Quickbites

“We have been making various studies on our organisational set-up in the future from a medium- and long-term standpoint," the spokesman said. "But we have not made any decision on specific planning." Citing the case of Japan’s retailing giant Daiei Inc., he said that establishment of a holding company might be "the talk of the town in general." "But we haven’t raised it up in particular." The newspaper said around 2000, Toshiba would split into a heavy machinery maker for projects such as power plant construction, a home appliances maker, which will also produce personal computers, an information and telecommunications service company, and an electronic parts maker.

FDI flow to Vietnam declines

New foreign investment approvals in Vietnam this year have registered a decline for the first time since the country launched its open door policy, according to official statistics. Foreign investment capital approved by Hanoi in 1997 only reached five billion dollars compared with $8.7 billion last year, the official Vietnam News Agency reported.

The 42 per cent drop in foreign investment was the second consecutive year foreign investors have slackened interest in Vietnam. A last minute rush by the Vietnamese authorities in the final days of 1996 to put the approval stamp on two huge investment projects allowed Hanoi to hide the reality with the announcement of a foreign investment record. South Korea tops the list of foreign investors in Vietnam this year, followed by Japan, Francethanks to the signing of several big contracts during the November visit by President Jacques ChiracSingapore and Thailand.

Thailand launches tourist drive

Thailand launched a multi-million dollar two-year tourism Drive Saturday to lure foreigners and their cash in an effort to counter the effects of the country’s worst economic slump in decades. But amid the hype of the "Amazing Thailand" campaign’s opening day, tourism officials have reluctantly admitted the drive is doomed to failure, having set targets which are unlikely to be met. The official target is for 17 million foreign tourists in 1998 and 1999, bringing in an estimated 600 billion baht ($12.8 billion).

Saturday’s festivities, including a parade, dances and plays, kick off nine days of celebrations costing 30 million baht ($638,000) to mark the beginning of the campaign. Confident that the country’s recession would not hinder the tourist drive, Tourism Authority of Thailand governor Seree Wangpaichitr vowed that Thailand would be among the world’s tourism hot-spots in the the next decade. The campaign, though long planned, has taken on added significance as the full extent of Thailand’s economic and financial crisis hits home.