam)
+32.2.509.1392 (Brussels)
+351.217.900.029 (Lisbon)
+44.20.7379.2789 (London)
+1.212.656.2411 (New York)
+33.1.49.27.11.33 (Paris)

Financial/Bank: David Hudson brings 30 years of international finance experience

Hong Kong and Washington (BUSINESS WIRE) - Darby Overseas Investments ("Darby"), the private equity arm of Franklin Templeton Investments, has appointed David Hudson as Senior Managing Director to lead Darby's Asia operations and its global infrastructure initiatives.

In his role as Senior Managing Director - Asia, Hudson will carry oversight responsibility for Darby's Asia private equity investment operations. He will also have responsibility for developing Darby's global infrastructure investment operations.
Hudson, who will be based in Hong Kong after a brief rotation in Washington, DC, will start on May 1, 2008. He will report to CEO Richard Frank, who is based in Washington, DC.
Hudson comes to Darby from ING Group where he most recently served as President and Chief Executive Officer, Americas, Wholesale Banking.

Previously, Hudson led Asia Pacific operations at JPMorgan. During his career, Hudson has worked in Asia, Latin America, the U.S. and the Middle East in the corporate banking and investment banking fields on behalf of ING, Salomon Brothers, and JPMorgan.

In his new role, Hudson will focus on further developing Darby's private equity and mezzanine investment activities in Asia, which currently consists of three funds under management by teams based in Hong Kong, Seoul and Mumbai. He will also lead opportunities for Darby to expand its infrastructure related activities on a global basis. Darby has been a leader in emerging markets infrastructure investing through six funds in Latin America, Asia and Central and Eastern Europe.

Frank said of the appointment, "We are delighted to announce this new appointment. David brings an outstanding background in international finance to Darby. His deep experience both in Asia and in infrastructure investing around the world provides a unique opportunity to develop the Darby platform in these two critical and fast growing areas."

Hudson said, "Darby's existing Asian operations and track record in the infrastructure sector provide an excellent platform for future growth. The institutional support and global brand of Franklin Templeton Investments only enhances the firm's competitive advantage with both investors and potential portfolio companies."

David Hudson has over 30 years of experience in commercial and investment banking in the emerging markets. Hudson began his career at JPMorgan, where he rose to Managing Director and Head of Asia Pacific.

From JPMorgan, he went to Salomon Brothers where he served as Managing Director, Asia Pacific. Moving to ING Group in 1996, Hudson served as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of ING Bank and ING Securities, Asia Pacific and most recently as President and Chief Executive Officer, Americas, Wholesale Banking for ING Group.

Hudson has extensive infrastructure sector experience in the emerging markets of Asia, Latin America, the Middle East, and Africa. Throughout his career, responsibilities and successes in the infrastructure field include origination, execution, negotiation, and closing of investments, risk/credit assessments and approvals, resource allocation, managing infrastructure focused business units, and developing strategies for infrastructure opportunities.

Hudson earned his B.A. and M.B.A. at University of Virginia.

Darby is a fully owned subsidiary of Franklin Resources, Inc. [NYSE:BEN], a global investment management organization operating as Franklin Templeton Investments. Franklin Templeton Institutional,?a unit of Franklin Templeton Investments, provides global and domestic investment management solutions managed by the Franklin Global Advisers, Templeton, Franklin Templeton Fixed Income, Franklin Templeton Real Estate Advisors, Darby and Mutual Series investment management teams.
The San Mateo, California-based company has more than 60 years of investment experience and over US$591 billion in assets under management as of?March 31, 2008.

Darby Overseas Investments Nigel Adam, 1-978-338-1344

Business in Asia Today - April 28, 2008

INDONESIAN POWER FIRM SIGNS PROCUREMENT CONTRACTS
Jakarta (ANTARA News/Asia Pulse) - Indonesia's state-run power firm PLN had signed two engineering procurement contracts worth US$888.4 million with Chinese companies for the construction of coal-fired power plants, local press said Saturday.
The first contract worth US$642 million was signed Friday for the 700-Megawatt Tanjugn Awar-Awar plant in East Java with a consortium of China National Machinery Equipment Corp. (Sinomac), China National Electric Equipment (CNEEC) and local firm PT Penta Adi Samudra.
PLN also signed another contract worth US$247.4 million for the 200-MW Nagan Raya plant in Aceh with China's Sinohydro Corp, reported leading newspaper The Jakarta Post.
PLN President Director Fahmi Mochtar said the projects would run for two years, with the first plant starting commercial operations in October 2010 and the second in January 2011.

