■ TAKEOVERS
BHP mum on bid rumors
Fresh rumors that BHP Billiton Ltd was preparing a takeover bid for either aluminum producer Alcoa or its rival Alcan had little impact on Australia's stock market yesterday, as some analysts doused the idea with cold water. BHP Billiton, the world's largest mining company, declined to comment on media reports citing unnamed sources that it was reviving plans for a US$40 billion offer for Alcoa and that it had hired investment bank Merrill Lynch to advise it on a possible bid for Alcan. BHP shares dipped in early trade, then rose 0.69 percent to A$34.92 (US$24.95) on the news.
■ ENERGY
Temasek to sell companies
Singapore's state-owned investment company Temasek Holdings Pte Ltd said yesterday it will sell three Singapore power generation companies over the next 12 to 18 months. Potential buyers have been showing interest since last year in PowerSeraya Ltd, Senoko Power Ltd and Tuas Power Ltd, Temasek said in a statement. Temasak wholly owns the three companies, which supply about 90 percent of Singapore's power and have a combined generating capacity of 9,070 megawatts. Temasek said it expects the sale to be completed by end of next year or in early 2009.
■ TRADE
Seoul wants talks on FTA
South Korea said yesterday it will hold talks with the US this week to discuss possible revisions for a free trade agreement after a US call for changes. Last week, the US formally proposed making changes to the trade pact to reflect its new guidelines that call for stricter labor and environment standards. The US proposal called for changes in seven sectors -- including labor and environment -- of the deal, which was reached in April and awaits legislative approval in both countries. South Korea will hold discussions on the matter when a US delegation visits Seoul tomorrow and Friday.
■ AUTOMOBILES
Automakers to cooperate
Vehicle makers DaimlerChrysler AG and Fiat SpA said yesterday they signed an agreement calling for strategic cooperation to provide the German-US automaker's truck group with engine and powertrain technology from Italy. "The first step of this agreement concerns the long-term supply of light-duty diesel engines ... to the Mitsubishi Fuso Bus & Truck Corporation, to be used in the Canter light commercial vehicle which will be marketed in major markets, including Europe and Japan," the two companies said in a joint statement. Under the agreement, Turin-based Fiat will supply some 80,000 engines to DaimlerChrysler's Mitsubishi Fuso unit starting in 2009, with the number rising as needed.
■ ELECTRONICS
Philips eyes LED maker
Royal Philips Electronics NV said yesterday it will offer US$34 per share for US lighting company Color Kinetics Inc, in a management-supported bid that values the company at 516 million euros (US$688 million). The offer is a 14 percent premium to Color Kinetic's closing price on Monday of US$29.79. Boston, Massachusetts-based Color Kinetics is a maker of light emitting diode (LED) lighting systems, with sales of US$65 million last year. Philips said Color Kinetics also holds "important patents relating to intelligence and control technology for LED lighting."
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
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
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
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