The Weekly News Update is a weekly roundup of business news from around the Asia-Pacific region, covering Fusion Consulting's core industry practices: chemicals, consumer & retail, financial services, industrial & logistics, information & communication technology, life science and media & leisure. If you have colleagues or friends who may be interested in subscribing, please forward this email to them and copy knowledge@fusionc.com.

Dear ?NAME?,      Offshore Services & Equipment   Offshore exploration continues to breach new frontiers, driven by new finds,  technology and surging energy demand in China and other growth economies.  Opportunities abound for equipment and services vendors able to meet the sector's  exacting demands. Find out where the opportunities lie.  In the news this week  l 16-Nov-07 Korea braces for integration of its financial markets

Multinational financial companies are increasingly tapping the Korean market ahead of the implementation of the Capital Markets Consolidation Act. Scheduled to take effect in February 2009, the new act is designed to break down barriers separating the banking, securities and insurance industries and allow them to engage in each other's businesses. HSBC will acquire a 49% stake in Hana Life Insurance and has agreed to buy the country's fifth-largest lender Korea Exchange Bank. Other foreign financial institutions such as Lehman brothers and Merrill Lynch have also applied to establish banks in Korea. Market integration is a key factor attracting global players to Korea. Faced with intense competition at home, banks are increasingly expanding into overseas markets to create new revenues. Click here to view this week's articles for all industries.    What you don't know can hurt you  Receive all the key news on your markets, industry and competitors each  week, with alerts for important breaking news, and avoid information  overload with human filtering. Find out more about our Market Monitoring   Service and web-based Intelligence Plaza system by emailing   marketing@fusionc.com.

Chemical Japan - Firms eye digital materials for next-generation chips Thailand - Petrochemical industry faces greater risk in 2008 Vietnam - Formosa Plastics to expand Vietnam investment

Consumer & retail India - Carrefour revisits India retail Singapore - Splurging on luxury items up 29% in second quarter Vietnam - Retail market remains promising

Financial services China - ING China insurance JV to establish Jiangsu branch China - China has more than 1.3 billion bank cards Korea - HSBC expands in Korean through insurance acquisition

Industrial & logistics China - Postal business income increases in first nine months India - Gati In Air India Cargo pact Singapore - PSA January-October throughput up 13%

Information & communication technology   India - Indian firms eye European software firms Malaysia - DiGi in tie-up with Time dotCom Vietnam - Vietnam could top in mobile telecommunication sector

Life science China - Vital BioTech buys 100% of Sichuan Hengtai Pharma China - China CRO attracts US$30 million US investment India - Government to set up healthcare watchdog

Media & leisure Australia - ABC gets kids channel promise China - Baidu mulls buyouts Japan - Disney to launch cell service

Previous issues

Japan's beer makers seek diversification [26-Oct-07] Indian telecom operators and broadcasters fight it out in IPTV space [19-Oct-07] Low cos PCs take off, but fully-fledged PCs unflustered [12-Oct-07] Insurance firms chase growth in Asia [5-Oct-07] Indian luxury market booming; but lacks premium retail space [28-Sep-07] Delays in semiconductor policy a big loss for India's IT sector [14-Sep-07]

Visit our website to sign up for free intelligence on Asian markets.

Best regards, The Intelligence Desk Team Fusion Consulting