■INVESTMENT
Temasek gets approval
Singaporean sovereign wealth fund Temasek Holdings has received approval from US anti-trust regulators to raise its stake in Merrill Lynch, a source said yesterday. Temasek said last month it was investing a further US$3.4 billion into Merrill Lynch as part of the US investment bank’s efforts to raise new capital. Temasek is expected to receive the formal letter of approval this week, said the source, who declined to be identified. Temasek has said it held an estimated 9 percent stake in Merrill Lynch at the end of March. The additional investment will raise that to between 13.0 percent and 14.0 percent, the source said.
■ENERGY
EON cuts 1,800 jobs
The biggest German power company, EON, will cut 1,800 jobs in Germany as it reorganizes its distribution network, a senior executive said yesterday. The company intends to regroup six of its seven regional units, Klaus-Dieter Maubach told the Die Welt newspaper. “From 60 sites at present there should be no more than 20 in the future,” Maubach said, leading to the loss of 1,800 posts from a total of 15,000. “No one will be laid off,” the head of the Energie unit said.
■TAKEOVERS
WPP bid turned down
British market research group Taylor Nelson Sofres again rebuffed a £1.1 billion (US$2 billion) hostile bid from WPP after preferred suitor GfK dropped its takeover attempt yesterday. TNS, which reported strong first-half results and gave a confident full-year outlook, said the offer from advertising group WPP undervalued the company and said it would recommend again that shareholders reject the cash-and-shares bid. “I believe that WPP is being opportunistic at a time in the market when the market is low,” chief executive David Lowden told reporters on a conference call. GfK, which had spent months trying to find finance to fund an all-cash bid for TNS after WPP’s bid scuppered its original agreed merger plans, said it had not found suitable terms.
■AUTOMOBILES
Most expensive car unveiled
Aston Martin has released scant details and sketches of its new super car codenamed One-77 that will sell for at least 1.3 million euros (US$1.95 million), excluding tax, making it the most expensive car on the market. Each of the 77 limited edition Aston Martins will be tailored to the individual buyer and the engineers and designers will work out the exact specifications with the future owner. The car’s aluminum body will be handcrafted and the owner will even be able to choose his or her own exhaust note. The V12 engine has a top speed of 354kph accelerating from zero to 100kph in 3.5 seconds, producing about 700 hp. The first cars are expected to be delivered to customers at the end of next year.
■SHIPBUILDING
Firms seek stake in Daewoo
Hyundai Heavy Industries Co, steelmaker POSCO and two other Korean companies officially expressed interest yesterday in acquiring a majority stake in Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering Co, state banking officials said. The state-run Korea Development Bank was arranging the sale of a 50.4 percent stake in the world’s third-largest shipbuilder at an estimated cost of 7 trillion won (US$6.45 billion). Energy and construction-focused GS Group and Hanwha Group, led by chemicals maker Hanwha Corp, have also submitted letters of intent for the acquisition. The bank is to pick a bidder by October.
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