Sora es un adolescente de 14 años que vive con sus amigos Kairi y Riku en las Islas Destino, una especie de "isla paradisíaca". Sora esta enamorado de Kairi, al igual que Riku, lo cual les obliga a rivalizar, aunque se aprecien mucho. Una tarde, estos deciden hacer una barca para encontrar otros mundos, y descifrar así el incierto pasado de la guapa Kairi.

Todo parecía perfecto, pero esa misma noche unas extrañas criaturas, procedentes de los sueños de nuestro inquieto protagonista asolan su isla, y con ello le separan de sus amigos. Tras vencer a un terrible enemigo, con su recién adquirida Llave Espada, Sora aparece en Ciudad del Paso.

Así comienza Kingdom Hearts, uno de los grandes títulos de PS2. El juego fue desarrollado por la compañía Squaresoft (¡OJO!, que no que $quar€nix) bajo las órdenes de Tetsuya Nomura (director, artista conceptual y diseñador de personajes). El juego salió en el año 2002 y cuenta con remix, secuelas y largos etcéteras. KH se caracterizó por mezclar en el juego los universos de Final Fantasy y Disney, sí sí, DISNEY. Muchos se preguntarán, ¿cómo es posible mezclar FF con Disney? Comprobadlo vosotros mismos, os aseguro que no os defraudará en absoluto.

No os voy a hablar del primer juego que originó la saga sino de una de sus precuelas: Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep. La acción se desarrolla 10 años antes del primer KH y aclarará las incógnitas del vídeo secreto de Kingdom Hearts II: Final Mix. El juego se centrará en los primeros caballeros que utilizaron las llaves espada, mucho antes que Sora. Los personajes principales son tres: Terra, Ventus y Aqua, y tendrán la misión de buscar a su maestro desparecido, Xehanort. Meristation ha hecho un bonito avance hoy mismo debido al TGS (Tokyo Game Show). Gracias desde aquí a Xavier Ocampo.

El juego saldrá para el 2009 en Japón -esperar sentados en Europa-. Este juego explotará el máximo potencial de la consola de Sony, PSP...y yo me pregunto, ¿por qué no podemos tener más juegos como éste en PSP? En realidad mi pregunta tiene respuesta. Una de las posibilidades puede ser la escasa importancia que le está dando Sony a las Third Party en esta generación para su portátil. Otra puede ser las altas ventas de NDS y que le convenga más desarrollar a la compañía una bazofia de juego con ingresos extraordinarios -preguntadle a Ubisoft...-, que elaborar uno en condiciones y obtener resultado paupérrimos.

PlayStation Portable podría obtener unos resultados MUY superiores si se realizasen más juegos desarrollados en exclusivo para ella, y no más ports de su superiora. Juegos como Metal Gear Solid Portable Ops, Final Fantasy Crisis Core, Patapon, Katamari, GTAs, Daxter, etc están desarrollados en exclusiva para la portátil de Sony y eso es lo que hace decidirse a alguien por la compra de una consola. LAS EXCLUSIVIDADES. Es cierto que muchos de estos juegos luego han sido pasados a ports a PS2, pero esto ocurre cuando ya lleva un tiempo en el mercado.

Sony. No la vuelvas a cagar. Qué bastante la has cagado con PS3.

Nota: recordar que para NDS también sale un KH, que no sólo saca mierda la pequeña de Ninty ^_^. En otro post hablaré de alguno de sus juegos.

]]> http://eastasiaforum.wordpress.com/?p=1379 Mon, 29 Sep 2008 12:00:27 +0000 Luke Nottage http://eastasiaforum.org/2008/09/29/tables-turned-in-japanese-and-us-financial-markets/ Author: Luke Nottage

In 2003, financial journalist Gillian Tett wrote a book with a self-explanatory title: Saving the Sun: How Wall Street Mavericks Shook Up Japan's Financial World and Made Billions (Harper Collins). It epitomized a school of thought proclaiming a dramatic shift in Japan towards US-style corporate governance more generally. On 24 September, still writing for the Financial Times, Tett concluded that if she were writing her book again, she “would give it a more upbeat slant. Anyone know the Japanese for ‘eating humble pie’?”. The Japan Society of Scotland has already suggested “sunao ni ayamaru (to apologise obediently without protesting)" or "memboku wo ushinau (to lose face)"! Japan’s big financial institutions are certainly now back on the world stage, picking up some big pieces from America’s own financial crisis. And Japanese policy-makers and other commentators now want to lecture the US on how to deal with it.

Who would have thought, even a year ago, that Nomura Securities would be buying up the now-insolvent Lehman Brothers’ operations in Asia (including those in Australia, involving a total 3000 employees – with half in Tokyo) and then Europe (2500 employees)? And for just US$225m and “a nominal sum”, respectively, out of cash reserves of almost $6b Nomura has raised since April? Or that Mitsubishi UFJ, which spent $3.5b to buy out the Union Bank of California, would now be committing up to $9b to take 10-20% of Morgan Stanley, another precarious “Big Five” Wall Street investment bank? Or that Sumitomo Mitsui, which recently spent $1b for 2% of Barclays bank in the UK (which in turn has bought Lehman’s US operations), is prepared to invest US$1-3b in Goldman Sachs if requested by that other precarious Wall Street firm? Or that Mizuho would have recently pumped $1.2b into Merrill Lynch, another troubled firm that took refuge with the Bank of America in a $50b merger announced on 15 September?

Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs have also become bank holding companies, subjecting themselves to stricter regulation (including lower leverage requirements) to try to regain some trust in the marketplace. Bear Stearns, the other “Big Five” investment bank, had already failed and was sold to the JPMorgan Chase banking group in March. The editorial in the Wall Street Journal proclaims all this “The End of Wall Street”. Only much smaller pure investment banks remain, such as Rothschild (which advised Lehman on disposing of its Asian operations) and Lazard (which advised on its US operations sale). Eschewing involvement in complex financing deals, and relatively untainted by cross-selling and conflicts of interest, they hope to have preserved reputations for more independent strategic advice in M&A.

One implication of such dramatic events for Japan has not yet been fully appreciated. They should complicate the possible tension between those more likely to promote rules constraining hostile takeovers (including some investment bankers, as well as Japan’s “main banks”) and those more likely to favour more liberal rules (requiring informed shareholder consent to defensive measures, rather than deference to target management discretion). But anyway these events, tied to a much broader financial crisis in the US, will dampen aggressive M&A activity there and world-wide for quite some time.

These developments are also significant in other ways for the Asia-Pacific region. A few months ago, Nomura was reportedly interested in purchasing the investment banking operations of ABN AMRO in Australia. Could they or another Japanese financial institution now be interested in Macquarie Bank? The latter must be feeling the pinch as well, which in turn should impact on that group’s interest in Haneda Airport and other infrastructure investments (and hence concerns about appropriate FDI regulation) in Japan and throughout the region. And where in all this are Chinese financial institutions or the China Investment Corp sovereign wealth fund set up last year with $200b in China, Japan’s “rival”? They had made some large foreign investments, such as CIC’s $5b purchase of Morgan Stanley shares at $50.08 each, but are now looking at big paper losses. CIC was reportedly interested in buying more shares in Morgan Stanley as well as in Lehman, but bowed out to Japanese investors: “The lesson China’s cautious leaders seem to have taken from the worsening global crisis is similar to the one they took away in Beijing at the start of the decade – do not mess with things you do not understand” (Jamil Anderlini, Prudence Guides China’s Outlook).

