■ Macroeconomics
Japan may lift rates soon
The Bank of Japan's (BOJ) concern over rising prices indicates that it could move as early as next month to raise interest rates, Morgan Stanley said yesterday in its latest outlook for the anticipated shift. The move would be the central bank's first major tightening in five years and a further signal that Japan is continuing to tread the path of steady economic recovery. "It looks to us as if the BOJ can hike the rate sometime soon if it chooses," Morgan Stanley analyst Takehiro Sato said in a report released yesterday. "Therefore, we conclude that the rate hike could be a bit earlier than previously expected, and now attach probabilities of 30 percent in June, 60 percent in July and 10 percent for August or after," he said.
■ Banking
China bank debts high
China's banking debt problem is far higher than official estimates indicate with non-performing loans worth as much as US$900 billion, the Financial Times reported yesterday. Citing an Ernst and Young survey, the London-based newspaper said the NPLs for China's big four banks alone were worth US$358 billion, more than double the government's figure. Ernst and Young's latest numbers compare with its estimate in 2002 that NPLs then were worth US$480 billion, with the problem worsening despite recent government reforms of the banking sector to try and fix the debt problem.
■ Telecoms
SingTel subscribers up
Southeast Asia's largest phone company Singapore Telecommunications (SingTel) said yesterday that its Asia-Pacific mobile customer base surpassed 85 million at the end of March, boosted by sharp growth in India and Indonesia. The figure marked a 31 percent increase from March last year and is the biggest subscriber base for any telecoms firm in Asia outside of China, SingTel said in a statement. It said its Indian associate Bharti posted record mobile subscriber growth of 78 percent while in Indonesia, Telkomsel was up 51 percent. SingTel retained its dominance in its home market, with subscribers rising 5.73 percent to 1.66 million.
■ Finance
Seoul to tax foreign funds
South Korea's parliament has approved a bill which will allow the government to impose taxes on gains made by tax haven-based foreign funds, the finance ministry said yesterday. The bill, approved on Tuesday, will help the ministry enact new rules under which investment income derived in South Korea will face a withholding tax, regardless of double taxation treaties. Ministry officials say the new system is in line with international standards and is aimed at stopping foreign funds based in tax shelters from abusing the pacts to avoid tax payments.
■ Music
Warner snubs EMI offer
British music group EMI revealed yesterday that it made a takeover approach to Warner Music earlier this week but said its advances had been snubbed by its US rival. "EMI Group confirms that on 1 May 2006 it made an approach to Warner Music Group Corp," the group said in an official statement to the London Stock Exchange. EMI said that its proposed offer of US$28.50 per share, in a combination of cash and EMI shares, was rejected but added that it remained interested in a deal at the right price.
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