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World Business Quick Take

■ South Korea
Stem-cell bank to open
South Korean scientist Hwang Woo-suk will open a stem-cell bank in South Korea on Oct. 19 to serve as a global supply center for patients, Yonhap News said, quoting Hwang. Details on the management of the proposed stem-cell bank will be firmed up later, the report said. Hwang wants the bank to be managed as a government entity, Hwang was cited as saying. Hwang's research team announced on May 19 their success in finding a more efficient way to create individually tailored stem cells, the building blocks that may one day be used to cure conditions such as diabetes and Alzheimer's disease.

■ Auto industry
Honda eyes 4-million sales
Japan's Honda Motor Co has set a global sales target of four million vehicles in the year to March 2008, up 20 percent from the year to March this year, a daily said yesterday. The automaker, ranked No. 3 in Japan, hopes to achieve the projection by tapping into strong demand in the US and China, the Nihon Keizai Shimbun said. Honda's sales in the year to March this year rose 10 percent to 3.24 million units, hitting the three million mark for the first time ever. The company expects sales in the US to climb 15 percent from the year to March this year to 1.6 million vehicles in the year to March 2008, the business daily said. Honda also forecast domestic car sales will jump by about 10 percent in two years, which will also help the company achieve the goal, the daily said.

■ Auto industry
VW, Proton talks stall
Talks between Malaysia's Proton and Volkswagen have stalled after a plan by the German auto giant to acquire a substantial stake was opposed by Proton's senior management, a report said yesterday. The Edge financial newspaper said as a result, an ambitious technical tie-up between the two automakers had also been delayed. Proton said last October it would assemble and sell VW cars as part of a "long-term strategic partnership" that could lead to technology sharing and the joint development of cars. The Edge said Proton's top managers were opposed to the amount of equity VW would expect to hold in Proton Holding in return for which the German automaker would offer its technical expertise and global reach.

■ Labor affairs
Dell votes for share options
Dell Inc holders voted in favor of the company expensing employee stock options, urging the world's largest personal-computer maker to join technology companies such as Microsoft Corp and IBM Corp in doing so. The options proposal, calling for immediate expensing, was initiated by Laborers' International Union of North America Staff Pension Fund and approved yesterday at the company's annual meeting. Dell's board had recommended to holders in May that they reject the proposal, saying options will be expensed starting in February next year. Last year, the US Financial Accounting Standards Board passed the expensing rule for all companies, which is intended to provide more earnings transparency. Had Dell expensed stock options in its last fiscal year it would have cost the company US$812 million, reducing earnings by about US$0.20 a share for the year ending Jan. 28 this year, and US$0.33 a share in the last fiscal year, according to a company filing.

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