SMARTPHONES
Galaxy 5 security foiled
A Berlin-based researcher said he has managed to fool the fingerprint-based security system on Samsung Electronics Co’s new Galaxy S5 smartphone using wood glue and a picture of the original print. Ben Schlabs, who works for Security Research Labs, said the trick is identical to the one hackers used to unlock Apple Inc’s iPhone 5s last year. The S5 flaw is potentially more serious, because Schlabs said he was also able to trick the electronic payment app PayPal, which uses Samsung’s fingerprint authentication. Schlabs said users concerned about security can choose to use a strong password instead of the convenient but flawed fingerprint system.
CHINA
Real-estate hikes pause
China’s new-home price increases eased across the country last month amid tighter credit that prompted developers to give discounts. Home prices from the first-tier cities to those less affluent all weakened last month, according to the National Bureau of Statistics. Prices in Beijing rose 10 percent from a year earlier, the slowest since April last year, while those in Shanghai added 13 percent, the smallest since June. Prices rose in 56 cities last month from a month earlier, compared with 57 in February, data showed.
TECHNOLOGY
Nokia recalls tablet chargers
Nokia on Thursday recalled 30,000 chargers for its Lumia 2520 tablet due to risk it could give customers an electric shock. The AC-300 charger, manufactured by a third-party supplier, was sold in Austria, Britain, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Russia, Switzerland and the US. The Lumia 2520 is the first tablet by Nokia. “The plastic cover of the charger’s exchangeable plug could come loose and separate,” the Finnish company said in a statement. “If loose and separated, certain internal components pose a hazard of an electric shock if touched while the plug remains in a live socket.”
MANUFACTURING
GE posts Q1 results
General Electric Co’s (GE) new focus on oil and gas equipment helped the company to post strong first-quarter results. GE posted lower overall first-quarter net income than a year ago, due to the sale of NBC Universal during that period. The company said on Thursday that its industrial divisions, especially oil and gas, performed well and that the global economic environment was improving. The company earned US$3 billion on revenue of US$34.18 billion in the year’s first three months, down from US$3.5 billion on revenue of US$34.94 billion during the same period last year. On a per share basis, GE earned US$0.30.
AUTOMAKERS
GM sold 2.42m cars in Q1
General Motors Co (GM) said it sold 2.42 million cars and trucks in the first three months of the year, keeping it slightly ahead of Volkswagen in the global sales race. The Detroit automaker said its sales grew 2 percent worldwide from January through March. The company was led by 13 percent growth in China. However, sales fell 2 percent in North America. Sales leader Toyota has yet to release first-quarter numbers, but said it is on the way to selling 10.1 million vehicles this year. Volkswagen said it sold 2.4 million vehicles in the first quarter, up almost 6 percent. Toyota finished first last year with a record 9.98 million sales. GM finished second and Volkswagen third.
Hypermarket chain Carrefour Taiwan and upscale supermarket chain Mia C’bon on Saturday announced the suspension of their partnership with Jkopay Co (街口支付), one of Taiwan’s largest digital payment providers, amid a lawsuit involving its parent company. Carrefour and Mia C’bon said they would notify customers once Jkopay services are reinstated. The two retailers joined an array of other firms in suspending their partnerships with Jkopay. On Friday night, popular beverage chain TP Tea (茶湯會) also suspended its use of the platform, urging customers to opt for alternative payment methods. Another drinks brand, Guiji (龜記), on Friday said that it is up to individual
READY TO BUY: Shortly after Nvidia announced the approval, Chinese firms scrambled to order the H20 GPUs, which the company must send to the US government for approval Nvidia Corp chief executive officer Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) late on Monday said the technology giant has won approval from US President Donald Trump’s administration to sell its advanced H20 graphics processing units (GPUs) used to develop artificial intelligence (AI) to China. The news came in a company blog post late on Monday and Huang also spoke about the coup on China’s state-run China Global Television Network in remarks shown on X. “The US government has assured Nvidia that licenses will be granted, and Nvidia hopes to start deliveries soon,” the post said. “Today, I’m announcing that the US government has approved for us
UNCERTAINTIES: Exports surged 34.1% and private investment grew 7.03% to outpace expectations in the first half, although US tariffs could stall momentum The Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research (CIER, 中華經濟研究院) yesterday raised its GDP growth forecast to 3.05 percent this year on a robust first-half performance, but warned that US tariff threats and external uncertainty could stall momentum in the second half of the year. “The first half proved exceptionally strong, allowing room for optimism,” CIER president Lien Hsien-ming (連賢明) said. “But the growth momentum may slow moving forward due to US tariffs.” The tariff threat poses definite downside risks, although the scale of the impact remains unclear given the unpredictability of US President Donald Trump’s policies, Lien said. Despite the headwinds, Taiwan is likely
The National Stabilization Fund (NSF, 國安基金) is to continue supporting local shares, as uncertainties in international politics and the economy could affect Taiwanese industries’ global deployment and corporate profits, as well as affect stock movement and investor confidence, the Ministry of Finance said in a statement yesterday. The NT$500 billion (US$17.1 billion) fund would remain active in the stock market as the US’ tariff measures have not yet been fully finalized, which would drive international capital flows and global supply chain restructuring, the ministry said after the a meeting of the fund’s steering committee. Along with ongoing geopolitical risks and an unfavorable
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