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Myanmar reformed its copper mining project investigation commission Monday with 16 members replacing the 30-member commission originally formed on last Saturday, according to a revised order of the President's Office. However, the reformed commission, which is tasked to probe into Letpadaungtaung copper mine project being implemented in Monywa, northwestern Sagaing region, is still led by Aung San Suu Kyi, Chairperson of the Lower House's Committee for Rule of Law and Tranquility. The commission is set up to investigate into if the copper project is carried out in line with the international norms and employ appropriate technology for environmental conservation, the impacts and profits of the project on social and natural environment, if the project is profitable for the state and the people and if the copper mine project should be allowed to continue or not, the order said. The commission is set to submit the investigation report to the president before Jan. 31, 2013

Singapore shares closed 0.14 percent lower on Monday, as stagnant U.S. budget talks threatened to derail the world's largest economy and kept investors cautious, but price drop was limited as further signs of a stabilizing Chinese economy boosted investors' sentiment . China's official manufacturing purchasing managers' index rose to a 7-month high of 50.6 in November, following up on a preliminary private sector survey which revealed factory activity reviving to a 13-month high. A number of central banks, including the Reserve Bank of Australia , the European Central Bank and the Bank of England, will hold their policy meetings this week. The monthly U.S. nonfarm payrolls data is due out on this Friday. SIAS Research said "we could see the index testing 3,080 points resistance level, with immediate support at 3,060 points and 3,040 points levels." DBS Group Research said "trading activity should taper down over the next three weeks before picki

Greece on Monday launched a 10-billion-euro (13 billion U.S. dollars) debt buyback program till Dec. 7 to ensure the release of crucial bailout aid and avoid a financial meltdown. The country's Public Debt Management Agency (PDMA) made an offer to private holders to sell back state bonds at a discount as part of efforts to further reduce Greek sovereign debt and meet targets for its sustainability over the next decade. Under the scheme, bondholders will be paid different purchase prices depending on the maturity of the bonds, starting from a minimum 30.2 percent of the bond's nominal value for 25-year and 30-year bonds to 40.1 percent for 10-year bonds. They will receive in exchange notes issued by the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF). The voluntary bond buyback procedure should be wrapped up by Dec. 17. "The invitation is designed to improve Greece's debt profile," the PDMA said. However, heads of Greek banks and social funds , which hold s

Ssangyong Motor Co., South Korea's smallest automaker, said Monday its sales jumped 33.2 percent in November last month from a year earlier thanks to brisk sales both at home and abroad. Sales reached 11,948 units last month, up from 8,971 vehicles a year earlier, said Ssangyong Motor in a statement. Its domestic sales soared 49.1 percent on-year to 4,404 units, while exports jumped 25.4 percent to 7,544 units. Ssangyong Motor said it sold a cumulative 108,846 vehicles in the January-November period, up 4.3 percent from the 104,336 units sold a year earlier.

By Kim Young-gyo China will implement a cautious monetary policy next year , as the country seeks to rebalance its economic structure, a Beijing scholar said Monday. Hu Xingdou, a political economist at the Beijing Institute of Technology, predicted China's newly installed leadership will seek to establish a monetary policy in that way, saying more measures to boost the country's consumption will be introduced as well. A new crop of Chinese leaders for the next decade was appointed last month, with the members of the Chinese Communist Party's Standing Committee, the most powerful decision-making organ within the only de facto political party in the country, selected. The committee is led by Xi Jinping, who will be officially named the country's president next March. China was expected to adjust the components of the economic growth largely driven by exports and investment in a bid to sustain rapid and stable growth for the rest of the coming decade. "Stab

Indonesia's inflation in November rose at slower pace, giving more rooms for the central bank to put its benchmark interest rate on hold, an official said Monday. Head of the National Statistic Bureau named only Suryamin announced here on Monday that consumer price index (inflation) eased at 4.32 percent from a year ago, versus 4.61 in October. Indonesian economy grew by 6.17 percent in the three month ending in September, the bureau has said. Indonesian Coordinating Minister for Economy Hatta Rajasa told Xinhua that the government expects 6.4 percent GDP for the final quarter, putting the whole year economic growth expectation to at least 6.3 percent. Indonesia's economy grew by 6.37 percent and 6.3 percent in the first two quarters respectively, according to the bureau. The central bank plans would hold a meeting at December 11 to make a decision on the basic rate after it kept the rate at 5.75 percent at the beginning of November for the ninth straight months.

Citibank Korea Inc., the South Korean unit of U.S.-based Citigroup, has cut 199 jobs through a voluntary retirement program in an apparent bid to reduce costs amid recent economic woes, industry sources said Monday. The number of employees who departed through the program amounts to about 4.3 percent of the lender's workforce of some 4,600, and the financial firm is considering additional measures to prepare for a prolonged economic downturn, according to industry officials. "The early retirement program was implemented in light of the current slump in the local financial industry," a Citibank official said. "We will work to boost managerial efficiency down the road." The job reduction comes as foreign financial groups here have been suffering from weak performance stemming from the global economic downturn, with both their overseas-based headquarters and Seoul offices seeing profits worsen. The market share of Citibank Korea based on its total amoun

China's manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index stood at a 13-month high of 50.5 in November, backed by increasing new business and expanding production, confirming that the Chinese economy continues to recover gradually, according to a report released by HSBC here Monday. November's final headline PMI, a gauge of performance in the manufacturing industry , edged up a notch from its flash reading of 50.4 to 50.5, the highest reading and the first above-50 reading in 13 months, the report said. A PMI reading above 50 indicates growth, while a reading below 50 indicates contraction. The details suggest that manufacturing activities were boosted by an expansion of output driven by a continuous increase of new business. The output sub-index rose above 50 for the first time in four months, to 51.3, its highest level in 13 months, while new business inflows rose for the second consecutive month, though moderated a bit to 50.8 from 51.2. November's new export order

South Korea's second-largest carmaker Kia Motors Corp. said Monday its sales rose 6.4 percent in November from a year earlier thanks to a boost in domestic sales. Kia sold 258,157 vehicles last month, compared with 242,636 units sold a year earlier, the company said in a statement. Domestic sales rose 13.8 percent on-year to 44,400 units, with outbound shipments climbing 5 percent to 213,757 vehicles. Kia's January-November sales reached 2,499,417 vehicles, up 8.2 percent on-year from 2,309,293 units, the company added.

South Korea's top automaker Hyundai Motor Co . said Monday its November sales jumped 11.9 percent from a year earlier on the back of brisk sales at home and abroad. Sales came in at 420,365 units last month, up from 375,594 vehicles sold a year ago, the company said in a statement. Domestic sales rose 12.6 percent on-year to 61,608 units, with overseas shipments jumping 11.8 percent to 358,757 units. Hyundai sold a total of 4,010,792 vehicles through November, up 9 percent from 3,680,456 units sold last year, the carmaker added.