• Chinese president meets Chinese, Nigerian businessmen

Political support, cheap imports are two routes to economic clout / China scores gains in Africa

DULUE MBACHU

Associated Press

900 words

10 February 2006

Houston Chronicle

HOU

2 STAR ; 0

8

English

© 2006 Houston Chronicle. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All Rights Reserved.
LAGOS, NIGERIA - When Chinese companies flooded the Nigerian market with cheaper versions of the generators that Rex Nwankwu once imported from Italy, he said his business was imperiled.
Now he's looking for Chinese suppliers, he said from a long line of visa applicants outside China's consulate in Nigeria's biggest city, Lagos.
"People would rather buy the cheap and inferior Chinese generators than buy one of my superior but more expensive Italian ones," Nwankwu said. "To remain in business, I had to join the bandwagon to China."
A global race
China's growth has sparked a global race with the West for markets and industrial resources. Africa has become a frontier of opportunity for the world's most populous country and its fastest growing economy. That has meant opportunity, aid and even key diplomatic support to some governments shunned by the West.
China says its efforts on the world's poorest continent bring "mutual benefit and common prosperity."
"Goods that are exported by China, inexpensive but good, have been welcomed by ordinary Africans," the Chinese Foreign Ministry said in a statement. "At the same time, the Chinese side has taken positive steps to make it more convenient to import more African goods into the Chinese market, doing such things as giving Africa's most undeveloped countries tax-free import treatment into China and investing in facilities in Africa."
Trade up fourfold
In the last five years China's trade with Africa has grown fourfold to $40 billion in 2005. Ahead of Foreign Minister Li Xhaozing's January African tour, China unveiled a new policy document indicating interest in Africa's oil and other mineral and forestry resources.
Li's trip came days after China's state-controlled oil firm, CNOOC, announced it had reached a deal to pay $2.3 billion for a 45 percent state in a Nigerian offshore oil field.
"China's coming is changing the equations in our relations with the West, and we should make the most of it," in terms of bargaining power, said Peter Egom, an economist with government-run Nigerian Institute of International Affairs in Lagos.
Western economic, political and technological dominance in Africa from colonial times has failed to nourish development in the continent, Egom said, welcoming China as an alternative source of economic and political power.
Benefits from products
Lagos hairdresser Fatima Ibrahim has no doubt the influx of Chinese goods has been beneficial. For years she could not afford a portable electricity generator in her beauty shop in the face of persistent power cuts by the woefully run Nigerian power company.
Then the cheap Chinese brands arrived.
Able to stay open more now that she can power herself, her business has grown threefold and her profits have similarly multiplied in two years.
"In that time I've bought two of the generators, at less than half the price of the European and Japanese models," Ibrahim said.
But across Africa there are deep concerns about the trade-offs between quality and low cost.
Lots of cheap watches
Ugandan taxi driver Emmanuel Mwiine, professes an aversion to Chinese products but concedes he is in a minority.
"Here you can buy a fake watch from China for around 40,000 Uganda shillings, or $20. It looks great, but then it breaks after a month," he said.
Ugandan Trade Minister Daudi Migereko said government concerns over Chinese products include poor quality and widespread counterfeiting, problems the National Bureau of Standards has been charged to eliminate.
In December, Nigerian officials took the more dramatic step of shutting a large shopping center set up by Chinese traders in Lagos. Customs officials who raided the site alleged it was a center for fake and substandard products.
In its statement, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said it expected Chinese businesses in Africa to obey local laws and "be particular about quality."
In South Africa, industrialists and trade unions have been pressing for government action to curb the inflow of Chinese goods, particularly textiles, that they say is undermining local industries and jobs.
Diplomatic weight
Yet the lure of Chinese products remains strong in Africa, with Beijing lending a heavy diplomatic weight to China's economic expansion.
China built a railway to link Tanzania and Zambia, and constructed stadiums in several countries as it tried to rival Western aid to Africa in the 1970s. But much of China's recent aid has been tied to business deals.
In Nigeria, the China National Petroleum Corp. as part of its bid for oil fields opted to take over and run an unprofitable state- owned refinery - and boost good will with the government.
China has also shown a propensity for stepping in to deal with governments spurned by the West over human rights issues. Chinese companies moved in to run Sudan's oil industry when Western companies would not deal with Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir's government over accusations of widespread rights abuses.
China is also the strongest foreign ally of Zimbabwe, now treated as a pariah state under Robert Mugabe, also accused of rights abuses.
Photo: BANDWAGON TO CHINA: A Chinese man watches Nigerian laborers prepare the ground to lay telecom cable in Lagos, Nigeria, early this week. Africa has become a source of opportunity for China.
Document HOU0000020060211e22a00074