INDIA'S JINDAL STEEL & POWER TO OPEN BOLIVIA PLANT IN 2011
Kolkata (ANTARA News/Asia Pulse) - India's Jindal Steel & Power Limited (BSE:532286) would start production at its upcoming plant in Bolivia by 2011, a company official said on Friday.
Company Vice-Chairman Naveen Jindal told reporters here that the company was developing an iron ore mine in Bolivia. He said that exploration in Bolivia would start by the end of the year and that the steel plant would be ready by 2011 at an investment of US$2.1 billion.
On domestic projects, Jindal said that production capacity would be increased by 15 million tons at its greenfield plants at Orissa and Jharkhand. The new plants would be ready by 2010, he said.

INDIA'S BIRD GROUP TO SET UP CHAIN OF HOTELS
New Delhi (ANTARA News/Asia Pulse) - The Bird Group, engaged in aviation and IT services, plans to set up a chain of hotels across India in the five-star-plus category at an investment of Rs 16,000 million ($US398.4 million) in the first phase.
Bird Hospitality Services, a group company, has tied up with Dusit Thani, which runs spas and hotels in Thailand, for the management of four hotels that are to be set up in the initial phase.
The four properties, to be set up in New Delhi, Jaipur, Goa and Rishikesh, would have about 600-700 rooms and would be ready by 2010.

AUSTRALIA'S COMMONWEALTH BANK TO SPEND $US541 MLN ON TECHNOLOGY
Sydney (ANTARA News/Asia Pulse) - The Commonwealth Bank of Australia Ltd (ASX:CBA) will spend $A580 million ($US541.2 million) over the next four years modernising its existing banking legacy systems.
CBA has selected global business software company SAP to upgrade its banking solutions, based on SAP's technology platform NetWeaver. The bank also has appointed another software firm, Accenture, to support the program.
"The forecast cost is around $580 million over the next four years," CBA said.
"In return, the project will deliver a better customer service platform and simplicity in IT systems, infrastructure and business services, as well as provide significant operational benefits and cost savings."

INDONESIA'S CIPUTRA TO INVEST US$1.1BLN IN LUXURY HOUSING PROJECT
Jakarta (ANTARA News/Asia Pulse) - Indonesian publicly-traded construction company PT Ciputra Development (JSX:CTRA) said it will build luxury homes worth Rp10 trillion (US$1.1 billion) in Palembang and Balikpapan.
The company has secured lands totaling 200 hectare in Palembang and 23 hectares in Balikpapan for the locations of the project.
Construction would be undertaken in phases starting this year, company director Tulus Santoro said, adding that implementation would take 5-6 years in Balikpapan and 10 years in Palembang.

VIETNAM'S US$295 MLN CAM PHA CEMENT PLANT PUT INTO OPERATION
Quang Ninh, Vietnam (ANTARA News/Asia Pulse) - The Vinaconex Cam Pha Cement Plant, capable of turning out 1.89 million tonnes of clinker a year, was put into operation in Quang Ninh province on April 27.
The plant is the main element of the 4.74 trillion VND (US$295.50 million) Cam Pha Cement Project, which has a designed capacity of 2.3 million tonnes a year, invested by the Vietnam Construction Import Export Joint Stock Company (Vinaconex JSC).
The state-of-the art project is the largest of its kind in Vietnam.
Built on a 75 ha area in Cam Pha township, Vinaconex Cam Pha Cement Plant turned out its first batch of clinker last month.

S KOREAN PRESIDENT VOWS TO OPEN BEEF MARKET WIDER
Seoul (ANTARA News/Asia Pulse) - President Lee Myung-bak said Sunday that South Korea will have to fully open its beef market to the U.S. and all the other countries in the world.
"The government recently decided to reopen its beef market to the U.S. The policy is in the right direction and the beef market should be opened to all the other countries of the world, in addition to the U.S.," Lee told a meeting with budget-related Cabinet ministers and presidential aides.
"The final judgment (on the market opening) will be left in the hands of local consumers.
The government's role will be reduced to helping local livestock farmers upgrade their global competitiveness."

VIETNAM TO PUMP US$53 MLN INTO AQUACULTURE RESEARCH
Hanoi (ANTARA News/Asia Pulse) - About 850 billion VND (US$53.1 million) will be invested in developing and applying bio-technology in aqua-culture from now to 2020, according to Vietnam's Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.
The investment also aims to develop new post-harvest technologies, while boosting the competitiveness of the aqua-culture sector.

