Asia Business Media

Friday, February 08, 2013

Over 600 companies attend Indian aviation show

News this week: The ninth edition of the biennial air and aviation exhibition, Aero India 2013, has attracted the participation of more than 600 exhibiting companies from India and overseas. Exhibitors displayed technology related to military and civil aircraft, avionics and sub-systems.

Organised by India’s Ministry of Defence, the Indian Air Force, Defence Research and Development Organisation, Department of Space and Civil Aviation Ministry, Aero India runs from 6^th to 10^th February 2013 at the Yelahanka Air Force Station in Bangalore.

A. K. Antony, Defence Minister of India, was quoted saying, “Self-reliance in defence area is our focus area. We want to create a strong defence industrial base in the country. There are big opportunities for major international aerospace companies to enter into new alliances and forge partnerships with Indian industry and set up bases in India.”

This post is excerpted from BSG's weekly e-newsletter which is part of our subscription research service, BSG Tracker. Visit our website to find out more about this service. You can also follow us on Twitter for all the latest updates.

ITE posts revenue of US$45.3m in Q1

News this week: U.K.-based exhibition and conference organiser, ITE Group, reported interim results for the quarter ended 31 December 2012. The company posted revenues of US$45.3 million down 8% compared with the US$50.1 million in revenue recorded in the same period in 2011. This was in line with the company’s expectations.

According to ITE, its first quarter results on a like-for-like basis represent a 6% year-on-year increase in revenues. Reporting good growth across most regions, ITE had net cash of approximately US$25.3 million as of 24^th January 2013.

The group recently announced the purchases of a 75% stake in Malaysian event organiser Trade-Link for approximately US$6.3 million, along with a 28% stake in Indian organiser Asian Business Exhibitions and Conference (ABEC) for US$22 million in December 2012.

Baidu’s revenue jumps 54% in 2012

News this week: NASDAQ-listed Baidu, the leading Chinese-language Internet search provider, released results for its fourth quarter and full fiscal year in 2012. Revenues in the year were US$3.6 billion – an impressive year-on-year growth of 54%. Net income in 2012 increased 58% reaching US$1.7 billion. Diluted earnings per share in the period were RMB 29.83 (US$4.79).

Baidu attributed the growth to increases in both the number of active online marketing customers and revenue per customer. In 2012, the company had about 596,000 active online marketing customers, up 22% from 2011. Revenue per customer was US$5,987 in 2012 – a rise of 26% compared to the previous year.

Baidu’s management expects revenues in the first quarter of 2013 to be between US$945 million and US$976 million, representing an increase of 38% to 43% over the first quarter of 2012.

Robin Li, chairman and CEO of Baidu, said, “We made encouraging progress in 2012, integrating Baidu’s superior search and search-related products and functions, like maps and image recognition, into our offering. In 2013 we will continue to enhance functionality, introduce new products, and step up efforts to push our products to users.”

Manch Communications to launch shop-fitting event

News this week: Manch Communications, an Indian event organiser, announced the launch of a new exhibition and conference in India. The India Retail & ShopFittings Show will be held from 25^th to 27^th July 2013 at the Pragati Maidan in New Delhi.

The new event will serve the retail and shop fitting industry and feature exhibitors from shopfitting, store equipment & fixtures, lighting solutions & planning, refrigeration cabinets, frozen food display cabinets, point of sale, information technology, security technology, building services engineering, and architecture & store design sectors. In addition, the event’s concurrent conference, India Retail & ShopFittings Summit, will take place from 25^th to 26^th July.

Kiran Mittal, Managing Director at Manch Communications, said, “Indian retail market is undergoing a transition and will touch new skies in coming years. We strongly believe that it is the right time when the industry needs an event which will enable them to come together to become much organised and structured.”

Friday, February 01, 2013

ITE acquires Trade Link in Malaysia

News this week: International exhibition organiser, ITE Group plc, announced that the group had acquired 75% of the Malaysian company, Trade Link ITE Sdn Bhd, on behalf of ITE’s wholly-owned subsidiary, International Trade and Exhibitions (JV) Ltd. The remaining 25% stake is held by Albert Lai, CEO of Trade Link. ITE agreed to pay £4 million (US$6.33 million) for its stake in the exhibition organiser.

According to ITE, Trade Link’s revenues in FY2013 are expected to reach £2 million (US$3.2 million).

