European stocks rose this week, with the STOXX Europe 600 Index rallying the most in 10 months, after the EU unveiled a loan package worth almost US$1 trillion to contain the region’s sovereign-debt crisis.
A measure of banks in the STOXX 600 rallied the most since August, after the biggest fall in a year last week. ING Groep NV, the biggest Dutch financial-services company, surged 22 percent, while Banco Santander SA, Spain’s largest lender, gained 7.9 percent. BT Group PLC surged 19 percent after profit beat analysts’ estimates.
The STOXX 600 increased 4.8 percent to 248.46 this week, the biggest advance since July last year, as all 19 industry groups rallied. The gauge has still retreated 8.7 percent from this year’s high on April 15, and slumped 3.4 percent on Friday, amid lingering concern that the region’s debt crisis will hamper economic growth.
The bailout package “has allowed calm to return to financial markets by providing more breathing space for troubled euro zone economies to get their finances in better shape,” ING’s London-based economist James Knightley wrote in a report on Friday. “Individual economies are responding with Spain and Portugal announcing aggressive fiscal tightening measures, but success depends on the resolve of politicians and citizens. Consequently, confidence remains fragile.”
National benchmark indexes rose in all but one of 18 western European markets. Germany’s DAX added 6 percent, while the UK’s FTSE 100 increased 2.7 percent. France’s CAC-40 Index gained 5 percent. Greece’s ASE Index added 1.7 percent. Spain’s IBEX 35 gained 3 percent.
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
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
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