Japan’s financial institutions, by contrast, are hoping they have learned enough about more complex financial products as a result of financial deregulation and foreign investment in Tokyo since the late 1990s to be able to invest profitably now in Wall Street, and to learn (and earn) even more. The mega-banks, in particular, have finally cleaned up their Non-Performing Loans and regained strong capital asset ratios. They have accumulated ever-more deposits as the Japanese public becomes concerned about investing in the US, as well as likely slowdowns in the world and Japanese economies, and are looking to boost profitability in some offshore markets. Even Japanese insurance companies, hard hit by Japan’s “lost decade” over the 1990s, may find the time is ripe to diversify overseas. Tokyo Marine Holdings had already spent $4.7b in July to buy out Philadelphia Consolidated in the US. Presumably it and others are considering the broader ramifications of the US government recently taking 79.9% equity in exchange for a $85b lifeline to the American International Group (AIG). The latter’s liquidity crisis, resulting from providing too many credit default swaps (guaranteeing debts owed by third parties), triggered panic as far away as Singapore. Thousands of that nation’s 2.6 million policy holders lined up to cash in their investments, even at significant cost, and despite the announcements from the US.

Already by mid-September, 20% of Japan’s outbound FDI over the previous year had been into financial services. Perhaps they are moving too quickly, or paying too much (eg Mitsubishi UFJ to become Morgan Stanley’s largest shareholder) for too little (only one board seat, apparently). But Sumitomo realised handsome profits from a $0.5b investment in Goldman Sachs when it was struggling back in 1986, unlike many Japanese firms that invested in US or Australian real estate in those heady times (remember Mitsubishi Real Estate’s disastrous acquisition of the Rockefeller Centre in 1989?). Japanese financial institutions stopped investing abroad over the 1990s, instead often finding themselves bought out from the late 1990s. Merrill Lynch bought Yamaichi Securities when it collapsed in 1997, and invested in (Mitsubishi) UFJ Bank in 2003. Ripplewood made a handsome profit from acquiring in 1999 the Long-Term Credit Bank of Japan (now the Shinsei Bank), nationalized in 1998. Goldman Sachs invested in Mitsui Sumitomo in 2003, and Citigroup turned Nikko into a wholly-owned subsidiary as late as 2007. How the tables seem to have turned this year!

Nomura, the Japanese securities group which beat Barclays to Lehman Brothers' European equities and mergers advisory business, is set to buy its fixed-income operations for $2. The deal is expected to be announced imminently.

Lehman's fixed income staff were called to a meeting at 2pm today.

There is speculation that Jeremy Isaacs, former chief executive of Lehman Brothers, who quit earlier this month, is to return to the bank but not necessarily to take control of an enlarged Nomura-Lehman business.

The Japanese move comes just days after Nomura International acquired Lehman Brothers’ equity and advisory business for a similar price of $2. Neither acquisition includes trading assets or trading liabilities.

It is believed that Nomura International, which will drop the Lehman Brothers’ name, is buying all operations with the exception of mortgage backed securities and real estate, leading to the loss of 100 jobs.

Barry Nix, who is currently the London-based head of Nomura’s global markets, is expected to step back from day-to-day control and assume an ambassadorial role.

It is thought that Mr Nix was excluded from the negotiations with Lehman Brothers and its administrators PriceWaterhouseCoopers, which were handled instead by executives in Japan.

Christian Meissner, who was appointed co-chief executive of Lehman Brothers Europe in the wake of Isaacs’ departure, will also assume a senior role within the enlarged bank. But his co-head Riccardo Banchetti is expected to resign.

Insiders, some of whom were briefed yesterday, claim that Nomura will decamp from its offices at St Martin le Grand and move into Lehman Brothers’ Canary Wharf headquarters.

A spokesman for Nomura declined to comment.

COMENTARIO: Segunda adquisición de Nomura en Europa en la misma semana, también por 2 dólares. Y yo me pregunto, si no podría haber comprado los 2 negocios pagando con un billete de 5 y dejando 1 dólar de propina... así no sé de dónde van a salir los ingresos para pagar a los bonistas... :(

Tokio, 26 sep (EFE).- El banco japonés Nomura compró la división europea y de Oriente Medio de Lehman Brothers por sólo dos dólares con el compromiso de mantener el empleos y hacerse cargo de los gastos de personal, informa hoy el diario económico "Nikkei".

La entidad japonesa se gastará decenas de miles de millones de yenes en costes de personal para mantener los empleos de las divisiones de Asia, Europa y Oriente Medio de Lehman, de las que han pasado a hacerse cargo esta semana, después de que el 15 de septiembre el banco de inversión presentara una declaración de quiebra.

El acuerdo por el que Nomura se comprometía a conservar "una porción significativa" de los empleos de los trabajadores de Lehamn fue clave para que la casa de valores japonesa se impusiera al banco británico Barclays en la adquisición de la división europea y de Oriente Medio del banco estadounidense, según la agencia Kyodo.

Sólo en el caso de la compra de la división asiática de Lehman, incluyendo los costes por el banco y sus empleados, los japoneses tuvieron que pagar 24.000 millones de yenes (226 millones de dólares), de acuerdo con el "Nikkei".

La compra de las tres divisiones le hubiera supuesto un desembolso de 700.000 millones de yenes (6.610 millones de yenes) en cualquier otro momento de bonanza de Lehman, según ese periódico.

La casa de valores nipona ya ha dicho que planea mantener los puestos de trabajo de cerca de 5.500 trabajadores de Lehman Brothers, 3.000 de la división asiática y 2.500 de la parte europea y de Oriente Medio.

Los gastos de personal le supondrán a Nomura un coste adicional al total de la operación de varias docenas de miles de yenes, según el rotativo.

COMENTARIO: Está claro que en la liquidación está primando salvar el puesto a los empleados de Lehman (y sus multimillonarios bonos) sobre los intereses de los accionistas... 2 dolares?? y ya puestos, por qué no 1??

Nomura, el mayor banco de inversión japonés, cerró ayer definitivamente el acuerdo de compra del negocio de mercado de valores y banca de inversión de Lehman Brothers en Europa y Oriente Próximo. Se trata de la segunda adquisición de activos de Lehman, en proceso concursal en Estados Unidos, en 24 horas, ya que también ha adquirido los activos asiáticos del banco de inversión estadounidense.

Nomura ha cerrado la operación en un acuerdo por el que incorporará a 2.500 empleados. La operación afecta a las actividades de banca de inversión y operaciones en mercados que Lehman Brothers tenía en Reino Unido, España, Italia, Alemania, Suecia y Holanda. Nomura también asume la plantilla de Lehman Brothers en varios países de Oriente Medio como Qatar, Dubai y Kuwait. Con estas dos adquisiciones y la compra de los activos estadounidenses de Lehman por Barclays, es previsible que la mayoría de los puestos de trabajo del banco de inversión podrían salvarse.

