The European Central Bank lowered interest rates for the first time in more than a year as economic growth stalls and inflation recedes.
Policy makers reduced the minimum rate commercial banks are charged for loans by half a percentage point to 2.75 percent, the lowest in three years. The cut is the first since November 2001.
The US$7 trillion economy of the dozen nations sharing the euro, second only in size to the US, may shrink in the first quarter, the EU's executive branch predicts. That's curbing inflation, which has exceeded the ECB's 2 percent limit for more than two years.
"It's a step in the right direction, but people shouldn't believe it will solve all of our problems," said Heinrich von Pierer, chief executive officer of Siemens AG, whose orders fell this quarter. "It won't prevent Germany from being the laggard of Europe."
The reduction means cheaper credit costs for companies and consumers in a region that's home to 300 million people from Dublin to Helsinki. Retail sales plunged 2.1 percent in September and unemployment climbed to 8.4 percent in October, the highest in more than two years.
Business investment hasn't gained since the third quarter of 2000.
"I'm rather pessimistic about the economic outlook," Holger Haerter, chief financial officer of Porsche AG, said in an interview. "I don't see strong growth this year and next."
Government debt rose. The yield on the 3 1/4 percent German note due in 2004 declined 3 basis points to 3.02 percent. A basis point is 0.01 percentage point.
RETHINK? The defense ministry and Navy Command Headquarters could take over the indigenous submarine project and change its production timeline, a source said Admiral Huang Shu-kuang’s (黃曙光) resignation as head of the Indigenous Submarine Program and as a member of the National Security Council could affect the production of submarines, a source said yesterday. Huang in a statement last night said he had decided to resign due to national security concerns while expressing the hope that it would put a stop to political wrangling that only undermines the advancement of the nation’s defense capabilities. Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) yesterday said that the admiral, her older brother, felt it was time for him to step down and that he had completed what he
Taiwan has experienced its most significant improvement in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, data provided on Sunday by international higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) showed. Compared with last year’s edition of the rankings, which measure academic excellence and influence, Taiwanese universities made great improvements in the H Index metric, which evaluates research productivity and its impact, with a notable 30 percent increase overall, QS said. Taiwanese universities also made notable progress in the Citations per Paper metric, which measures the impact of research, achieving a 13 percent increase. Taiwanese universities gained 10 percent in Academic Reputation, but declined 18 percent
UNDER DISCUSSION: The combatant command would integrate fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups to defend waters closest to the coastline, a source said The military could establish a new combatant command as early as 2026, which would be tasked with defending Taiwan’s territorial waters 24 nautical miles (44.4km) from the nation’s coastline, a source familiar with the matter said yesterday. The new command, which would fall under the Naval Command Headquarters, would be led by a vice admiral and integrate existing fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups, along with the Naval Maritime Surveillance and Reconnaissance Command, said the source, who asked to remain anonymous. It could be launched by 2026, but details are being discussed and no final timetable has been announced, the source
CHINA REACTS: The patrol and reconnaissance plane ‘transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,’ the 7th Fleet said, while Taipei said it saw nothing unusual The US 7th Fleet yesterday said that a US Navy P-8A Poseidon flew through the Taiwan Strait, a day after US and Chinese defense heads held their first talks since November 2022 in an effort to reduce regional tensions. The patrol and reconnaissance plane “transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,” the 7th Fleet said in a news release. “By operating within the Taiwan Strait in accordance with international law, the United States upholds the navigational rights and freedoms of all nations.” In a separate statement, the Ministry of National Defense said that it monitored nearby waters and airspace as the aircraft