TELECOMS
Vodafone told to pay deposit
Vodafone Group PLC, the world’s biggest mobile phone company by sales, was ordered by India’s Supreme Court to pay a deposit while it challenges a tax bill for the country’s largest cross--border deal. A Supreme Court panel headed by Chief Justice S.H. Kapadia told Vodafone yesterday it has to set aside 25 billion rupees (US$554 million) with the court within three weeks and submit bank guarantees for 85 billion rupees in eight weeks. India is seeking 112 billion rupees on Vodafone’s purchase of Hutchison Whampoa Ltd’s (和記黃埔) local mobile phone unit three years ago.
REAL ESTATE
China limits foreign buyers
China has limited foreigners to buying one property for residence purposes to curb rising real estate prices in the country, according to a statement issued by the State Administration of Foreign Exchange yesterday. Overseas companies and institutions will only be able to buy properties in cities in which they are registered, the statement said. Foreigners will have to provide proof of at least a year’s employment in China to purchase property, the statement said.
AUTOMOBILES
SAIC, GM agree to deal
China’s SAIC Motor Corp Ltd (上海汽車) has agreed to take a stake in General Motors Co (GM) if Chinese regulators approve a deal to deepen an existing alliance between the two automakers, four people familiar with the matter said. The potential investment from SAIC is part of a surge in investor interest in GM that is expected to push the pricing of its shares to US$29 or above in the the US automaker’s initial public offering, one of the sources said. Another source said SAIC, GM’s partner in China, would take a stake of around 1 percent in the automaker, majority owned by the US Treasury after a bailout last year.
IRELAND
Talks with Europe confirmed
The government is in talks with European officials about current “market conditions” as Germany pushes it to accept a bailout and help reverse a bond sell-off among the euro-region’s deficit-laden nations. “Ongoing contacts continue at official level with international colleagues in light of current market conditions,” a Finance Ministry spokesman said in an e-mail late yesterday. “Ireland has made no application for external support” and the government is “fully funded till well into 2011.” The confirmation of talks comes as euro-region finance ministers prepare to meet in Brussels today. Allaying investor concerns about Irish finances would help advance German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s plan to require investors to help pay for future rescues, a German government official said.
TELECOMS
Indian minister resigns
Indian telecommunications minister Andimuthu Raja has resigned amid allegations that his handling of the 2008 sale of licenses for cellphone airwaves resulted in massive losses for the government. Raja, who belongs to a southern Indian political party that is a key ally of Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s Congress party, came under heavy pressure to resign after a government inquiry reportedly alleged that the sale of second generation (2G) wireless spectrum had resulted in a 1.76 trillion rupees loss to the treasury. Critics charge that Raja’s allocation of 2G spectrum was improperly based on 2001 prices and unfairly awarded licenses on a first come, first served basis, rather than by auction.
Zhang Yazhou was sitting in the passenger seat of her Tesla Model 3 when she said she heard her father’s panicked voice: The brakes do not work. Approaching a red light, her father swerved around two cars before plowing into a sport utility vehicle and a sedan, and crashing into a large concrete barrier. Stunned, Zhang gazed at the deflating airbag in front of her. She could never have imagined what was to come: Tesla Inc sued her for defamation for complaining publicly about the vehicles brakes — and won. A Chinese court ordered Zhang to pay more than US$23,000 in
‘LEGACY CHIPS’: Chinese companies have dramatically increased mature chip production capacity, but the West’s drive for secure supply chains offers a lifeline for Taiwan When Powerchip Technology Corp (力晶科技) entered a deal with the eastern Chinese city of Hefei in 2015 to set up a new chip foundry, it hoped the move would help provide better access to the promising Chinese market. However, nine years later, that Chinese foundry, Nexchip Semiconductor Corp (合晶集成), has become one of its biggest rivals in the legacy chip space, leveraging steep discounts after Beijing’s localization call forced Powerchip to give up the once-lucrative business making integrated circuits for Chinese flat panels. Nexchip is among Chinese foundries quickly winning market share in the crucial US$56.3 billion industry of so-called legacy
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) yesterday held its first board of directors meeting in the US, at which it did not unveil any new US investments despite mounting tariff threats from US President Donald Trump. Trump has threatened to impose 100 percent tariffs on Taiwan-made chips, prompting market speculation that TSMC might consider boosting its chip capacity in the US or ramping up production of advanced chips such as those using a 2-nanometer technology process at its Arizona fabs ahead of schedule. Speculation also swirled that the chipmaker might consider building its own advanced packaging capacity in the US as part
‘NO DISRUPTION’: A US trade association said that it was ready to work with the US administration to streamline the program’s requirements and achieve shared goals The White House is seeking to renegotiate US CHIPS and Science Act awards and has signaled delays to some upcoming semiconductor disbursements, two sources familiar with the matter told reporters. The people, along with a third source, said that the new US administration is reviewing the projects awarded under the 2022 law, meant to boost US domestic semiconductor output with US$39 billion in subsidies. Washington plans to renegotiate some of the deals after assessing and changing current requirements, the sources said. The extent of the possible changes and how they would affect agreements already finalized was not immediately clear. It was not known