Singapore plans S$200 mln Islamic bond programme

SINGAPORE, Jan 19 - Singapore's central bank announced on Monday a S$200 million Islamic bond programme, or sukuk, to promote the growth of Islamic finance in the city-state.

"This sukuk is the sharia-compliant equivalent of Singapore government securities, and is of the highest credit standing," Heng Swee Keat, managing director of the Monetary Authority of Singapore , said at a briefing.

Islamic finance is derived from the sharia, or Islamic law. It avoids interest-based financing and advocates ethical investing and a fair distribution of profits and losses between venture partners.

The bond programme is Al-Ijarah structured, which means the bond is backed by the sale and lease-back of real estate assets. The underlying asset for this bond programme is the office units of MAS's head office.

Singapore is trying to promote the growth of Islamic finance to tap Middle East petrodollars and rising demand for ethical investing.

Nikkei falls more than 4 pct on yen, Sony seen down

TOKYO, Jan 13 - Japan's Nikkei share average fell more than 4 percent on Tuesday, with Sony Corp awash with sell orders after a report of operating loss, while its high-tech peers were also hit by a stronger yen.

Overview of Sony Corp

Sony shares tumble on fears of big loss

Asian stock markets open 2009 on high note

HONG KONG - Asian stocks opened 2009 on a high note, with Hong Kong's index up more than 4 percent, as investors shrugged off more dreary economic news to focus on government moves to ease the global slump.

With most investors away for the holidays and more than half the region's markets still closed, trading volumes were extremely light, which exaggerates price moves. Chinese telecom firms surged after Beijing approved next-generation mobile licenses, and commodity companies were lifted by stronger prices for raw materials.

But many analysts found little reason to be optimistic about the region's economy as a whole. After one of the worst years every for global equities, many expect more volatility in the first half as the effects of falling exports and higher capital costs start showing up on company balance sheets.

Video reports by Kitty Bu .