■MILITARY
Taiwan inks Lockheed deal
Lockheed Martin Corp received a US$665.6 million order from the Taiwanese government to upgrade 12 mothballed US Navy surveillance airplanes with new wings and make other improvements. The contract under the Pentagon’s Foreign Military Sales program is expected to be completed by August 2015, the US Department of Defense said on its Web site on Friday. Lockheed will refurbish the 12 P-3C maritime spy planes with new avionics and wings to extend the aircrafts’ life, company spokeswoman Tierney Helmers said in an interview. The Pentagon first notified US Congress about Taiwan’s request for the planes in September 2007.
■MARKETS
Delta may list in Taiwan
Delta Networks Inc (達創科技) may list on the Taiwan Stock Exchange after completing its delisting from Hong Kong by the end of the second quarter, the Chinese-language Economic Daily News reported yesterday, citing Bruce Cheng (鄭崇華), chairman of parent Delta Electronics Inc (台達電子). Delta Networks, a maker of communications equipment for customers including Alcatel Lucent and Nortel Networks, has offered to pay HK$1.83 a share for the 470.83 million shares, or 39.8 percent stake, it doesn’t own in order to make the firm private and then delist from the stock exchange, the company said in a filing on Thursday.
■MEDICAL
Novartis, NTUH sign deal
Novartis Taiwan Co signed a cooperation agreement with National Taiwan University Hospital on Friday on the establishment of a clinical research and development (R&D) center. Over the past few years, the Switzerland-based pharmaceutical group has commissioned the hospital to undertake 22 clinical experiments. The satisfactory results of those projects have prompted the company to decide to further strengthen cooperation with the hospital by setting up a joint clinical R&D center, said Alex Chang (張振武), country president of Novartis Taiwan. Under the new project, Novartis will introduce new clinical trials of drugs in Taiwan and explore the feasibility of developing new drugs for the treatment of cancers commonly diagnosed in Asia.
■ELECTRONICS
Creative cuts 300 jobs
Struggling Singaporean digital entertainment products maker Creative Technology is to cut 300 jobs globally, mostly in Europe and the US, the company said. It said in a statement late on Friday that there would be a restructuring charge of US$10 million for severance payments and headcount cost reductions in the current third quarter ending this month. The Singapore-listed firm has struggled to make inroads against Apple’s iconic iPod in the MP3 or digital music player market despite pumping in massive investments.
■REAL ESTATE
Home buyers sue Trump
Donald Trump is being sued by buyers who lost millions of dollars in deposits on a failed hotel-condo on Mexico’s Baja California shores. Attorney Bart Ring said on Friday that the 69 buyers he represents purchased 71 units in Trump Ocean Resort Baja. They paid deposits totalling between US$18 million and US$20 million. Buyers were told last month that the project was being scrapped and that their deposits would not be returned. The hotel was to be built in Tijuana, just across the border from California. The lawsuit accuses Trump of fraud, negligence and breach of fiduciary duty.
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