AUTOMAKERS
Tesla to unveil new model
Tesla Inc chief executive officer Elon Musk has announced on Twitter that the company’s next vehicle would be unveiled on Thursday next week. The Model Y is a sports utility vehicle and is expected to share many of the same underpinnings as its lower-cost sedan, the Model 3. That shared technology should help expedite production. It would also be about 10 percent bigger than a Model 3, so cost about 10 percent more, Musk said in a series of tweets. Prices for a Model 3 start at about US$35,000. Musk has told investors that the Model Y would share about 75 percent of the same components as the Model 3. The company has been trying to move beyond its niche as a maker of luxury cars with a wider array of new products.
JAPAN
Official eases trade woes
The country’s top currency official said the nation’s current account surplus is a result of investments abroad rather than the exchange of goods, and it should not become a trade issue. It is not uncommon for the country’s savings to grow because of its aging population, Vice Finance Minister of International Affairs Masatsugu Asakawa told a conference in Tokyo. His remarks came after the country’s trade negotiator Toshimitsu Motegi urged bilateral talks with the US as soon as possible, following US President Donald Trump complaining about years of “unfair” trade.
FRANCE
Web giants to be taxed
The country intends to tax the revenue of about 30 Internet giants, such as Amazon.com Inc, to help ensure “fiscal justice,” Minister of Finance Bruno Le Maire said. The levy of as much as 5 percent of sales would be retroactive from Jan. 1 and potentially raise about 500 million euros (US$570 million) for the state, Le Maire told Le Parisien newspaper. Under the plan, which the Cabinet is to discuss tomorrow, the tax would apply to any company with global revenue of more than 750 million euros and French sales above 25 million euros, Le Maire said.
APPAREL
Ted Baker CEO resigns
Ted Baker PLC chief executive officer Ray Kelvin resigned amid an investigation of his conduct, including allegations of behavior that was demeaning to employees of the British apparel chain. Kelvin had taken a voluntary leave of absence from the chief executive officer role in December last year as the board hired law firm Herbert Smith Freehills LLP to investigate allegations of behavior, including unwanted hugs and asking female employees to sit on his knee. He has denied the accusations. Acting chief executive officer Lindsay Page is to continue in the role. Chairman David Bernstein would “provide additional support” as executive chairman, the company said.
UAE
Dubai to help SMEs
Dubai plans to expedite government payments to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in an effort to revive economic growth. The government would pay SMEs within 30 days instead of 90 days, state-run WAM news agency reported. The measure is expected to result in 1.6 billion dirhams (US$435 million) of additional liquidity to the companies, the news agency said without elaborating. The plan also includes a reduction in insurance costs for SMEs that would not affect their eligibility for government tenders.
MediaTek Inc (聯發科), the world’s biggest smartphone chip supplier, yesterday said it plans to double investment in data center-related technologies, including advanced packaging and high-speed interconnect technologies, to broaden the new business’ customer and service portfolios. The chip designer is redirecting its resources to data centers, mainly designing application-specific integrated circuits (ASIC) with artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities for cloud service providers. The data center business is forecast to lead growth in the next three years and become the company’s second-biggest revenue source, replacing chips used in smart devices, MediaTek president Joe Chen (陳冠州) told a media event in Taipei. “Three or four years
Until US President Donald Trump’s return a year ago, when the EU talked about cutting economic dependency on foreign powers — it was understood to mean China, but now Brussels has US tech in its sights. As Trump ramps up his threats — from strong-arming Europe on trade to pushing to seize Greenland — concern has grown that the unpredictable leader could, should he so wish, plunge the bloc into digital darkness. Since Trump’s Greenland climbdown, top officials have stepped up warnings that the EU is dangerously exposed to geopolitical shocks and must work toward strategic independence — in defense, energy and
Motorists ride past a mural along a street in Varanasi, India, yesterday.
For the second year in a row, a Brazilian movie has wowed international audiences and critics, securing multiple Oscar nominations and drawing fresh interest in the Latin American giant’s film industry. Experts say the success of The Secret Agent, which has won four Oscar nominations, a year after I Am Still Here won Brazil its first Oscar, is no fluke, with a bit of a push from the country’s political climate. “This is neither a coincidence nor a miracle. It is the result of a lot of work, consistent policies, and, of course, talent,” Ilda Santiago, director of the Rio International Film
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