■Marketing
Thailand to ban liquor ads
Thailand may ban liquor and energy drink commercials on television for most of the day to reduce road accidents, Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra said. The cabinet today will consider a proposal to block advertisements of alcoholic and energy beverages daily between 5am and 10pm, Thaksin told reporters before a meeting that started in Bangkok at 10am. "We want to cut cases of drunk driving," he said. "Television should not promote drinking." The ban may hurt sales at BEC World Pcl, the nation's biggest publicly traded television operator, and ITV Pcl because makers of beer, whiskey and energy drinks are their largest customers, some analysts said. The government raised the penalty for drunk driving after road accidents claimed the lives of 569 people and injured 37,151 others during the five days of the nation's biggest holiday in April.
■ Telecom
Vodafone adds customers
Vodafone Group Plc, the world's biggest mobile phone company, added customers in Australia and New Zealand last quarter by introducing new service such as photo messaging and games. Vodafone, which competes with Telecom Corp in New Zealand, had 1.349 million subscribers in the nation as of June 30, an increase of 4.7 percent in the quarter and 20 percent from a year ago, according to figures on Vodafone's Web site. In Australia, where it competes with Telstra Corp and Singapore Telecom Ltd, Vodafone said it had 2.593 million customers, a 1.1 percent increase on the previous quarter, and a 20 percent gain on the year. Newbury, England-based Vodafone Group said Monday that it added a total 3 million customers in the quarter, increasing total subscribers to 122.7 million.
■ Macroeconomics
Japan's jobless rate falls
Japan's jobless rate fell to 5.3 percent last month and household spending had its biggest gain in almost two decades, prompting Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi to say he sees "positive signs" for an economic recovery. The jobless rate fell from 5.4 percent in May, the first drop in four months, as the economy added 470,000 jobs. Spending by households headed by a salaried worker rose 4.8 percent last month from May, seasonally adjusted, the most since February 1984, the government's statistics bureau said in Tokyo. Meanwhile, sales at large Japanese retail stores last month declined 2.9 percent year-on-year after falling 3.6 percent in May, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said yesterday.
■ Trade
Japan imposes beef tariffs
Japan will raise tariffs on chilled beef to 50 percent from 38.5 percent beginning Friday, ignoring protests from its trading partners and favoring domestic farmers because meat imports rose fast enough to trigger safeguards. Chilled beef imports from the US, Australia and other countries rose 34 percent in the three months to June 30, the Ministry of Finance said. Under WTO rules, Japan can impose the higher tariffs if imports rise more than 17 percent from the same period a year ago. Tariffs will also increase on pork. Retail prices will rise about 2.5 percent, he added. Food companies in Japan and beef farmers in Australia and other countries argue that the increase in customs charges is unfair because the rise in imports reflects an overall recovery in beef demand after an outbreak of mad cow disease, or BSE, hurt consumption last year.
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
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
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