■FINANCE
UK mulls Lloyds stake
The UK is poised to increase its stake in Lloyds Banking Group (LBG) as part of a deal that would also see the group agree to the government insuring its risky assets, the BBC reported on Thursday. It said the two sides were on the verge of a deal that would see the government increase its stake in LBG — created earlier this year from the merger of rivals HBOS and Lloyds TSB — from 43 percent to up to 60 percent. This would be achieved by converting the expensive shares already held by the taxpayer to ordinary shares that carry voting rights.
■INDIA
Rupee seeks symbol
India announced yesterday a contest to design a global symbol for the rupee so that the currency can join the likes of the US dollar and the yen, which already have their own identifiable symbols. The new symbol will be the “identity of the Indian currency,” a finance ministry statement said. “Major world currencies like the US dollar, pound, yen and euro have an identification symbol. The government of India is also proposing to have a symbol for the rupee,” finance ministry official B.S. Rawat said. “The symbol for the Indian rupee is to be selected through a public competition” that closes on April 15, Rawat said.
■JAPAN
Forex reserves drop
Japan’s foreign exchange reserves dropped US$1.6 billion last month after US Treasury bond prices and the appraisal value of the nation’s euro-dominated assets fell, the Finance Ministry said yesterday. The nation’s foreign reserves fell for the second month in a row but remained barely above the US$1 trillion level. As of the end of last month, Japan held US$892.34 billion in foreign securities, while foreign currency deposits came to US$87.81 billion.
■INTERNET
Amazon launches trade-ins
Amazon launched an online videogame trade-in store on Thursday, granting credit at the online retail giant to customers who send in used games. “Amazon Video Games Trade-In is a new service that enables you to trade in your games for an Amazon.com Gift Card,” the Seattle-based company said in a statement on the company blog. Customers use a prepaid shipping label to send a used videogame to Amazon and receive credit in return they can use to purchase items on Amazon.com.
■GAMBLING
Magna files for bankruptcy
Magna Entertainment Corp, the biggest North American race track operator, filed Thursday for bankruptcy protection in the US and Canada to cope with heavy debt and a weak economy. The Ontario-based MEC, which operates the Pimlico Park track for the Preakness Triple Crown event, said it filed for reorganization under Chapter 11 of the US Bankruptcy Code in a court in Delaware. The company said it will seek recognition of the Chapter 11 proceedings in Canada.
■TELECOMS
Unicom vies for iPhone
China Unicom (Hong Kong) Ltd (中國聯通), the country’s second-biggest mobile-phone company, is in talks with Apple Inc to offer the iPhone handset in the world’s biggest phone market by users, Chang Xiaobing (常小兵), chairman of the Chinese phone carrier, said. Chang, speaking to reporters in Beijing yesterday, didn’t give details of the talks, citing confidentiality agreements. Unicom faces competition from China Mobile Ltd (中國移動), the world’s largest wireless carrier by users, to offer the iPhone in China.
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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