■INSURANCE
Taiwan AIG deal approved
Bank of East Asia Ltd (東亞銀行) said it has received regulatory approval to buy American International Group Inc’s wealth management services in Taiwan. The Hong Kong-listed bank received approval from the Investment Commission under the Ministry of Economic Affairs for the acquisition, the company said in a statement. The bank said it expected the transaction to be completed by the end of this month.
■SECURITIES
President plans joint venture
President Securities Corp (統一證券) plans to set up a brokerage joint venture with Xiamen C&D Inc (廈門建發) of China, the Chinese-language Commercial Times reported yesterday, citing an unnamed official with the Fujian provincial government. President Securities opened a representative office in Xiamen in September last year. The Taiwanese brokerage said it was still discussing the plan with Xiamen C&D, the newspaper said. The joint venture will be made public only after the two sides sign memorandums of understanding on financial supervisory, the paper said.
■SECURITIES
China bans trader
China’s securities regulator permanently banned Zhang Ye (張野), a former fund manager at Rongtong Fund Management Co (融通基金), from entering the nation’s capital market after finding him guilty of illegal trading. When a fund manager, Zhang misused trading and research information from Rongtong to benefit himself and other people between 2007 and this February, the China Securities Regulatory Commission said in a statement on its Web site on Friday. Zhang will be fined 4 million yuan (US$585,100) and the 2.3 million yuan he gained from illegal trading will be confiscated, the statement said.
■TELECOMS
Nokia to buy Nortel business
Canadian telecommunications company Nortel that has been in bankruptcy protection since January announced on Friday that it will sell most of its wireless business to Nokia Siemens Networks for US$650 million. In addition, Nortel announced that it is advancing in its discussions with other parties to sell its other businesses. Nortel will apply to delist its common shares from trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange, the company said in a statement.
■AUTOMOTIVE
Objections may stall GM
A group of General Motors Corp (GM) bondholders and some of the automaker’s labor unions filed objections on Friday to GM’s plan to sell its assets to a new company that can emerge from bankruptcy protection. Their opposition, along with additional objections filed by consumer groups, a handful of states and cities, and individual retirees, shareholders and bondholders, threatens to put the brakes on what has so far been a speedy trip through the bankruptcy process.
■ENERGY
Total sacks 647 strikers
Strikes spread to energy facilities across Britain Friday after almost 650 workers were sacked at an oil refinery after they called a wildcat strike, unions said. French oil giant Total, the owner of the Lindsey refinery in Lincolnshire, eastern England, said it had sent termination letters to 647 workers, after previous reports said that 900 would be affected. The dispute deepened when talks to try to resolve it failed to take place.
TAKING STOCK: A Taiwanese cookware firm in Vietnam urged customers to assess inventory or place orders early so shipments can reach the US while tariffs are paused Taiwanese businesses in Vietnam are exploring alternatives after the White House imposed a 46 percent import duty on Vietnamese goods, following US President Donald Trump’s announcement of “reciprocal” tariffs on the US’ trading partners. Lo Shih-liang (羅世良), chairman of Brico Industry Co (裕茂工業), a Taiwanese company that manufactures cast iron cookware and stove components in Vietnam, said that more than 40 percent of his business was tied to the US market, describing the constant US policy shifts as an emotional roller coaster. “I work during the day and stay up all night watching the news. I’ve been following US news until 3am
UNCERTAINTY: Innolux activated a stringent supply chain management mechanism, as it did during the COVID-19 pandemic, to ensure optimal inventory levels for customers Flat-panel display makers AUO Corp (友達) and Innolux Corp (群創) yesterday said that about 12 to 20 percent of their display business is at risk of potential US tariffs and that they would relocate production or shipment destinations to mitigate the levies’ effects. US tariffs would have a direct impact of US$200 million on AUO’s revenue, company chairman Paul Peng (彭雙浪) told reporters on the sidelines of the Touch Taiwan trade show in Taipei yesterday. That would make up about 12 percent of the company’s overall revenue. To cope with the tariff uncertainty, AUO plans to allocate its production to manufacturing facilities in
Six years ago, LVMH’s billionaire CEO Bernard Arnault and US President Donald Trump cut the blue ribbon on a factory in rural Texas that would make designer handbags for Louis Vuitton, one of the world’s best-known luxury brands. However, since the high-profile opening, the factory has faced a host of problems limiting production, 11 former Louis Vuitton employees said. The site has consistently ranked among the worst-performing for Louis Vuitton globally, “significantly” underperforming other facilities, said three former Louis Vuitton workers and a senior industry source, who cited internal rankings shared with staff. The plant’s problems — which have not
COLLABORATION: Given Taiwan’s key position in global supply chains, the US firm is discussing strategies with local partners and clients to deal with global uncertainties Advanced Micro Devices Inc (AMD) yesterday said it is meeting with local ecosystem partners, including Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), to discuss strategies, including long-term manufacturing, to navigate uncertainties such as US tariffs, as Taiwan occupies an important position in global supply chains. AMD chief executive officer Lisa Su (蘇姿丰) told reporters that Taiwan is an important part of the chip designer’s ecosystem and she is discussing with partners and customers in Taiwan to forge strong collaborations on different areas during this critical period. AMD has just become the first artificial-intelligence (AI) server chip customer of TSMC to utilize its advanced
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