■ENERGY
BP, partners strike deal
BP agreed to a deal with the oligarch co-owners of TNK-BP yesterday that overhauls the Russian oil’s major management and sets a possible flotation of up to 20 percent of the company, ending months of increasingly hostile dispute. BP has agreed in principle to a number of its partners’ demands, including the removal of TNK-BP’s BP-nominated chief executive Bob Dudley and the appointment of independent directors. The British oil company said in a statement the two sides had signed a memorandum of understanding, which would be finalized in the coming months. “It will create a stable base from which to grow the joint venture to the benefit of everyone involved, including the Russian state for which strong capital investment and continued technical innovation to boost declining oil output are so important,” BP chairman Peter Sutherland said in the statement.
■FINANCE
MUFG denies news report
Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc (MUFG) yesterday denied a news report that the Japanese megabank was considering bidding for a stake in troubled US investment bank Lehman Brothers. “The report is not true,” MUFG spokesman Takashi Miwa said without elaborating further. The Times reported on Wednesday that MUFG would make a bid for a “substantial” stake in Lehman, which suffered billions of dollars in writedowns and credit losses in the crisis triggered by the meltdown in US subprime mortgages. It possibly even aims to take control of Lehman, the newspaper said. Citing senior sources close to Japan’s largest financial group, the daily said MUFG viewed the possible acquisition of Lehman as a “once in a lifetime” opportunity.
■FOOD
Nestle Americas chief quits
Swiss food and drinks giant Nestle SA said yesterday that its Americas chief Paul Polman resigned. Polman is leaving to become chief executive of rival company Unilever PLC, Nestle said in a separate statement. The 52-year-old Dutchman was tipped as a possible successor to Nestle CEO Peter Brabeck-Letmathe, but lost out to Paul Bulcke last year. Nestle said its Europe chief Luis Cantarell would take over the Americas region from Polman.
■UNITED STATES
Economy slowing: Fed
The US economy is sputtering amid weak housing, difficult credit and “retrenchment” in consumer spending, while inflation pressures are high, the US Federal Reserve said in its Beige Book report on Wednesday. The report, to be used by its policymakers for their Sept. 16 meeting on interest rates, indicated little improvement from the sluggish pace of activity since July. Data from the 12 regional Fed banks “indicate that the pace of economic activity has been slow in most districts,” the Beige Book said. Some regions showed “weakening,” with others seeing modest improvement and others “stabilization,” the report said.
■GAMING
Xbox price to drop: report
Microsoft Corp plans to cut US prices of its Xbox 360 video game machine, lowering the price of its entry-level console to US$50 below Nintendo Co Ltd’s top-selling Wii, BusinessWeek reported on Wednesday. In an article on its Web site, the magazine said Microsoft would cut prices for its entry-level Xbox 360 Arcade to US$199 from its current price of US$279 and the prices of its mid-range and high end Xbox 360 consoles by US$50 each today, BusinessWeek said.
The Taiwanese passport ranked 33rd in a global listing of passports by convenience this month, rising three places from last month’s ranking, but matching its position in January last year. The Henley Passport Index, an international ranking of passports by the number of designations its holder can travel to without a visa, showed that the Taiwan passport enables holders to travel to 139 countries and territories without a visa. Singapore’s passport was ranked the most powerful with visa-free access to 192 destinations out of 227, according to the index published on Tuesday by UK-based migration investment consultancy firm Henley and Partners. Japan’s and
NATIONAL SECURITY THREAT: An official said that Guan Guan’s comments had gone beyond the threshold of free speech, as she advocated for the destruction of the ROC China-born media influencer Guan Guan’s (關關) residency permit has been revoked for repeatedly posting pro-China content that threatens national security, the National Immigration Agency said yesterday. Guan Guan has said many controversial things in her videos posted to Douyin (抖音), including “the red flag will soon be painted all over Taiwan” and “Taiwan is an inseparable part of China,” while expressing hope for expedited “reunification.” The agency received multiple reports alleging that Guan Guan had advocated for armed reunification last year. After investigating, the agency last month issued a notice requiring her to appear and account for her actions. Guan Guan appeared as required,
Japan and the Philippines yesterday signed a defense pact that would allow the tax-free provision of ammunition, fuel, food and other necessities when their forces stage joint training to boost deterrence against China’s growing aggression in the region and to bolster their preparation for natural disasters. Japan has faced increasing political, trade and security tensions with China, which was angered by Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s remark that a Chinese attack on Taiwan would be a survival-threatening situation for Japan, triggering a military response. Japan and the Philippines have also had separate territorial conflicts with Beijing in the East and South China
A strong cold air mass is expected to arrive tonight, bringing a change in weather and a drop in temperature, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The coldest time would be early on Thursday morning, with temperatures in some areas dipping as low as 8°C, it said. Daytime highs yesterday were 22°C to 24°C in northern and eastern Taiwan, and about 25°C to 28°C in the central and southern regions, it said. However, nighttime lows would dip to about 15°C to 16°C in central and northern Taiwan as well as the northeast, and 17°C to 19°C elsewhere, it said. Tropical Storm Nokaen, currently
RSS