PAPUA NEW GUINEA
Total, Exxon ink LNG deal
The Pacific Island nation yesterday signed a deal with energy giants Total SA and Exxon Mobil Corp on a proposed new project that would significantly boost its liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports. The parties hope to finalize the Papua LNG project by the first quarter of next year, Total said in a statement. The new project, if realized, would complement production from a US$19 billion LNG plant developed by Exxon Mobil that began shipping gas throughout Asia in 2014.
ENTERTAINMENT
Apple signs film agreement
Apple Inc has signed a multi-year film production deal with A24, the New York-based studio behind Moonlight and Lady Bird, people close to the deal said on Thursday. Apple is investing in scripted content with the intention of competing with the likes of Netflix Inc and Amazon.com Inc. Neither Apple nor A24 commented on Thursday.
AVIATION
JetBlue CEO calls for change
US and European regulators should review joint ventures that have allowed big airlines to dominate the market through their global alliances, JetBlue Airways Corp chief executive officer Robin Hayes said on Thursday. Consumers are at risk of decades of high fares because of legacy transatlantic partnerships, said Hayes, speaking at an airline industry event in New York.
BANKING
Credit Suisse mulls job cuts
Credit Suisse Group AG is considering hundreds of job cuts as chief executive officer Tidjane Thiam’s drive to reduce expenses extends into a fourth year, people with knowledge of the matter said. The dismissals could start as soon as this year and help the bank achieve its expense targets for next year, the people said. The Zurich-based bank’s International Wealth Management business and Swiss Universal Bank might be among the businesses affected, the people said.
INDIA
Tata asked to help airline
The interests of the government and the nation’s biggest conglomerate are converging over a teetering airline. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s administration has approached Tata Group’s salt-to-software empire to help rescue Jet Airways India Ltd, people familiar with the matter said. To aid the process, the government is talking to Tata about a potential haircut to state-run banks on Jet’s loans and writing off some of its dues to the state-run airports operator, one of the people said. Tata’s board was deliberating a takeover yesterday.
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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