■ Nuclear power
Westinghouse may get deal
US-based Westinghouse Electric Co could be awarded a multi-billion dollar contract for a set of nuclear reactors during the upcoming visit of Chinese President Hu Jintao (胡錦濤) to Washington, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday. Westinghouse is the US nuclear arm of British Nuclear Fuels PLC, and has been vying with companies from France and Russia for contracts to build four pressurized water reactors in China. The paper said a Chinese official at China National Nuclear suggested a deal could be in the works, but Westinghouse executives said they hadn't heard about their bid. Hu will meet with US president George W. Bush in Washington on Sept. 7 and is expected to visit the US companies of Boeing and Microsoft in Seattle, Washington.
■ Business outlook
German confidence falls
German business confidence declined slightly this month, a key survey showed yesterday. The closely watched business climate index, calculated each month by the Ifo economic research institute, slipped to 94.6 points in August from 95.0 last month, Ifo said in a statement. The figure fell below analysts' consensus forecast of a slight rise to 95.2 points. "All in all, the results are not an obstacle to a modest upward trend in the next few months," Ifo president Hans-Werner Sinn said in a statement. The index had posted a noticeable rise last month from 93.3 points in June. A breakdown of this month's data showed the six-month expectations sub-index edged up 0.3 points to 95.4, while the current sentiment sub-index fell 1.1 points to 93.8.
■ Telecoms
Telestra sale to go ahead
The Australian government's plan to sell its A$30 billion (US$23 billion) stake in the country's giant telecommunications firm Telstra overcame a final hurdle yesterday when a rebel senator agreed to back it. Senator Barnaby Joyce of the governing coalition's junior partner, the National Party, had threatened to block the sale for fear people living in the sparsely populated outback would be ignored after privatization put profits first. But Joyce, who held a deciding vote in the senate where the coalition has a majority of just one, said yesterday he would accept the sale provided regulations obliging the company to provide services to the outback were toughened up.
■ Flat-panels
Sony, Samsung expand JV
Sony will broaden its involvement in a joint venture with Samsung making hi-tech flat-screen televisions in an effort to drive down costs and boost quality, a spokeswoman said on Thursday. The Japanese electronics giant has already invested about ?100 billion (US$910 million) on a joint venture with Samsung in South Korea that started producing liquid crystal display (LCD) panels in April. "We are in talks to improve the LCD production, the cost and quality of the panels, in cooperation with Samsung," said Mina Saito, a spokeswoman at Sony. At present LCD screens made by the joint venture are based on products developed by Samsung, while Sony completes production by adding components such as drivers, backlights and turners. Sony aims to make the screens more competitive by participating more in the early stage of their production.
NO-LIMITS PARTNERSHIP: ‘The bottom line’ is that if the US were to have a conflict with China or Russia it would likely open up a second front with the other, a US senator said Beijing and Moscow could cooperate in a conflict over Taiwan, the top US intelligence chief told the US Senate this week. “We see China and Russia, for the first time, exercising together in relation to Taiwan and recognizing that this is a place where China definitely wants Russia to be working with them, and we see no reason why they wouldn’t,” US Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines told a US Senate Committee on Armed Services hearing on Thursday. US Senator Mike Rounds asked Haines about such a potential scenario. He also asked US Defense Intelligence Agency Director Lieutenant General Jeffrey Kruse
INSPIRING: Taiwan has been a model in the Asia-Pacific region with its democratic transition, free and fair elections and open society, the vice president-elect said Taiwan can play a leadership role in the Asia-Pacific region, vice president-elect Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) told a forum in Taipei yesterday, highlighting the nation’s resilience in the face of geopolitical challenges. “Not only can Taiwan help, but Taiwan can lead ... not only can Taiwan play a leadership role, but Taiwan’s leadership is important to the world,” Hsiao told the annual forum hosted by the Center for Asia-Pacific Resilience and Innovation think tank. Hsiao thanked Taiwan’s international friends for their long-term support, citing the example of US President Joe Biden last month signing into law a bill to provide aid to Taiwan,
China’s intrusive and territorial claims in the Indo-Pacific region are “illegal, coercive, aggressive and deceptive,” new US Indo-Pacific Commander Admiral Samuel Paparo said on Friday, adding that he would continue working with allies and partners to keep the area free and open. Paparo made the remarks at a change-of-command ceremony at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam in Hawaii, where he took over the command from Admiral John Aquilino. “Our world faces a complex problem set in the troubling actions of the People’s Republic of China [PRC] and its rapid buildup of forces. We must be ready to answer the PRC’s increasingly intrusive and
STATE OF THE NATION: The legislature should invite the president to deliver an address every year, the TPP said, adding that Lai should also have to answer legislators’ questions The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) yesterday proposed inviting president-elect William Lai (賴清德) to make a historic first state of the nation address at the legislature following his inauguration on May 20. Lai is expected to face many domestic and international challenges, and should clarify his intended policies with the public’s representatives, KMT caucus secretary-general Hung Meng-kai (洪孟楷) said when making the proposal at a meeting of the legislature’s Procedure Committee. The committee voted to add the item to the agenda for Friday, along with another similar proposal put forward by the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP). The invitation is in line with Article 15-2