■ Automobiles
Toyota doubles China shops
Toyota Motor Corp, the world's No. 3 automaker by unit sales, agreed with China FAW Group Corp to set up an equally owned venture by the end of the year, aiming to double the number of sales outlets in China, the Nikkei English News reported. Toyota reached a broad agreement to establish the venture that will sell cars made by the two companies across China, making Toyota the first foreign automaker to build a nationwide sales network, Nikkei said, citing unidentified officials familiar with the matter. The venture is part of Toyota's plans to acquire a 10 percent share of China's growing vehicle market by 2010, the newswire reported. Toyota, which produces cars in China in ventures with local partners, aims to double its annual production capacity to more than 200,000 vehicles, the report said. Last October, Toyota started producing the Vios compact sedan through Tianjin Toyota Motor Co, a venture with China FAW.
■ Tourism
HK numbers back to normal
Passenger traffic at the Hong Kong International Airport recovered last month to more than 95 percent of the level before the SARS outbreak earlier in the year, the Airport Authority (AA) said yesterday. Almost 2.62 million passengers traveled through the airport last month, the AA said. SARS gripped Hong Kong from March to June 23, when it was removed from the WHO blacklist of SARS-affected regions. Last month's figure was 4.8 percent down from a year earlier, the AA said. It was also a fall of 13 percent on the August numbers due to the end of the summer holiday, it said. Cargo throughput for the month stood at 235,000 tonnes, up 7.90 percent year-on-year driven by a growth in exports to Hong Kong's major markets of Europe, Taiwan, China and Australia.
■ Electronics
NEC forges alliance
NEC Corp, Japan's biggest maker of telecommunication equipment, has joined forces with Electronic Data Systems Corp, Engineous Software Inc and Japan Research Institute Ltd to boost computer sales to manufacturers, Nikkei English News reported. NEC plans to sell a package of computers and software developed by the two US companies and Japan Research that, for example, will help manufacturers cut the time required for developing new products, Nikkei said, citing people it said were familiar with the matter. It didn't name those people. Japan Research is a unit of Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp. The package will include software that allows different departments of a manufacturer to share information about parts and product designs through a computer, the report said.
■ Trade
S Korea, Japan discuss FTA
South Korea and Japan will discuss launching negotiations for a free-trade agreement when their leaders meet next week, a senior South Korean government official said yesterday. President Roh Moo-hyun, who will attend the APEC summit in Bangkok, Thailand, next week, will discuss establishing a free-trade accord with Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, said Kwon Okyu, a senior presidential secretary for policy planning. Kwon said a joint statement is being prepared to launch government-level negotiations for the trade accord this year. "If the talks start taking place this year, we can aim to conclude the agreement by 2005," he said.
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