Mitsubishi to close

Updated: 13:04, Tuesday February 5, 2008
One thousand Mitsubishi workers in Adelaide are nervously waiting an announcement on the future of their jobs.
Sky News understands the company's board will make a decision at 1:30pm (AEDT) to close the plant.
Mitsubishi workers are expected to be informed of the shut down later this afternoon, before the company makes an official statement.
The plant has struggled for viability for years, and the launch of a new Australian model in 2005 did little to help.
Analysts say flagging vehicle sales and high petrol prices have made the Adelaide assembly line unprofitable.
There are reports the plant has been operating at only at one third capacity.
The company is reportedly planning to shift production to Russia and China.

Heaven's produce eyes India and Dubai

By Eliza Wood
Monday, 04/02/2008
He might not be in parliament anymore, but former Braddon MP Mark Baker is still promoting his region.The "Produce of Heaven" campaign that Mr Baker started while in government has survived the election, and he's now running it as a commercial concern.Mark Baker says Tasmanian producers made significant inroads in the Taiwan and Hong Kong high-end markets last year, and in 2008 they're taking on Dubai and India."Up to now, the two pilots that we ran in Taiwan and Hong Kong, there's been just over $1.5 million in sales and ten new jobs have been created. For two pilots it was an outstanding success," he said."Overseas there is demand, but in Australia we judge not on quality so much, but price. We have such a great product, that has real taste, and currently in Australia it's just being used as a commodity."
In this report: Mark Baker, Produce of Heaven

The new-look regional branding

By Sally Dakis
Monday, 04/02/2008
Do you like to know where your food comes from?In Europe, consumers want to able to trace what they eat, right back to the farm it came from.The latest in regional branding and traceability is called "origin protection" and is being used across the European Union.Slovenian chef, food writer and sommelier Thomas Srsen says all sorts of food is now origin protected, from sausages peppered with pork fat, to cheese made from a unique breed of cow from Slovenia. "Here we have th traceability which proves the purity of the taste, purity of the origin and that there are no GM materials inside."
In this report: Thomas Srsen, chef, food writer and sommelier

Controversy deepens over depth needed for Melbourne channel

DREDGING Melbourne's shipping channel is becoming controversial because figures of the numbers of fully loaded vessels needing extra depth doesn't tally with projected demands, reports The Melbourne Age.
The newspaper said the Port of Melbourne Corporation chief executive Stephen Bradford claims that "44 per cent of container vessels coming in and out of this port are draught-constrained".
But when pressed, a corporation spokesman admitted that ships were only "potentially" constrained, meaning they would have trouble docking if they were fully loaded. But experts maintain that ships are rarely full when coming to Melbourne, having mostly discharged at Sydney or Perth en route.

Bunker Surcharge Summary February

For convenience we are including a summary of the Bunker Surcharges that will be in effect on 1st February, 2008.

Area
Bound
Level US$
Effective Date
China, Hong Kong, Japan, Korea
North
US$425/20’
US$850/40’
21st Dec 2007
Taiwan
North
US$425/20’
US$850/40’
5th Jan 2008
China, Hong Kong, Japan, Korea
South
US$425/20’
US$850/40’
21st Dec 2007
Taiwan
South
US$425/20’
US$850/40’
5th Jan 2008
South East Asia, Sub Continent and Middle East
North
US$225/20’
US$380/40’
30th Nov 2007
South East Asia, Sub Continent and Middle East
South
US$580/20’
US$1160/40’
1st Feb 2008
Europe/UK
North
US$360/20’
US$720/40’
11 Dec 2007
Europe/UK
South
US$510/20’
US$1020/40’
1st Feb 2008

As supplied by OOCL.

Heavy Snow Affects Cargo Transportation in China

The snow, the worst in a decade in many places, has hit most of China since Jan. 10, leaving homes collapsed, power blackouts, highways closed and more than 77.8 million people affected. Meanwhile, freezing rain will pound some parts of Guizhou, Hunan, Jiangxi, Guangxi, Anhui and Zhejiang. China issued a weather alert as widespread heavy snow that has blanketed central, eastern and southern parts of the nation are forecast to continue this week.

Tas exports up by a third

Tasmanian exports grew by almost 30 per cent last year.
New figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics reveal the value of exports in 2006-2007 was $3.7 billion, an increase of 28 per cent on the previous financial year.
Tasmania's main export destination is Japan, which bought $627 million worth of goods, almost 13 per cent up on 2005-2006.
Zinc was the major single export commodity, contributing just over $1 billion or 29 per cent of total exports.
On the import side, Tasmania bought $614 million worth of goods, an increase of 19 per cent on 2005-2006.
The major source of imports was the United States, dispatching goods worth $78 million to the Tasmanian market.
Power generating machinery and equipment was the highest value imported commodity, representing $82 million or 13 per cent of total imports.