■TRADE
Seoul passes India pact
South Korea yesterday ratified a free trade deal with India that promises to slash tariffs on goods and services between two of Asia’s biggest economies. The agreement was passed in a vote by the National Assembly, two officials in the body’s secretariat said. An official vote tally was to be released later in the day, they said. The two countries signed the deal, known officially as a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, in August in Seoul.
■HOTELS
Hyatt IPO raises US$950m
Hyatt Hotels shares surged on Thursday, raising almost US$1 billion in an initial public offering (IPO) despite the tourism industry crisis, in Wall Street’s second largest flotation this year. The leading US hotel chain offered38 million shares at US$25 each for a total of US$950 million. The Chicago-based Hyatt Hotels, which is 85 percent owned by the wealthy Pritzker family, became the 18th company to launch an IPO on the New York Stock Exchange this year. Hyatt operates hotels in 45 countries.
■STEEL
POSCO building in Turkey
South Korean steelmaker POSCO said yesterday it had begun building a plant in Turkey to produce steel for automobiles. The plant, when completed by June, will have an annual capacity of 170,000 tonnes of steel for automakers that include Ford, Renault, Fiat, Hyundai Motor, Toyota and Honda, POSCO said in a statement. The company, the world’s fourth largest steelmaker by output, currently has 41 steel processing facilities in 12 countries.
■BANKING
Credit still tight: bank head
Bank of America Corp on Thursday said the credit environment would remain difficult into next year, as unemployment was likely to continue to rise. Brian Moynihan, head of the bank’s consumer and small business banking units, told investors that Bank of America was starting to see some stabilization in the credit card business, but challenges remained. In the third quarter, Charlotte, North Carolina-based Bank of America lost more than US$2.2 billion as loan losses kept rising, providing evidence that consumers are still struggling to pay their bills.
■FINANCE
Fannie Mae posts huge loss
US state-controlled mortgage lender Fannie Mae posted on Thursday another multibillion-dollar quarterly loss and said it needed an additional US$15 billion in taxpayer funds. Fannie Mae reported a net loss of US$18.9 billion in the third quarter, 35 percent smaller than a year ago but sharply higher than its US$14.8 billion loss in the second quarter. Combined losses to date stand at US$56.8 billion.
■TELECOMS
Droid hits markets
A Motorola Droid smartphone based on Google-backed software hit the US market yesterday, taking aim at mobile device powerhouses such as Apple, Nokia, and Research In Motion (RIM). Droid, which will work on the Verizon telecom network, joins growing ranks of smartphones based on an open-source operating system backed by Internet titan Google. Market tracking firm Gartner predicted that there would be at least 40 models of Android phones within a year, and that they would be the second place mobile platform by the end of 2012.
INSURRECTION: The NSB said it found evidence the CCP was seeking snipers in Taiwan to target members of the military and foreign organizations in the event of an invasion The number of Chinese spies prosecuted in Taiwan has grown threefold over a four-year period, the National Security Bureau (NSB) said in a report released yesterday. In 2021 and 2022, 16 and 10 spies were prosecuted respectively, but that number grew to 64 last year, it said, adding that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) was working with gangs in Taiwan to develop a network of armed spies. Spies in Taiwan have on behalf of the CCP used a variety of channels and methods to infiltrate all sectors of the country, and recruited Taiwanese to cooperate in developing organizations and obtaining sensitive information
BREAKTHROUGH: The US is making chips on par in yield and quality with Taiwan, despite people saying that it could not happen, the official said Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) has begun producing advanced 4-nanometer (nm) chips for US customers in Arizona, US Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo said, a milestone in the semiconductor efforts of the administration of US President Joe Biden. In November last year, the commerce department finalized a US$6.6 billion grant to TSMC’s US unit for semiconductor production in Phoenix, Arizona. “For the first time ever in our country’s history, we are making leading edge 4-nanometer chips on American soil, American workers — on par in yield and quality with Taiwan,” Raimondo said, adding that production had begun in recent
Seven hundred and sixty-four foreigners were arrested last year for acting as money mules for criminals, with many entering Taiwan on a tourist visa for all-expenses-paid trips, the Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB) said on Saturday. Although from Jan. 1 to Dec. 26 last year, 26,478 people were arrested for working as money mules, the bureau said it was particularly concerned about those entering the country as tourists or migrant workers who help criminals and scammers pick up or transfer illegally obtained money. In a report, officials divided the money mules into two groups, the first of which are foreigners, mainly from Malaysia
SILICON VALLEY HUB: The office would showcase Taiwan’s strengths in semiconductors and artificial intelligence, and help Taiwanese start-ups connect with global opportunities Taiwan has established an office in Palo Alto, one of the principal cities of Silicon Valley in California, aimed at helping Taiwanese technology start-ups gain global visibility, the National Development Council said yesterday. The “Startup Island Taiwan Silicon Valley hub” at No. 299 California Avenue is focused on “supporting start-ups and innovators by providing professional consulting, co-working spaces, and community platforms,” the council said in a post on its Web site. The office is the second overseas start-up hub established by the council, after a similar site was set up in Tokyo in September last year. Representatives from Taiwanese start-ups, local businesses and
RSS