Se calcula que los inversores en bonos de Lehman podrían perder en torno a 110.000 millones de dólares (75.000 millones de euros) después del concurso de acreedores tras la quiebra del banco de inversión.
Lehman Brothers tenía una plantilla de alrededor de cincuenta personas en España, dedicadas al asesoramiento de operaciones corporativas, al diseño de emisiones de deuda por parte de entidades financieras, y al trading en diversos mercados.

El banco estadounidense facturó 175 millones de euros en el mercado español año pasado. La absorción de parte de esas actividades por Nomura permitirá al banco japonés dar un salto en España, donde ahora cuenta con una sociedad, Thesan, dedicada al capital riesgo. La semana pasada, Nomura contrató a tres personas de Lehman para Thesan, firma que está especializada en la compra de capital y deuda de empresas con problemas financieros.

Estrategias legales
Los inversores españoles en productos estructurados emitidos por Lehman siguen sin saber qué parte de su inversión podrán recuperar, al tiempo que avanzan en sus estrategias legales ante posibles reclamaciones a sus gestores de banca privada –ver EXPANSIÓN del 19 de septiembre–. La mayoría de las entidades involucradas echa balones fuera tras la polémica creada por la distribución de estos productos. Muchos ahorradores han invertido durante los últimos meses en productos en apariencia garantizados que se apreciaban en función de la evolución de unos índices o valores bursátil.

Sin embargo, la quiebra del cuarto banco de inversión norteamericano ha encendido los ánimos de los clientes de estas entidades. Se quejan de que compraron productos aparentemente garantizados, según la forma en que se los vendieron, pero podrían perderlo casi todo tras la bancarrota de Lehman. Por ello, estos clientes van denunciar a sus entidades asesoras.

Defensas
Las entidades de banca privada preparan una defensa basada en el papel de las agencias de ráting y la responsabilidad de los ahorradores en sus inversiones. Aunque en algunas de las presentaciones comerciales de estos productos ni siquiera se advertía que la quiebra de Lehman sería letal.

Banif, una de las entidades más activas en la comercialización de estos productos en España, rechazó ayer manifestarse sobre los contactos con sus clientes. Aún así, fuentes de la entidad de banca privada de Santander aseguran que cuando comercializaron estos productos las agencias definían la deuda de Lehman como “emisiones de alta calificación en el pago de intereses”. Según un comunicado hecho público por una de las plataformas de afectados, la entidad estaría sondeando a distintos bufetes internacionales para el seguimiento del proceso concursal de Lehman, “con el fin de preservar los intereses de los clientes afectados”. La entidad no confirmó este extremo.

Por su parte, Bankinter  señaló ayer a este diario que ya ha trasmitido a sus clientes su voluntad “de ayudarles en la gestión de sus reclamaciones y defensa de sus intereses”. No obstante, rechaza cualquier responsabilidad de sus gestores en este caso: “quien tiene que devolver el importe invertido es su acreedor, es decir, su emisor [Lehman]. En ningún caso el intermediario o vendedor del producto tiene responsabilidad ni obligación alguna de devolver ese importe”.

Otra de las entidades afectadas es la británica Barclays. Fuentes cercanas al banco aseguran que el número de afectados es “mínimo y marginal” y que que están contactando con ellos “para buscar soluciones”. Algo similar se hace desde Citibank. “Estamos dando toda la información a los clientes”, señalan desde el banco comercial.

COMENTARIO: ¿se lavan las manos y pasan el muerto a las agencias de rating? Lamentable!!

A continuación os informamos de las ultimas novedades en el asunto de referencia.

Ayer, 22 de Septiembre de 2008, Nomura Holdings Inc, el banco de inversión más grande de Japón, ha anunciado que ha acordado la adquisición de la franquicia de Lehman Brothers en la región del Pacífico-Asia, incluyendo Japón y Australia. La citada transacción, que incluye la totalidad de las franquicias de Lehman en la citada región y aproximadamente 3000 empleados, está sometida a varias condiciones, según anuncia la propia sociedad adquirente en su anuncio de prensa y que se encuentra disponible en su pagina web www.nomura.com. La transacción no incluiría trading assets ni trading liabilities, pero si incluiría los negocios de mergers and acquisitions, derivatives, electronic trading y prime brokerage.

Nomura es uno de los principales grupos de servicios financieros en la región asiática, con sede en Tokio (Japón) y con oficinas en Hong Kong, Londres y Nueva York (EEUU). Su negocio dispone de cinco divisiones: domestic retail, global markets, global investment banking, global merchant banking y asset management. (Fuente de los párrafos anteriores: press release Nomura)

El precio de adquisición se habría fijado inicialmente en veinte mil billones de yenes japoneses.

La firma de auditoria, PricewaterhouseCoopers, que esta gestionando la suspensión de pagos de la parte del negocio de Lehman situado en Europa, habría confirmado, a través de su portavoz, Dan Schwarzmann que está en negociaciones con un potencial comprador para este negocio, interesado en adquirir una parte amplia de dicho negocio, frente a otros potenciales compradores cuyo interés estaría limitado a una menor parte del mismo. No obstante, el citado portavoz no ha confirmado la identidad de dicho potencial comprador.

El portavoz de PricewaterhouseCoopers habría afirmado que, aunque dada la complejidad de Lehman Brothers, las negociaciones son difíciles, espera poder aportar a corto plazo a todos los implicados algo mas de certidumbre al respecto.

Al parecer PricewaterhouseCoopers estaría igualmente intentado recuperar ocho mil millones de efectivo de la matriz estadounidense de Lehman para pagar acreedores europeos de Lehman. Lehman estaría ofreciendo aquellas partes de su negocio que no están incluidos en el procedimiento concursal de la compañía. (Fuente de esta segunda parte: Bloomberg)

Hoy mismo Nomura ha anunciado que ha llegado a un acuerdo para adquirir el negocio europeo y de oriente medio de Lehman. En una nota de prensa, disponible en su pagina web, Nomura indica que la transacción no incluiría trading assets ni trading liabilities, pero si incluiría los negocios de equities e investment banking y está sujeta a una serie de condiciones, inclusive las correspondientes autorizaciones de entidades reguladoras.

Lehman ha anunciado en una nota de prensa de fecha de ayer, disponible en su pagina web,www.lehman.com, que, como consecuencia del acuerdo de adquisición firmado por Barclays Capital Inc y Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc, toda vez que el mismo ha sido ya autorizado por el Tribunal del Estado de Nueva York, quedaría reactivada aquella parte adquirida del negocio de Lehman en Estados Unidos a través de Barclays.

COMENTARIO: Respecto a Nomura, ya está todo dicho aquí. Siguen sin comprar activos ni pasivos. Es curioso como los comunicados de Banif están repletos de "Fuentes", como si estuvieran redactados por un abogado...

