■BANKING
Shinsei, Aozora in talks
Troubled Japanese lenders Shinsei and Aozora said yesterday that they were exploring a possible merger that would create the nation’s sixth-biggest commercial bank. Shinsei Bank and Aozora Bank both confirmed in statements that they were holding discussions about a possible tie-up but gave no details. Earlier yesterday, public broadcaster NHK reported, without naming its sources, that the pair had reached a basic agreement to merge next year. The lenders are struggling to find a niche in the face of a weak economy and financial markets as well as growing competition with larger rivals.
■ELECTRONICS
Panasonic to halt buybacks
Panasonic Corp will suspend share buybacks this year to secure funds for investments in businesses that can drive growth, president Fumio Ohtsubo said. “When the economy recovers, the electronics market won’t be the same,” Ohtsubo told shareholders yesterday at their annual meeting in Osaka. “Securing funds for growth is the priority” for Panasonic, to weather a market transition toward environmentally friendly products and cheaper goods, he said. The maker of Viera televisions, which forecasts a net loss of ¥195 billion (US$2.03 billion) in the year ending March 31, spent more than ¥70 billion annually buying back shares for eight years until March this year, said Akira Kadota, a spokesman for Panasonic.
■FINANCIAL SERVICES
Citigroup to raise salaries
Citigroup Inc is raising salaries companywide to offset restrictions on bonuses after the troubled bank accepted US$45 billion of federal bailout money, but the move could backfire if it drives top-performing workers to other employers. According to people familiar with the plans, the changes mean some employees may be paid more and others less, but overall compensation should remain unchanged as higher salaries offset lower incentive payouts. Citigroup also expects to issue new stock options to cushion a roughly 95 percent drop in its stock price since late 2006, one of the sources said.
■INVESTMENT
Buffett lunch proves costly
It’s extremely unlikely billionaire Warren Buffett would ever pay US$2.1 million for lunch, because the Omaha investor prefers hamburgers and Cherry Cokes. But Chinese investment fund manager Zhao Danyang (趙丹陽) paid that much to dine with Berkshire Hathaway’s chairman and CEO on Wednesday as part of a charity auction. During a CNBC interview before lunch, Buffett joked that he hoped he wouldn’t have to leave a 10 percent tip. A new lunch auction began on Sunday and runs through today. The top bid on eBay by Wednesday afternoon was US$135,678, but that is almost certain to grow before the auction ends.
■ENERGY
Gazprom may cut program
Russia’s state-controlled gas monopoly Gazprom said yesterday it may cut its investment program by 30 percent this year due to a weakening in its finances. The Gazprom deputy chief for finances, Andrei Kruglov, told a news conference that “the current difficult situation will call for a change of plans.” He said the board of directors will consider a new budget in September. The company’s board earlier approved a 920 billion ruble (US$29.4 billion) investment program for this year. Gazprom Deputy CEO Alexander Medvedev said on Wednesday that the company expects sales to drop by about 40 percent this year despite increased consumption in Europe in recent months.
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