ECONOMY
IMF says BOJ ‘very brave’
IMF managing director Christine Lagarde on Friday hailed the Bank of Japan’s (BOJ) “very brave” surprise move to step up its support for the nation’s recovery. Lagarde praised Japan where “very brave monetary policy has been displayed, with a very constant and decided drive focused on ... taking Japan out of the rut where it has been for ten years,” in comments at a central bankers conference in Paris. On Oct. 31, the BOJ said it would widen its asset-buying plan by as much as ¥20 trillion (US$174 billion), bringing it to an eye-popping ¥80 trillion annually as the outlook for growth and inflation worsened.
DEBT
Argentina pans judgement
Argentina on Friday told a New York judge that its court-forced bond default has spurred a raft of new lawsuits against the nation, threatening to further tie it up in litigation. In a letter to Judge Thomas Griesa, whose ruling blocking the nation from making a debt payment forced it into default in July, Buenos Aires complained that the result has been 25 new lawsuits from creditors. The “practical effect” of Greisa’s injunctions on the nation servicing its debt to its main creditors “has become clear since they went into effect this past June. They did not ‘end’ the litigation,” Argentina said.
OIL
OW files for bankruptcy
One of Denmark’s largest companies, ship fuel supplier OW Bunker A/S, on Friday filed for bankruptcy after saying it had discovered a US$125 million fraud at its subsidiary in Singapore. The company said two employees at Singapore-based Dynamic Oil Trading had been reported to the police following Wednesday’s announcement that the group had uncovered the fraud. The group, one of Denmark’s largest companies by revenue, said a review of its risk management contracts had revealed a mark to market loss of around US$150 million rather than the US$24.5 million announced on Oct. 23.
TELECOMS
AT&T plans to buy Iusacell
US telecom giant AT&T Inc on Friday announced plans to buy Mexican wireless operator Iusacell for US$2.5 billion and use it to create a mobile network spanning the two nations. The deal gives AT&T an additional 8.6 million subscribers in Mexico, and comes following reforms in the nation aimed at boosting competition in the wireless sector. AT&T said the deal is set to be completed when Mexican conglomerate Grupo Salinas closes its purchase of the 50 percent of Iusacell it does not already own.
FINANCE
Berkshire Q3 profit falls
Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway reported a 9 percent drop in third-quarter profit versus the same period a year ago, when the company had large investment gains. Berkshire on Friday said it earned US$4.62 billion, or US$2,811 per Class A share. That is down from US$5.05 billion, or US$3,074 per share, last year. Revenue grew 10 percent to US$51.2 billion. Buffett is chairman and chief executive officer of the Omaha, Nebraska-based conglomerate. Berkshire wrote down the value of its investment in British retailer Tesco by US$678 million. The Tesco writedown was part of an overall loss of US$107 million on Berkshire’s investments and derivatives.
purpose: Tesla’s CEO sought to meet senior Chinese officials to discuss the rollout of its ‘full self-driving’ software in China and approval to transfer data they had collected Tesla Inc CEO Elon Musk arrived in Beijing yesterday on an unannounced visit, where he is expected to meet senior officials to discuss the rollout of "full self-driving" (FSD) software and permission to transfer data overseas, according to a person with knowledge of the matter. Chinese state media reported that he met Premier Li Qiang (李強) in Beijing, during which Li told Musk that Tesla's development in China could be regarded as a successful example of US-China economic and trade cooperation. Musk confirmed his meeting with the premier yesterday with a post on social media platform X. "Honored to meet with Premier Li
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE: The chipmaker last month raised its capital spending by 28 percent for this year to NT$32 billion from a previous estimate of NT$25 billion Contract chipmaker Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp (力積電子) yesterday launched a new 12-inch fab, tapping into advanced chip-on-wafer-on-substrate (CoWoS) packaging technology to support rising demand for artificial intelligence (AI) devices. Powerchip is to offer interposers, one of three parts in CoWoS packaging technology, with shipments scheduled for the second half of this year, Powerchip chairman Frank Huang (黃崇仁) told reporters on the sidelines of a fab inauguration ceremony in the Tongluo Science Park (銅鑼科學園區) in Miaoli County yesterday. “We are working with customers to supply CoWoS-related business, utilizing part of this new fab’s capacity,” Huang said, adding that Powerchip intended to bridge
Dutch brewing company Heineken NV on Friday announced an investment of NT$13.5 billion (US$414.62 million) over the next five years in Taiwan. The first multinational brewing company to operate in Taiwan, Heineken made the statement at a ceremony held at its brewery in Pingtung County. It also outlined its efforts to make the brewery “net zero” by 2030. Heineken has been in the Taiwanese market for 20 years, Heineken Taiwan managing director Jeff Wu (吳建甫) said. With strong support from local consumers, the Dutch brewery decided to transition from sales to manufacturing in the country, Wu said. Heineken assumed majority ownership and management rights
Microsoft Corp yesterday said that it would create Thailand’s first data center region to boost cloud and artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure, promising AI training to more than 100,000 people to develop tech. Bangkok is a key economic player in Southeast Asia, but it has lagged behind Indonesia and Singapore when it comes to the tech industry. Thailand has an “incredible opportunity to build a digital-first, AI-powered future,” Microsoft chairman and chief executive officer Satya Nadella said at an event in Bangkok. Data center regions are physical locations that store computing infrastructure, allowing secure and reliable access to cloud platforms. The global embrace of AI