■FINANCE
Pang’s death not foul play
Foul play was ruled out on Sunday in the death of indicted Taiwan-born financier Danny Pang (彭日成), but it could be months before the details of his death are revealed, authorities said. The Orange County coroner’s office said an autopsy found that no foul play was involved, but it would take two to three months before toxicology tests could be completed and a cause of death for Pang could be offered, deputy Mitchell Segal said. Pang, a Taiwanese immigrant who was accused by federal investigators of bilking international investors out of millions, died on Saturday at Hoag Hospital in Newport Beach a day after police and paramedics were called to his house.
■PROPERTY
Singapore tightens lending
Singapore yesterday announced measures to curb speculation in the red-hot property market following warnings that a new bubble might be forming despite an economic slowdown. The Ministry of National Development signaled it was ready to sell more state land for property projects and announced an end to bank loan schemes that allow buyers to purchase homes with just a 10 or 20 percent initial payment.
■JAPAN
July output rose 2.1 percent
Factory output rose by 2.1 percent in July from June, slightly more than previously thought, for a fifth straight monthly gain, official data showed yesterday. The government had forecast last month that industrial production would edge up 1.9 percent in July. Japan’s economy, the second largest in the world, returned to positive growth in the April-to-June period, exiting a year-long recession. But domestic demand remains weak and unemployment hit a post-war high of 5.7 percent in July.
■AVIATION
JAL mum on ‘alliances’
Shares of Japan Airlines Corp (JAL) surged yesterday amid speculation that American Airlines and Delta Air Lines could buy stakes in the money-losing carrier. Under a major restructuring plan, JAL is looking to raise ¥250 billion (US$2.8 billion) from banks, investment funds and airlines including Delta, the Nikkei Shimbun reported. Japan’s largest airline said in a statement yesterday that media reports of tie-ups with foreign carriers were not based on official information from the company and that nothing had been decided.
■FINANCE
CLSA to compensate staff
CLSA Asia-Pacific Markets plans to expand its work force by about 15 percent next year and compensate more than a third of its workers for salary cuts made this year as markets recover, CEO Jonathan Slone said. CLSA will add about 200 people globally next year to tap growth in equity commissions and advisory business, Slone said in an interview on Friday in Hong Kong. At the end of this month, CLSA will pay about 500 senior staff the wages they lost following salary cuts made during the crisis, he said.
■COMPUTERS
EMC hires Intel executive
EMC Corp, the world’s biggest maker of storage computers, hired Intel Corp executive Patrick Gelsinger and said CEO Joseph Tucci will stay on for at least three more years. Gelsinger, 48, will oversee all of EMC’s infrastructure products, except those made by VMware Inc, said Michael Gallant, a spokesman for Massachusetts-based EMC. Tucci, who took the helm in 2001, will stay in the CEO and chairman role through 2012, Gallant said.
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
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
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