ITE’s Chief Executive Russell Taylor commented, “This acquisition is a strategic move for ITE into the South East Asian exhibition market. Trade Link operates some of South East Asia’s key events in our strongest sectors which are expected to realise good growth in the future.”

Alibaba to invest in China’s logistics infrastructure

News this week: According to Reuters, the Alibaba Group, together with partners, plans to invest US$16 billion in the first phase of its plan to build a sophisticated logistics network in China.

The initiative will be led by Alibaba Group founder, Jack Ma. Over the next decade the group aims to build a logistics network which could allow the delivery of products within China in less than 24 hours. The network will supposedly be able to support online sales of RMB 10 trillion. Other investors include private equity firms, express companies and a bank.

“This is consistent with what we've said in the past that logistics is a key industry bottleneck for e-commerce growth in China and that everyone involved in this sector needs to work together to drive rapid development,” an Alibaba spokeswoman said in an email to Reuters.

SES launches Special Coffee & Tea at FHA

News this week: Event organiser Singapore Exhibition Services (SES) announced the launch of a new sub-event at the next FHA (Food&HotelAsia). The new event, SpecialCoffee&Tea, is a biennial international event which will be held from 8^th to 11^th April 2014 at the Singapore Expo. FHA’s five other specialised events include: FoodAsia, HotelAsia, Bakery&Pastry, HospitalityStyleAsia and HospitalityTechnology. According to SES, coffee consumption almost doubled in the last 40 years to 8.1 million tonnes in 2010, and is expected to hit 9 million tonnes by 2019.

Messe Düsseldorf Group revenues up 3%

News this week: Earlier in January, exhibition organiser, Messe Düsseldorf Group, released its 2012 financial results. The company reported revenues of US$422 million compared with US$410 million in 2011, of which US$58.5 million were generated outside of Germany.

The company reported the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) was the most important international market generating 67% of international revenues, followed by India (13%) and China (10%). Messe Düsseldorf reported its overall performance was up 3% year-on-year and 6% above the original budget.

Werner M. Dornscheidt, CEO of Messe Düsseldorf, said, “Our international trade fairs follow the dynamic developments of the growth markets. To develop new regions quickly, we rely on the area-specific expertise of our network and increasingly on joint ventures with regional providers. We steer a distinct course with our strategic partnerships in growth markets.”

Pico’s revenues up 10%

News this week: Hong Kong-listed, Pico Far East Holdings announced its results for the year ended 31^st October 2012. Revenues increased by 10% year-on-year reaching US$498 million. Profits dropped 3.8% to US$31 million, while diluted earnings per share for the year were HK$0.1963 (US$0.025).

The exhibition & event marketing services generated just more than 70% of the company’s revenues (US$351 million), a 13% increase over last year. The remaining revenues were generated through Pico’s brand signage & visual communication business (US$73 million), museum, themed environment, interior & retail business (US$63 million) and conference & show management business (US$11 million).

The brand signage & visual communication business was up 33% and the museum, themed environment, interior & retail business grew 28%. The conference & show management business was the only segment record a decrease (of 71%), as the previous year Pico organised ITMA (Internationale Textilmaschinen Ausstellung) show in Barcelona – the world’s largest international textile machine show, which is held once every four years.

TCEB prioritise Asian MICE markets

News this week: The Thailand Exhibition and Convention Bureau (TCEB) announced its first road shows in 2013 will head to the Indian cities of Combiatore, Mangalore and Pune. As part of the bureau’s plan to focus on the short-haul Asian and the ASEAN countries markets, TCEB is aiming to create a platform to provide the latest MICE information, products and services to India’s business community.

According to TCEB, India is projected to become Thailand’s most important MICE market, with earnings from the country in 2013 expected to reach over US$1.83 billion. The road show, jointly organised with the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) and Thai Airways, will showcase Thai MICE operators’ products and services to 152 potential corporate buyers.

Thongchai Sridama, acting president of TCEB, commented, “In line with our preparations for the establishment of the AEC in 2015, Asia is developing as Thailand’s most important MICE market… In 2012 India was Thailand’s largest MICE market. TCEB’s marketing strategy, which targeted Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore, resulted in more than 39,000 MICE visitors from India to Thailand. This year we are extending our marketing program to cover 3 more major cities: Coimbatore, Mangalore and Pune, which are ranked highest in the country in terms of economic growth.”