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China’s Largest Developer Country Garden Holdings Readies to Enter Thailand

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In addition to Bangkok, Country Garden is also scouting for sites in Pattaya and Phuket.

BANGKOK – In a modern office block in Huay Kwang district, the team settling down to a routine Monday morning is employed by the new Thailand branch of Country Garden Holdings, China’s largest property developer by contracted sales in the first half of 2017.

This is the Chinese company’s latest foray in Southeast Asia, and a string of projects are planned for the Thai capital next year.

“In addition to Bangkok, Country Garden is also scouting for sites in Pattaya and Phuket,” said a veteran of the Thai property market. Both seaside resorts attract millions of foreign visitors each year.

The developer is expected to launch a new brand overseas soon, replacing Country Garden with a rejuvenated and more international vibe.

“Many people in Thailand are not aware of Country Garden,” said one property executive. “And those in the know associate it with a suburban Chinese developer of mediocre properties.”

The Guangdong-based company is recruiting locally as Country Garden Thailand, and since 2012 has expanded to Australia, Indonesia, India, Laos, Malaysia, Russia, Vietnam, the U.S. and the U.K.

Bangkok continues to see a property boom that some fear may be turning into a bubble. The most dynamic features are condominiums near mass transit systems, and residential developments in outlying areas of Greater Bangkok.

One of the leading Thai developers, Sansiri, has been keen to attract foreign buyers. It hopes they will spend 10 billion baht ($304.4 million) this year — a figure has been adjusted up from 7.5 billion baht earlier in the year. The Thai-listed company racked up 5.7 billion baht in foreign sales in 2016, an increase of 55% year on year.

Market watchers are not surprised by Country Garden’s interest in the Thai property boom. Buyers from China, Hong Kong, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, and Taiwan continue to be attracted by good value offerings. About 37% of Sansiri’s foreign demand last year came from Hong Kong, and 31% from China, according to its president, Srettha Thavisin. The government caps foreign ownership in individual condominiums at 49%.

“Country Garden’s [initial] projects in Thailand should be smaller scale so that it doesn’t invite Chinese government scrutiny,” said Alan Jin, an analyst with Mizuho Securities Asia in Hong Kong. Beijing, he notes, is keeping an eye out for projects that require major funding and borrowing. This has reined in overseas expansion of the property sector. “But it doesn’t mean that they have to kill all the projects abroad,” he said.

According to a document released in August by China’s State Council, regulators sat on a string of foreign acquisitions out of concern that the companies involved were taking on too much debt. The document limits overseas investments in hotels, cinemas, the entertainment industry, real estate, and sports clubs. It also bans outright investments in enterprises related to gambling and the sex industry.

Those already on the government’s radar include sprawling conglomerates such as Wanda Group, Anbang Insurance, Fosun International, and HNA Group that have expanded rapidly through debt-fueled foreign acquisitions. Among the purchases: New York’s famed Waldorf Astoria Hotel.

It therefore came as little surprise when Jeff Lin, Country Garden’s chief strategy officer, told Bloomberg in September that the company is “hitting the pause button on international expansion,” and delaying some investments. Country Garden had been looking at six cities in India but has put matters on hold for the time being.

Headquartered in Foshan in Guangdong Province, Country Garden is best known internationally for Forest City, a $100 billion investment in the southern Malaysian state of Johor Bahru. The project is being built on four artificial islands near Singapore covering 2,000 hectares. Country Garden announced on June 20 it would proceed with the second stage of Forest City, investing $280 million in golf courses, an international school, and another hotel.

Chief Financial Officer Wu Bijun in late August insisted that the State Council’s new policy would not impact Forest City, but said the company was widening its sales effort. “We have broadened our reach to global buyers from 23 countries,” she said. “Our path will only be smoother.”

Country Garden, which will join Hong Kong’s benchmark Hang Seng Index on Dec. 4, has an impressive top-line spreadsheet. Last year, it more than doubled contracted sales to 308.8 billion yuan ($46.6 billion), making it the third-largest developer in revenue after giants China Evergrande and China Vanke. In the first nine months of 2017, Country Garden’s contracted sales reached 428.2 billion yuan, ahead of Vanke’s 396.1 billion yuan and Evergrande’s 378 billion yuan.

