London: Survey ranks costs of leasing office space

London and Tokyo remained the world’s the most expensive cities for leasing office space, but Paris, Moscow and Frankfurt have all moved up among the top 10, according to an annual survey released Friday.

The study of 45 countries by the Cushman & Wakefield and Healey & Baker real estate service providers said the costs and occupancy rates of office space have fallen in many cities since the second half of 2001.

The survey blamed the downturn in the telecom and high-tech sectors in many economies, the U.S. recession, and the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in America, which occurred after a prosperous year that had seen tremendous growth in the prices of office space around the world.

Using the rent, property taxes and service charges of office space in prime locations in countries around the world, the study listed the top 10 most expensive cities in 2002 as London; Tokyo; Paris; Moscow; New York; Hong Kong; Frankfurt, Germany; Geneva; Bombay, India; and Milan, Italy.

Tokyo: Economic outlook shows improvement

Japan’s government upgraded its assessment of the economy Thursday for the first time in nearly two years, saying in its latest monthly report that a recovery in overseas demand may encourage companies to boost production.

“The economy is still in a severe situation, but some signs of bottoming out can be seen,” the Cabinet Office said in its report on the economy for March.

It was the first time since June 2000 that the government upgraded its economic assessment. In its February report, the Cabinet Office said the economy “continues to deteriorate.”

India: Prime minister fears more religious violence

India’s prime minister appealed for peace Thursday amid sectarian violence that has killed more than 700 people and fears that a Hindu-Muslim dispute over an ancient holy site could lead to more deaths.

“I take this opportunity to appeal to all the political and nonpolitical organizations across the country to cooperate with government … to maintain peace and communal harmony,” Atal Bihari Vajpayee told Parliament.

On Wednesday, India’s Supreme Court ruled that Hindu nationalists could not hold prayers in the northern city of Ayodhya near the site of a razed 16th century mosque, destroyed by Hindu extremists in 1992.

Hindu fundamentalists planned to hold the ceremony today as part of a program to build a temple to their god, Rama, on the site of the mosque, setting up a possible showdown with security forces.

Russia: Floating reactor plan draws wave of criticism

Russia’s plan to build a floating nuclear power plant in the White Sea is dangerous and too risky, leading Russian environmentalists said Thursday, urging neighboring countries to object.

The Atomic Energy Ministry has said the first-of-a-kind plant would be set afloat in the White Sea and used to provide energy to the Arkhangelsk region, some 600 miles north of Moscow. Previous plans also called for a floating nuclear plant in the Chukotka region and off the Kamchatka peninsula in Russia’s Far East.

Russia has long been interested in using such plants to supply electricity to remote northern and eastern regions where severe weather makes construction on land difficult and expensive.

But in spite of frequently announced plans that the project had the green light, environmentalists said the floating plants have still not received backing from the highest levels of the Russian government or a proper license.