■OIL
Shell overhauls divisions
British energy group Royal Dutch Shell yesterday unveiled a drastic overhaul of the company’s structure but gave no details on potential job losses. The group said in a statement it would merge its exploration and production, gas and power, and oil sands units into two new divisions. The overhaul comes as incoming chief executive Peter Voser seeks to register an impact on the company. Voser takes over from current boss Jeroen van der Veer on July 1, when the changes will also be implemented. The reorganization will affect around 24,000 Shell staff, but a company spokesman declined to comment on how many jobs may be cut.
■ELECTRONICS
Haier invests in N Zealand
New Zealand’s Fisher & Paykel Appliances said yesterday that Chinese appliance and electronics giant Haier (海爾) will take a 20 percent stake in the company. The white goods manufacturer has been trying to restructure its debt, which ballooned to NZ$518 million (US$323.5 million) as it shifted manufacturing to cheaper countries such as Thailand and Mexico, and as the New Zealand dollar swelled its foreign debt. The Chinese company, which employs 60,000 people worldwide, would invest between NZ$80 million and NZ$82 million, Fisher & Paykel said.
■AUTOMOBILES
Talks begin on Opel’s fate
The fate of tens of thousands of workers hung in the balance yesterday as Berlin prepared a crunch meeting to select its preferred bidder for struggling General Motors subsidiary Opel. German Chancellor Angela Merkel will begin talks yesterday with top politicians from Berlin and Washington, as well as representatives from the three bidding firms that have placed official bids, Magna, RHJ International and Fiat. And in a last-minute dramatic twist to the long-running saga, Berlin confirmed it had also received interest from a Chinese firm, reportedly the Beijing Automotive Industry Corp (北京汽車工業).
■TELECOMS
Phoning for cash offered
Japan’s top mobile telephone operator NTT DoCoMo said yesterday it aimed to launch a new service enabling cash transfers simply by entering the recipient’s cellphone number. After applying online, users would be able to send money to another DoCoMo subscriber’s bank account even if they do not know their bank details. The amount will be charged to the sender’s phone bill, company spokesman Taishi Hoshino said. “We hope to begin the service as early as this summer,” he said. Transfers are expected to be limited to about ¥30,000 (US$316) a month for each subscriber, he said. Further details such as DoCoMo’s banking partner and the service charge will be decided soon.
■STEEL
ArcelorMittal issues bond
ArcelorMittal, the world’s biggest steel maker, yesterday announced a 2.5 billion euro (US$3.5 billion) bond issue as the steel giant struggles amid a collapse in demand. “The proceeds ... will be used to lengthen the debt maturity profile and to refinance existing indebtedness,” the Luxembourg-based company said in a statement, adding that the offering was set to close next Wednesday. ArcelorMittal has been badly hit by the global economic crisis. The company reported a net loss of more than US$1 billion in the first quarter and has halted or reduced production at many facilities around the world.
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