■Crude oil
Venezuela restarts exports
Venezuela has restarted its oil exports, shipping out two million barrels, but is importing gasoline because refineries remain affected by a general strike, President Hugo Chavez said Sunday. "In the past three days four vessels left with a total of 2 million barrels of petroleum," Chavez said in his "Hello President" radio program. The fifth largest oil exporter, Venezuela ususually ships out most of its 2.5 million barrel a day production, but a 14-day-old strike had all but halted its exports. Chavez said that while oil exports were restarting, several refineries were still affected, making it necessary for state oil company Petroleos de Venezuela (PDVSA) to import gasoline.
■ Thai economy
Q3 beats expectations
Thailand's economy grew at the fastest pace in Southeast Asia in the third quarter as consumers borrowed to spend more and exports surged. Gross domestic product grew 1 percent from the second quarter, seasonally adjusted, the government said. That was faster than the 0.6 percent median growth forecast in a Bloomberg News survey of seven economists. The economy expanded 5.8 percent from the year-earlier quarter, compared to 5.6 percent in Malaysia and just under 4 percent in Singapore, Philippines and Indonesia.
■ Labor
South Koreans dislike US
South Korean labor and business groups clashed Monday over how to handle widespread anti-Americanism prompted by the killing of two schoolgirls by a US military vehicle. Five major economic organizations led by the Federation of Korean Industries, representing the country's powerful business groups, issued a joint statement urging South Koreans to curb escalating anti-American sentiment. "The [South] Korean business community is concerned this unfortunate incident is now leading to disproportionate and unjustified anti-US sentiment among our populace," they said.
■ Banking
Japanese wrestle debts
The Japanese government's plan to halve banks' massive bad debts by March 2005 is "impossible," the head of the nation's biggest business lobby said in a report Monday. "The government said it is going to dispose of all of the problem companies or halve the amount of non-performing loans by the end of March 2005, but it is impossible," Hiroshi Okuda, head of the Japan Business Federation, said in an interview with the Shukan Diamond economic weekly. In an effort to reform the troubled economy, Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi has set a deadline for disposal of half of bad loans held by the nation's ailing banks by the year to March 2005.
■ Auto industry
Sales in China skyrocket
Annual auto sales in China have topped the 1 million mark, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers said yesterday. China, the world's fastest growing vehicle market, registered a 55.4 percent increase in sales to 1.02 million cars in the first 11 months of this year, an association official said. The surge in car ownership comes as an increasingly well heeled urban population in cities like Shanghai find themselves able to splash out on a new model. Although sales will not keep pace with this year, growth is still expected to be strong.
Agencies
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
SHOT IN THE ARM: The new system can be integrated with Avenger and Stinger missiles to bolster regional air defense capabilities, a defense ministry report said Domestically developed Land Sword II (陸射劍二) missiles were successfully launched and hit target drones during a live-fire exercise at the Jiupeng Military Base in Pingtung County yesterday. The missiles, developed by the Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology (CSIST), were originally scheduled to launch on Tuesday last week, after the Tomb Sweeping Day holiday long weekend, but were postponed to yesterday due to weather conditions. Local residents and military enthusiasts gathered outside the base to watch the missile tests, with the first one launching at 9:10am. The Land Sword II system, which is derived from the Sky Sword II (天劍二) series, was turned