THAILAND'S AMATA JOINS MITSUBISHI TO BUILD TURBO-CHARGER FACTORY
Bangkok (ANTARA News/Asia Pulse) - Thai real estate developer Amata Group and Japan's Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (TSE:7011) have signed an agreement to produce turbo chargers in Thailand to meet increasing demand for the product both locally and internationally.
The two companies will set up a joint venture named Mitsubishi Turbo Charger Asia, Amata Corporation Pcl director Viboon Kromadit, and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries director Katsuhiko Yoshida told a press conference.
The Bt7 billion (US$220.78 million) factory will be built in Thailand's Amata Nakhon Industrial Estate.

APAC COAL SET TO RAISE $US14 MLN VIA IPO
Melbourne (ANTARA News/Asia Pulse) - Explorer APAC Coal Ltd is looking to raise $A15 million ($US14.22 million) through an initial public offer to fund the development of a thermal coal mine in Indonesia amid rising prices for the fuel.
APAC Coal's flagship project is located in East Kalimantan, Indonesia, and contains a resource of 5.1 million tonne's of thermal coal, which is used to fuel power stations.
"APAC Coal has entered into an exciting phase of its development and with the capital from the IPO proceeds we will be able to produce thermal coal from the new mine which is currently in the pre-production phase," chairman Paul Piercy said in a statement.

Source:
Business in Asia Today - APRIL 28, 2008
published by Asia Pulse

COPYRIGHT © 2008

Business: Blackstone Real Estate Partners to invest in Synergy

Blackstone Real Estate Partners to invest in Synergy, India's leading development/project management firm

Bangalore, India - Blackstone Real Estate Partners, an affiliate of The Blackstone Group L.P. (NYSE: BX) announced today that it had agreed to invest approximately $18 million for a minority stake with board representation in Synergy Property Development Services Private Ltd.

Formed in 2003, Synergy is now one of the top project and construction management companies in India and currently has over 500 employees across nine Indian offices, with international offices in Dubai and Kuala Lumpur.

Synergy, which is based out of Bangalore, has delivered over 20 million square feet of real estate and is presently managing over 100 million square feet across various asset classes including office, retail, residential, hotels and hospitals.

The company also has plans to expand into infrastructure projects such as airports.

Synergy specializes in architectural design and fitouts, complete project management and turnkey contracts.

The company's forte is managing the entire process from start to finish and ensuring timely project delivery.

Its portfolio of projects include well known developments such as the Medicity in Gurgaon, India's largest hospital cluster development, Select Citywalk, a premium retail development in Delhi, the HCC-ICICI Tech Park and Runwal Town Centre in Mumbai, the Park Hyatt hotel in Chennai, and the Manyata Business Park and Embassy Golf Links in Bangalore, two of the largest and most successful business parks in India.

Sankey Prasad, Managing Director of Synergy said: "Started by a group of young architects and engineers, Synergy has created a leading position in the market by tying our success in the design and project management of large, prestigious projects to the delivery of top quality construction on time and on budget. With a qualified, proactive and experienced staff base, and aided by industry leading retention rates of our staff, the strength of Synergy is in its people."

Chad Pike, Senior Managing Director and London-based co-head of Blackstone's real estate group, said: "We are excited to be
doing this innovative deal and about teaming up with the best project manager in India as we build our business in the region. In the longer term, we believe there will be attractive real estate investment opportunities that follow from this partnership."

Tuhin Parikh, Managing Director of Blackstone's real estate group in Mumbai added: "We look forward to using Blackstone's global platform to support the continued growth of Synergy as it delivers on its long-term growth plan."

Sankey Prasad commented: "Our vision for partnering with Blackstone is to combine our individual strengths and build a strong platform to deliver world class products in the Indian and global real estate market.

"In addition, part of the proceeds from this transaction will make possible a wealth creation and retention program for each and every employee of Synergy, so that we can continue to foster our entrepreneurial culture as we grow."

About The Blackstone Group

The Blackstone Group L.P. is a leading global alternative asset manager and provider of financial advisory services.

Its alternative asset management businesses include the management of corporate private equity funds, real estate funds, funds of hedge funds, mezzanine funds, senior debt vehicles, proprietary hedge funds and closed-end mutual funds.