La casa de valores japonesa Nomura ha anunciado hoy un acuerdo para adquirir los activos y operaciones de banca de inversión de Lehman Brothers en Europa y Oriente Medio, un día después de adquirir su división asiática. La operación de Nomura se produce un día después de que Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, el banco más grande de Japón y el más grande del mundo en términos de activos, anunciase su intención de comprar entre el 10 y el 20% de Morgan Stanley.

Nomura no ha informado el precio que pagará por esta operación, aunque ha señalado que mantendrá en su puesto a un "número significativo" de la plantilla de 2.500 empleados de Lehman Brothers en Europa y Oriente Medio, según la agencia local Kyiodo.

La casa de valores japonesa adquirió esta semana la división asiática de Lehman Brothers, que emplea a casi 3.000 personas, por un coste, según el diario The Wall Street Journal, de 225 millones de dólares. Como ocurrió con el caso de Asia, el acuerdo para la adquisición de la división europea parece no incluir el traspaso de la deuda de Lehman, sino sólo los activos.

La oferta de Nomura se impone a la de Barclays

Lehman Brothers presentó una declaración de quiebra el 15 de septiembre y dos días después el banco británico Barclays llegó a un acuerdo para comprar sus activos estadounidenses por un importe de 1.750 millones de dólares (cerca de 1.200 millones de euros). Barclays estaba también interesado en adquirir los activos europeos de Lehman Brothers, pero al parecer la oferta de Nomura era mayor, según la agencia local Kyodo.

En un comunicado, el consejero delegado de Nomura, Kenichi Watanabe, ha indicado hoy que, "en las últimas 24 horas, Nomura ha llevado a cabo dos acuerdos significativos" que permitirán extender su presencia internacional, "permitiéndonos hacer realidad nuestra estrategia de entregar Asia al mundo".

COMENTARIO: Nomura se está aprovechando, como hizo Barclays de las prisas de los administradores por vender antes de que el negocio se derrumbe y los empleados se vayan. Siguen comprando lo más atractivo: los negocios con sus clientes y empleados. Quién se quedará con los activos financieros y cuánto pagaran por ellos?

And here i go with a latest update about them....

NOMURA, a Japanese firm which has been a strong player in the region in investment banking services, including mergers and acquisitions, execution services and prime brokerage transactions has planned to takeover LEHMANS Asia business. Nomura didn't give a price for the deal, but sources say that it would pay $225 million for the business.

when asked to Kenichi Watanabe, the chief executive officer of Nomunra he said "The businesses we are acquiring are hugely successful with excellent management and staff. This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity" and added "It will significantly extend our reach in Asia"

And just becuase of this plan of Nomuras takeover of lehmans Asia business its seems thier shares closed up almost 10% up yesterday.

Guys...This deal just buys the operation but not the balance sheet. Lehmans get some pennies back but still remain in a worse state. People or companies from all over the world are buying into the USA.... to comment, at practical the cost of peanuts... cant belive!!!!

The rest of Asia is asleep, Japan is awake!!!!! :D

Japan's Nomura Holdings has agreed to buy the Asian operations of bankrupt U.S. investment bank Lehman Brothers for $225 million, according to a published report Monday.

The deal includes the failed firm's equities and investment banking operations across Asia, but doesn't include any of its balance sheet, The Wall Street Journal reported Monday, citing a person familiar with the matter.

Lehman employs almost 3,000 people across the region.

Nomura is also reportedly in talks to acquire some of Lehman's European operations.

Shares in Nomura rose almost 10% in Tokyo as banking stocks rallied across Asia. Also see Asia Markets.

The agreement follows the sale of Lehman's core U.S. operations and headquarters to Barclays for around $1.55 billion. The Barclays deal was approved by a U.S. bankruptcy court on Saturday, but not without opposition from some clients and employees, who say they are owed money and have queried the way Lehman moved assets between London and New York shortly before it filed for bankruptcy.

PricewaterhouseCoopers, which is overseeing the insolvency of Lehman in Europe said an initial inquiry found substantial transfers of securities out of the European operations, which need to be investigated further, the Journal reported.

PwC said it had identified more than $8 billion of funds due to the European unit and that it's possible further transfers will be discovered, the report added.

One of the clients claiming funds had been improperly transferred is U.K. hedge fund GLG Partners, which had used Lehman as its prime broker in recent years and holds significant claims against the firm's European operations, the Journal said.

COMENTARIO: Cuando el comprador sube un 10% en bolsa tras una compra es que el mercado estima que el precio pagado está muy por debajo del valor que aporta. ¿Están liquidando Lehman a precio de saldo? ¿Como afectarán estos regalos a los bonistas que se pondrán en la cola de los acreedores?

investment manager Northern Trust Global Investments listed the product tied to the TSE REIT Index on the New York Stock Exchange.  A J-REIT ETF has not been listed in Japan, but Nomura Asset Management plans to list one on the 18th of this month.

Nomura`s brief analysis of the J-REIT market last weekend emphasized the extreme discount and potential undervalue that can be seen in the sector as average dividend yield spread over the 10-year JGB is back to the level of 4.5%.

Moser Baer has diluted 6.5 per cent stake in the PV business for raising these funds, which would now be utilised for expansion of its solar PV capacity both in crystalline silicon and thin film solar verticals, largely at the Greater Noida.

“The capex for 2008-09 is $400 million (about Rs 1,760 crore) for expansion in crystalline silicon and thin film capacities. We expect the latest round of funding to contribute to our PV expansion plans. For the rest, a significant part of the requirement will be met from our previous round of funding concluded last year, and our leverage in terms of debt,” Mr Yogesh Mathur, Group CFO of Moser Baer, said at a conference here.

The company had raised about Rs 400 crore in November 2007. “We had raising funds from IDFC Private Equity, IDFC, Government of Singapore, and CDC Group, last year. However, the previous round of fund raising did not lead to an equity dilution as it was a structured transaction. The actual conversion into equity is based on determination of stake of the investor at the time of IPO sometime in future,” Mr Tarun Jaitly, Senior General Manager, Capital Markets, Moser Baer, said.

Moser Baer — whose holding in the PV business (under two subsidiaries MBPV and PV Technologies) is pegged at 93.5 per cent — said it may raise further up to Rs 200 crore on the “current terms.” The current transaction values Moser Baer’s PV business at Rs 6,350 crore.

Expansion plans 

Moser Baer plans to use the capital infusion for capacity expansion of its crystalline silicon and thin film solar verticals. “For crystalline silicon, we currently have 80 MW capacity, and we plan to increase that to 180 MW; whereas our present capacity in Thin Film is 40 MW and we will be adding 65MW. In addition, the existing 40 MW would also be retrofit into tandem junction ramping it by another 16 MW,” Mr Jaitly added. The company said that majority of the ongoing capex in Chennai was “back-ended” including acquisition of land and commencement of civil works. “It will be ramped to 500 MW Thin Film capacity by 2011,” he pointed out.

Asked about its plans for listing the PV business, Mr Mathur said, “The business entails growth opportunities and continues to require significant capital. We see the business being able to tap the public and private market, but the focus is currently on preparing and executing our plans and enhancing the capacity. At an appropriate time, we will see and take it to market.”

