■ ECONOMY
Hu welcomes US plan
Chinese President Hu Jintao (胡錦濤) told his US counterpart George W. Bush yesterday that China welcomed Washington’s efforts to stabilize US financial markets and hoped they succeed, state media reported. Hu, who received a phone call from Bush, also said a US economic recovery would be good for China, state TV said. “We have noticed the important measures adopted by the United States to stabilize its financial markets and we hope these measures will have an impact soon and lead to an improvement and recovery of the US economy,” Hu was quoted as telling Bush. “This is in line with US interests, and it’s also in line with Chinese interests,” Hu said.
■ EQUITIES
S&P 500 could rally: broker
The S&P 500 could rally to between 1,300 and 1,350 following the government bailout, Credit Suisse Group AG strategists wrote in a research note on Friday. Other positive factors for global equities include the fall in the oil price and China’s monetary easing, the team wrote. “Structural problems remain. We believe the S&P 500 is capped at 1,350,” Credit Suisse said. “Hence, the market is ‘range bound’ as opposed to being in a ‘bull’ market.”
■ BANKING
DB gets stake in Postbank
The biggest German bank, Deutsche Bank (DB), said yesterday it will issue up to 40 million new shares to pay for its purchase of a stake in Postbank. Deutsche Bank said it would raise around 2 billion euros (US$2.9 billion) from the transaction, allowing it to maintain a “strong equity capitalization” even after paying 2.8 billion euros for 29.75 percent of Postbank. Details on the operation’s timing were not provided, but Deutsche Bank said it would sell the shares quickly and directly to institutional investors. “There will be no public offering,” a statement said. Deutsche Bank has an option to purchase another 18 percent of the shares in Postbank, but if the stake surpasses 30 percent, Deutsche Bank will be obliged to make an offer for all remaining shares listed on Germany’s DAX 30 index.
■ BEVERAGES
PepsiCo invests in India
US soft drinks giant PepsiCo Sunday announced plans to invest US$500 million in India over the next three years, a report said on Sunday. The fresh injection of funds is expected to generate tens of thousands of new jobs in India, the Press Trust of India news agency reported, quoting chief executive Indra Nooyi. “As a tangible sign of our continued confidence in India, I am delighted to announce that we will be investing US$500 million in the next three years with the goal of tripling our business here,” Nooyi was quoted as telling reporters in New Delhi. The investment would be spent on increasing manufacturing capacity and market infrastructure as well as research, product development and agriculture, the report said.
■ ENERGY
SK Energy eyes batteries
SK Energy Co, South Korea’s biggest oil refiner, is in talks with automakers to jointly develop batteries that will power gasoline-electric hybrid cars. “We’re tapping various opportunities with a number of automakers, but nothing has been decided,” Kim Woo-kyung, a spokeswoman at the Seoul-based company, said in response to a report by the Korea Economic Daily. SK Energy and Daimler AG may jointly develop lithium-ion polymer batteries for hybrid cars, the Korean-language newspaper reported today, citing company president Koo Ja-young.
A Chinese freighter that allegedly snapped an undersea cable linking Taiwan proper to Penghu County is suspected of being owned by a Chinese state-run company and had docked at the ports of Kaohsiung and Keelung for three months using different names. On Tuesday last week, the Togo-flagged freighter Hong Tai 58 (宏泰58號) and its Chinese crew were detained after the Taipei-Penghu No. 3 submarine cable was severed. When the Coast Guard Administration (CGA) first attempted to detain the ship on grounds of possible sabotage, its crew said the ship’s name was Hong Tai 168, although the Automatic Identification System (AIS)
An Akizuki-class destroyer last month made the first-ever solo transit of a Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force ship through the Taiwan Strait, Japanese government officials with knowledge of the matter said yesterday. The JS Akizuki carried out a north-to-south transit through the Taiwan Strait on Feb. 5 as it sailed to the South China Sea to participate in a joint exercise with US, Australian and Philippine forces that day. The Japanese destroyer JS Sazanami in September last year made the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force’s first-ever transit through the Taiwan Strait, but it was joined by vessels from New Zealand and Australia,
SECURITY: The purpose for giving Hong Kong and Macau residents more lenient paths to permanent residency no longer applies due to China’s policies, a source said The government is considering removing an optional path to citizenship for residents from Hong Kong and Macau, and lengthening the terms for permanent residence eligibility, a source said yesterday. In a bid to prevent the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) from infiltrating Taiwan through immigration from Hong Kong and Macau, the government could amend immigration laws for residents of the territories who currently receive preferential treatment, an official familiar with the matter speaking on condition of anonymity said. The move was part of “national security-related legislative reform,” they added. Under the amendments, arrivals from the Chinese territories would have to reside in Taiwan for
CRITICAL MOVE: TSMC’s plan to invest another US$100 billion in US chipmaking would boost Taiwan’s competitive edge in the global market, the premier said The government would ensure that the most advanced chipmaking technology stays in Taiwan while assisting Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) in investing overseas, the Presidential Office said yesterday. The statement follows a joint announcement by the world’s largest contract chipmaker and US President Donald Trump on Monday that TSMC would invest an additional US$100 billion over the next four years to expand its semiconductor manufacturing operations in the US, which would include construction of three new chip fabrication plants, two advanced packaging facilities, and a research and development center. The government knew about the deal in advance and would assist, Presidential
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