ZOLT, APLS, DAAT, GADZQ, PTRS, XKEM have also been added to naked short lists today
1,791 words

6 February 2006

M2 Presswire

MTPW

English

(c) 2006 M2 Communications, Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
BUYINS.NET, www.buyins.net , announced today that these select companies have been added to the NASDAQ, AMEX and NYSE naked short threshold lists: Zoltek Companies, Inc. (NASDAQ: ZOLT), American Pallet Leasing Inc. (AMEX: APLS), DAC Technologies Group International, Inc. (OTCBB: DAAT), Gadzooks, Inc. (OTC: GADZQ), Patron Holdings, Inc. (OTCBB: PTRS), Xechem International, Inc. (OTCBB: XKEM). For a complete list of companies on the naked short lists please visit our web site. To find the SqueezeTrigger Price before a short squeeze starts in any stock, go to www.buyins.net/squeezetrigger.pdf .
Zoltek Companies, Inc. (NASDAQ: ZOLT) through its wholly owned subsidiaries, operates as an applied technology and advanced materials company. The company manufactures and sells carbon fibers, which are used as the primary building material in commercial products; filament winding and pultrusion equipment used in the production of large volume composite parts; and acrylic and nylon fibers and yarns used in textile industry. It also sells carbon fiber, nylon granules, plastic grids and nets, and carboxymethyl cellulose. The company sells its products primarily in Americas, Europe, Asia, and Australia. Zoltek Companies was founded by Zsolt Rumy in 1975. The company is based in St. Louis, Missouri. With 19.94 million shares outstanding and 2.23 million shares declared short as of January 10th, there is a failure to deliver in shares of ZOLT.
American Pallet Leasing Inc. (AMEX: APLS) a development stage company, operates as a manufacturer and logistic supplier of steel pallets in the United States. It also engages in the acquisition of wood pallet manufacturers and saw mills. The company's value-added transport packaging products and logistical services include pallet retrieval, repair, reverse distribution, tracking, logistics, and information services. American Pallet Leasing is based in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. With 24.53 million shares outstanding and an undisclosed short position, there is a failure to deliver in shares of APLS.
DAC Technologies Group International, Inc. (OTCBB: DAAT) engages in the development, marketing, and manufacture of various consumer products, patented and nonpatented. It offers products in four categories: Gun Safety, Gun Maintenance, Personal Security, and Nonsecurity. Its Gun Safety products category includes screw trigger locks, key trigger locks, lever hammer locks, and cable locks. Gun maintenance products category offers various gun cleaning kits, rod sets, tools, and accessories used to clean and maintain firearm on the market. Personal Security products category includes a variety of electronic security devices and nonelectronic security devices, such as pepper spray and tear gas. Nonsecurity products category includes two licensed products, the clampit cupholder and plateholder. DAC Technologies Group's products are sold primarily to mass merchants, firearm manufacturers, and sporting goods retailers in the United States and internationally. The company's predecessor DAC Technologies of America, Inc. was founded in 1993 by David A. Collins. DAC Technologies Group is headquartered in Little Rock, Arkansas. With 6.19 million shares outstanding and an undisclosed short position, there is a failure to deliver in shares of DAAT.
Gadzooks, Inc. (OTC: GADZQ) operates as a mall-based, specialty retailer of casual apparel and related accessories, principally for women aged 16 to 22. The company operates in juniors, accessories, and footwear categories. The juniors category includes casual sportswear, such as knit tops, woven shirts and vests, denim, dresses, and swimwear. The accessories category includes various accessories, including sunglasses, watches, hair accessories, backpacks, necklaces, hats, and other accessories. The footwear category includes sandals and active footwear. As of May 1, 2004, the company operated approximately 252 stores. Gadzooks, Inc. was incorporated in 1982 and is headquartered in Carrollton, Texas. The company filed a voluntary petition for reorganization under Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code in February 2004. With 9.15 million shares outstanding and an undisclosed short position, there is a failure to deliver in shares of GADZQ.
