AVIATION
easyJet to buy Airbus planes
British no-frills airline easyJet yesterday said it had agreed to buy 15 Airbus A320 single-aisle planes worth US$1.1 billion and had secured an option to buy another 33. “easyJet PLC today announced that it has reached agreement with Airbus to exercise existing options over 15 Airbus A320 aircraft for delivery between 2012 and 2014 and to secure new options over a further 33 A320 aircraft,” the company said. It added that “whilst the total list price for the 15 new A320 aircraft should be approximately US$1.1 billion ... easyJet has been granted substantial confidential price concessions” from European planemaker Airbus.
CONGLOMERATES
San Miguel eyes shipping
San Miguel Corp one of the Philippines’ largest companies, said yesterday it was planning a big investment in the local shipping industry, after a unit acquired a substantial stake in a Manila port. The company famous for its beer said it was setting aside an initial 20 billion pesos (US$457.5 million) for a project to house the supply requirements of its increasingly diverse businesses at a Manila harbor. “We advise that the company and its subsidiaries are evaluating the viability of constructing a centralized and integrated logistics complex within the Manila North Harbor area,” the listed firm said in a market disclosure.
ELECTRONICS
Motorola splits into two
Motorola split into two companies yesterday, marking the final step in the years-long breakup of the consumer electronics industry pioneer. Motorola began selling car radios in the 1930s, followed by TVs in the ‘40s and cellphones in the ‘80s. The breakup that began in 2008 is motivated by the desire to present two simple businesses to investors rather than one complicated one. Motorola split its consumer-oriented side, which makes cellphones, from the professional business of selling police radios and barcode scanners to government and corporate customers. The companies, Motorola Mobility and Motorola Solutions, began trading on the New York Stock Exchange yesterday.
INTERNET
Hotmail back to normal
Microsoft Corp’s Hotmail service, the world’s most-used online e-mail system, is back to normal operations on Monday after some users over the weekend lost access to e-mails or found them transferred to a deleted mail folder. The world’s largest software company, which has more than 360 million Hotmail users, said it had “restored full e-mail access and recovered content to those who were affected.” Microsoft’s online message boards and Twitter were abuzz with complaints on Sunday about the Hotmail glitch. Microsoft said it was still investigating the root cause of the problem, which started four days ago.
BANKING
US bankruptcies rise 9%
US consumer bankruptcy filings rose 9 percent last year compared with 2009, reaching 1.53 million, according to the American Bankruptcy Institute — lower than its projection that bankruptcies would total 1.6 million. The pace of bankruptcy filings slowed in the last quarter, with fewer petitions in October and November than during the same period a year earlier, the Alexandria, Virginia-based institute said. The slowdown at the end of the year was the result of more consumers reducing debt and cutting spending, institute executive director Samuel Gerdano said on Monday.
TECH PARTNERSHIP: The deal with Arizona-based Amkor would provide TSMC with advanced packing and test capacities, a requirement to serve US customers Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) is collaborating with Amkor Technology Inc to provide local advanced packaging and test capacities in Arizona to address customer requirements for geographical flexibility in chip manufacturing. As part of the agreement, TSMC, the world’s biggest contract chipmaker, would contract turnkey advanced packaging and test services from Amkor at their planned facility in Peoria, Arizona, a joint statement released yesterday said. TSMC would leverage these services to support its customers, particularly those using TSMC’s advanced wafer fabrication facilities in Phoenix, Arizona, it said. The companies would jointly define the specific packaging technologies, such as TSMC’s Integrated
China’s economic planning agency yesterday outlined details of measures aimed at boosting the economy, but refrained from major spending initiatives. The piecemeal nature of the plans announced yesterday appeared to disappoint investors who were hoping for bolder moves, and the Shanghai Composite Index gave up a 10 percent initial gain as markets reopened after a weeklong holiday to end 4.59 percent higher, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index dived 9.41 percent. Chinese National Development and Reform Commission Chairman Zheng Shanjie (鄭珊潔) said the government would frontload 100 billion yuan (US$14.2 billion) in spending from the government’s budget for next year in addition
Sales RecORD: Hon Hai’s consolidated sales rose by about 20 percent last quarter, while Largan, another Apple supplier, saw quarterly sales increase by 17 percent IPhone assembler Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密) on Saturday reported its highest-ever quarterly sales for the third quarter on the back of solid global demand for artificial intelligence (AI) servers. Hon Hai, also known as Foxconn Technology Group (富士康科技集團) globally, said it posted NT$1.85 trillion (US$57.93 billion) in consolidated sales in the July-to-September quarter, up 19.46 percent from the previous quarter and up 20.15 percent from a year earlier. The figure beat the previous third-quarter high of NT$1.74 trillion recorded in 2022, company data showed. Due to rising demand for AI, Hon Hai said its cloud and networking division enjoyed strong sales
Protectionism: US trade chief Katherine Tai said the hikes would help to counter unfair trade practices from China, while boosting domestic clean energy investments US Trade Representative Katherine Tai (戴琪) defended stiff tariff hikes against countries such as China, saying that paired with investment, they were a “legitimate and constructive” tool for reinvigorating domestic industries. Tai’s comments come a week after sharp tariff increases on Chinese electric vehicles (EVs), EV batteries and solar cells took effect — with levies down the line on other products also recently finalized. The latest moves targeting US$18 billion in Chinese goods come weeks before next month’s US presidential election, with Democrats and Republicans pushing a hard line on China as competition between Washington and Beijing intensifies. In an interview on Thursday
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