Print

Mail

wiki links

World Business Quick Take

■ Semiconductors
Some Intel chipsets flawed
Intel Corp, the world's largest semiconductor maker, has discovered a glitch involving some of the input/output controllers in its recently introduced Grantsdale chipsets, causing some computers to malfunction. "We've found a malfunction in a limited lot of controllers and we're discussing how to handle the situation with our customers," said Masatoshi Mizuno, an Intel official in Tokyo. He couldn't elabor-ate on the scope of the glitch. Intel last week introduced the Grantsdale, the company's first major chipset upgrade in 12 years. It is aimed at stemming slowing sales growth by attracting computer buyers who wanting advanced graphics, wireless Internet connections and lower power use.

■ Banking
Citigroup suspends pair
Citigroup has suspended two investment bankers in China, Margaret Ren (任克英) and Earl Yen (顏慶華), for allegedly giving false information, according an internal memo. "The conduct for which they were suspended, which did not involve client matters, related to the presentation of false information to the company and its regula-tors," said the memo, which was sent to senior Citigroup management by e-mail on June 23 and was signed by the Citigroup investment bank director for the Asia Pacific, Robert Morse. It did not provide details of the alleged wrongdoing. Ren, the daughter-in-law of former Chinese president Zhao Ziyang (趙紫陽), had led Citigroup's investment banking business in China. She was replaced by Francis Leung.

■ Japan
BoJ keeps policy steady
Japan's central bank decided yesterday to keep its monetary policy steady, as government data showed that consumer prices have continued to decline despite expectations that a recover-ing economy would send prices higher. The Bank of Japan has kept short-term interest rates near zero and flooded the financial system with cash to encourage banks and businesses to keep money circulating throughout the economy. It left that super-loose mone-tary policy unchanged yesterday, setting its target for liquidity, or the amount of funds at the bank held by commercial banks, in a range of ?30 trillion (US$280 billion) to ?35 trillion. It also kept steady its monthly purchases of government bonds at ?1.2 trillion.
The bank's decision was widely expected by financial markets.

■ Japan
Corporate profits rise
Combined operating profits earned by listed Japanese firms in the rest of Asia rose 44 percent year-on-year to a record in the year ended in March thanks to strong demand in China, a survey showed yesterday. Group operating profit totalled ?1.11 trillion (US$10.4 billion) in the Asia-Oceania region excluding Japan, rising above ?1 trillion for the first time, the Nihon Keizai Shimbun said. The daily compiled the figure from earnings of 551 listed firms that provided regional breakdowns of operating profit for the last fiscal year. Matsushita Electric Indus-trial Co posted the highest operating profit of ?89.7 billion, it said. The total operating profit rose 20 percent from a year earlier to ?9.68 trillion. Overseas profit grew 22 percent to total ?3.53 trillion, with profit in the US edging up 1 percent to ?1.51 trillion. Operating profit in Europe was ?501.5 billion, the daily said.

This story has been viewed 1877 times.