Deutsche Bank expects Country Garden to achieve 530 billion yuan of contracted sales this year, growing 72% year on year. “We believe its high growth is sustainable, as the current land bank can sustain flattish sales in 2018 even without further land banking,” it said in a note in August. “This has taken into consideration of its strong execution to launch projects for presale in less than seven months post land acquisitions.”

By Jason Tan – Nikkei

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PepsiCo Reduces Revenue Projections As North American Snacks And Key International Markets Underperform.

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(VOR News) – In the third quarter of this year, Pepsi’s net income was $2.93 billion, which is equivalent to $2.13 per share. This was attributed to the company.

This is in stark contrast to net income of $3.09 billion, which is equivalent to $2.24 per share, during the same period in the previous year. The company’s earnings per share were $2.31 when expenses were excluded.

Net sales decreased by 0.6%, totaling $23.32 billion. Organic sales increased by 1.3% during the quarter when the effects of acquisitions, divestitures, and currency changes are excluded.

Pepsi’s beverage sales fell this quarter.

The most recent report indicates that the beverage and food sectors of the organization experienced a 2% decline in volume. Consumers of all income levels are demonstrating a change in their purchasing habits, as indicated by CEOs’ statements from the previous quarter.

Pepsi’s entire volume was adversely affected by the lackluster demand they encountered in North America. An increasing number of Americans are becoming more frugal, reducing the number of snacks they ingest, and reducing the number of times they purchase at convenience stores.

Furthermore, Laguarta observed that the increase in sales was partially attributed to the election that occurred in Mexico during the month of June.

The most significant decrease in volume was experienced by Quaker Foods North America, which was 13%. In December, the company announced its initial recall in response to a potential salmonella infection.

Due to the probability of an illness, the recall was extended in January. Pepsi officially closed a plant that was implicated in the recalls in June, despite the fact that manufacturing had already been halted.

Jamie Caulfield, the Chief Financial Officer of Pepsi and Laguarta, has indicated that the recalls are beginning to have a lessening effect.

Frito-Lay experienced a 1.5% decline in volume in North America. The company has been striving to improve the value it offers to consumers and the accessibility of its snack line, which includes SunChips, Cheetos, and Stacy’s pita chips, in the retail establishments where it is sold.

Despite the fact that the category as a whole has slowed down in comparison to the results of previous years, the level of activity within the division is progressively increasing.

Pepsi executives issued a statement in which they stated that “Salty and savory snacks have underperformed year-to-date after outperforming packaged food categories in previous years.”

Pepsi will spend more on Doritos and Tostitos in the fall and winter before football season.

The company is currently promoting incentive packets for Tostitos and Ruffles, which contain twenty percent more chips than the standard package.

Pepsi is expanding its product line in order to more effectively target individuals who are health-conscious. The business announced its intention to acquire Siete Foods for a total of $1.2 billion approximately one week ago. The restaurant serves Mexican-American cuisine, which is typically modified to meet the dietary needs of a diverse clientele.

The beverage segment of Pepsi in North America experienced a three percent decrease in volume. Despite the fact that the demand for energy drinks, such as Pepsi’s Rockstar, has decreased as a result of consumers visiting convenience stores, the sales of well-known brands such as Gatorade and Pepsi have seen an increase throughout the quarter.

Laguarta expressed his opinion to the analysts during the company’s conference call, asserting, “I am of the opinion that it is a component of the economic cycle that we are currently experiencing, and that it will reverse itself in the future, once consumers feel better.”

Additionally, it has been noted that the food and beverage markets of South Asia, the Middle East, Latin America, and Africa have experienced a decline in sales volume. The company cut its forecast for organic revenue for the entire year on Tuesday due to the business’s second consecutive quarter of lower-than-anticipated sales.

The company’s performance during the quarter was adversely affected by the Quaker Foods North America recalls, the decrease in demand in the United States, and the interruptions that occurred in specific international markets, as per the statements made by Chief Executive Officer Ramon Laguarta.

Pepsi has revised its forecast for organic sales in 2024, shifting from a 4% growth rate to a low single-digit growth rate. The company reiterated its expectation that the core constant currency profitability per share will increase by a minimum of 8% in comparison to the previous year.

