LAW
Dewey warns of layoffs
The US law firm Dewey & LeBoeuf notified US attorneys and staff on Friday that they could face mass layoffs, in the starkest sign yet that Dewey could be on the verge of collapse. “Although we continue to pursue various avenues, it is possible that adverse developments could ultimately result in the closure of the firm, which would result in the termination of your employment,” the firm said in a letter to employees that was obtained by reporters. Dewey & LeBoeuf, once one of the biggest law firms in the US, has been struggling this year with growing debt, declining revenue and partner defections, which continued unabated on Friday. Since January, the firm has lost at least 120 of its 300 partners amid a mounting debt crisis. It has tried and failed to find a merger partner.
INTERNET
Yahoo chief’s ouster sought
A hedge fund with a large stake in Yahoo on Friday demanded the immediate ouster of chief executive Scott Thompson, saying he had lost credibility by misrepresenting his educational background. The move by the investment fund Third Point stepped up an ugly battle over control of the struggling Internet pioneer. Third Point, which failed to win an accord for a slate of Yahoo board members, said inaccuracies on the bios of Thompson and independent director Patti Hart should be cause for their removal. Yahoo acknowledged on Thursday an “inadvertent error” in the CEO’s online bio, which wrongly indicated that he had a degree in computer science. It said Hart, who had claimed a bachelor’s degree in marketing and economics from Illinois State University, actually had a business administration degree with a specialty in marketing.
CHIPMAKING
Micron likely to buy Elpida
US-based semiconductor maker Micron Technology is likely to buy ailing Japanese rival Elpida Memory for ¥200 billion (US$2.5 billion), the Yomiuri Shimbun said yesterday. Micron, the world’s fourth-largest chipmaker, made the “most favorable offers” in the bidding on Friday, and Elpida “highly praised” them, the Yomiuri reported, quoting unnamed sources. South Korea’s SK Hynix, the world’s second-largest microchip maker, dropped its bid, while offers made by a group of US and Chinese investment funds appeared less attractive for Elpida, Yomiuri said. Elpida’s administrators will provide Micron with the right to negotiate with Elpida as early tomorrow so that the two sides can discuss details before finalizing the deal, it said.
ENERGY
India wants to fine Reliance
India’s government has asked energy giant Reliance Industries to pay a US$1.25 billion penalty for a fall in gas production from its main oil fields, a company executive said on Friday. The government and investors have been concerned for months over Reliance’s declining gas output from its main D6 fields in the Krishna-Godavari basin off the coast of eastern India. The oil ministry’s notice to Reliance says it “failed to fulfill its obligations ... and willfully caused breaches, which led to immense loss and prejudice to the government and people of India,” Indian media reported. The reports said Reliance would not be permitted to recover the cost of its investments — US$457 million for the 2010 to last year period and US$778 million for last year and this year — from the sale of gas.
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