On a specific query on whether the company saw a listing possibility in the coming three years, he said, “Yes.”

PV industry potential 

Fuelled by the recent technological advancements, it is estimated that solar market would demonstrate a 43 per cent CAGR and is poised to achieve grid parity in the short to medium term. The current demand projections translate to a market value of $50-70 billion by 2010, according to certain estimates. The solar market has grown from $13 billion in 2005 to an estimated $40 billion this year.

Demand from Europe — particularly Spain, Italy and Germany — has been strong. A key trend in the solar energy sector is the diversification away from the top markets such as Germany and Japan. Spain and other European countries and the US are projected to drive demand through 2009; the growing demand in developing nations such as India and South Korea are expected to further drive the market up.

Source: Business Line - http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2008/09/05/stories/2008090551820400.htm

As cash-rich Indian companies ramp up overseas M&A activity, global banks ignore difficulties and re-staff India.

Current domestic downers – inflation at 12.63% (21/8/08) and oil costs - have an affect. Dealogic report a first six months year-on-year deals decline of 27%, to US$ 28.6 billion. Equity offerings flopped 37% to US$ 11.2 billion.

But big banking’s unbothered. Chief Executive, of Credit Suisse Asia Pacific, bullish Kai Nargolwala, concludes, “While there will be some slowdown in growth, we don’t see it as anywhere near as severe as one might see in the US and Europe.” McKinsey & Co believe the outlook “relatively bright” with strong Indian growth irrespective the state of global capital markets.

Recent research/crystal-ball gazing agrees. Since 2003 Indian firms made 322 foreign acquisitions, and 340 Indian firms were sold to foreign entrants. But, accountants KPMG conclude India will be a net ‘deal exporter’. Ian Gomes, Chairman of KPMG’s new and emerging markets practice, expects buys to overtake sells.

So banks go boots to the ground in anticipation.

Credit Suisse plan to double investment banking, private banking and asset management staff, and with high profile hires. Japanese brokers, keen to grow outside their stagnant Mikado market, look to India. Nomura plan to increase staff from 17 to 100 by 2010 - adding stock trading and asset management to its portfolio. In April 2008 Daiwa and Sumitomo’s already established JV, “Daiwa SMBC” began operations as the first Japanese broker with a full line-up of services in India. Same time Mitsubishi UFJ Securities set up a subsidiary in Mumbai while Mizuho Securities signed a memorandum of understanding with Tata Capital to jointly launch a private equity fund and offer wealth management services. In May RBS moved three bankers from recently acquired ABN AMRO to key roles in its Mumbai based corporate finance team.

Domestic banks pursue for a piece of the international action. Union Bank of India plan 10 international offices to service Indian companies acquiring foreign rivals. Chairman and Managing Director Mavila Nair explains, “Many customers are operating in the global market, they are acquiring companies … We will support their aspirations across the globe”.

There’s a nice banker.

Once the game was officially cancelled at Sendai, Sadaharu Oh went to pay a visit to Katsuya Nomura, both legendary players and managers in NPB history. With the press present, naturally, the talk quickly turned to why manager Senichi Hoshino's team failed to even medal, let alone gold.

Here's a snippet of their conversation as reported by Sports Hochi.

Nomura: Olympics was a failure, wasn't it?

Oh: Yes, it was disappointing. It's difficult. One loss means it's all over.

Nomura: It's difficult to select players. The heart of the order, 3-4-5 hitters need to be solid.

Oh: It's always difficult for batters when they face new pitchers for the first time. But ours (Tsuyoshi Wada and Toshiya Sugiuchi) got hit pretty hard. (Comment: Wada and Sugiuchi both pitched 2 games each, Wada 4.82 ERA in 9 1/3 IP and Sugiuchi 0.84 ERA in 10 2/3 IP, so it was only Wada who got hit moderately hard. Olympic stats here.)

Earlier before Oh's visit Nomura had already criticized Hoshino Japan, that the team was "unable to make use of all its data. Totally wasted a good thing there. I thought things got off to a bad start when they chose a group of friends to manage the team (Hoshino is friends with coaches Tabuchi and Yamamoto). Managers who used to be pitchers don't know what position players go through either." (Comment: Hoshino pitched for the Dragons, peaking in the 70's.) Oh also commented on the overall team strengths of Korea, Cuba, and USA.

Oh: They didn't swing at any balls. Great plate discipline. Once again, we saw how important great batting eyes are. (Comment: says the man who has NPB leading 2390 career walks and an astounding .446 career OBP. At Beijing Japan only walked 24 times, other teams were Canada 15, Cuba 37, Korea 30, Taiwan 30, and USA 34.)

Nomura: The batters swing without taking big steps.

Oh: They wait for the ball, and still get distance on the balls they hit.

Nomura: Different muscles.

Oh: It's difficult for starters to pitch relief. Though, I understand that it's also difficult to select middle relievers on Team Japan... and on top of that the roster size is only 24 players. (Comment: MLB is 25, while NPB uses a 28 man roster with lots of leeway.)

Nomura: Kids these days are weak. They have the gall take 10 days off by fouling pitches off themselves. I didn't want to lose my job, so I even played with broken bones.

Oh: Well, we are 1st and 2nd in all time games played so we were tough, but there are players who give in easily to pain.

Nomura: You are a man of integrity. I lack integrity. That there shows up in our difference of 200 homeruns. (Comment: 868 v 657 career homruns for the two living legends.)

The two talked for 40 minutes, but these were the quotes that made it onto Sports Hochi. World's homerun king Oh, of course, has also led the champion Team Japan in WBC 2006. And Nomura, the greatest hitting catcher in NPB history, managed Cuban manager at Beijing, Antonio Pacheco, when he played at Shidax in the Japanese industrial leagues. Oh has been to the Japan Series 4 times as manager and won twice, Nomura 5 times and won three times. (Comment: Hoshino has been to the Japan Series 3 times as manager but has never won it.)

Note: This is not a word for word translation, but I'll reprint the original article here before it disappears from the archives.

