■FINANCE
Data spat resolved
Switzerland and France have resolved a spat over data stolen from the Geneva branch of banking giant HSBC, Swiss Finance Minister Hans-Rudolf Merz said on Wednesday. “We have found an accord concerning the stolen data,” Merz told Swiss news agency ATS after meeting French President Nicolas Sarkozy on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum annual meeting at the Swiss ski resort of Davos. France assured Switzerland that the data would not be transmitted to other countries.
■AUTOMOBILES
Ford reports earnings
Ford Motor Co reported yesterday net earnings of US$868 million in the fourth quarter, enabling the struggling automaker to show a US$2.7 billion profit for all of last year. The No. 2 US automaker, which posted its first full year of positive net income since 2005, said it expected to remain profitable this year, marking a faster-than-expected turnaround after years of steep losses.
■ENERGY
Peak oil ‘behind us’
The head of Saudi oil giant Aramco, Khalid al Falih, said at the Davos forum yesterday that worries about oil production reaching a peak are now over. “We feel that the whole issue that came to the surface and created a lot of concern about peak oil is behind us,” he told a World Economic Forum session on the global energy outlook. Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev also sought to ease concerns about supplies. “Today’s level of oil price is I think acceptable for companies, for consumers and for the countries. This level of price allows us to invest more to find more oil and gas,” he told the meeting. Oil is currently trading at about US$73 a barrel.
■RETAIL
Profits rise for Hennes chain
Swedish fashion chain Hennes & Mauritz AB yesterday reported a 21 percent rise in fourth-quarter net profit, as new store openings helped it defy the weak market. Europe’s No. 2 fashion retailer said net profit in the three months to Nov. 30, its fiscal fourth quarter, increased to 6.2 billion kronor (US$851 million) from 5.1 billion kronor in the same period a year ago. Sales, excluding VAT, rose 6.5 percent to 28 billion kronor from 26.3 billion kronor and the gross margin was 66.3 percent, up from 62.4 percent in the fourth quarter of 2008. Full year net profit rose by 7 percent to 16.4 billion kronor, while full year sales climbed 15 percent to 101.4 billion kronor.
■AVIATION
Boeing swings to profit
US aerospace giant Boeing reported on Wednesday a swing into profit in the fourth quarter on soaring sales, but said it faces “significant” challenges that could impact results this year. Boeing posted fourth-quarter earnings of US$1.268 billion, lifted by a surge in revenues. For all of last year, Boeing said it had a net profit of US$1.312 billion, less than half of what it made in the previous year.
■ENERGY
PetroChina signs Iraq deal
A consortium led by oil giant PetroChina (中石油) has formally signed a 20-year deal with Iraq to develop the Halfaya oil field, as China boosts its presence in the crude-rich region. PetroChina, France’s Total, Malaysia’s Petronas and Iraq’s South Oil will develop the field in southern Iraq, which has proven reserves of about 4.1 billion barrels, the Chinese company said in a statement late on Wednesday.
MORE VISITORS: The Tourism Administration said that it is seeing positive prospects in its efforts to expand the tourism market in North America and Europe Taiwan has been ranked as the cheapest place in the world to travel to this year, based on a list recommended by NerdWallet. The San Francisco-based personal finance company said that Taiwan topped the list of 16 nations it chose for budget travelers because US tourists do not need visas and travelers can easily have a good meal for less than US$10. A bus ride in Taipei costs just under US$0.50, while subway rides start at US$0.60, the firm said, adding that public transportation in Taiwan is easy to navigate. The firm also called Taiwan a “food lover’s paradise,” citing inexpensive breakfast stalls
TRADE: A mandatory declaration of origin for manufactured goods bound for the US is to take effect on May 7 to block China from exploiting Taiwan’s trade channels All products manufactured in Taiwan and exported to the US must include a signed declaration of origin starting on May 7, the Bureau of Foreign Trade announced yesterday. US President Donald Trump on April 2 imposed a 32 percent tariff on imports from Taiwan, but one week later announced a 90-day pause on its implementation. However, a universal 10 percent tariff was immediately applied to most imports from around the world. On April 12, the Trump administration further exempted computers, smartphones and semiconductors from the new tariffs. In response, President William Lai’s (賴清德) administration has introduced a series of countermeasures to support affected
CROSS-STRAIT: The vast majority of Taiwanese support maintaining the ‘status quo,’ while concern is rising about Beijing’s influence operations More than eight out of 10 Taiwanese reject Beijing’s “one country, two systems” framework for cross-strait relations, according to a survey released by the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Thursday. The MAC’s latest quarterly survey found that 84.4 percent of respondents opposed Beijing’s “one country, two systems” formula for handling cross-strait relations — a figure consistent with past polling. Over the past three years, opposition to the framework has remained high, ranging from a low of 83.6 percent in April 2023 to a peak of 89.6 percent in April last year. In the most recent poll, 82.5 percent also rejected China’s
PLUGGING HOLES: The amendments would bring the legislation in line with systems found in other countries such as Japan and the US, Legislator Chen Kuan-ting said Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chen Kuan-ting (陳冠廷) has proposed amending national security legislation amid a spate of espionage cases. Potential gaps in security vetting procedures for personnel with access to sensitive information prompted him to propose the amendments, which would introduce changes to Article 14 of the Classified National Security Information Protection Act (國家機密保護法), Chen said yesterday. The proposal, which aims to enhance interagency vetting procedures and reduce the risk of classified information leaks, would establish a comprehensive security clearance system in Taiwan, he said. The amendment would require character and loyalty checks for civil servants and intelligence personnel prior to
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