PHARMACEUTICALS
Mylan to settle for US$465m
Mylan NV is to pay US$465 million to settle allegations that it overbilled the US Medicaid program for its life-saving EpiPen allergy injection. The US government said EpiPen is a branded drug, which means Mylan should have been paying it a far higher rebate under the government’s complex pricing rules. Mylan on Friday said the proposed settlement resolves all potential federal and state government claims. It also finds no wrongdoing on the part of the UK-based company.
UNITED STATES
Job growth misses forecast
The economy added a weaker-than-expected 156,000 jobs last month after strong job creation in the summer months, according to Department of Labor data released on Friday. The unemployment rate, closely watched by monetary policymakers, also nudged upward by 0.1 percentage points to 5 percent, with 7.9 million people counted as unemployed. The labor force participation rate also changed little, moving up 0.1 percentage points to 62.9 percent.
GERMANY
Growth to slow after spike
The economy is to grow faster than expected this year before slowing next year and in 2018, the government said on Friday, as pressure mounts for Europe’s top economy to invest more. GDP is to increase by 1.8 percent this year before slowing to 1.4 percent growth next year and 1.6 percent in 2018, Minister for Economic Affairs and Energy Sigmar Gabriel said.
BANKING
UK to sell stake in Lloyds
The British government is to restart selling down its £3.6 billion (US$4.48 billion) stake in Lloyds Banking Group PLC, the body set up to manage the process said on Friday, after it was delayed following the vote to leave the EU. UK Financial Investments Ltd, which manages the government’s stakes in the banks, said it has recommended scrapping plans to sell the remaining stake via a discounted public sell-off. The government owns about 6.5 billion ordinary shares in Lloyds, which represents about 9 percent of the bank’s shares.
INTERNET
Facebook releases Events
Facebook Inc on Friday released a mobile app for finding local happenings to enjoy with friends. The Events app tailored for iPhones hit Apple Inc’s App Store, with a version “coming soon” for smartphones powered by Google-backed Android software, Facebook product manager Aditya Koolwal said in an online post. The Events app lets people browse for happenings based on factors such as location or interest, and to explore potential outing options with the help of interactive maps.
BANKING
Workers to end bank strike
Brazilian bank workers have returned to their jobs, ending the longest nationwide strike of its kind in 12 years. The National Confederation of Bank Workers said that workers at private banks and state-run Banco do Brasil SA on Thursday night agreed to return to work after accepting the National Banking Federation’s proposal of an 8 percent wage increase and a bonus of about US$1,100. However, workers at state-run Caixa Economica Federal refused the offer and are to remain on strike.
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
Taiwan Transport and Storage Corp (TTS, 台灣通運倉儲) yesterday unveiled its first electric tractor unit — manufactured by Volvo Trucks — in a ceremony in Taipei, and said the unit would soon be used to transport cement produced by Taiwan Cement Corp (TCC, 台灣水泥). Both TTS and TCC belong to TCC International Holdings Ltd (台泥國際集團). With the electric tractor unit, the Taipei-based cement firm would become the first in Taiwan to use electric vehicles to transport construction materials. TTS chairman Koo Kung-yi (辜公怡), Volvo Trucks vice president of sales and marketing Johan Selven, TCC president Roman Cheng (程耀輝) and Taikoo Motors Group
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