■ Crude oilNigerians go on strike
Nigerian oil workers launched an indefinite strike on Saturday that could shut down crude exports in the world's sixth largest oil exporter. The strike over pay and working conditions comes as the threat of war in Iraq and a prolonged strike in Venezuela have pushed oil prices to a two-year high. Half of Nigerian exports go to the US. The action was launched by employees of the Department of Petroleum Resources, a key government unit overseeing operations of oil multinationals like ExxonMobil, Chevron-Texaco, Royal Dutch/Shell and TotalFinaElf. It is backed by the country's powerful Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria. Nigeria produces close to 2 million barrels of oil a day, more than 95 percent of which is pumped by joint ventures between the government and major oil companies.
■ Semiconductors
Infineon may move HQ
Infineon Technologies AG, Europe's No. 2 semiconductor maker, may move its headquarters outside of Germany to cut costs, reported the German magazine Spiegel, citing an internal study. The Munich-based company could save hundreds of millions of euros in taxes by moving to Switzerland once it returned to profit, the magazine reported. Some 300 top managers would move, Spiegel said in an article to be published today. Infineon has posted losses for the last seven quarters because of a glut of chips on the market. The company sells its chips for less than it costs to make them.
■ Airlines
Air China stops flights
China's national carrier, Air China, has suspended flights to Kuwait citing concerns over mounting tension in the Gulf region, airline employees and state media said yesterday. "We are no longer selling tickets for flights from Beijing to Kuwait," said one of the airline's ticket sales agents in Beijing. "I don't know when the flights will be resumed." Earlier this week Beijing said it was cutting its Baghdad embassy staff and providing contingency plans for the evacuation of its citizens in Iraq. The latest move to cancel the flight to Kuwait appears to show Beijing, while calling for a political solution to the Iraqi crisis, is preparing for a potential a war against Iraq. Flights CA945 and CA946 flew between Beijing, Karachi in Pakistan and Kuwait once a week, but now will only fly between Beijing and Karachi, the official Xinhua news agency said.
■ Banking
Sumitomo to sell shares
Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc, Japan's second-biggest bank, plans to sell as much as Japanese yen 300 billion (US$2.49 billion) of preferred shares to pay for loan write-offs, the Nihon Keizai newspaper said, without citing anyone. The bank will sell between ¥250 billion and Japanese yen 300 billion of shares by the end of March, targeting European and US hedge funds, as well as Japanese investors, the report said. Raising capital is key to efforts by Japan's seven biggest banks to cut 24 trillion yen of bad loans and avoid possible government seizure. Sumitomo Mitsui agreed last month to sell Japanese yen 150.3 billion of preferred shares to Goldman Sachs Group Inc, the third-biggest US securities firm. Sumitomo Mitsui's plan would bring the amount targeted to be raised by the nation's five biggest lenders, including Mizuho Holdings Inc and UFJ Holdings Inc, to more than Japanese yen 2 trillion.
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