Honeywell International Inc, the world's biggest maker of aircraft electronics, is relocating its eight top Asia-Pacific executives to Shanghai from Singapore, moving them closer to clients and factories in what's expected to be the world's biggest buyer of aircraft in the next 10 years.
"We decided that China is more important as the center of gravity for this region," said Francis Yuen, chairman and president of Honey-well China.
Like Siemens AG, Alcatel SA and Eastman Kodak Co, Honeywell wants its regional headquarters closer to factories where average wages are a tenth of that in Singapore and to markets where demand is spurred by 8 percent annual economic growth.
"Shanghai is the hot place right now amid the boom that's being experienced in China," said David Cohen, an economist with MMS International in Singapore.
Honeywell's relocation "certainly is not going to be the last one," he said.
About 80 multinational companies, or a third of those with headquarters in China, had regional head offices in Shanghai as of September, according to the Web site of the city's Foreign Investment Service Center.
Living and doing business in China isn't without drawbacks, including inadequate legal protections, a muzzled media, local Communist Party interference, corruption among corporate and government officials and capricious public policies.
Advanced Micro Devices Inc, the world's second-biggest maker of personal computer processors, and Siemens, Germany's largest electronics company, moved head offices to Shanghai from Hong Kong last year. Sora Enso Oyj, the world's biggest paper maker by capacity, and Fuji Xerox Co also have uprooted from Singapore.
For Honeywell, setting up a head office in Shanghai brings it closer to Shanghai Airlines Co and China Eastern Airlines Co, among the country's fastest-expanding carriers.
Chinese carriers are likely to expand their fleets with between 1,600 and 1,900 planes worth US$144 billion by 2020, according to forecasts by both Airbus SAS and Boeing Co.
Honeywell's aerospace division has four ventures in Xiamen, Shanghai, Shenzhen and Nanjing, employing more than 270 people.
Honeywell, which has US$500 million invested in China, said mainland sales last year accounted for US$575 million of US$2 billion in Asia-Pacific revenue and will top US$1 billion by 2005.
The company said its new head-quarters will be in the Zhangjiang industrial park in the Pudong district. The complex will include an US$18 million research and development center that can accommodate up to 1,000 engineers.
"We are constantly exploring opportunities to migrate manufacturing operations to those regions that are competitive," Yuen told reporters in Shanghai. "The new site will allow us to tap the vast pool of customers, suppliers, employees and partners in China."
SEMICONDUCTORS: The firm has already completed one fab, which is to begin mass producing 2-nanomater chips next year, while two others are under construction Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, plans to begin construction of its fourth and fifth wafer fabs in Kaohsiung next year, targeting the development of high-end processes. The two facilities — P4 and P5 — are part of TSMC’s production expansion program, which aims to build five fabs in Kaohsiung. TSMC facility division vice president Arthur Chuang (莊子壽) on Thursday said that the five facilities are expected to create 8,000 jobs. To respond to the fast-changing global semiconductor industry and escalating international competition, TSMC said it has to keep growing by expanding its production footprints. The P4 and P5
DOWNFALL: The Singapore-based oil magnate Lim Oon Kuin was accused of hiding US$800 million in losses and leaving 20 banks with substantial liabilities Former tycoon Lim Oon Kuin (林恩強) has been declared bankrupt in Singapore, following the collapse of his oil trading empire. The name of the founder of Hin Leong Trading Pte Ltd (興隆貿易) and his children Lim Huey Ching (林慧清) and Lim Chee Meng (林志朋) were listed as having been issued a bankruptcy order on Dec. 19, the government gazette showed. The younger Lims were directors at the company. Leow Quek Shiong and Seah Roh Lin of BDO Advisory Pte Ltd are the trustees, according to the gazette. At its peak, Hin Leong traded a range of oil products, made lubricants and operated loading
The growing popularity of Chinese sport utility vehicles and pickup trucks has shaken up Mexico’s luxury car market, hitting sales of traditionally dominant brands such as Mercedes-Benz and BMW. Mexicans are increasingly switching from traditionally dominant sedans to Chinese vehicles due to a combination of comfort, technology and price, industry experts say. It is no small feat in a country home to factories of foreign brands such as Audi and BMW, and where until a few years ago imported Chinese cars were stigmatized, as in other parts of the world. The high-end segment of the market registered a sales drop
Citigroup Inc and Bank of America Corp said they are leaving a global climate-banking group, becoming the latest Wall Street lenders to exit the coalition in the past month. In a statement, Citigroup said while it remains committed to achieving net zero emissions, it is exiting the Net-Zero Banking Alliance (NZBA). Bank of America said separately on Tuesday that it is also leaving NZBA, adding that it would continue to work with clients on reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The banks’ departure from NZBA follows Goldman Sachs Group Inc and Wells Fargo & Co. The largest US financial institutions are under increasing pressure
RSS