PHARMACEUTICALS
Novartis eyes share buyback
Novartis AG proposed buying back US$5 billion of shares and said it is considering separating its embattled eye-care division after projecting that sales this year at Europe’s second-biggest drugmaker would likely be largely unchanged from last year. Earnings, excluding some expenses, will probably remain flat or decline by a “low single digit” percent this year, the Switzerland-based company said yesterday in a statement. Alternatives under consideration for the Alcon unit might include a spin-off or an initial public offering; Novartis expects to make a decision by the end of the year.
AUTOMAKERS
Toyota to invest in US
Toyota said it is to invest US$600 million and create 400 jobs at one of its US plants — just weeks after US President Donald Trump criticized the Japanese auto giant for planning to open a factory in Mexico. Trump has pressured automakers, both US and foreign, into boosting production and hiring in the US, threatening them with punitive tariffs if they move factories and jobs overseas. The investment is aimed at boosting production of sports utility vehicles at a factory in Indiana, the home state of US Vice President Mike Pence.
BANKING
Santander profit surprises
Banco Santander SA said fourth-quarter profit rose to 1.6 billion euros (US$1.72 billion) on lower loan provisions and higher income from Brazil, beating analysts’ estimates. Net income at Spain’s biggest bank compared with 25 million euros in the same period of 2015, when profit was hit by charges, including provisions for the wrongful sale in the UK of payment protection insurance. Analysts had expected earnings of 1.48 billion euros, according to the average of five analyst estimates compiled by Bloomberg. Banco Santander chairman Ana Botin is counting on business in emerging markets and in consumer finance to help offset low interest rates in Europe, growing regulatory costs and weak demand for credit at home.
INVESTMENT
France issues ‘green’ bonds
France has issued its first “green” bonds with a record 7 billion euro sale, paving the way for the establishment of a genuine market in renewable energy bonds. Proceeds from Tuesday’s sale of the 22-year bonds are to be used to finance projects to address climate change. Credit Agricole-CIB, which was one of the banks handling placement of the bonds with institutional investors, said it was a “historic” event for the “green” bonds market because of the size and long maturity of the loan. The bonds’ coupon was set at 1.75 percent, an interest rate comparable to conventional borrowing on the same timeframe. The issue shows France is able to finance expenditure on “green” projects at the same price as traditional borrowing, French Minister of Finance Michel Sapin said.
RETAIL
WH smith upbeat on profit
British books, newspaper and stationery retailer WH Smith PLC said it expects full-year profit growth to be slightly ahead of expectations as it posted strong sales in its travel business over the Christmas period. WH Smith, which has more than 1,300 stores, mostly in the UK, said comparable sales were up 1 percent in the 21 weeks to Saturday last week, with total sales rising 2 percent.
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],”
TRANSFORMATION: Taiwan is now home to the largest Google hardware research and development center outside of the US, thanks to the nation’s economic policies President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday attended an event marking the opening of Google’s second hardware research and development (R&D) office in Taiwan, which was held at New Taipei City’s Banciao District (板橋). This signals Taiwan’s transformation into the world’s largest Google hardware research and development center outside of the US, validating the nation’s economic policy in the past eight years, she said. The “five plus two” innovative industries policy, “six core strategic industries” initiative and infrastructure projects have grown the national industry and established resilient supply chains that withstood the COVID-19 pandemic, Tsai said. Taiwan has improved investment conditions of the domestic economy
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