SPAIN
SEPI to sell shares
The government’s state investment holding company SEPI said on Friday it aims to sell stakes in the new parent of airline Iberia, in power grid operator REE and food company Ebro, which together could be worth more than 850 million euros (US$1.2 billion) according to current share prices. The stakes were earmarked for sale in this year’s budget and are among a string of assets that the government could sell to reduce its funding requirements, including real estate and Spain’s airports authority. SEPI said on Friday it was seeking authorization to sell 2.71 percent of IAG — the new airline holding company resulting from the merger of British Airways and Iberia, with the stake worth about 150 million euros at prevailing market prices. It was also seeking permission to sell a 10 percent stake in REE, worth about 500 million euros, as well as 8.65 percent of Ebro Foods, worth about 206 million euros currently.
AUTOMOBILES
Ford profit doubles
Ford said on Friday annual profit doubled last year to its highest earnings in more than a decade, but its share price plunged after results came in sharply lower than expected. Increased costs as Ford ramps up auto production amid rising commodity prices, a surprise fourth-quarter loss in Europe and a US$960 million charge associated with paying down debt were primarily to blame for the weaker-than-expected results. Fourth-quarter profit fell to US$190 million, from US$886 million in the same period in 2009, with earnings per share of US$0.05 that were well below the US$0.48 expected. For all of last year, Ford reported net income of US$6.6 billion, or US$1.66 per share, up 135 percent from 2009.
INTERNET
State to negotiate, not sue
The US state of Connecticut said on Friday it would hold negotiations with Google over the collection of private wireless data by its Street View mapping cars and not take the Internet giant to court. Under the agreement, Google will not be required to produce the data it collected from unsecured wireless networks in Connecticut. Google had objected to turning over the data, raising the prospect of a lengthy court battle. As part of the agreement, Google acknowledged that it collected and stored data from private unsecured wireless networks. The data collected included Web site addresses, e-mail and other “confidential and private information.”
HEDGE FUNDS
Paulson earns US$5bn
John Paulson, whose Paulson & Co hedge fund made US$15 billion betting against subprime mortgages in 2007, earned about US$5 billion last year, according to a person with knowledge of the firm. Executives and employees hold US$14.9 billion, or 42 percent, of the funds’ US$35.9 billion in assets, according to a performance report sent to clients this month. Most of that belongs to Paulson, who has reinvested his gains, after taxes and personal expenses, back into the funds since opening the firm in 1994, the report said. The manager earned US$3.7 billion in 2007, according to Alpha magazine. Paulson’s gain includes his portion of the 20 percent performance fee the firm collected on its gross profit last year of US$8.4 billion, the person said. Thirty of the 115 employees are partners who share in New York-based Paulson & Co’s revenue, according to the report.
Three experts in the high technology industry have said that US President Donald Trump’s pledge to impose higher tariffs on Taiwanese semiconductors is part of an effort to force Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) to the negotiating table. In a speech to Republicans on Jan. 27, Trump said he intends to impose tariffs on Taiwan to bring chip production to the US. “The incentive is going to be they’re not going to want to pay a 25, 50 or even a 100 percent tax,” he said. Darson Chiu (邱達生), an economics professor at Taichung-based Tunghai University and director-general of
Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密) is reportedly making another pass at Nissan Motor Co, as the Japanese automaker's tie-up with Honda Motor Co falls apart. Nissan shares rose as much as 6 percent after Taiwan’s Central News Agency reported that Hon Hai chairman Young Liu (劉揚偉) instructed former Nissan executive Jun Seki to connect with French carmaker Renault SA, which holds about 36 percent of Nissan’s stock. Hon Hai, the Taiwanese iPhone-maker also known as Foxconn Technology Group (富士康科技集團), was exploring an investment or buyout of Nissan last year, but backed off in December after the Japanese carmaker penned a deal
WASHINGTON POLICY: Tariffs of 10 percent or more and other new costs are tipped to hit shipments of small parcels, cutting export growth by 1.3 percentage points The decision by US President Donald Trump to ban Chinese companies from using a US tariff loophole would hit tens of billions of dollars of trade and reduce China’s economic growth this year, according to new estimates by economists at Nomura Holdings Inc. According to Nomura’s estimates, last year companies such as Shein (希音) and PDD Holdings Inc’s (拼多多控股) Temu shipped US$46 billion of small parcels to the US to take advantage of the rule that allows items with a declared value under US$800 to enter the US tariff-free. Tariffs of 10 percent or more and other new costs would slash such
SENSOR BUSINESS: The Taiwanese company said that a public tender offer would begin on May 7 through its wholly owned subsidiary Yageo Electronics Japan Yageo Corp (國巨), one of the world’s top three suppliers of passive components, yesterday said it is to launch a tender offer to fully acquire Japan’s Shibaura Electronics Co for up to ¥65.57 billion (US$429.37 million), with an aim to expand its sensor business. The tender offer would be a crucial step for the company to expand its sensor business, Yageo said. Shibaura Electronics is the world’s largest supplier of thermistors, with a market share of 13 percent, research conducted in 2022 by the Japanese firm showed. If a deal goes ahead, it would be the second acquisition of a sensor business since