ノムさん王さん電撃対談…星野ＪＡＰＡＮの敗因分析

8月25日8時0分配信 スポーツ報知

楽天・野村監督、ソフトバンク・王監督が２４日、北京五輪でメダルを逃した星野ジャパンをそろって敗因を分析した。故障者が続出したことについてノムさ んは「メンバー編成が難しい。今の子は痛みに弱いし」とチクリと刺せば、王監督は「キューバ、韓国、アメリカはやっぱりすごい」と冷静に分析。球界の重鎮 にとっても、今回の敗戦は大きな関心事だったようだ。

Ｋスタ宮城での楽天・ソフトバンク戦が雨天中止となり、いつものように報道陣の質問を受けている野村監督の元に、王監督があいさつに訪れた。話題が『星野ジャパンについて』と聞くと、王監督も腰を下ろし“緊急対談”となった。

ノムさん「五輪、ダメだったね」

王監督「残念でしたね。難しいですよ。１つ負けたらオシマイですから」

ノムさん「メンバー編成が難しいよ。（打順の）３、４、５番がしっかりしないと」

王監督「初めての対戦はバッターは難しい。でもウチの（和田、杉内）はよく打たれましたね」

ノムさんは“対談”の前にも星野ジャパンの問題点を指摘していた。「データが生かし切れなかったんじゃないか。宝の持ち腐れ。仲良しグループ（の首脳 陣）を選んだ時点でダメだと思った。投手出身の監督は野手の気持ちが分からないしな」　一方、王監督は韓国、キューバ、米国の総合力の高さに目を見張っ た。

王監督「ボール球を振らなかった。見切りがいい。やっぱり大事ですね、選球眼は」

ノムさん「ステップせずに打つやつばかりやな」

王監督「引きつけて打って、飛距離も出る」

ノムさん「筋肉が違うよ」

王監督「先発が救援するのは難しい。中継ぎ専門を（代表に）選ぶのも難しいですが…それに２４人しかいないのも大変」

ノムさん「今の子は痛みに弱い。自打球で１０日も休む。オレは誰にもレギュラーを渡したくないから骨折しても出た」

王監督「我々は出場試合数が歴代１位と２位ですから頑丈ですが、痛みに弱い選手もいますよ」

ノムさん「人格者だな。オレは非人格者。その違いが（２人の本塁打の）２００本の差だよ」

約４０分間の電撃対談。半世紀にわたって日本プロ野球を支える２人が口にした苦言、提言の根底にあるのは、実力を発揮できなかった日本代表へのもどかしさだったのかもしれない。

◆野村、王監督の短期決戦采配メモ　王監督は０６年、第１回ＷＢＣを指揮して日本を初代王者に導いた。１次リーグで韓国に連敗。一発勝負の厳しさを実感 している。一方、野村監督は０２年１１月に社会人野球・シダックスの監督に就任。翌年９月、都市対抗野球で準優勝するなどトーナメント大会でも指導力を発 揮した。当時のチームには現キューバ代表監督のパチェコらも在籍。また、両監督の日本シリーズの成績は、王監督は４度の出場で２度、野村監督は５度の出場 で３度、日本一になっている。

“Fabula Nova Crystallis”. Tel est le nouveau projet de la firme nippone Square Enix. Éditeur et développeur à ne plus présenter, c’est au fil des années que “SE” est devenu une véritable référence dans le monde du “RPG”. Ayant développé son lot de “Final Fantasy”, Square Enix devait néanmoins redorer son nom. En effet, si à ce jour Final Fantasy VII était à l’unanimité, un “big bang” vidéoludique, le succès de la société commença à perdre de sa “prestance” sur la seconde console de Sony. Dans un monde où le jeux-vidéo ne cesse d’atteindre des sommets, le marché oligopole de ce secteur en fait de même. C’est dans l’évolution des choses que le jeu n’est plus ce qu’il était. Nous ayant fait rêver par le passé, les jeux d’aujourd’hui ont perdu toute leur magie. Les consoles “Next Gen” témoignent de cette réalité jour après jour, et nous démontrent que malgré tout, le XXI^ème siècle n’existe que par l’argent. Les jeux-vidéo sont désormais de purs produits commerciaux et oublient toute volonté du joueur, tant précieuse par le passé malheureusement.
Ainsi, c’est dans cette optique que l’éditeur Square Enix a créé ce nouveau projet. Un produit, qui je pense, marquera les joueurs de la première heure et prouvera (enfin, on l’espère) que la tombe du jeux-vidéo n’est pas encore creusée. Ambitieux dans l’immédiat, ce projet s’étalera sur le reste des années PS3 et 360. Nous attendrons donc la clôture de ce projet et la finalité de son futur pour nous prononcer du point de vue économique. Un aboutissement qui résumera sans conteste et définitivement l’avenir du jeux-vidéo sur console de salon. Alors, le business sera roi ou les sensations du joueur le seront ? Seules les prochaines années nous le diront…

“Fabula Nova Crystallis” est un projet qui proposera trois jeux de son univers, mais composés de trois mondes différents. “Final Fantasy XIII” (japon 2009), “Final Fantasy versus XIII” (sortie non communiquée) et “Final Fantasy XIII: Agito” (sortie non communiquée). “FFXIII” est développé sur PS3 et 360, le second nous sera servis exclusivement sur PS3, et pour finir Agito sortira sur PSP/mobile. En effet, les trois opus auront des caractéristiques communes, comme la dépendance de cristaux. Une obligation qui sera vitale pour l’existence de leurs mondes… Cependant, vous remarquerez que les news sur “FNC” ne se font pas encore en pagaille!
Un projet très timide dans l’immédiat, il a été cependant présenté au salon “DKΣ3713″ qui s’est tenu au Japon les 2 et 3 août. La crème n’étant que le seul invité, vos sites préférés doivent à l’heure qu’il est, avoir un compte rendu solide de cet évènement. De notre côté, nous nous concentrerons davantage sur le très sombre et attendu Final Fantasy versus XIII.

“FFVXIII” se présente comme un jeu complètement indépendant, exception faite de quelques clins d’œil à son univers. Par un “trailer” somptueux, intriguant et controversé en 2006, Tetsuya Nomura (Kingdom Hearts) nous prouve que ses talents en la matière ne sont plus à prouver. Cette cinématique s’est directement propulsée chez les plus grands et aura fait couler beaucoup d’encre. Par une introduction et une scène d’action sans faille, ce trailer s’est avant tout voulu magique par une musique au combien dramatique, “Somnus Numeri”. Avec une annonce qui s’est transformée en une véritable catastrophe, les joueurs voulaient des précisions quant à ce “background” bien différents des simples RPG. Square Enix ne nous donne maintenant depuis deux ans que de simples amuse-gueules, nous témoignant cependant que le trailer est aussi enivrant que l’intrigue est révolutionnaire. C’est par l’ordre d’une fantastique finesse, qu’un Prince et un seul royaume luttent pour prévenir. Se souciant d’un monde extérieur qui veut imposer son ordre hérétique et chaotique. La lutte pour le dernier cristal ne sera qu’un simple prologue à la chronique d’une ère nouvelle. Ainsi sauvée par la simple existence de cet être…

S'incarnant dans une ville où les pouvoirs économiques sont roi, elle ne reflètent que l'ombre de la peur. Une peur dont le noyau existe que par l'incertitude de ce royaume. C'est dans une modernité semblable à la notre, que deux grandes nations se disputent une guerre froide. Etant le prince déchu d'une famille royale, le dernier membre contrôlera le cristal d'existence. Sa destiné lui demandant un sacrifice total de sa raison d'être, le prince sera seul contre tous. De par son passé, on lui prédominera une très grande arrogance, dévoilant très peu d'émotions, il sera un être froid et solitaire. Par cet tragédie, le trailer met en scène un combat entre le prince et une armée voulant le destituer de son héritage royal. La suite est quant à elle, racontée dans ce "deuxième trailer". Square Enix voulant gardé la surprise jusque dans ses derniers retranchements, notre prince n'a pas de nom.

