■ 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.
QUIET START: Nearly a week after applications opened, agencies did not announce or promote the program, nor did they explain how it differed from other visitor visas Taiwan has launched a six-month “digital nomad visitor visa” program for foreign nationals from its list of visa-exempt countries who meet financial eligibility criteria and provide proof of work contracts. To apply, foreign nationals must either provide proof that they have obtained a digital nomad visa issued by another country or demonstrate earnings based on age brackets, the Bureau of Consular Affairs said. Applicants aged 20 to 29 must show they earned an annual salary of at least US$20,000 or its equivalent in one of the past two years, while those aged 30 or older must provide proof they earned US$40,000 in
SERIOUS ALLEGATIONS: The suspects formed spy networks and paramilitary groups to kill government officials during a possible Chinese invasion, prosecutors said Prosecutors have indicted seven retired military officers, members of the Rehabilitation Alliance Party, for allegedly obtaining funds from China, and forming paramilitary groups and assassination squads in Taiwan to collaborate with Chinese troops in a possible war. The suspects contravened the National Security Act (國家安全法) by taking photos and drawing maps of key radar stations, missile installations and the American Institute in Taiwan’s headquarters in Taipei, prosecutors said. They allegedly prepared to collaborate with China during a possible invasion of Taiwan, prosecutors said. Retired military officer Chu Hung-i (屈宏義), 62, a Republic of China Army Academy graduate, went to China
AIR DEFENSE: The Norwegian missile system has proved highly effective in Ukraine in its war against Russia, and the US has recommended it for Taiwan, an expert said The Norwegian Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems (NASAMS) Taiwan ordered from the US would be installed in strategically important positions in Taipei and New Taipei City to guard the region, the Ministry of National Defense said in statement yesterday. The air defense system would be deployed in Taipei’s Songshan District (松山) and New Taipei City’s Tamsui District (淡水), the ministry said, adding that the systems could be delivered as soon as the end of this year. The US Defense Security Cooperation Agency has previously said that three NASAMS would be sold to Taiwan. The weapons are part of the 17th US arms sale to
UNITY MESSAGE: Rather than focusing on what Trump said on the campaign trail about Taiwan, Taipei should be willing to engage with the US, Pompeo said Taiwan plays a key role in Washington’s model of deterrence against China, former US secretary of state Mike Pompeo said in a speech in Taipei yesterday. During US president-elect Donald Trump’s first term, “we had developed what we believe was a pretty effective model of deterrence against adversaries who wanted to undermine the set of rules and values that the people of Taiwan and the people of the US hold dear,” Pompeo said at a forum organized by the Formosa Republican Association. “Succeeding in continuing to build this model will not solely rest at the feet of president Trump and his team,
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