■RECREATION
Shanghai Disney goes ahead
Disney could start building its planned theme park in Shanghai as early as November, a year after Chinese authorities gave the green light for the project, the China Business News reported yesterday. “Talks on the Disney project are in the final stages and the construction is expected to start as early as November,” the report said, citing an unnamed source. The park would be Disney’s fourth outside the US and its third in Asia, after Paris, Tokyo and Hong Kong.
■EQUITIES
China to lead IPO market
China is on track to become the world’s biggest initial public offering (IPO) market this year in terms of both the number of new listings and funds raised, according to PricewaterhouseCoopers. The total number of new listings on the country’s two bourses in Shanghai and Shenzhen may reach 300 this year, compared with 99 last year, a forecast published this week said. Chinese companies are expected to raise 500 billion yuan (US$73.6 billion) in IPOs this year, it said.
■ARGENTINA
Restructuring deal accepted
More than two-thirds of the nation’s creditors have accepted a deal with Buenos Aires ending their long-running debt dispute, the Ministry of Economy said on Monday. Heralding the country’s return to the financial mainstream, the ministry said 70.2 percent of creditors who held debt that the country defaulted on had agreed to the latest restructuring deal, worth US$18.3 billion. That topped the preliminary news announced last month of a 66 percent acceptance rate, worth more than US$12 billion. The government has offered to swap defaulted bonds at a third of their nominal value in a bid to restore its international credit standing.
■ELECTRONICS
Samsung raises sales target
Samsung Electronics Co, the world’s largest television maker, raised its target for global flat-panel television sales this year to as many as 50 million units on increased demand. The company previously set a target of 39 million units, company spokesman James Chung said yesterday by telephone. Meanwhile, Samsung, LG and Hyundai Motor Group will team up to develop flexible display material, the Maeil Business Newspaper reported, citing officials from the South Korean Ministry of Knowledge Economy and related industries.
■AVIATION
Air France to cut 4,100 jobs
Air France will cut its work force by about 4,100 people by March 2013, union sources said on Monday. Jose Rocamorra, of the CGT union, said there was no plan for layoffs but over the next three years the airline will see its workforce reduced by way of voluntary departures. A document seen by reporters showed that Air France planned to shrink its work force by 4,109 posts to just under 47,700 by end-March 2013.
■MINING
Rio completes Alcan sales
Mining company Rio Tinto Ltd said yesterday it had completed divestment of its Alcan Packaging business following the sales of its final two assets, Medical Flexibles and Alcan Beauty Packaging. Medical Flexibles, which comprises four North American plants, has been acquired by Amcor for US$66 million after recently receiving approval from the US Department of Justice. The beauty packaging business was acquired by Sun European Partners LLP for an undisclosed sum, Rio 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
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