Divers “scans” nous montrent de nombreuses scènes encore inconnues au public. Cependant, lors du salon “DKΣ3713″, quelques lieux inédits ont été présentés. Une église, un endroit semblable au Colisée de Rome, ainsi qu’un petit chemin de montagne. Et si vous en attendiez encore, un affrontement entre le héros et une jeune femme est présenté dans une phase de combat en temps réel. Ainsi, la grosse révolution de ce Final Fantasy est ni plus ni moins un système d’action-RPG. Nomura ayant créé de grandioses batailles au tour de Kingdom Hearts, nous ne pouvons en attendre davantage de son futur bébé.
A moindre d’importance, mais à préciser pour ce type de jeu, le prince aura plusieurs tenues. Il possèdera des costumes sobres, élégants et matures. Fini les costumes haut en couleurs comme dans de nombreux RPG. FFVXIII se voulant être sérieux et sombre, à ne pas vous déplaire bien sûr. De son côté, notre héros sera bien entouré, prince oblige… En effet, il aura de nombreux gardes du corps, occupant chacun une fonction bien précise quant à la garde du cristal. Malheureusement, les informations sur ces individus ne sont pas assez nombreuses pour en parler davantage.

Ainsi, voilà que se termine ce premier dossier consacré à Final Fantasy versus XIII. Un jeu qui nous le pensons, marquera profondément la PS3. Les premiers éléments semblent en effet de taille pour avancer de tels propos! Square Enix semble avoir compris le message, nous ne voulons plus voir de RPG improbables, se ressemblant les uns les autres. Les mondes féériques, étranges et tout ces héros à la même sauce sont arrivés à la limite de leurs existences. “SE” nous développe un monde pas si différent du notre, avec un héros touchant et une solitude bien plus crédible que ces pseudos radoteurs dans les autres jeux-vidéo. Square vient de tirer une bonne carte, espérons qu’il ait une bonne main… Le business étant son adversaire principal."

"There is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so".
William Shakespeares.

Soulanubis.

What do you guys think.

Blitz, D1GP

Em uma entrevista cedida para a revista japonesa Dengeki Playstation, Tetsuya Nomura informou que sairá uma versão completa em Blu-ray do filme Final Fantasy VII - Advent Children, e em sua data de lançamento um grande anúncio será feito.

Será que veremos Cloud e o restante do elenco com gráficos de Advent Children e Crisis Core no PS3? Se sim, não vejo a hora! Final Fantasy VII foi o único da série que consegui zerar, porque normalmente acabo perdendo o interesse pelos FF's por conta de algumas "enrolações" no enredo.

Como disse anteriormente no post sobre Chrono Trigger, não é todo Final Fantasy que me agrada: acabo não gostando do enredo, e também não gosto de jogos que você mais assiste do que interage com o mesmo - e antes que alguém fale sobre Metal Gear Solid 4: é Metal Gear oras! O que eu posso fazer? Pelo menos podemos pular as cutscenes...rs.

Enfim, conheci Final Fantasy 7 através do meu namorado, que disse que o jogo era muito bom e corri atrás de conseguir o mesmo, sendo que tinha começado a jogar FF8 e não conseguia continuar por conta de um dos CDs estar com problema. Então tive a surpresa: o jogo realmente é maravilhoso. Os personagens são cativantes, a estória interessante, algumas situações são muito divertidas - Cloud vestido de mulher, por exemplo - e também quando um dos personagens sofre, o jogador acaba sofrendo junto - admito que chorei muito. Estou pensando seriamente em desfrutar de FF7 mais uma vez.

Que Nomura nos dê uma maravilhosa notícia, por favor!

POLITICAL turmoil in Malaysia and Thailand are 'severe problems' which may hurt growth and investment in the markets, Singapore's Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew said on Wednesday.

Malaysia is 'trapped' in personal politics amid accusations and counter-accusations among politicians, Mr Lee told participants at the Nomura Asia Equity Forum, according to a Bloomberg report.

Mr Lee added that the tension has hurt the country's stock market.

And a second article on Lee's comments:

'If we don't reproduce ourselves to 2.1, we are in trouble,' said Mr Lee, referring to the natural replacement rate of 2.1, which Singapore's fertility rate of 1.29 falls short of.

'So we are going to revamp. We've studied what the Swedes have done, what the French have done.

'The Swedes have completely changed their system. Support paternity leave, women get their children into creches, into nursery schools, all paid by the state. Very heavy expenses but Sweden can afford it.

'We are looking at our budget, can we afford it? But we've got to go because these are proven ways.'

And CNA has yet one more section on trade and decoupling:

Mr Lee said: "I do not say we are decoupled; what I am saying is that we are less 'completely-coupled'. There is a big difference.

"When we were completely coupled, we were totally dependent on US demand. When that (demand slows), Singapore's IT exports will (also slow). But now, if the US slows down, it does not follow that China and India will slow down as well."

While US bourses may be in a bearish phase currently, Mr Lee believes it is in everyone's interest to prevent a sudden collapse of the US market, which will spread worldwide.

"I think in the real world of politics, never mind the theory, nobody wants a hard landing for America. If we can postpone the rate at which it is going to slow down, we may avoid a catastrophic collapse," said Mr Lee.

He also believes the key to riding out the economic crisis is good governance, integrity and stability in the political system.

Video of the last segment only available on CNA.

]]> http://psystark.wordpress.com/?p=11 Wed, 18 Jun 2008 18:54:29 +0000 PsyStark http://psystark.wordpress.com/2008/06/18/the-world-ends-with-you-ended-with-me/

ATTENZIONE: in questo post ci sono alcuni piccolissimi spoiler su degli aspetti secondari del gioco; per leggerli (consigliabile solo se avete finito il gioco almeno una volta) evidenziate le parti bianche del testo.

Ieri sera, con un ultimo "sforzo", ho messo la parola fine a The World Ends With You. Lo "sforzo" in questione (messo tra virgolette perchè non è stato effettivamente tale, nonostante le previsioni) è stato completare il Noise Report, il quale si è rivelato poi piuttosto semplice, FAQ alla mano, dal momento che l'ultimo noise mancante, indicato come raro, è comparso subito alla prima battaglia. Quindi, dopo 33 ore e 22 minuti di gioco, cala per me il sipario su questo piccolo capolavoro made in Jupiter e Square-Enix, software house che ultimamente mi sta regalando delle gran belle soddisfazioni (vedi Crystal Chronicles Ring of Fates, sempre su DS). Ho molto apprezzato la buona quantità di idee inserite nel titolo, dal sistema di battaglia alla (azzeccatissima) colonna sonora, passando per elementi come i mème (che vi permettono di imprimere dei pensieri nella mente di alcune persone) e i trends. Riguardo a questi ultimi, mi ha lasciato positivamente sorpreso il modo in cui le marche di vestiti e spille influenzino le diverse zone di Shibuya, insieme ai commessi dei vari negozi ed ai loro pensieri, pungenti e un po' offensivi se avrete il classico comportamento da chi osserva e non compra.