The Blackstone Group L.P. also provides various financial advisory services, including corporate and mergers and acquisitions advisory, restructuring and reorganization advisory and fund placement services.

Blackstone's Real Estate group numbers more than 60 investment and asset management professionals with broad experience across most real estate categories, including hotels, office, residential, retail, and other commercial properties. The group has completed more than 225 separate investments in North America and Europe with a total transaction value of approximately $132 billion since 1992.

Most recently the group opened offices in Tokyo, Hong Kong and Mumbai to expand Blackstone's real estate business in Asia, and closed Blackstone Real Estate Partners VI with capital commitments totalling $10.9 billion, creating the largest real estate opportunity fund ever raised. Further information is available at www.blackstone.com.

Synergy Property Development Services Pvt. Ltd.
Tel: +91 80 4112 0425 - 26www.synergyind.com or The Blackstone GroupSophia Harrison, +44 (0)20 7451 4295
harrison@blackstone.com or IPAN Public Relations and Public AffairsVinod Moorthy, +91 98 2104 6806 Vinod.Moorthy@ipan.com

Business: Indochina Capital becomes investor in global transport firm

Indochina Capital Vietnam Holdings Becomes a strategic investor in international transportation and trading joint stock company, a leading private Vietnamese shipping company

Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam - Indochina Capital Vietnam Holdings Limited ("ICV") (LSE:ICV), a Vietnam-focused investment fund listed on the London Stock Exchange main market under symbol ICV, is proud to announce a strategic growth capital investment in the International Transportation and Trading Joint Stock Company ("ITC"), a leading private Vietnamese shipping company based in Ho Chi Minh City.

ICV has acquired a minority equity position in ITC for US$25 million and has become one of the Company's first institutional investors, together with Sacombank Securities, which invested in a parallel transaction.

ITC is a private and closely held company with intentions to list on the HCM City Stock Exchange in early 2010.

ITC is growing its business through the expansion of its fleet which currently is comprised of five dry bulk ships having a total capacity of 175,000 DWT that primarily services the construction materials industry.

Furthermore, ITC is engaged in the development, ownership, and operation of two major container ports near Ho Chi Minh City.

Tung Kim Nguyen, the investment manager's Co-CIO, asserts: "This growth capital investment in ITC represents one of our strategies of investing in high quality prelisted businesses with strong growth tied to domestic demand in Vietnam.

"In this case, the investment in ITC is linked to the growth in demand for construction materials that will continue to escalate as Vietnam's real estate development boom gains pace.

"Some of the key development areas which will drive demand include large scale urban infrastructure, residential, commercial, retail, and industrial zones."

About ICV

Indochina Capital Vietnam Holdings Limited is a Vietnam focused closed-end investment fund listed on the London Stock Exchange main market. ICV provides institutional investors with access to a diversified portfolio of Vietnam-based investments, including prelisted equity, state-owned entity equity, listed equity, fixed income, short-term instruments, and other investments.

The Fund's investment manager, Indochina Capital Advisors Limited, is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Indochina Capital Corporation ("ICC").

ICC is one of Vietnam's most established foreign investment firms with a nine year institutional track-record in Vietnam. Please visit our website at www.indochinacapital.com
for more information.
Indochina CapitalThu Tran, +848 520 2030 thu.h.tran@indochinacapital.com www.indochinacapital.com

Insurance: Atradius Collections grow rapidly with new global offices

Singapore and Amsterdam, (ANTARA News/PRNewswire-AsiaNet) - Atradius Collections, part of the Atradius Group, continues its rapid expansion with investments in its international presence.

Over the last seven months, the dedicated business-to-business collections company has opened new offices in Canada, Ireland, Hungary, Hong Kong and Singapore.

In 2007, Atradius Collections, which now has offices in 16 countries, increased revenues 18.1% and the number of collections professionals it employs across the globe by 25%.

Raymond van der Loos, Director Atradius Collections, commented: "The new offices will further drive the strategy of offering on-the-ground service with extensive local knowledge in any global location."

Atradius Collections also works with hundreds of local agents in numerous other markets to collect outstanding debts.

Atradius Collections' growth strategy is being supported by investments both in personnel and in technology.

Its on-line collections monitoring system enables Atradius Collections to manage collections status worldwide and keep all team members as well as customers informed with real time account information.

This technology will be extended to Mexico and the Czech Republic later this year when Atradius Collections adds these markets to its list of local operations.

