■ Economy
India raises growth forecast
India sharply raised its full-year growth forecast to 9.2 percent yesterday from an estimate above 8 percent at the start of the year on a surge in demand for services and manufactured goods. The government's latest advance estimate for the year ending March 2007 comes after the central bank last month also raised its full-year growth forecast to 8.5 to 9.0 percent from above 8 percent. India's economy grew 9.1 percent in the first half of the current fiscal year ended September and the central bank, in a policy review yesterday, said it was on track for a full-year rate of 8.5 to 9.0 percent.
■ Internet
YouTube urged to act
Japanese copyright holders yesterday urged YouTube to do more to tackle unauthorized uploads after the popular video-sharing Web site agreed to post an infringement warning in Japanese. YouTube co-founders Chad Hurley and Steve Chen along with Google vice president David Eun held their first meeting on Tuesday with representatives of 23 Japanese media and copyright protection bodies. As well as demanding the copyright infringement warning, the Japanese firms asked YouTube to require people uploading media content to declare their names and addresses and to refuse postings that violate intellectual property rights.
■ Aviation
US, EU revive air talks
The US and EU on Tuesday revived talks on an "open skies" deal to liberalize trans-Atlantic air traffic, two months after Washington threw a large spanner in the works. US Transportation Secretary Mary Peters and EU Transport Commissioner Jacques Barrot sat down for a new round after Peters, in early December, scrapped proposals to offer foreign investors a greater say in US airlines. The EU had said it "deeply regretted" that move, which cast doubt over a 2005 agreement to deregulate lucrative airline routes between the US and Europe. In November 2005, Brussels and Washington hammered out the outlines of a pact to allow freer competition by US and EU airlines, opening the prospect of cheaper tickets and more choice for passengers.
■ Banking
PRC curbs project loans
China's battle to rein in liquidity and prevent prices from rising is far from over. Controls will be extended into this year, a statement from the central bank said yesterday. The People's Bank of China will seek to curb commercial banks' medium and long-term loans for infrastructure projects "in a rational manner," the Financial News said, citing Xiang Junbo (項俊波), the bank's deputy governor. "We will further improve management of the [commercial banks'] reserve ratio, of refinancing and of interest rates," he was quoted as saying by the newspaper, which is published by the central bank.
■ Mining
BHP Billiton profits soar
Mining giant BHP Billiton yesterday reported a record first half-profit of US$6.168 billion, up from US$4.364 billion in the same period the previous year. The world's biggest miner said revenue for the six months to December was US$22.113 billion, up from US$18.080 billion previously, and predicted that China would remain the main driver of demand. The company also announced that CEO Chip Goodyear would retire by the end of this year.
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
LANDSLIDES POSSIBLE: The agency advised the public to avoid visiting mountainous regions due to more expected aftershocks and rainfall from a series of weather fronts A series of earthquakes over the past few days were likely aftershocks of the April 3 earthquake in Hualien County, with further aftershocks to be expected for up to a year, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Based on the nation’s experience after the quake on Sept. 21, 1999, more aftershocks are possible over the next six months to a year, the agency said. A total of 103 earthquakes of magnitude 4 on the local magnitude scale or higher hit Hualien County from 5:08pm on Monday to 10:27am yesterday, with 27 of them exceeding magnitude 5. They included two, of magnitude
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
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