AMERICAS
MEXICO: TRADE DEFICIT WIDENS
Mexico’s trade deficit unexpectedly widened in September as import growth outpaced exports amid weaker demand from the United States. The country posted a trade deficit of $1.35 billion, the largest since November 2005, compared with a deficit of $784 million in August, the Finance Ministry said. Imports rose 18 percent, to $22 billion, in September from a year earlier, while exports rose 13 percent, to $20.6 billion. (BLOOMBERG NEWS)
EUROPE
UKRAINE: NATURAL GAS PRICE TO RISE
Ukraine agreed to a 36 percent increase in prices for natural gas supplied by Russia in 2007, wrapping up early the annual contract talks that dragged on last year until the Russian gas company, Gazprom, cut off the gas on Jan. 1. A Swiss-registered energy trader, RosUkrEnergo, will supply all of Ukraine’s natural gas imports at $135 per 1,000 cubic meters, up from $95 now, according to the Ukrainian prime minister, Viktor F. Yanukovich, who brokered the deal. ANDREW KRAMER (NYT)
ASIA
CHINA: STARBUCKS BUYS AN OPERATOR
Starbucks said it had expanded direct control of its operations in China by buying a Hong Kong company that operates more than 60 of its coffeehouses. China eased limits on foreign ownership of retail ventures in 2004, letting companies take full control of operations that once were required to be joint ventures. Starbucks, which is based in Seattle, said it bought the High Grown Investment Group from its partner, the private equity firm H&Q Asia Pacific, but did not give a price. The firm operated Starbucks outlets in Beijing and the nearby city of Tianjin. (AP)
JAPAN: TOYOTA’S PRODUCTION UP 3.8%
Global production at Toyota rose 3.8 percent in September, keeping the company on track to overtake General Motors as the world’s biggest automaker. It was the company’s 23rd consecutive monthly increase. Toyota’s total output last month was 696,594 vehicles, the company said. Overseas production climbed 2.8 percent, to 340,945 units, while domestic output rose 4.7 percent, to 355,649 vehicles. Nissan said its global vehicle production fell for a ninth consecutive month in September, declining 12.5 percent, to 274,788 vehicles. Honda’s production rose 5 percent, to 318,946 vehicles; Mitsubishi was down 15 percent, to 106,666; and Mazda was up 1 percent, to 106,332 vehicles. (AP)
CHINA: A G.E.- WAL-MART CREDIT CARD
Wal-Mart and the finance arm of General Electric are joining the race for a share of China’s growing consumer credit market by issuing their own credit card this week, a Wal-Mart spokesman said. The card, part of the Visa network, is to be formally introduced Friday and can be used for purchases in China and abroad, said Jonathan Dong, a spokesman for Wal-Mart China. Wal-Mart’s partners are GE Money and Shenzhen Development Bank of China. (AP)
INDIA: PROFIT RISES AT ICICI BANK
ICICI Bank of India said its second-quarter profit rose 30 percent, beating analysts’ estimates, as accelerating economic growth encouraged consumers to take out home and auto loans. Net income increased to 7.55 billion rupees ($165 million) in the quarter that ended Sept. 30, from 5.8 billion rupees a year earlier, the bank said. That beat the analysts’ prediction of 6.97 billion rupees. Loans expanded 47 percent, to 1.64 trillion rupees, in the quarter from a year earlier, while deposits rose 57 percent, to 1.89 trillion rupees. (BLOOMBERG NEWS)
