■Labor
US jobless rate climbs
US unemployment may have risen to 6.1 percent last month, the highest in almost nine years, as the economy lost jobs for a fourth straight month, economists said in advance of today's Labor Department report in Washington. Companies may have eliminated 30,000 jobs last month, based on the median of 68 forecasts in a Bloomberg News survey of economists. That would bring the number of positions lost since February to 555,000. A 6.1 percent unemployment rate would be up from 6 percent in April and the highest since July 1994. The report may support Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan's comment Tuesday that while the economy is poised to accelerate in the second half, the pickup "has not yet begun." Claims for jobless benefits rose last week to the highest since the end of April, the government said yesterday.
■ Telecom
Lucent to invest in China
US-based telecom equipment provider Lucent Techno-logies yesterday said it will invest US$50 million in China to develop a research facility dedicated to third-generation mobile technologies. The decision to increase investment in China is due to the success of the Chinese research and development division, said Mary Chan, president of global wireless research and development for Lucent Mobility Solutions Group. The facility will focus on Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) and Universal Mobile Telecom-munications System (UMTS) technologies, she said. Lucent has about 3,000 employees in China at centers in Beijing and in the eastern cities of Shanghai and Qingdao. A location for the new research base has yet to be decided.
■ Currencies
UK to decide on euro
British Prime Minister Tony Blair and his team of cabinet ministers met at Downing Street on Thursday to finally thrash out the monumental decision of whether to drop the pound in favor of the euro. Ministers gathered for almost three hours during the afternoon to discuss the results of the Treasury's five self-imposed economic tests for adopting the single European currency. However, their verdict on whether to recommend membership to British people, who would then vote on the issue in a referendum, will only be announced by Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown in parliament on Monday. Brown is widely expected to say that Britain is not ready to join for now.
■ Automobiles
Ford changes logo to `Ford'
Ford Motor Co, in a nod to the past on its centennial, unveiled a modernized version of its signature blue oval logo on the face of its world headquarters Thursday. The change comes three years after the company removed two blue oval "Ford" logos, each weighing six tons and measuring 17m by 6m, from its headquarters and replaced them with a "Ford Motor Company" script logo. "Frankly, it's back where God intended it to be," Bill Ford Jr., the automaker's chairman and chief executive, said at the unveiling. "It never felt right to me to have the oval missing."The new logo is much the same as the old but features crisper lines and enhanced shadowing around the word "Ford" to make it bolder. The new design will be used in advertising and on printed material such as annual reports and business cards. Ford, which marks its 100th year in business June 16, will not change the oval it uses to brand its cars and trucks.
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