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World Business Quick Take

■ FINANCE

Mizuho linked with Merrill

Mizuho Corporate Bank is in final negotiations to invest ?140 billion (US$1.3 billion) in Merrill Lynch & Co, a news report said yesterday. The Japanese bank is likely to purchase shares representing a stake of several percent by the end of the month at the request of the US firm, according to a report in the Nikkei business daily. Mizuho spokesman Hiroaki Kanno said he was aware of the Nikkei report but that he "absolutely could not comment." He wouldn't say whether Mizuho and Merrill were in negotiations.



■ INTERNET

Facebook won't go public

The hot Internet social networking company Facebook probably won't try to go public this year, chief executive Mark Zuckerberg said in an interview. "I think what I can announce is that it's highly unlikely that we will go public in 2008," Zuckerberg told CBS news program 60 Minutes in an interview aired on Sunday. Zuckerberg said the company could make an initial public offering later. "When going public makes sense to do, we'll do that. Maybe that's two years out. Maybe it's three years out," he said. Microsoft Corp paid US$240 million in October for a 1.6 percent stake in Facebook, valuing the startup at US$15 billion.



■ AVIATION

Airline planning IPO

The Vietnamese government said yesterday that it has allowed Vietnam Airlines to hire an international consultant to advise on its initial public offering (IPO), which could see the national carrier sell up to 20 percent of its shares to foreign investors. The IPO will boost the airline's capital base while allowing the state to retain control with a stake of 70 percent to 80 percent, Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Sinh Hung said in a statement on the government's Web site. The airline will sell between a 10 percent and 20 percent stake to strategic investors, he said, giving no specific date for the share sale. Vietnam Airlines' shares will be listed on the country's stock market later this year, the official said.



■ TECHNOLOGY

Panasonic battery best

Japan's Panasonic has created the world's longest-lasting alkaline battery, according to Guinness World Records. Panasonic promises its new Evolta battery cell -- whose name is derived from "evolution" and "voltage" -- will keep gadgets running 20 percent longer than offerings from rivals Duracell and Energizer, as well as its own upscale Oxyride batteries. Guinness certified Evolta in a Tokyo ceremony yesterday as "the longest lasting AA alkaline battery cell," based on testing under guidelines set by the industry's International Electrotechnical Commission.



■ FINANCE

Jianyin may buy out partner

Morgan Stanley's Chinese partner is considering buying the US banking giant's entire stake in their local joint venture, state media reported yesterday. Jianyin Investment Ltd, indirectly owned by sovereign wealth fund China Investment Corp, may acquire the 34.3 percent stake in China International Capital Corp (CICC) from Morgan Stanley, the 21st Century Business Herald said. Jianyin Investment is already the largest shareholder of the joint venture, holding a 43.35-percent stake.
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