■ China
Top state firms profits soar
Major state-owned enterprises saw their profits, a main source of funding for new investments, rise nearly 35 percent in the first four months of the year, state media said yesterday. The top 424 state companies reported combined profits of 348.8 billion yuan (US$45 billion) in the period from January to last month, up 34.7 percent from the same period a year ago, Xinhua news agency reported. The drastic increase could spell trouble for the government's attempts to rein in investment growth by curbing loans to enterprises, as the companies are now in a better position to instead rely on retained profits.
■ Energy
Algeria agrees gas deal
Algeria is to deliver liquified natural gas to Brazil under an accord signed on Saturday between the state-run Sonatrach and Brazil's Petrobas. A Sonatrach statement, which did not specify the quantity or price of the gas, said the agreement would allow Algeria to diversify its liquified natural gas sales "notably in the Atlantic basin." Delivery is to be made via two floating terminals, one in Guanabara in the Rio de Janeiro region and another in Pecem, in Ceara state, the statement said. The two companies also signed a memorandum of understanding covering development, exploration and commercialization in the two countries.
■ Energy
Planning agency acts
China's top economic planning agency has told local authorities to remove preferential policies for industries which consume disproportionate amounts of energy, state media said yesterday. The order from the National Development and Reform Commission, reported by Xinhua news agency, comes amid growing signs the government's ambitious energy-saving plans are failing. It was unclear which sector would be targeted, but the power, steel, oil refinery, chemicals, construction materials and metals industries account for 70 percent of energy for industry, according to state media. Xinhua also did not give specific details about which type of preferential policy would be removed.
■ Aviation
System glitch halts flights
Computer system problems forced Japan's No. 2 airline, All Nippon Airways Co Ltd (ANA), to cancel all its domestic flights out of Tokyo's Haneda airport from yesterday afternoon and delayed other domestic flights. A spokesman for ANA said all of its flights from Haneda were canceled until around 6pm due to the problems, which affected the airline's reservations, ticket issuing and boarding processes. A total of 114 flights were canceled from early yesterday afternoon the spokesman said.
■ China
Clarification requested
China asked the US on Friday to clarify regulations on the use of certain antibiotics, after Alabama and Mississippi banned Chinese catfish imports because they contained traces of the drugs. The demand appears to be a defensive move by Beijing as international alarm grows over the safety of Chinese exports, from ingredients in pet food to toothpaste. In a notice posted on its Web site China's food safety regulator said that it had contacted its US counterpart about the use of fluoroquinolones, antibiotics used to treat illnesses like tuberculosis and pneumonia in people and to prevent infections in animals.
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
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