Greg Norman shuts Sydney office, opens in China: report

Australia's richest sportsman Greg Norman has closed his only Australian office as he pursues golfing business interests in China, according to reports.

Greg Norman Golf Course Design shut its Sydney office in recent weeks, with at least three staff made redundant, the Daily Telegraph said on Wednesday.

The Telegraph said the design company has opened a new sales and marketing office in Beijing, signalling Asia as its key area of growth.

The office closure comes a year after Norman's chief Australian course architect for 22 years, Bob Harrison, parted ways with the two-time major winning golfer.

A company spokesman told the Telegraph that Norman's main golf course architects will now be based in the company's West Palm Beach headquarters in Florida.

Norman's spokesman, Bart Collins, told the newspaper that the company had "retrenched two or three executives" in Sydney.

"But we still have people who are full-time employees of us in Australia, who work from home right now," he said

Despite no longer playing golf regularly on the circuit, Norman remains Australia's highest-earning sportsman, with a business magazine recently estimating that he earned 15 million US dollars (12 million US) last year, largely because of his success in golf course design.

First established in 1987, Greg Norman Golf Course Design says on its website that it has completed more than 70 golf courses on six continents.

Norman, 55, formerly ranked number one in the world, won the British Open in 1986 and 1993.
The company was unavailable for comment Wednesday.

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© 2010 AFP
This story is sourced direct from an overseas news agency as an additional service to readers. Spelling follows North American usage, along with foreign currency and measurement units.

China, US to build cooperative relations

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As China and the U.S. conclude their second round of Strategic and Economic Dialogue, bilateral ties are back on track. After months of tensions between the two, China and the US are seeking ways of building positive and cooperative relations under long term strategies.

The China-US Strategic and Economic Dialogue has come at a time of strained relations between the two sides.

Last December, the US and some western countries blamed China for the Copenhagen Conference failing to reach a tougher consensus on climate change.

Trade and economics are also causing disputes.

From punitive tariffs on Chinese tires and steel pipes, to an anti-dumping probe into American auto part exports, a tit-for-tat dispute is being waged across the Pacific.

On the issue of RMB exchange rate, China is resisting US pressure to appreciate its currency.

Obama's meeting with the Dalai Lama and US arms sales to Taiwan received a strong backlash from China.

Professor Yuan Peng of Inst. of Contemporary Int'l Relations, said, "One of the key reasons for the tensions in the past year is that China and the US haven't got used to the new situation between the two. China is growing confident yet the US is losing ground to some extent. The old mechanism between the two needs to be adjusted."

Despite the global financial crisis, the Chinese economy grew by 8.7 per cent in 2009.

With the Greek debt crisis hanging over Europe, the world economic recovery remains fragile.

Analysts say China and US relations require a long term plan to deal with many problems.

"Bilateral relations between China and the US involves many global issues. The global financial crisis hasn't gone. The fight against climate change and the regional and global security issues all require cooperation between China and the US. The two sides should face up to the differences between them and develop a long term strategy in dealing with global challenges." Said Yuan Peng.

China and the US have become inter-dependent to a striking extent.

Analysts say although the future of bilateral relations could be complicated, the best way to face challenges is to stand together.

China-US S&ED attracts US media attention

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The China-US Strategic and Economic Dialogue is making headlines in the US. The talks made the front page of the Monday edition of all major newspapers and their websites.

An article posted on the Wall Street Journal website says the American public has welcomed the speech by Chinese President Hu Jintao at the opening ceremony. It says the two sides will proactively overcome their differences without harming ties. The US delegation has already made it clear that they will not pressure China on the issue of exchange rate of the yuan.

The website of the New York Times published a report that hails the significance of the dialogue in strengthening the relationship between two of the world's biggest economic powers. But a list of problems is waiting to be solved by Beijing and Washington to achieve a mutually beneficial solution.

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Penang's capital is eighth most liveable city in Asia, on par with KL and Bangkok

George Town is living it all up

GEORGE TOWN: The state capital has moved up a notch to become the eighth most liveable city in Asia in an international survey involving 254 cities.

The survey, which was carried out by ECA International, now puts George Town on par with Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok.

In a press release posted on its website www.eca-international.com, the survey also ranks Singapore as Asia's most liveable city for the 11th consecutive year.

Three cities in Japan - Kobe, Yokohama and Tokyo - occupy the second, third and fourth placings.
Hong Kong is in fifth place, followed by Taipei and Macau.

The rating for the cities was based on an analysis of living standards, including climate, health services, housing and utilities, social network, leisure facilities, infrastructure, personal safety, political tension and air quality.

ECA International regional director for Asia Lee Quane also said the least liveable cities in Asia were Islamabad and Karachi in Pakistan, Pyongyang in North Korea and Kabul in Afghanistan.

George Town also moved up a spot in the ranking for the world's most liveable cities at 62nd place.

Five Asian cities made it to the top 10 in the global ranking as the best places for Asians to live in - Singapore (1st), Kobe (3rd), Yokohama (4th), Tokyo (5th) and Hong Kong (8th).

ECA International is a membership organisation for international human resources professionals. It serves a global network of over 4,000 human resource professionals in 71 countries.

By TAN SIN CHOW
sctan@thestar.com.my