TOURISM
UAE visa scheme announced
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Monday introduced a multiple-entry visa scheme valid for five years for all nationalities, with the aim of turning the Persian Gulf state into a tourism hub. “#UAE Cabinet chaired by @HHShkMohd, approves new amendment for tourist visas in #UAE,” the government of Dubai Media Office wrote on Twitter, referring to Emir Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the Emirati prime minister and ruler of Dubai. “The new tourist visa will be valid for 5 years and can be used for multiple entries and is open for all nationalities.” He said on Twitter that the state attracts 21 million tourists a year.
ENTERTAINMENT
Group seeks US$1.1bn loan
A consortium led by Tencent Holdings Ltd (騰訊) is seeking a 1 billion euro (US$1.1 billion) five-year loan to help fund its US$3.4 billion purchase of a stake in Universal Music Group, people familiar with the matter have said. Five banks — Bank of America Corp, Bank of China Ltd (中國銀行), HSBC Holdings PLC, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (Asia) Ltd (中國工商銀行) and Morgan Stanley — are expected to provide the non-recourse financing as a club deal, people said. The Chinese social media and gaming giant and its partners last month agreed to buy a 10 percent stake in Universal Music from French media company Vivendi SA after months of talks.
AVIATION
BOC orders 20 Airbus jets
Singapore-based aircraft leasing firm BOC Aviation Ltd (中銀航空租賃) yesterday announced that it had ordered 20 Airbus A320neo planes, with up to 12 of them planned to go to Colombian airline Avianca SA. The order is worth approximately US$2.2 billion at list prices, but airlines and leasing firms typically negotiate discounts. “We are thrilled to welcome Avianca as a new customer,” BOC Aviation chief executive Robert Martin said in a statement. “This addition of 20 new Airbus A320neo aircraft reflects our disciplined investment strategy of building our portfolio with popular and in-demand new technology aircraft that provide reliability and operational efficiency.”
CHINA
Tax cuts boost growth
The nation’s economic growth was boosted by about 0.8 percentage points last year, following tax cuts of more than 2 trillion yuan (US$288 billion), the State Taxation Administration said on Monday. The tax cut was worth more than 2 percent of GDP, it said. That means that the nominal value of the economy likely grew to about 100 trillion yuan at the end of last year, according to Bloomberg calculations, up from 92 trillion yuan in 2018. Tax revenue rose 1.8 percent to about 14 trillion yuan last year, the agency said, lower than the 9.5 percent increase in 2018.
BANKING
UBS splitting its business
UBS Group AG is splitting its European wealth management business into three regions and expects to cut as many as 500 private banking jobs globally as it overhauls its most important division. The revamp would break apart the Europe, Middle East and Africa private banking business led by Christl Novakovic, giving Caroline Kuhnert responsibility for central and eastern Europe, and Ali Janoudi the Middle East and Africa. Novakovic would keep Western Europe, according to an internal memo from wealth management co-heads Iqbal Khan and Tom Naratil that was obtained by Bloomberg.
Zhang Yazhou was sitting in the passenger seat of her Tesla Model 3 when she said she heard her father’s panicked voice: The brakes do not work. Approaching a red light, her father swerved around two cars before plowing into a sport utility vehicle and a sedan, and crashing into a large concrete barrier. Stunned, Zhang gazed at the deflating airbag in front of her. She could never have imagined what was to come: Tesla Inc sued her for defamation for complaining publicly about the vehicles brakes — and won. A Chinese court ordered Zhang to pay more than US$23,000 in
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) yesterday held its first board of directors meeting in the US, at which it did not unveil any new US investments despite mounting tariff threats from US President Donald Trump. Trump has threatened to impose 100 percent tariffs on Taiwan-made chips, prompting market speculation that TSMC might consider boosting its chip capacity in the US or ramping up production of advanced chips such as those using a 2-nanometer technology process at its Arizona fabs ahead of schedule. Speculation also swirled that the chipmaker might consider building its own advanced packaging capacity in the US as part
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) yesterday said that its investment plan in Arizona is going according to schedule, following a local media report claiming that the company is planning to break ground on its third wafer fab in the US in June. In a statement, TSMC said it does not comment on market speculation, but that its investments in Arizona are proceeding well. TSMC is investing more than US$65 billion in Arizona to build three advanced wafer fabs. The first one has started production using the 4-nanometer (nm) process, while the second one would start mass production using the
‘NO DISRUPTION’: A US trade association said that it was ready to work with the US administration to streamline the program’s requirements and achieve shared goals The White House is seeking to renegotiate US CHIPS and Science Act awards and has signaled delays to some upcoming semiconductor disbursements, two sources familiar with the matter told reporters. The people, along with a third source, said that the new US administration is reviewing the projects awarded under the 2022 law, meant to boost US domestic semiconductor output with US$39 billion in subsidies. Washington plans to renegotiate some of the deals after assessing and changing current requirements, the sources said. The extent of the possible changes and how they would affect agreements already finalized was not immediately clear. It was not known