IPC Corporation Ltd on Tuesday posted a 30.8 per cent increase in year-on-year net profit to S$4.77 million for the fiscal year ended Dec 31, 2012.

This, despite a 61.1 per cent tumble in turnover to S$17.07 million.

The property developer said that despite the sharp fall in sales, its gross profit slipped 20.5 per cent to S$7.75 million from S$9.752 million the previous year. This was primarily due to additional income arising from more business hotels which the firm acquired during the period under review.

Earnings per share were 0.66 cents, up from a restated 0.61 cents a year ago but down from the audited 0.69 cents.

TOKYO - The Bank of Japan on Tuesday doubled its inflation target to 2 per cent and adopted an open-ended commitment to buy assets, surprising markets that had expected another incremental increase in its 101 trillion yen (US$1.12 trillion) asset-buying and lending programme.

The BOJ also issued a joint statement with the government in which it set 2 per cent inflation as its new target, although two of the central bank's nine board members dissented against this decision.

As widely expected, the BOJ maintained its overnight call rate target at a range of zero to 0.1 per cent by a unanimous vote.

BOJ Governor Masaaki Shirakawa will hold an embargoed news conference with his comments expected to come out some time after 4.15pm (0715 GMT).

The BOJ set a 1 per cent inflation target in February last year, and expanded monetary stimulus five times in 2012 through an increase in its asset-buying and lending programme.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, however, has piled pressure on the central bank to aim for 2 per cent inflation as a medium-term target and pledge to ease policy aggressively to achieve it. -- REUTERS