■ Investment
PRC forms investment firm
China's government is creating an investment company to make more effective use of its US$1 trillion in foreign reserves, the finance minister said yesterday. The company will report directly to the Chinese Cabinet, Finance Minister Jin Renqing (金人慶) said at a news conference. He gave no timetable for the creation of the company or details of how it might invest the reserves. China's foreign reserves, the world's largest, are managed by the central bank, which is believed to keep most of them in safe but low-yielding US Treasuries.
■ Liquor
Absolut draws top bidders
Three of the world's top spirits makers -- Pernod Ricard SA, Bacardi Ltd and Diageo PLC -- have told the Swedish government they are interested in buying the state-owned liquor group that makes Absolut vodka, a spokeswoman said on Thursday. The center-right government presented plans last week to sell the V&S Vin & Sprit AB liquor group as part of wider privatization plans. V&S owns several brands of liquor and wine, with Absolut its biggest moneymaker. Analysts said they expected V&S to sell for about 40 billion krona (US$5.7 billion). It was not clear, however, if the government would opt for a direct sale or a stock market listing.
■ Finance
Top US lender struggles
Subprime lender New Century Financial Corp said on Thursday it had stopped accepting all new loan applications as it struggled to obtain financing amid market speculation that the company could file for bankruptcy. In a Securities and Exchange Commission filing, New Century said it was only able to fund some of its loans this week, and its capacity to fund new loans was "substantially limited" because of problems obtaining financing from lenders. The US' second-largest subprime lender provides loans to people with bad credit. Amid a slowdown in housing markets nationwide, the subprime industry has come under the microscope in the past month.
■ Internet
Royal prank on eBay
Norway's royal palace ran the risk of being sold cheap on the auction Web site eBay when a hoax advertisement offered it for one dollar, media reported on Thursday. "Cheap! The royal palace of a young monarchy, just 102 years old, is on sale," the offer read and it had already managed to attract a bid of US$99,999,999 before being taken down on Thursday morning. "At the moment, the castle is in Norway but it can be moved to another country whenever. The King and Queen are not included in the price, but I am sure that they would move with the Royal Palace," the offer said. The Norwegian royal palace is the residence and workplace of King Harald and Queen Sonja.
■ Investment
Thai capital rules remain
Thailand's new finance minister said yesterday he would keep controversial currency rules, dashing market speculation that the government would soon lift the measures aimed at curbing the Thai baht's rise. New finance minister Chalongphob Sussangkarn said the capital rules were needed to control the Thai unit, which has risen nearly 12 percent against the US dollar over the past year. "At the moment, appropriate measures [to replace the capital rules] have not been found," he said.
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