■ Insurance
Firms charged over bribes
Four major insurance companies paid a broker tens of millions of dollars in hidden kickbacks in exchange for winning contracts with some of the largest US companies, California Insurance Commissioner John Garamendi charged on Thursday. A lawsuit filed in San Diego Superior Court names MetLife Inc, Pruden-tial Financial Inc, Cigna Corp and UnumProvident Corp. The suit also names Univer-sal Life Resources Inc, which brokers employee benefit plans and insurance coverage on behalf of companies such as Safeway Inc, Intel Corp, Northrop Grumman and other Blue Chip names. Garamendi said he has agreed to drop the charges against Universal Life, based in San Diego, in exchange for "full and timely" cooperation in the investigation of the four insurance companies.
■ Tobacco
China halts new ventures
China has suspended all new cigarette and tobacco foreign joint ventures, state media reported yesterday, raising doubts over a claim by British American Tobacco that it has approval to manufacture cigarettes in China. "The decision is made on the grounds that the Chinese tobacco market is saturated and it has surplus cigarette production capacity," Xinhua News Agency said. But the report said China would allow cooperation in upgrading technology, and in importing high-quality tobacco leaf, high-grade cigarette paper and other "necessary materials." China is the world's biggest tobacco market, with annual sales of about 1.8 trillion cigarettes -- or about 30 percent of worldwide sales.
■ Macroeconomics
S Korea's growth weakens
South Korea's economy achieved lower-than-expected growth in the three months to September as domestic demand failed to pick up the slack from weakening exports, the central bank said yesterday. Real GDP growth slowed to 4.6 percent year-on-year in the third quarter, down from 5.5 percent in the second quarter, the Bank of Korea said. GDP expanded 5.4 percent in the first half and 5.1 percent in the nine months to September. The bank said that the failure of a hoped-for recovery in domestic demand, coupled with slower growth in exports, weakened the third-quarter GDP growth rate. The trend will continue through the fourth quarter, the bank predicted.
■ Airlines
AirAsia ready for Indonesia
Asia's best-known budget carrier, Malaysian-based AirAsia, could be ready for takeoff in Indonesia as early as January, a newspaper reported yesterday. The timing of the maiden flight of AirAsia Bhd's Indonesian joint venture, PT AWAir, would depend on when AirAsia completes a due-diligence review of the airline's financial details and finalizes the deal, The Star newspaper said, quoting the airline's executive director, Kamarudin Meranun. AirAsia is paying a token US$2 to buy 49 percent of PT AWAir, a debt-ridden Indonesian airline that suspended operations in March 2002. The Indonesian joint venture will be AirAsia's second overseas foray after Thai AirAsia, in which the Malaysian carrier also has a 49 percent stake. Thai AirAsia is 51 percent owned by Shin Corp, which is controlled by the family of Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. PT AWAir, using leased aircraft, used to fly from the Indonesian capital, Jakarta, to Denpasar in Bali, Surabaya and Medan.
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
BULLY TACTICS: Beijing has continued its incursions into Taiwan’s airspace even as Xi Jinping talked about Taiwan being part of the Chinese family and nation China should stop its coercion of Taiwan and respect mainstream public opinion in Taiwan about sovereignty if its expression of goodwill is genuine, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said yesterday. Ministry spokesman Jeff Liu (劉永健) made the comment in response to media queries about a meeting between former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) the previous day. Ma voiced support for the so-called “1992 consensus,” while Xi said that although the two sides of the Taiwan Strait have “different systems,” this does not change the fact that they are “part of the same country,” and that “external
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