INTERNET
Facebook buying Snaptu
Facebook is buying an Israeli startup that specializes in software that connects any type of cellphone to the leading online social network and other popular Internet destinations. Facebook on Monday confirmed that it was acquiring Snaptu with an eye toward extending its reach to the hundreds of millions of mobile phones that don’t feature the computer-like Internet capabilities of smartphones. “As part of our goal to offer people around the world the opportunity to connect and share on mobile devices, we’re excited to confirm that we recently signed an agreement to acquire Snaptu,” Facebook said in an e-mail. “As part of Facebook, Snaptu’s team and technology will enable us to deliver an even better mobile experience on feature phones more quickly.”
STEEL
POSCO to boost heavy plates
South Korea’s top steelmaker, POSCO, said on Tuesday it has been asked to boost production of shipbuilding plates as a hedge against a possible shortage of key materials from quake-stricken Japan. The firm said domestic firms last week asked the world’s fourth-largest steelmaker to produce about 600,000 tonnes of shipbuilding plates and other steel products. Newspapers said South Korean shipbuilders sought an extra 200,000-300,000 tonnes of production of shipbuilding plates, or heavy thick plates. South Korean shipbuilders reportedly consume up to 600,000 tonnes of Japanese steel plates annually, or about 25 percent of their total use.
UNITED STATES
Existing home sales plunge
Sales of previously owned homes plunged last month and prices hit their lowest level in nearly nine years, indicating a housing market recovery was still a long way off. The National Association of Realtors said on Monday sales fell 9.6 percent month over month to an annual rate of 4.88 million units, snapping three straight months of gains. The percentage decline was the largest since July. The weak sales were the latest evidence of the malaise in the housing sector and confirmed it would remain outside the strengthening and broadening economic recovery. “The housing market is still very depressed and a major drag on the economy, especially household net worth,” said Chris Christopher, a senior economist at IHS Global Insight in Lexington, Massachusetts. Economists had expected a decline of only 4 percent to a 5.15 million unit pace. The actual drop was greater than even the most pessimistic forecast in a Reuters survey of 53 economists. Analysts said harsh winter weather in January could have curbed last month’s sales. Existing home sales are measured when contracts are closed and last month’s sales decline was telegraphed by a drop in January’s pending contracts.
AIRLINES
Qantas staff threaten strike
Thousands of Qantas staff yesterday threatened strike action unless the airline did more to limit the use of cheap contract workers and raise wages. Any walk-out would involve about 9,000 employees including pilots, airline refuelers, baggage and transport staff and engineers, the influential Transport Workers Union federal secretary Tony Sheldon said. Qantas staff want a 4 percent pay rise with additional superannuation payments, as well as the job security clauses. The strike threat comes with Qantas under pressure from rising oil prices and the impact of natural disasters in Japan, New Zealand and Australia. The airline said it was disappointed the union was threatening industrial action when talks had yet to be held.
Among the rows of vibrators, rubber torsos and leather harnesses at a Chinese sex toys exhibition in Shanghai this weekend, the beginnings of an artificial intelligence (AI)-driven shift in the industry quietly pulsed. China manufactures about 70 percent of the world’s sex toys, most of it the “hardware” on display at the fair — whether that be technicolor tentacled dildos or hyper-realistic personalized silicone dolls. Yet smart toys have been rising in popularity for some time. Many major European and US brands already offer tech-enhanced products that can enable long-distance love, monitor well-being and even bring people one step closer to
Malaysia’s leader yesterday announced plans to build a massive semiconductor design park, aiming to boost the Southeast Asian nation’s role in the global chip industry. A prominent player in the semiconductor industry for decades, Malaysia accounts for an estimated 13 percent of global back-end manufacturing, according to German tech giant Bosch. Now it wants to go beyond production and emerge as a chip design powerhouse too, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said. “I am pleased to announce the largest IC (integrated circuit) Design Park in Southeast Asia, that will house world-class anchor tenants and collaborate with global companies such as Arm [Holdings PLC],”
Sales in the retail, and food and beverage sectors last month continued to rise, increasing 0.7 percent and 13.6 percent respectively from a year earlier, setting record highs for the month of March, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said yesterday. Sales in the wholesale sector also grew last month by 4.6 annually, mainly due to the business opportunities for emerging applications related to artificial intelligence (AI) and high-performance computing technologies, the ministry said in a report. The ministry forecast that retail, and food and beverage sales this month would retain their growth momentum as the former would benefit from Tomb Sweeping Day
Thousands of parents in Singapore are furious after a Cordlife Group Ltd (康盛人生集團), a major operator of cord blood banks in Asia, irreparably damaged their children’s samples through improper handling, with some now pursuing legal action. The ongoing case, one of the worst to hit the largely untested industry, has renewed concerns over companies marketing themselves to anxious parents with mostly unproven assurances. This has implications across the region, given Cordlife’s operations in Hong Kong, Macau, Indonesia, the Philippines and India. The parents paid for years to have their infants’ cord blood stored, with the understanding that the stem cells they contained