■ TELECOMS
Chinese carrier in Japan
China Network Communi-cations Group Corp (中國網通) has opened its first business base in Japan to allow Internet providers to use its communications lines linking the two countries, a newspaper said yesterday. China's second-largest fixed-line telecommunications carrier also plans to offer data communications services for Japanese firms that operate in China, the Nikkei Shimbun reported. With the project, China Network Communi-cations has become the first major Chinese carrier to enter the Japanese telecommuni-cations market, the paper said.
■ TELECOMS
EU could use roaming rates
Calling home from European beaches will be cheaper for mobile phone users this summer if EU lawmakers and the European Commission get their way on planned caps for so-called roaming rates. Plans to force operators to charge less on cross-border calls in the EU received a boost last week when a key EU panel backed the package in the face of fierce lobbying from operators fearful of losing revenues. The European Parliament's industry committee voted broadly in favor of capping the price of calls made abroad in the EU at US$0.40 per minute and US$0.15 for calls received abroad.
■ BANKING
CITIC to offer 7.19b shares
China CITIC Bank (中信銀行), the latest Chinese lender to announce its international listing, said yesterday it hopes to raise US$10.26 billion when it goes public at the end of the month. Launching the prospectus for its initial public offering, China's seventh-largest bank said that it will offer investors 7.19 billion shares in a dual listing in Hong Kong and Shanghai, set for April 27. The bank will issue 4.89 H-Shares listed in Hong Kong to investors in the territory and international buyers. The bank has an option to issue an additional 732 million more if the offer is over-subscribed.
■ FINANCE
Caracas pays off loans
Venezuela said it paid off US$3 billion in loans owed to the IMF and the World Bank this week, ending ties to two multilateral lenders it says curtailed its "economic sovereignty" for decades. The government will save US$8 million in interest payments with the World Bank through 2012, Finance Minister Rodrigo Cabezas said at a press conference at his office in Caracas on Saturday. The government will continue to borrow money from the Washington-based Inter American Development Bank and the Caracas-based Andean Development Corp to finance future infrastructure projects.
■ BUSINESS
Wesfarmers finalizes offer
Australian conglomerate Wesfarmers yesterday said it would finalize an offer for retail giant Coles as soon as possible, but refused to say if it would raise its A$19.7 billion (US$16.4 billion) bid. Wesfarmers is the front-runner to take over Coles, the country's second-largest retailer, after the group's announcement of an effective competitive auction of its assets in February. If its bid is successful, Wesfarmers will have spearheaded one of the largest takeovers in Australian corporate history. It faces competition from a field reported to include a private equity group led by US-based Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, British supermarket chain Tesco and Australia's biggest retailer Woolworths.
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
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
SHOT IN THE ARM: The new system can be integrated with Avenger and Stinger missiles to bolster regional air defense capabilities, a defense ministry report said Domestically developed Land Sword II (陸射劍二) missiles were successfully launched and hit target drones during a live-fire exercise at the Jiupeng Military Base in Pingtung County yesterday. The missiles, developed by the Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology (CSIST), were originally scheduled to launch on Tuesday last week, after the Tomb Sweeping Day holiday long weekend, but were postponed to yesterday due to weather conditions. Local residents and military enthusiasts gathered outside the base to watch the missile tests, with the first one launching at 9:10am. The Land Sword II system, which is derived from the Sky Sword II (天劍二) series, was turned