■CHEMICALS
BASF to buy Cognis
The German chemical giant BASF said yesterday that it would buy the German specialist chemical company Cognis in a deal worth 3.1 billion euros (US$3.8 billion). BASF said it had agreed terms of a sale with the owners of Cognis, the investment fund Permira and US investment bank Goldman Sachs. The deal is based on “an equity purchase price of 700 million euros,” a statement said. “Including net financial debt and pension obligations, the enterprise value of the transaction is 3.1 billion euros.” Cognis produces chemicals used in a wide range of products, from cosmetics to adhesives and lubricants. It has 5,500 employees and posted sales last year of 2.6 billion euros.
■ELECTRONICS
Apple sold 3 million iPads
Apple iPad sales have hit the 3 million mark and are showing no signs of flagging. The Cupertino, California-based gadget maker announced on Tuesday that it sold its 3 millionth iPad on Monday, just 80 days after the touchscreen tablet computer first became available in US stores. The iPad went on sale in the US on April 3 and Apple sold 1 million of the devices in the first 28 days and 2 million in two months. Apple also said software developers have created more than 11,000 applications for the iPad, which runs most of the more than 225,000 mini-programs developed for the iPhone and the iPod Touch.
■AUTOMAKERS
Toshiba, Ford join forces
Japanese electronics giant Toshiba said yesterday it will build electric motors for a new Ford hybrid vehicle at its plant in the US. The company, already building motors for bullet trains, elevators and machinery, is looking to expand its business ahead of rivals in anticipation of increased demand for electric vehicles. The firm will produce high-performance drive motors for hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs), plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) and electric vehicles (EVs) under “a major contract for Ford Motor Company,” it said. The production will be Toshiba’s first overseas manufacturing base for autos.
■BANKING
Seven to invest in China
Australian media and investment company Seven Group Holdings Ltd said yesterday it had reached agreement with the Agricultural Bank of China (中國農業銀行) to invest US$250 million in the lender’s record-breaking initial public offering (IPO). Agricultural Bank of China, the last of China’s “big four” state-owned banks to seek a share listing, last week began marketing for an IPO in Shanghai and Hong Kong that is likely to exceed US$20 billion, making it the world’s biggest IPO ever. The bank plans to sell up to 53 billion shares in separate listings on the two exchanges, equal to 15 percent of its equity.
■COSMETICS
Minister’s wife drops heiress
French Labor Minister Eric Woerth said his wife was stepping down from her job managing assets for L’Oreal SA heiress Liliane Bettencourt, whose alleged tax irregularities have kicked up a political storm in the country. Florence Woerth worked in a company that handled the dividends received by Bettencourt, France’s richest woman. Transcripts of an alleged conversation by Bettencourt, taped secretly by her butler and published on the Web site of Mediapart, suggested that the heiress was planning on evading taxes, the news service 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