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Plans to deregulate airline ticket sales in Europe risk turning into a controversial cacophony as long as Air France, Lufthansa and Iberia keep their stakes in Amadeus, the dominant European [...]

TAIPEI -- Taiwan's government is set to delay deregulation of the island's telecoms industry for at least a year rather than risk undermining the planned sale of a further stake [...]

Taiwan's government may finally be showing its determination to further privatise Chunghwa Telecom, the island's former telecommunications monopoly. But what is expected to become the island's largest secondary share sale [...]

MOSCOW -- Gazprom, the Russian state-controlled gas monopoly, called on the Russian government yesterday to deregulate domestic gas prices for industrial users without breaking up its monopoly. The proposal is [...]

A shadow has been cast over the economic liberalization programme of Philippine president Fidel Ramos with the Nov 5 1997 ruling by the country's Supreme Court that a law deregulating the oil industry is unconstitutional. The court has scrapped the law, saying that it encouraged monopolistic power and hindered fair competition. Under the legislation, state subsidies were abolished and market-determined pricing introduced. It also opened the way for new firms to enter the market. It is thought that scrapping the law could threaten new investments of some $400 million in 1997-99.

The Philippines began a privatization program in 1987, generating $4.5 billion to 1994 including a 60% stake of Petron Corp, with 40% of this sold to Saudi Arabian Oil Company (Aramco). Funds from privatization are being used to reduce the budget deficit, and the implementation of value added tax is scheduled for Oct 1994, which will further reduce the deficit. Aramco is helping to develop Petron as an exporter, and the local petroleum industry is also undergoing deregulation.