Daily news - 10 Oct

Noble invests in Brazil fuel terminal
Noble Group – Yesterday announced its investment in a liquid bulk fuels terminal in Brazil. The group's investment in this infrastructural project will be done via its wholly owned subsidiary Temmar, and is part of its strategy to establish a well-structured and modern supply chain. Construction of the terminal, which is spread over a covered area of 10,000 square metres, has begun. It will have static storage capacities for 132,990 cubic metres for clean fuels, bio-diesel or ethanol. The terminal is expected to be fully operational by November next year, and will be linked to the Itaqui port pier to discharge and load vessels. Some other investments Noble has in Brazil include sugar mill operations in Sao Paolo and Merdiano, a coffee processing and storage facility, and a fertiliser venture. It also holds a minority stake in Mhag, a Brazilian iron ore miner located in the north-east region which is endowed with vast mineral wealth. The company is also investing in a dry bulk export terminal in the largest port in South America, Santos, and controls terminals in Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay also.

Hyflux says orders may rise 30% next year
Hyflux Ltd – The company whose shares have halved in four days, yesterday said that it may benefit as governments boost spending to try and counter slowing economic growth triggered by the global credit crisis. Deputy CEO Sam Ong said infrastructure will be promoted in a global economic slowdown and that the water industry is going to be prioritised. He said that in a worst-case scenario, Hyflux could grow its orders by 10-20%,' he said, adding that a gain of 30% next year was possible. Hyflux, which targets businesses in the Middle East and China, had an order book of $1.45bn as at June 30, according to the company's Aug 6 results. Hyflux shares slumped as much as 22% yesterday to a low of $1.21, taking their decline over the past four days to as much as 52%, according to Bloomberg calculations. Still, the stock pared losses after Mr Ong's remarks, ending the day at $1.50, down 3.8 per cent or six cents.

Source: Kim Eng