Raymond van der Loos explains further: "Our customers across the globe can be at a real disadvantage when trying to collect debts in foreign countries. They are dealing with unfamiliar cultures, languages and business practices.

"Atradius Collections is making collecting debts easier for them. With offices and staff on-the-ground both in the countries where the debt is outstanding and where customers are based, our customers are able to operate through one central contact, in a familiar language, get real time on-line progress reports on their collections cases and have experienced local teams pursuing their outstanding debts."

About Atradius Group:

The Atradius Group provides trade credit insurance, surety and collections services worldwide, and has a presence in 40 countries.

Its products and services aim to reduce its customers' exposure to buyers who fail to pay for the products and services customers purchase.

With total revenues of approximately EUR 1.8 billion and a 31% share of the global trade credit insurance market, its products contribute to the growth of companies throughout the world by protecting them from payment risks associated with selling products and services on credit.

With 160 offices, it has access to credit information on 52 million companies worldwide and makes more than 22,000 trade credit limit decisions daily.

www.atradius.com

About Atradius Collections:

Atradius Collections has over 400 staff and 16 offices worldwide, serving 12,000 clients and handling 27 million transactions per year.

With revenues of EUR 48.2 million in 2007, Atradius Collections' 300 collections specialists worldwide provide customers with local expertise through one global process and IT platform.
www.atradiuscollections.com

SOURCE: Atradius N.V.
CONTACT: Andrea Riedle,
Senior Communications Manager,
Atradius Corporate Communications,
+31-20-553-2052,
andrea.riedle@atradius.com,
Janice Tay,
Collections Manager - South East Asia,
Atradius Collections Pte Ltd., Singapore,
+65-6372-5309,
janice.tay@atradius.com
Web site: http://www.atradius.com
http://www.atradiuscollections.com

COPYRIGHT © 2008

Business: Hong Li awards Trussnet USA $US2.5 bln China turnkey plant

Irvine, California, (ANTARA News/PRNewswire-AsiaNet) - Trussnet USA Development Co. Inc. a global leader in architectural engineering services, telecommunication services/networks, high-tech facilities (TFT-LCD) and turnkey development projects, announced today that it has received a "Finance, Design and Build" Turnkey Development Contract for a 6th generation TFT-LCD Plant in China, with a total contract value of $USD 2.5 Billion.

The plant construction is comprised of a factory, a cooperate office, and several dormitories with a total useable floor area of 1,200,000 m2, located on a plot of land of approximately 1,000,000 m2 in size located in China. The project development shall commence in May of 2008 by three phases for accomplishment.

Mr. Colin Tay, Co-Chairman, states "We are excited once again to be constructing this high tech manufacturing facility, complete with building infrastructure, M.E.P, fire safety equipment, a water treatment system, clean rooms and related production facilities and will complete our latest design/build contract in the TFT-LCD sector."

About Trussnet USA Development Co. Inc.

Headquartered in Irvine, California, United States of America, Trussnet provides professional services in Telecommunications, Planning, Architecture, Engineering, Turnkey Development, Finance, Manufacturing, Project Management, and Construction Management throughout the United States, China and Southeast Asia.

Trussnet knows what Eastern and Western international business requires. It also understands and appreciates the importance of properly fusing the culture of the United States with the cultures in China and Southeast Asia.

Trussnet has patiently developed long-standing, personal relationships in China and Southeast Asia that have enabled it to successfully market its services throughout China and Southeast Asia.

Understanding and embracing the cultures of the Eastern and Western part of the globe, together with these personal relationships, are the key elements to the international language of business.

These elements are understood and embraced by every member of the Trussnet organization. In fact, these elements were the catalyst that brought the members of our organization together, sharing one vision for one world.

And while these elements are continually evolving and maturing, they still represent the foundation of Trussnet, as it further expands its worldwide operations.

Trussnet Expertise:
-- Telecommunication Services and Networks
-- Architectural & Engineering Services
-- Construction Management
-- Turnkey Real Estate Development
-- Project Financial Analysis and financing

SOURCE: Trussnet USA Development Co. Inc.
CONTACT: Asian Contact,
Ms. Amy Tung,
+886 2 2740-0978, atung@trussnet.net, or
USA Contact,
Mario Alvarez, +1-949-585-0222, malvarez@trussnet.net,
both of Trussnet USA Development Co. Inc.
Web site: http://www.trussgroup.com

COPYRIGHT © 2008