Patron Holdings, Inc. (OTCBB: PTRS) changed its name to Patron Systems, Inc. pursuant to merger with Patron Systems, Inc. Patron Systems, Inc. operates as a development-stage information security company to provide security services and technology products to global enterprises. Patron's Security Services Group intends to work with organizations to provide comprehensive, certifiable solutions for trusted information environments. Initial offerings are contemplated to include vulnerability assessments; compliance and certification reviews, training, remediation, monitoring, and managed services. The company's Technology Products Group, through its planned acquisition of third generation software and hardware, plans to help enterprises address security needs holistically throughout the information technology environment. With 60.43 million shares outstanding and an undisclosed short position, there is a failure to deliver in shares of PTRS.
Xechem International, Inc. (OTCBB: XKEM) a development stage biopharmaceutical company, engages in the research, development, and production of generic and proprietary drugs from natural sources. Its principal product under development is NICOSAN/HEMOXIN, which would be used for the treatment of sickle cell disease. The company also applies its proprietary extraction, isolation, and purification technology to the production and manufacture of Paclitaxel, which is an anti-cancer compound used for the treatment of ovarian, breast, small cell lung cancers, and AIDS related kaposi sarcomas. In addition, Xechem International engages in the research and development of other compounds using traditional medicinal plants, microbial fermentation, or semisynthesis to produce anti-cancer, anti-fungal, anti-viral, anti-inflammatory, anti-aging, and memory enhancing compounds. The company has operations in the United States, India, China, and Nigeria. Xechem International was founded in 1994 by Ramesh C. Pandey and is headquartered in New Brunswick, New Jersey. With 259.69 million shares outstanding and an undisclosed short position, there is a failure to deliver in shares of XKEM.
About BUYINS.NET
WWW.BUYINS.NET is a service designed to help bonafide shareholders of publicly traded US companies fight naked short selling. Naked short selling is the illegal act of short selling a stock when no affirmative determination has been made to locate shares of the stock to hypothecate in connection with the short sale. Buyins.net has built a proprietary database that uses Threshold list feeds from NASDAQ, AMEX and NYSE to generate detailed and useful information to combat the naked short selling problem. For the first time, actual trade by trade data is available to the public that shows the attempted size, actual size, price and average value of short sales in stocks that have been shorted and naked shorted. This information is valuable in determining the precise point at which short sellers go out-of-the-money and start losing on their short and naked short trades.
BUYINS.NET has built a massive database that collects, analyzes and publishes a proprietary SqueezeTrigger for each stock that has been shorted, www.buyins.net/squeezetrigger.pdf . The SqueezeTrigger database of nearly 600,000,000 short sale transactions goes back to January 1, 2005 and calculates the exact price at which the Total Short Interest is short in each stock. This data was never before available prior to January 1, 2005 because the Self Regulatory Organizations (primary exchanges) guarded it aggressively. After the SEC passed Regulation SHO, exchanges were forced to allow data processors like Buyins.net to access the data.
The SqueezeTrigger database collects individual short trade data on over 7,000 NYSE, AMEX and NASDAQ stocks and general short trade data on nearly 8,000 OTCBB and PINKSHEET stocks. Each month the database grows by approximately 50,000,000 short sale transactions and provides investors with the knowledge necessary to time when to buy and sell stocks with outstanding short positions. By tracking the size and price of each month's short transactions, BUYINS.NET provides institutions, traders, analysts, journalists and individual investors the exact price point where short sellers start losing money.
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Document MTPW000020060206e226002xl

