■ Pharmaceuticals
Novartis makes US4.5b bid
Swiss pharmaceutical group Novartis said yesterday that it had made an offer to the board of US laboratory Chiron of US$4.5 billion dollars for the 57.8 percent of the business it does not already own. Chiron specializes in bio-pharmacy and the price of shares in Novartis was showing a gain of 0.16 percent to 60.90 Swiss francs shortly after the announcement. Novartis said that it had made its offer in agreement with independent members of the board of Chiron and that Novartis would be better placed to help Chiron to overcome fundamental problems if the US business became a fully owned subsidiary. However, Novartis said that there was no certainty that the bid would succeed. For last year, Novartis reported sales of US$28.2 billion dollars and net profit of US$5.8 billion dollars.
■ Singapore
Gambling addiction tackled
Singapore has set up a council to tackle gambling addiction four years before the city-state is due to open its first casinos. The 15-member National Council on Problem Gambling began its two-year term on Wednesday, the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sport said. In a statement posted on its Web site, the ministry said the council will advise the government on education programs to raise public awareness on gambling ills. The Singapore government in April announced that two Las Vegas-style casino resorts would be built by 2009 to spice up its staid image and attract more tourists. A government survey released earlier this year showed that more than half of Singaporeans are gamblers.
■ Hong Kong
Salaries to rise only 3.4%
Salaries in Hong Kong next year will grow at the second slowest level of 11 leading Asia-Pacific countries, a media report said yesterday. People are likely to see their salaries rise by just 3.4 percent, the Standard said, quoting a survey by consultancy firm, Hewitt Associates. Only Japan will have a lower rate of increase, of 2.8 percent, according to Hewitt's annual salary study. By comparison, India is forecast to have the highest growth of 14 percent, followed by 8.1 percent in both China and the Philippines. Hewitt Associates Nishchae Suri said Hong Kong's high wage costs and low inflation rate restrict future salary growth. The Hong Kong government said the economy grew at a faster-than-expected 6.8 percent in the second quarter and had predicted full-year growth of between 4.5 percent and 5.5 percent.
■ China
US firms optimistic
The business outlook for US firms in China is promising but concerns remain about the government's commitment to implement trade obligations like intellectual property protection, a survey said yesterday. "China's economic reforms continue to pay off for its own economy as well as American companies," Emory Williams, chairman of the American Chamber of Commerce China, said in launching its annual white paper on the business climate. According to a survey of the chamber's more than 4,000 members, 86 percent of member companies reported higher revenues and 68 percent reported profitable or very profitable performances. These levels are slightly lower than those of the last two years, largely because of increasing competition from both international and local firms.
ROLLER-COASTER RIDE: More than five earthquakes ranging from magnitude 4.4 to 5.5 on the Richter scale shook eastern Taiwan in rapid succession yesterday afternoon Back-to-back weather fronts are forecast to hit Taiwan this week, resulting in rain across the nation in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration said yesterday, as it also warned residents in mountainous regions to be wary of landslides and rockfalls. As the first front approached, sporadic rainfall began in central and northern parts of Taiwan yesterday, the agency said, adding that rain is forecast to intensify in those regions today, while brief showers would also affect other parts of the nation. A second weather system is forecast to arrive on Thursday, bringing additional rain to the whole nation until Sunday, it
CONDITIONAL: The PRC imposes secret requirements that the funding it provides cannot be spent in states with diplomatic relations with Taiwan, Emma Reilly said China has been bribing UN officials to obtain “special benefits” and to block funding from countries that have diplomatic ties with Taiwan, a former UN employee told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. At a House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee hearing into “international relations within the multilateral system,” former Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) employee Emma Reilly said in a written statement that “Beijing paid bribes to the two successive Presidents of the [UN] General Assembly” during the two-year negotiation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Another way China exercises influence within the UN Secretariat is
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
Taiwan’s first drag queen to compete on the internationally acclaimed RuPaul’s Drag Race, Nymphia Wind (妮妃雅), was on Friday crowned the “Next Drag Superstar.” Dressed in a sparkling banana dress, Nymphia Wind swept onto the stage for the final, and stole the show. “Taiwan this is for you,” she said right after show host RuPaul announced her as the winner. “To those who feel like they don’t belong, just remember to live fearlessly and to live their truth,” she said on stage. One of the frontrunners for the past 15 episodes, the 28-year-old breezed through to the final after weeks of showcasing her unique