■ Nationalization
Calderon invites big firms
Multinational companies facing nationalizations by unfriendly governments are welcome to invest in Mexico, President Felipe Calderon told executives on Thursday. Calderon said Mexico needed more long-term investment from multinational corporations to create jobs and boost economic expansion. "While other governments in the world and Latin America are thinking about expropriating or seizing your investments, in Mexico we are thinking about how to give guarantees to increase investment in our country," Calderon told businessmen representing foreign companies.
■ Automakers
Toyota recalls vehicles
Japanese auto giant Toyota Motor Corp said yesterday it was recalling 544,000 pickup and sport utility vehicles mainly in the US because of a defect that could affect the steering. Of the total, 533,000 vehicles -- Sequoia SUVs and Tundra pickup trucks -- were recalled in the US and the remainder in Canada and Germany, a Toyota spokeswoman said. Toyota sold a record 2.54 million vehicles in the US last year. "There is a possibility that the front suspension lower ball joint may experience excessive wear and looseness, causing increased steering effort, reduced vehicle self centering and noise in the front suspension," Toyota said in a statement. The recall covers certain 2004 through early 2007 model Sequoias and 2004 through late 2006 model Tundra vehicles.
■ Outsourcing
Philippines expects boom
The Philippines expects a huge jump in its outsourcing business, with earnings forecast at US$12.4 billion by 2010 after US$3.63 billion last year, the Trade and Industry Department said yesterday. Trade and Industry Secretary Peter Favila said that the number of Filipinos working in the sector was expected to jump to 920,764 in 2010 from the current 244,675. The anticipated upturn will follow efforts to encourage more outsourcing of high-value back-office business operations in the country, Favila said. Call centers in the country earned a total of US$2.69 billion last year.
■ Telecoms
HDTV hits Singapore
Singapore's sole cable operator, StarHub, has launched a high-definition TV (HDTV) service for subscribers in the city-state, making it the first to offer the facility in Southeast Asia. StarHub will offer viewers two HD channels -- the National Geographic Channel HD and Discovery HD. The US, Australia, Korea and Japan have already launched HDTV services, while China has committed to HDTV telecasts of next year's Olympic Games.
■ Computers
IBM profit tops forecasts
IBM Corp topped analyst forecasts on Thursday with a reported US$3.5 billion profit in the fourth quarter, bringing its full-year earnings for last year to US$9.5 billion. The profit in the October-December quarter was 11 percent higher than a year ago and translated to US$2.26 per share, compared with analyst forecasts of US$2.19. Revenues for IBM increased 7 percent to US$26.2 billion in the quarter, ahead of Wall Street forecasts of US$25.6 billion. For the full year, profits rose 19 percent on revenues of US$91.4 billion, a gain of just 0.3 percent. IBM ended the year with US$10.7 billion of cash on hand and said the company "is well positioned to take advantage of opportunities."
RETHINK? The defense ministry and Navy Command Headquarters could take over the indigenous submarine project and change its production timeline, a source said Admiral Huang Shu-kuang’s (黃曙光) resignation as head of the Indigenous Submarine Program and as a member of the National Security Council could affect the production of submarines, a source said yesterday. Huang in a statement last night said he had decided to resign due to national security concerns while expressing the hope that it would put a stop to political wrangling that only undermines the advancement of the nation’s defense capabilities. Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) yesterday said that the admiral, her older brother, felt it was time for him to step down and that he had completed what he
Taiwan has experienced its most significant improvement in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, data provided on Sunday by international higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) showed. Compared with last year’s edition of the rankings, which measure academic excellence and influence, Taiwanese universities made great improvements in the H Index metric, which evaluates research productivity and its impact, with a notable 30 percent increase overall, QS said. Taiwanese universities also made notable progress in the Citations per Paper metric, which measures the impact of research, achieving a 13 percent increase. Taiwanese universities gained 10 percent in Academic Reputation, but declined 18 percent
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
UNDER DISCUSSION: The combatant command would integrate fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups to defend waters closest to the coastline, a source said The military could establish a new combatant command as early as 2026, which would be tasked with defending Taiwan’s territorial waters 24 nautical miles (44.4km) from the nation’s coastline, a source familiar with the matter said yesterday. The new command, which would fall under the Naval Command Headquarters, would be led by a vice admiral and integrate existing fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups, along with the Naval Maritime Surveillance and Reconnaissance Command, said the source, who asked to remain anonymous. It could be launched by 2026, but details are being discussed and no final timetable has been announced, the source