3:30 p.m. EST Update
1,648 words

5 February 2006

03:13 PM

Associated Press Newswires

APRS

English

(c) 2006. The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.
Monday AMs
The supervisor is Cate Chapman (800-845-8450, ext. 1680). In Photos, Patrick Sison (ext. 1900). In graphics, Jane Bell (ext. 1905). Reruns of stories are available from http://yourap.org , from the Service Desk (800-838-4616) or your local AP bureau.
HEADLINES
-- Advertisers duke it out for the public's attention at the Super Bowl
-- Google and Skype invest in startup to link hotspots, charge for access
-- Bush's budget favors defense, homeland security, research and energy
-- Wall Street faces another week -- and beyond -- of uncertainty
-- Enron judge: Twang, sharp wit -- and always an eye on the clock
-- Disclosure of omitted data in Vioxx study could play role in retrial
INDUSTRY:
Advertisers battle for the public's attention at the Super Bowl
NEW YORK -- Regardless of who wins Super Bowl XL, the real winner most likely will be Walt Disney Co.'s ABC network, which sold ads on the telecast for around $2.5 million for each 30-second spot. Longtime advertisers like Anheuser-Busch Cos. were back, and so were new ones such as Burger King.
BC-Super Bowl Ads. 800 words. Developing, to move by halftime.
By Business Writer Seth Sutel. AP Photos NYBZ 201 202 209 211 217 219. AP Graphic SB 2006 ADS.
With Olympics starting, do opposing networks fight or lie down?
NEW YORK -- The Olympics is a TV event that traditionally flattens opponents for the network that spent millions of dollars for the right to broadcast it. Other networks can either try to attract viewers not interested in ice dancing or give way and essentially close up shop for the duration of the games. But judging by its startling staying power, "American Idol" may steal the spotlight from the skiers and skaters.
BC-TV-Olympian Battle. Also moved in advance and on sports and entertainment lines.
By Television Writer David Bauder. AP Photos NYET383-384.
WASHINGTON -- U.S. auto workers, struggling with the recent announcements of massive job cuts at General Motors Corp. and Ford Motor Co., are charting a legislative course this week to strengthen the nation's manufacturing base. The United Auto Workers' four-day conference was getting under way with a speech by the union's president, Ron Gettelfinger, to about 1,400 union political activists.
BC-Autos-UAW. Eds: Speech scheduled for 5:45 p.m. EST.
TECHNOLOGY:
Google and Skype invest in startup to link hotspots, charge for access
NEW YORK -- Google Inc. and eBay Inc.'s Skype are investing in a startup that plans to help hotspot owners charge for Wi-Fi access, a plan that could face significant opposition from Internet service providers. The Internet heavyweights were joined by venture capital firms Index Ventures and Sequoia Capital in making a $22 million investment in FON, the Spanish startup. In its announcement Sunday, FON did not say how much each investor was contributing. FON's idea, conceived just three months ago in a Web posting by founder Martin Varsavsky, is to sign up people who have Wi-Fi hotspots in one of two ways.
BC-Wi-Fi Network, HFR. Hold for release at 7:00 p.m. EST.
By Technology Writer Peter Svensson.
Startup sets sights on syncing computers, mobile devices
PALO ALTO, Calif. -- As personal computers, high-end cell phones and other gadgets proliferate in homes and offices, the seemingly simple task of keeping information on all the gear in sync is far more difficult than it ought to be. Sharpcast Inc., a 20-person startup, has developed a technology that it says will make practices like e-mailing documents from home to office obsolete by making the data instantly available to any device anywhere, provided the gear has access to the Internet.
BC-Syncing Without Thinking, HFR. 900 words. For release at 12:01 a.m. EST Monday. Also moved in advance.
By Technology Writer Matthew Fordahl. AP Photos planned.
