■ Finance
China needs time for reform
China will need another five to 10 years before the government will liberalize the country's interest and exchange rates, the China Securities Journal said, citing a researcher at the central bank's monetary committee. Reform to China's exchange rates will have to move in tandem with liberalization of interest rates, which are fixed by the central bank, the newspaper said, quoting from an interview with Li Yang. The central bank will begin the reforms by first widening the range in which saving and lending rates can be set, and by giving state-owned banks greater freedom to set rates, Li said. China's state-owned banks should also improve their risk management practices, and provide a wider range of financial services before they are allowed to freely set interest rates, Li said.
■ Finance
GE to start bad-loan venture
General Electric Co, the world's largest non-bank financial company, wants to set up a venture to collect bad loans for South Korean companies, the country's industry watchdog said. General Electric's financial service subsidiary, Global Financial Restructuring, applied to team with South Korea's Seoul Guarantee Insurance Co and Samsung Capital Co to set up a joint credit collection company, the Financial Supervisory Service said on its Web site. The alliance may give General Electric access to a pool of bad loans at Seoul Guarantee, a 35-year-old company that provides guarantee services to individuals and companies. The US firm will get 30 percent of the proposed venture, Seoul Guarantee a 51 percent stake and Samsung Capital the remaining 19 percent. The proposed venture plans to have 10 billion won (US$8.4 million) in capital.
■ Appliances
Whirlpool sues LG
Whirlpool Corp, the biggest US appliance maker, filed a patent-infringement lawsuit seeking to block South Korean-based rival LG Electronics Inc from selling washing machines for clothing in the US. LG Electronics introduced a line of washing machines that infringe two patents, Whirlpool said in a statement. Benton Harbor, Michigan- based Whirlpool sued in federal court in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Whirlpool is trying to protect sales of its fastest-growing model, the US$1,400 Duet washer and dryer set, which relies on the system in dispute. Major appliance shipments in the US are expected to grow "moderately" in the second half over last year and the Duet sales are credited with helping to boost second- quarter profit by 49 percent.
■ Auto industry
BMW bemoans launch costs
BMW, the German maker of luxury cars, said yesterday that costs connected with the launch and market of new models ate into earnings in the second quarter of the current year, but the group was still hoping to post stable full-year earnings. BMW said in a statement its net profit amounted to 568 million euros (US$642 million) in the period from April to June, a drop of 9.7 percent from the figure for the corresponding period a year earlier. Pre-tax profit before extraordinary items fell by 7.2 percent to 947 million euros in the three-month period, BMW said. "That was due to the high level of expenditure for the product and market offensive, covering the relevant structure and launch costs for the introduction of new models," BMW explained.
ROLLER-COASTER RIDE: More than five earthquakes ranging from magnitude 4.4 to 5.5 on the Richter scale shook eastern Taiwan in rapid succession yesterday afternoon Back-to-back weather fronts are forecast to hit Taiwan this week, resulting in rain across the nation in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration said yesterday, as it also warned residents in mountainous regions to be wary of landslides and rockfalls. As the first front approached, sporadic rainfall began in central and northern parts of Taiwan yesterday, the agency said, adding that rain is forecast to intensify in those regions today, while brief showers would also affect other parts of the nation. A second weather system is forecast to arrive on Thursday, bringing additional rain to the whole nation until Sunday, it
LANDSLIDES POSSIBLE: The agency advised the public to avoid visiting mountainous regions due to more expected aftershocks and rainfall from a series of weather fronts A series of earthquakes over the past few days were likely aftershocks of the April 3 earthquake in Hualien County, with further aftershocks to be expected for up to a year, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Based on the nation’s experience after the quake on Sept. 21, 1999, more aftershocks are possible over the next six months to a year, the agency said. A total of 103 earthquakes of magnitude 4 on the local magnitude scale or higher hit Hualien County from 5:08pm on Monday to 10:27am yesterday, with 27 of them exceeding magnitude 5. They included two, of magnitude
CONDITIONAL: The PRC imposes secret requirements that the funding it provides cannot be spent in states with diplomatic relations with Taiwan, Emma Reilly said China has been bribing UN officials to obtain “special benefits” and to block funding from countries that have diplomatic ties with Taiwan, a former UN employee told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. At a House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee hearing into “international relations within the multilateral system,” former Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) employee Emma Reilly said in a written statement that “Beijing paid bribes to the two successive Presidents of the [UN] General Assembly” during the two-year negotiation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Another way China exercises influence within the UN Secretariat is
Taiwan’s first drag queen to compete on the internationally acclaimed RuPaul’s Drag Race, Nymphia Wind (妮妃雅), was on Friday crowned the “Next Drag Superstar.” Dressed in a sparkling banana dress, Nymphia Wind swept onto the stage for the final, and stole the show. “Taiwan this is for you,” she said right after show host RuPaul announced her as the winner. “To those who feel like they don’t belong, just remember to live fearlessly and to live their truth,” she said on stage. One of the frontrunners for the past 15 episodes, the 28-year-old breezed through to the final after weeks of showcasing her unique