AUTOMAKERS
Ford climbs ratings ladder
Ford Motor Co is within one notch of an investment-grade credit rating at two of the three major ratings agencies after Standard and Poor’s (S&P) on Friday boosted the automaker two notches up its ratings ladder. S&P said the outlook for Ford is “stable.” This follows an upgrade of one notch by Fitch Ratings on Thursday. Fitch also rates Ford at “BB+,” the highest level of “speculative” or “junk” status, one notch below the lowest “investment grade” rating. Moody’s Investors Service has Ford rated two notches below its lowest level of investment grade. Moody’s rates Ford at “Ba2” on its credit risk ladder. Ford was last at investment grade in 2005, the year before it borrowed heavily to finance its restructuring. S&P said of the new four-year labor contract: “We believe the contract will allow for continued profitability and cash generation in North America.”
RETAIL
Wal-Mart reworks benefits
US retail giant Wal-Mart Stores Inc said on Friday it would no longer provide health insurance to new part-time US employees working less than 24 hours a week and charge more for workers who smoke. Wal-Mart, which has 1.4 million employees in the US, said it would also increase coverage costs for all employees, as health costs rise. The changes, which will affect Wal-Mart and Sam’s Club associates, are due to take effect in January. “This lowering of working standards will have repercussions throughout the retail industry — particularly for part-time workers,” said Joseph Hansen, president of the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union.
TECHNOLOGY
Wii, 3DS to stream Hulu
Nintendo Co said on Friday that online video service Hulu Plus would stream movies and television shows to Wii and 3DS video game systems by the end of the year. The Japanese video game giant also planned to release next month a software update that would let people record 3D video using the latest version of its handheld gaming device. Hulu Plus will be available with a separate subscription costing US$7.99 per month. Subscribers will be able to access Hulu’s extensive library of television episodes and films. The company hoped to heighten the appeal of its offerings during the precious year-end holiday shopping season.
INDUSTRY
GE profits rise 18 percent
General Electric Co (GE) said Friday that a surge in its lending business lifted its profit 18 percent in the third quarter, but its stock price fell on concerns about weak contributions from its manufacturing businesses. GE is a barometer of the economy because it reaches so many industries. It builds everything from jet engines to refrigerators, and its GE Capital lending arm is involved in a variety of businesses including credit cards and real estate. The company’s industrial orders grew 16 percent in the quarter and it has a record backlog of them. However, many of those orders came more than a year ago, and the cost of raw materials and other expenses have risen since. That could erode profits. The industrial and financial giant reported net income of US$2.34 billion, or US$0.22 per share, for the three-month period ended Sept. 30. That compared with US$1.98 billion, or US$0.18 per share, a year earlier. Revenue was flat at US$35.4 billion. The company’s overall profit has increased for four straight quarters as falling interest rates sparked a rebound at its GE Capital lending business.
Stephen Garrett, a 27-year-old graduate student, always thought he would study in China, but first the country’s restrictive COVID-19 policies made it nearly impossible and now he has other concerns. The cost is one deterrent, but Garrett is more worried about restrictions on academic freedom and the personal risk of being stranded in China. He is not alone. Only about 700 American students are studying at Chinese universities, down from a peak of nearly 25,000 a decade ago, while there are nearly 300,000 Chinese students at US schools. Some young Americans are discouraged from investing their time in China by what they see
MAJOR DROP: CEO Tim Cook, who is visiting Hanoi, pledged the firm was committed to Vietnam after its smartphone shipments declined 9.6% annually in the first quarter Apple Inc yesterday said it would increase spending on suppliers in Vietnam, a key production hub, as CEO Tim Cook arrived in the country for a two-day visit. The iPhone maker announced the news in a statement on its Web site, but gave no details of how much it would spend or where the money would go. Cook is expected to meet programmers, content creators and students during his visit, online newspaper VnExpress reported. The visit comes as US President Joe Biden’s administration seeks to ramp up Vietnam’s role in the global tech supply chain to reduce the US’ dependence on China. Images on
New apartments in Taiwan’s major cities are getting smaller, while old apartments are increasingly occupied by older people, many of whom live alone, government data showed. The phenomenon has to do with sharpening unaffordable property prices and an aging population, property brokers said. Apartments with one bedroom that are two years old or older have gained a noticeable presence in the nation’s six special municipalities as well as Hsinchu county and city in the past five years, Evertrust Rehouse Co (永慶房產集團) found, citing data from the government’s real-price transaction platform. In Taipei, apartments with one bedroom accounted for 19 percent of deals last
US CONSCULTANT: The US Department of Commerce’s Ursula Burns is a rarely seen US government consultant to be put forward to sit on the board, nominated as an independent director Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, yesterday nominated 10 candidates for its new board of directors, including Ursula Burns from the US Department of Commerce. It is rare that TSMC has nominated a US government consultant to sit on its board. Burns was nominated as one of seven independent directors. She is vice chair of the department’s Advisory Council on Supply Chain Competitiveness. Burns is to stand for election at TSMC’s annual shareholders’ meeting on June 4 along with the rest of the candidates. TSMC chairman Mark Liu (劉德音) was not on the list after in December last