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22 November 2008 |
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iSteelAsia.com Limited
"The investment is a milestone for our aggressive global expansion plan and growth. It integrates a very solid and quality operator from the old economy with the leader in the new economy, the first of its kind in the steel business." said Mr. Andrew Yao, Chairman and CEO of iSteelAsia.com. "In addition, partial diversion of Stemcor's offline business to our vortal will greatly increase the transaction volume of iSteelAsia.com and further enhance our image." Commenting on the investment, Mr. Ralph Oppenheimer, Chairman of Stemcor, said, "the Internet is going to change the world, and Stemcor and iSteelAsia will be in the forefront of this change." Stemcor enjoys 50 years of history and solid business track record that illustrates its impeccable reputation as an independent world-class player operating in six major trading centers and 35 offices around the world. It principally engages in international steel trading and the provision of specialised services in related businesses such as marketing, procurement, logistics and trade finance. Trading volume amounted to over 4.0 million metric tonnes generating over US$1 billion of turnover in 1999 and is running at a substantially higher rate in 2000. Combined with 35 branches of Stemcor, iSteelAsia will have potential access to a total of 47 sales points over the world, extending its influence into Europe, Australia and Middle East which will help to reaffirm its Global Vision Asian Focus strategy. "This alliance is a typical example of a new and old economy combining their respective strengths to create a dynamic and global presence - the iSteelAsia vortal combines with Stemcor's physical network and full service capabilities to the steel industry. We believe this is the global trend particularly as more players seek to adopt the latest technology to increase their productivity and profits in an increasingly competitive environment." added Mr. Ralph Oppenheimer. The investment gives iSteelAsia a strategic interest in Stemcor, while at the same time Stemcor expects to commit to transact at least 750,000 tonnes of steel products through the iSteelAsia platform within a six month period with a further target of at least 750,000 tonnes thereafter for the following nine months. On the other hand, iSteelAsia will provide state-of-the-art e-Commerce technology and expertise to help transform Stemcor's current offline transaction models. "We anticipate a boom in our turnover and as a result, expect to greatly enhance our commission income. The greater usage of the vortal translates to declining fixed cost per transaction resulting in higher profitability." Mr. Yao further explained. "Moreover, iSteelAsia will be able to leverage off Stemcor's extensive network to penetrate different parts of the world, which in turn will attract more people to join us to build the critical mass needed for the vortal." According to the agreement, Stemcor also agrees not to engage in substantive business discussions with any third party that operates an online steel trading portal which competes with the iSteelAsia's vortal. Moreover, the agreement also provides iSteelAsia with options for further investment in Stemcor. "Expansion and acquisition is our growth strategy. We believe in building a world dominant vortal with sound strategic partners like Stemcor." added Mr. Yao. For the Second Quarter ended September 30th, 2000, iSteelAsia achieved 31% growth in completed transaction volume to a total of approximately US$146 million compared to the First Quarter ended June 30th, 2000. Moreover, the Group recorded an increase of 23% in membership to over 3,000. The investment will be completed no later than December 29th, 2000. Upon completion, iSteelAsia will nominate a member to the Stemcor Board to serve as non-executive director and the same for Stemcor. - End - Corporate Information To date, iSteelAsia.com has approximate 3,000 registered members who regularly use its online trading services and access into its online Reuters and Asian Information Resources Limited. For details, please visit : www.isteelasia.com Stemcor Holdings Limited Headquartered in London, Stemcor has 50 years of history and a solid business track record that illustrates its impeccable reputation as a world-class player. It operates six major trading centers and 35 offices around the world. In 1999, it traded a total of over 4.0 millions tonnes generating over US$1 billion of turnover. For the year 2000 to date, volumes are running at a substantially higher rate. Asian countries played a part in about 50% of Stemcor's turnover. Stemcor's global network of offices enables it to service its customer's needs efficiently. For details, please visit www.stemcor.com Issued by OCCASIONS Corporate & Financial Communications Limited for and on behalf of iSteelAsia.com Limited. For further information, please contact: iSteelAsia.com Limited Stemcor Holdings Limited OCCASIONS Corporate & Financial Communications Limited
This press release can be downloaded from the website of OCCASIONS: www.occasions.com.hk
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