E' da notare come nella frase di apertura abbia preferito "ho messo la parola fine" a "ho finito": questo perchè effettivamente il gioco non è stato completato al 100%. Dal momento che preferisco dedicare il mio tempo a più giochi possibili, e visto il numero eccessivo di titoli arretrati da giocare (e gli onnipresenti impegni universitari), ho deciso infatti di considerare il completamento del Noise Report come mia ultima fatica. In realtà TWEWY richiede ancora molte ore di gioco per portare a termine tutti gli altri compiti (prendere tutte le pin a livello master, collezionare tutti gli oggetti e, sopratutto, massimizzare i punti ESP'R). Mi ritengo però soddisfatto da tutto quello che sono riuscito a sbloccare e a vedere, dai Report, che hanno contribuito a svelare alcuni interessanti retroscena sulla storia, all'assudo ma divertente Another Day, al finale esteso, alla bellissima canzone dei titoli di coda (che potrete trovare in versione youtube alla fine di questo post) e alle immagini di Mr. Hanekoma e Noise Rhyme nel mio schermo di salvataggio.

Lullaby for You - Jyongri

P.S. Ringrazio Gamefaqs che mi ha fatto scoprire il "cheat" per vedere le ore di gioco (premendo L e R nello schermo di salvataggio), ma se volete una mano per completare alcune collezioni o per trovare oggetti e spille varie date un occhio qua.

The car was build for Ken Nomura by Blitz and we bought it from him through Power Vehicles. We used the car as a promotional tool to promote drifting in Europe. I have had alot of fun with the car and when the shows were near where I live I would drive the car to and from the show. The car is definatly no trailer queen and was always maintained to the highest level by Garage D in the UK.

The car has a full URAS D1 Spec Version II bodykit that consists of a front bumper, side skirts, rear bumper, wide front fenders, rear over fenders and wide rear door caps. The car is lowered on some Blitz/Sachs SP7 coilovers with Eiback springs.

In the rear we can see the 3d carbon GT wing and the Blitz titanium exhaust. Rims are also made by Blitz and are the Technospeeds in 18". In the front the car has 245/40 and in the back 275/25.

The carbon hood is made by Top Secret

The entire engine was built by Blitz and therefor it features almost everything from their catalogue. The turbo used is the K5-700R that gives the car it's enormous HP figures. Mounted on the turbo is the Blitz SUS air cleaner, intercooler is also from Blitz and I haven't seen any intercoolers bigger than this one ;)

The car has more than 450hp and that's more than enough to get this car sideways,

Here we see the Keys Racing steering wheel, all the electrics in the car works from the powerwindows to the airco and radio. Blitz also provided the car with some electric goodies like a boost controller and R-vit controller.

For more info and inquiries about this car, please contact me via my email.

I think Nomuken will start with his ER34 for this season. Maybe later on in the season they will bring out the R35 and see how it does on the track.

here are some pictures of the car in it's latest reincarnation. The bodykit used is not to my taste, I liked the one he used before and that is the same on my car much better.

The keynote covered the entire spectrum of Nano Technology from present scene to future projections touching wide ranging industries and concerns. Here is a glimpse into some that caught my attention. I've categorized them into five broad areas to make my understanding easier:

Dr Sivathanu Pillai caught the attention of experts and novice alike by illustrating the charm of Nano-technology using peacock feather as an example of nature's won nano-particles at play making vivid colors. Then quickly got on to estimates for 2015 when Nano Tech will be ~ One Trillion Dollar business by conservative estimates and ~ $ 3T by libral estimates. Nano boom is set to coincide with the convergence of Information Technology, Bio-technology and Nano tech advances, with growth estimates at 50% CAGR beating the growth rate of IT and BT at ~35% and 25% respectively. Even if you take it with a pinch of salt, the numbers are just amazing.

If quantitative estimates did not sweep you, the qualitative potential will:
Nano materials and their disruptive potential

Right from the day to day dress material to aerospace materials will be re-looked and redone to incorporate nano-tech advances. A nano-particle coating on dress material will make them stain and dust resistant - changing the concept of washing them.

A shoe made of nano-material will enable a person to walk faster!?

Displays, all kinds of coating, chemicals in short all thing manufactured will be touched by nano revolution.

MEMS and nano fabrication has a lot of disruptive potential too.

Nano Technology and Health care
Natural bone surface is a nano-surface, Tissue engineering is more effective with nano-technology.

Integrated drug delivery can change the fundamentals of medical science: Cancer can be detected at very early stage and cured early. A glucose sensor and insulin delivery system could manage a diabetics insulin levels automatically.

Magnetic nano-particles along with cunning use of magnetic field can be used as localization tool that can bring down side effects significantly.

Nano technologies impact on social engineering, governance
Nano membranes has huge potential for drinking water purification. In the future, it will be possible to filter out harmful viruses like polio virus using a nano-filter. This has huge implications in terms of water security.

Certain disabilities like blindness and deafness can be overcome using bio-chip implants. There was even a video of Parkinson disease patient implanted with bio-chip while awake, and instantly gaining motor skills.

Nano technology can be used in pollution control. Even heavy metals could be filtered out!

Counter terrorism, bio-warfare weapon detection, carbon nano-fibers based radars can help stealth and counter stealth efforts. Similarly smart carbon dust could help survive a nuclear attack.
Nano technology and energy security
Energy security is one very promising area where nano-tech is on the verge of playing a crucial role. Firstly, the renewable energy solar cells can be made more efficient, and cheaper with nano-materials. Fuel cells is another very promising area.

At personal level power generating dress is possible with TiO2 coating on the dress. Similarly rechargeable batteries are set to see revolutionary high performance.

Lighting applications of nano-materials could save upto 10 percent of energy.

Nano technology Startrek Sci-Fi reality culture
The following stuck me as straight out of Sci-Fi:
Bio-chip implant, molecular robots that will co-operate to seek and destroy viruses within the body( a futuristic video clip was shown to this effect), cheaper faster space travel.
Life span increase with Artery cleaning and such exotic medical applications. Molecular level self replicating bionic 'bots.

Dr Sivathanu Pillai further outlined that more than 2 million knowledge workers are needed for nano-tech. He further lamented that while papers are getting published, conferences are held, there is no concerted effort towards global nano-technology leadership. On the industry side for instance, DRDO is forced to get into manufacturing certain materials, whereas the industry could do it and re-purpose the same things for consumer and medical applications. The industry is yet to wake up and invest in a big way. The academic is not fully ready yet. A mission mode approach is to be put in place with a full reputed mission director.

We better wake up to this nano-revolution lest we miss it just like we missed the industrial revolution.

Sundararajan - Director ARCI, Dr Naoki Ikezawa - Chief Industry Specialist Nomura Research Institute, V Aiyagiri Rao Adviser DST, Bill Dobson - Director Ontario Industrial Research Assistance Program, A Nagarajan IAS, Princiapl Sec Planning and Development TN Govt, Anjan Das, Head Technology, IPR, TDC's CII presented at the inaugural session. This post has already overshot its length to include them here.

Overall it was very educative and inspiring!