■PROPERTY
Group eyes British Land
An Asian-backed consortium is eyeing a takeover of property giant British Land in a deal that could be worth up to £10 billion (US$16.6 billion), the Daily Telegraph reported yesterday. The consortium, thought to include Indian steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal and the Abu Dhabi ruling family, has approached Credit Suisse to prepare a possible bid that would include funds to cover Land’s debt, the Daily Telegraph said. The paper said the plans were at an early stage and that the consortium had not approached British Land.
■FINANCE
Man Group sells final stake
British hedge fund Man Group said yesterday it had sold its remaining stake in broker MF Global to Japanese bank Nomura for US$112 million. “The transaction is the final step in Man Group’s complete disposal of MF Global shares following its IPO [initial public offering] in July 2007,” Man Group said in a statement. The stake represents 18.6 percent of MF Global, a spokesman for Man Group said.
■STEEL
ThyssenKrupp posts loss
German steelmaker ThyssenKrupp yesterday reported a third-quarter net loss of 630 million euros (US$900 million) as the global recession cut into demand for steel. The Duesseldorf-based company, Germany’s largest steel producer, said the loss comes after a profit of 613 million euros in the same period last fiscal year. Sales for the quarter fell to 789 million euros from 2.5 billion euros a year ago, a 68 percent decline. The company said it expected a pretax loss for the full fiscal year “in the upper three-digit million euro range” because of a significant drop in sales and orders.
■BANKING
PRC bank to raise funds
China Merchants Bank (招商銀行) said yesterday it planned to raise up to 18 billion yuan (US$2.6 billion) via a rights issue in Shanghai and Hong Kong, aimed at strengthening its capital base. The bank plans to offer up to 3.8 billion new shares to existing shareholders, it said in a filing to the Shanghai Stock Exchange. The rights offering still needs the go-ahead from regulators and approval from its shareholders, it said.
■RETAIL
Isetan to add China outlets
Japanese department store chain Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings Ltd plans to open five new outlets in China by 2014 to double its network in the country, media reports said yesterday. Isetan, which already has five stores in four Chinese cities, is in talks with real estate firms and partners to open new outlets in Shanghai and other coastal cities, the Nikkei Shimbun and other newspapers reported. It plans to open a store in Shanghai as early as 2011, with about 30,000m² in floor space, the Yomiuri Shimbun said.
■MINING
Felix OKs Yanzhou takeover
Australian miner Felix Resources Ltd on Thursday approved a A$3.32 billion (US$2.8 billion) takeover bid from China’s Yanzhou Coal Mining (兗州煤業), making the deal the largest takeover of an Australian company by a Chinese firm. The deal requires the approval of foreign investment regulators and the Australian government. “The Yanzhou offer allows shareholders to benefit from the certainty of cash consideration which fully values Felix, without taking on the risks associated with Felix’s next phase of growth,” Felix chairman Travers Duncan said in a statement.
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
BULLY TACTICS: Beijing has continued its incursions into Taiwan’s airspace even as Xi Jinping talked about Taiwan being part of the Chinese family and nation China should stop its coercion of Taiwan and respect mainstream public opinion in Taiwan about sovereignty if its expression of goodwill is genuine, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said yesterday. Ministry spokesman Jeff Liu (劉永健) made the comment in response to media queries about a meeting between former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) the previous day. Ma voiced support for the so-called “1992 consensus,” while Xi said that although the two sides of the Taiwan Strait have “different systems,” this does not change the fact that they are “part of the same country,” and that “external
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