■ TAKEOVERS
Bid for Barneys goes up
Japanese casual clothing giant Fast Retailing has raised its bid for US retailer Barneys New York to US$950 million in cash, trumping an increased offer from Dubai investment firm Istithmar. The swift counter-offer from the Japanese group underscores its determi-nation to snare the celebrated New York retailer as it set its sights on becoming a global player in clothing retailing. "Barneys is a really attractive company to us. It's worth raising our bid," a spokesman for Fast Retailing said yesterday, confirming its latest offer. Barneys owner Jones Apparel Group said in a statement on Sunday its board had backed the increased Fast Retailing offer.
■ SEMICONDUCTORS
Infineon lowers stake
Infineon Technologies AG said yesterday it aims to lower its stake in Qimonda AG by less than 50 percent within two years. Infineon spun off Qimonda last year, listing it on the New York Stock Exchange, but retains an 86 percent stake in the company that makes chips for PCs. Investors have long urged that ties be cut, in part to avoid the vicissitudes of that cyclical industry. Last month, Infineon posted a wider third-quarter loss of 197 million euros (US$270 million) in part because of losses at Qimonda that totaled 218 million euros.
■ INVESTING
Warren Spector resigns
Senior executive Warren Spector announced his resignation from the investment banker Bear Stearns, shaken by troubles linked to the fraught US subprime mortgage market, the firm said on Sunday. "Warren J. Spector has resigned his positions of president and co-chief operating officer, member of the executive committee and member of the board of directors of Bear Stearns," chief executive James Cayne said in a statement. In giving up the co-presidency, Spector cedes the role to the other co-president, Alan Schwartz. Bear Stearns Asset Management suffered a disastrous blow last month when it announced that two hedge funds overseen by Spector were wiped out, losing up to US$1.6 billion of investors' capital.
■ CHINA
Protecting personal data
Beijing will soon introduce its first law on protecting personal data, amid rising anger at how easily people's private details are falling into the hands of advertisers, state media reported yesterday. Such a law has become necessary as more and more people find their personal information, such as mobile phone numbers, home addresses and even medical records, disclosed to unauthorized parties, the China Daily said. A draft law, which has been submitted to the Cabinet, sets out the legal duties of companies and other entities that have personal data, Zhou Hanhua, who helped draw-up the legislation, was quoted as saying.
■ AVIATION
JAL still in the red
Japan Airlines (JAL) said yesterday it remained in the red in the first quarter of the fiscal year but reduced its net loss by more than sixfold through layoffs, route cuts and a shift to smaller planes. Asia's largest carrier, which has been axing thousands of jobs, maintained its forecast for a return to profit this year after two straight annual losses that followed a series of safety scares. Net losses shrank to ¥4.29 billion (US$36.5 million) in the three months to June from ¥26.78 billion a year earlier, a JAL statement said.
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