■ FOREIGN EXCHANG
French minister concerned
French Economy Minister Christine Lagarde on Friday expressed concern about the “maisalignments” of global currencies, but said the problem was broader than simply the a weak dollar. “It is not just the dollar,” Lagarde told reporters following a speech in Chicago. “It’s the whole question of volatility and the whole question of misalignment between the currencies relative to the other and relative to the fundamentals of the economy.” Lagarde said the European economy had, so far, proven “more resilient than expected” in the face of a credit crunch spurred by the subprime lending crisis.
■AGRICULTURE
Argentina talks deadlocked
Talks between Argentina’s government and the country’s farm sector, a major exporter of grains and soybeans, remained deadlocked on Friday, with two new protests scheduled for today looming. Most of Argentina’s grain production is for export, and a disruption could affect supply to the strained world grain market. Large protests are planned today in the cities of Rosario and Tucuman. Rosario, northwest of Buenos Aires, is an industrial and key grains center.
■COPPER
Mine closed after storm
Heavy rains and flooding that killed five people and displaced thousands in south-central Chile have closed the world’s largest underground copper mine, the government said on Friday. Landslides caused by the rains forced the shutdown of the giant El Teniente copper mine, owned by state miner Codelco. The firm said it could take 48 hours to clear rock, earth and floodwaters blocking access to the mine, which lies 80km south of Santiago and was recovering from disruptions from the latest in a series of strikes by subcontractor workers.
■COAL
Price hikes limited in China
Coal prices in China, the world’s biggest consumer of the fuel, have limited room to rise as the industry faces potential overcapacity, the China Coal Transport and Distribution Association said. China’s coal demand may increase at a slower pace of about 6 percent to 2.74 billion tonnes this year, compared with growth of 8 percent last year, Yang Xianfeng (楊顯峰), secretary of the lobby, told reporters after a conference in Beijing yesterday. “Growth in coal demand will continue to fall after 2009 because of government efforts to cool the economy and increase energy efficiency,” Yang said. Coal output in China rose 7 percent to 2.54 billion tonnes last year, while demand rose to 2.58 billion tonnes, Yang said. The average price of raw coal at China’s biggest mines climbed 13 percent to 272.3 yuan (US$39) a tonne, he said.
■OIL
Battle erupts for Expro
A full-blown takeover battle erupted for European oil field contractor Expro International Group PLC on Friday as an initial bid from Halliburton Co was swiftly followed by a sweetened offer from a private equity consortium led by London-based Candover Group. Halliburton made an all-cash proposal of £15.25 per share before the market opened, valuing the British-based company at £1.7 billion (US$3.36 billion). Candover-backed Umbrellastream Ltd reacted quickly on Friday, increasing its own offer to £15.50 per share, valuing the company at £1.73 billion. Halliburton acknowledged the move by Umbrellastream, which also comprises Goldman Sachs Capital Partners and AlpInvest Partners NV, and said it was continuing discussions with Expro but may or may not make an offer.
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
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
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