■ Exchange talks break down
Stock exchange operator Deutsche Boerse AG said on Tuesday it had suspended further talks with the Milan-based Borsa Italiana about a joint approach for the consolidation of European exchanges. Deutsche Boerse said that during the course of talks about signing a letter of intent, an agreement over "certain key issues" arose and could not be overcome. Neither company identified those issues. Last month, Borsa Italiana signed the letter of intent to create a European federation of exchanges that aimed to include Euronext NV, which operates the Paris, Amsterdam, Brussels and Lisbon exchanges.
■ Internet
Yahoo tests ad software
US Internet search giant Yahoo began testing new software on Tuesday to expand the use of banner-style online advertising from desktop computers to mobile telephones. The software is designed to project small graphic advertisements onto the screen of a mobile phone and has been tailored for Yahoo's Mobile Web service in the US. The service allows users to access
e-mail, Internet search and news functions and the first image-oriented ads are due to go live this week. The ads will be visible as images across the top of a mobile phone screen.
■ Aerospace
Airbus posts quarterly loss
The European aerospace group EADS registered losses in the third quarter because of delivery delays for the new Airbus A380 superjumbo, it announced yesterday. The group suffered a net loss of 195 million euros (US$249 million) against a profit of 279 million euros for the same period a year earlier. Operating losses were 239 million euros, against operating profits of 559 million euros a year earlier. Over nine months, the group realized operating profits of 1.399 billion euros against 2.099 billion euros for the same period last year. FedEx, the world's largest express delivery group, on Tuesday became the first customer to abandon the much-delayed A380.
■ Aviation
Malaysia boosts facilities
Malaysia's budget airline terminal will get a boost with plans to build a railway line connecting it to the main international airport, the Star said yesterday. Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak was quoted by the newspaper as saying the Cabinet has agreed to link the low-cost terminal to the main Kuala Lumpur International Airport by train, which will cut the journey to 11 minutes compared to 20 minutes by bus. The nation launched its 108 million ringgit (US$29 million) low-cost terminal in March as part of efforts to become a regional aviation hub.
■ Computers
Dell launches business line
Dell yesterday introduced a set of simplified, energy-saving business computers designed to enhance performance while reducing operating costs. Dell's offerings included the company's first business desktop computer built with AMD chips, and servers that used recently-introduced quad-core processors from AMD's Silicon Valley rival Intel. "It is about customers wanting to have some flexibility in what is available to them," Dell product manager Rick Perez said. "A lot of customers are getting comfortable with using AMD on the server side," he said. The computers are compatible with Microsoft's Vista operating system.
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