DEFINING HI-DEF: Consumers, be wary of high-definition hype
SAN JOSE, Calif. -- The term "high-definition" was originally meant to describe greater density in video displays on a television. Now it's being used to hype all kinds of products. Skin creams. Sunglasses. Laminate counter tops. There's even a book, "Starting High Definition Churches." As the United States marches from analog TV toward the full glory of digital TV, people are struggling with the hype and linguistic imprecision. Many are downright confused, which is not helpful if you're spending hundreds of dollars on a new television.
BC-High-Definition Hype. Also moved in advance.
By Technology Writer May Wong.
AP Photos of Feb. 2: CAPS103-105.
-- BC-High-Definition-Definitions.
WASHINGTON & THE NATION:
Bush's budget favors defense, homeland security, education, research and energy
WASHINGTON -- President Bush will send Congress a $2.7 trillion budget on Monday that would boost spending on defense and homeland security while showering money on some favored initiatives in the areas of education, scientific research and energy. But the spending plan for the budget year that begins Oct. 1 would constrain a wide swath of government programs and aim to achieve billions of dollars of savings in Medicare.
BC-Bush-Budget. Developing.
By Economics Writer Martin Crutsinger.
Fed up with litter, cities consider charging fast-food eateries to chip in
OAKLAND, Calif. -- They spill out of trash cans, clog sewers and litter city streets and sidewalks. Burger wrappers, french fry containers and beverage cups discarded from fast-food restaurants and convenience stores plague cities across America. Oakland officials are so fed up they want to tax the businesses they blame for much of the city's garbage woes, then use the money to clean up the streets. If approved, Oakland would be the first city in the nation to force eateries, food and liquor stores to chip in to clean up litter, industry officials say.
BC-Fast-Food Tax. 900 words.
By Terence Chea. AP Photos of Feb. 3: FX105-106.
MARKETS AND ECONOMY:
Wall Street may hate it, but uncertainty is everywhere
NEW YORK -- The stock market hates uncertainty. Unfortunately, there's too much of it for Wall Street to bear right now. The economy is sending mixed signals, with job growth that could be characterized as either decent or mediocre, inflation gauges that show rising prices in some sectors and steady prices elsewhere, and economic growth that could either be healthy or anemic, depending on the metric du jour.
BC-Wall Street-Week Ahead. 700 words. Also moved in advance.
By Business Writer Michael J. Martinez.
LEGAL:
Enron judge: Twang, sharp wit -- and always an eye on the clock
HOUSTON -- Morning and afternoon breaks at the trial of former Enron bosses Kenneth Lay and Jeffrey Skilling last 15 minutes. Not 14. Not 16. The testimony is presided over by Sim Lake, a judge with a Texas twang and a wit as sharp as his punctuality. In the trial's first week, as jurors listened -- in some cases drowsed -- through hours of testimony about complex accounting, Lake appeared to win them over by wanly chiding lawyers and signaling he understood the four-month ordeal they're in for.
BC-Enron Judge. Also moved in advance.
By National Writer Erin McClam. AP Photo of Feb. 3: TXMS110.
Disclosure of omitted data in Vioxx study could play role in retrial
NEW ORLEANS -- A top medical journal's criticism of a study cited in Vioxx lawsuits is expected to play a part in the retrial of the first federal Vioxx lawsuit -- whether as a legal hand grenade or a nuclear warhead. The disclosure that some negative data was omitted from the study could make manufacturer Merck & Co. look as if it's hiding something, unless it's treated as just another bit of evidence, say legal experts.
BC-Vioxx-Federal Trial. 1,000 words.
By Janet McConnaughey.
INTERNATIONAL:
China spending billions on foreign oil, but trying to curb appetite
BEIJING -- Just days before a