The company’s shares declined by less than one percent during premarket trading. The following discrepancies between the company’s report and the projections of Wall Street were identified by LSEG in a survey of analysts:

SOURCE: CNBC

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Old National Bank And Infosys Broaden Their Strategic Partnership.

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Old National Bank And Infosys Broaden Their Strategic Partnership.

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(VOR News) – Old National Bank, a commercial bank with its headquarters in the Midwest, and Infosys, a firm that specializes in information technology, have recently entered into a strategic expansion of their link, which has been in place for the past four years.

This expansion is more likely to take place sooner rather than later, with the likelihood being higher.

For the purpose of making it possible for Old National Bank to make use of the services, solutions, and platforms that are offered by Infosys, the objective of this expansion is to make it possible for the bank to transform its operations and processes through the application of automation and GenAI, as well as to change significant business areas.

This lets the bank leverage Infosys’ services, solutions, and platforms.

Old National Bank Chairman and CEO Jim Ryan said, “At Old National, we are committed to creating exceptional experiences for both our customers and our fellow employees.”

This statement is applicable to Old National Bank. Infosys is carefully managing the business process innovations that it is putting us through, putting a strong emphasis on efficiency and value growth throughout the process to ensure that it is carried out efficiently.

This is a routine occurrence throughout the entire operation. Because of Infosys’ dedication to our development and success, we are incredibly appreciative of the assistance they have provided.

Old National has been receiving assistance from Infosys in the process of updating its digital environment since the year 2020, according to the aforementioned company.

Ever since that time, the company has been providing assistance. The provision of this assistance has been accomplished through the utilization of a model that is not only powerful but also capable of functioning on its own power.

Infosys currently ranks Old National thirty-first out of the top thirty US banks.

This ranking is based on the fact that Old National is the nation’s largest banking corporation.

It is estimated that the total value of the company’s assets is approximately fifty-three billion dollars, while the assets that are currently being managed by the organization are valued at thirty billion dollars.

Dennis Gada, the Executive Vice President and Global Head of Banking and Financial Services, stated that “Old National Bank and Infosys possess a robust cultural and strategic alignment in the development, management, and enhancement of enterprise-scale solutions to transform the bank’s operations and facilitate growth.”

This remark referenced the exceptional cultural and strategic synergy between the two organizations. Dennis Gada is the one who asserted this claim. This was articulated explicitly concerning the exceptional cultural congruence and strategy alignment of the two organizations.

We are pleased to announce that the implementation of Infosys Topaz will substantially expedite the transformation of Old National Bank’s business processes and customer service protocols. We are exceedingly enthusiastic about this matter. We are quite thrilled about this specific component of the scenario.

Medium-sized banks operating regionally will continue to benefit from our substantial expertise in the sector, technology, and operations. This specific market segment of Infosys will persist in benefiting from our extensive experience. This phenomenon will enable this market sector to sustain substantial growth and efficiency benefits.

SOURCE: THBL

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American Water, The Largest Water Utility In US, Is Targeted By A Cyberattack

States Sue TikTok, Claiming Its Platform Is Addictive And Harms The Mental Health Of Children

Qantas Airways Apologizes After R-Rated Film Reportedly Airs On Every Screen During Flight

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American Water, The Largest Water Utility In US, Is Targeted By A Cyberattack

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water

The largest regulated water and wastewater utility company in the United States stated Monday that it had been the target of a cyberattack, forcing the company to halt invoicing to consumers.

water

American Water, The Largest Water Utility In US, Is Targeted By A Cyberattack

American Water, based in New Jersey and serving over 14 million people in 14 states and 18 military facilities, said it learned of the unauthorized activity on Thursday and quickly took precautions, including shutting down certain systems. The business does not believe the attack had an impact on its facilities or operations and said employees were working “around the clock” to determine the origin and scale of the attack.

water

The corporation stated that it has alerted legal enforcement and is cooperating with them. It also stated that consumers will not be charged late fees while its systems are unavailable.

According to their website, American Water operates over 500 water and wastewater systems in around 1,700 communities across California, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia.

SOURCE | AP

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