■ LCD displays
Shares fall on tariff worries
Shares of LG.Philips LCD Co and other makers of liquid-crystal displays fell after a South Korean agency said the EU will probably impose a 14 percent tariff on LCD monitor imports. The European Commission, the Brussels-based executive body of the EU, ruled that computer monitors that receive digital video signals are commonly used to watch movies and should be classified entertainment electronics, which attract the 14 percent levy, the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency said in a statement yesterday. A final ruling is due next month, it said. Concern that LCD panel prices are falling faster than expected may be a bigger contributor to the declines, said Jay Kim, an analyst at Hyundai Securities Co in Seoul.
■ Retail
Ikea to expand in China
Ikea, the Swedish home furnishings maker, plans to build 10 new stores in the next six years in China, its fastest-growing market, the official China Daily reported, citing Ian Duffy, head of Ikea's China operations. The stores will cost US$40 million to US$80 million each and will be located in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Chengdu, Nanjing, and Shandong, the paper said. Ikea, which currently has two stores in China, in Beijing and Shanghai, will open its second- biggest outlet in the country in the second half, the report said. Ikea's China revenue jumped 50 percent to 1 billion yuan (US$120.8 million) in the fiscal year ended Aug. 24, compared with a 15 percent increase in global sales in the same period, the paper said. China, which now accounts for 1 percent of Ikea's global sales of US$16 billion, is expected to become the company's biggest market within 10 to 15 years, the report said
■ Banking
UBS may buy Schwab unit
Swiss bank UBS is expected to purchase Charles Schwab Corp's capital markets business and its SoundView Technology stock-research operation for US$265 million, the Wall Street Journal said yesterday, citing people familiar with the matter. Schwab purchased SoundView Technology for US$321 million just eight months ago, the newspaper said. A person familiar with the matter said the research operation will be pared back significantly once in the hands of UBS. Spokesmen for both Schwab and UBS declined to comment. According to the Financial Times, the sale is "another chapter in what has been a tumultuous year" at Schwab, which ousted chief executive David Pottrucks in July and replaced him with company founder Charles Schwab.
■ Brokerages
SK sale talks break down
A deal to sell the brokerage arm of SK Group, South Korea's third largest conglomerate, to a local securities firm funded by US financier George Soros has broken down, officials said yesterday. The group's trading arm, SK Networks, had been in talks to sell a 14.3 percent stake in SK Securities to Seoul Securities, which is 26 percent owned by a Soros-controlled fund. "We have halted talks with SK Networks to buy its unit SK Securities as we failed to reach an agreement on the terms," Seoul Securities said in a statement. The stock price of SK Securities has soared since the two sides signed a memorandum of understanding on the sale on July 28.
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
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