CHINA
Businesses to get support
The government would step up financial support to small and private businesses in the catering and tourism sectors that were hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic, the nation’s banking and insurance regulator said in a statement yesterday. “The recovery and expansion of consumption will be a priority,” the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission said in the statement. The purchase of big-ticket items such as new energy vehicles and green home appliances would be encouraged, it said. China would also step up financial support for private investment and private enterprises, the regulator added.
ELECTRONICS
Apple faces US$98m tax bill
Apple Inc faces about US$98 million in back taxes in Japan, a bill that appears to be tied to bulk sales of duty-free devices to foreign tourists, the Nikkei reported. Japan’s tax-free shopping for visitors staying less than six months does not apply to purchases for resale purposes, the report said. At least one transaction at an Apple store involved someone who purchased hundreds of handsets at one time, it said. Apple halted tax-free shopping in June and is believed to have filed an amended tax return, the Nikkei said.
TELECOMS
PLDT to cancel projects
PLDT Inc is in talks with suppliers and vendors to cancel some projects and seek discounts as the Philippines’ biggest telecom by revenue aims to cut its 48 billion pesos (US$860.6 million) spending overrun. “The discussion also includes the possible replacement of certain projects that will be cancelled, with new projects that will improve revenue growth and customer experience,” PLDT said in a statement to the Philippine Stock Exchange yesterday. PLDT shares climbed 2.6 percent, recovering some lost ground since their record 19 percent drop on Monday last week. Earlier in the day, the company disclosed that chairman Manuel Pangilinan and president Alfredo Panlilio bought PLDT shares on the day of the record plunge.
PRIVATE EQUITY
Jadwa to invest 2bn riyals
Saudi Arabia’s Jadwa Investment Co plans to invest about 2 billion riyals (US$531.8 million) in new private equity deals and to list stakes in three of its portfolio companies by 2025 as it looks to capitalize on rapid economic growth in the region. The firm is in advanced talks to complete two private equity deals in the next 12 months, and is focusing on the consumer and healthcare industries, managing director and chief executive Tariq al-Sudairy said. In a separate statement yesterday, Jadwa said it has fully divested its 30 percent stake from Saudi Aramco Base Oil Co, the refining unit of the state oil producer, which is holding onto its 70 percent stake.
HEALTHCARE
Medicago cuts tobacco ties
Medicago Inc severed ties with cigarette maker Philip Morris International Inc after the WHO rejected the Canadian company’s COVID-19 vaccine, a tobacco control body said. Covifenz, the first plant-based COVID-19 vaccine, was jointly developed by Medicago, which is owned by Mitsubishi Chemical Holdings Corp, Philip Morris and GlaxoSmithKline PLC. The Canadian government, which provided US$173 million in funding for its development, has cleared it for use. “Tobacco corporations, vaccines and governments don’t mix well and we applaud the expulsion of Philip Morris from the Medicago collaboration,” Les Hagen, executive director of not-for-profit organization ASH Canada, said on Monday.
It was late morning and steam was rising from water tanks atop the colorful, but opaque-windowed, “soapland” sex parlors in a historic Tokyo red-light district. Walking through the narrow streets, camera in hand, was Beniko — a former sex worker who is trying to capture the spirit of the area once known as Yoshiwara through photography. “People often talk about this neighborhood having a ‘bad history,’” said Beniko, who goes by her nickname. “But the truth is that through the years people have lived here, made a life here, sometimes struggled to survive. I want to share that reality.” In its mid-17th to
‘MAKE OR BREAK’: Nvidia shares remain down more than 9 percent, but investors are hoping CEO Jensen Huang’s speech can stave off fears that the sales boom is peaking Shares in Nvidia Corp’s Taiwanese suppliers mostly closed higher yesterday on hopes that the US artificial intelligence (AI) chip designer would showcase next-generation technologies at its annual AI conference slated to open later in the day. The GPU Technology Conference (GTC) in California is to feature developers, engineers, researchers, inventors and information technology professionals, and would focus on AI, computer graphics, data science, machine learning and autonomous machines. The event comes at a make-or-break moment for the firm, as it heads into the next few quarters, with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang’s (黃仁勳) keynote speech today seen as having the ability to
NEXT GENERATION: The company also showcased automated machines, including a nursing robot called Nurabot, which is to enter service at a Taichung hospital this year Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密) expects server revenue to exceed its iPhone revenue within two years, with the possibility of achieving this goal as early as this year, chairman Young Liu (劉揚偉) said on Tuesday at Nvidia Corp’s annual technology conference in San Jose, California. AI would be the primary focus this year for the company, also known as Foxconn Technology Group (富士康科技集團), as rapidly advancing AI applications are driving up demand for AI servers, Liu said. The production and shipment of Nvidia’s GB200 chips and the anticipated launch of GB300 chips in the second half of the year would propel
The battle for artificial intelligence supremacy hinges on microchips, but the semiconductor sector that produces them has a dirty secret: It is a major source of chemicals linked to cancer and other health problems. Global chip sales surged more than 19 percent to about US$628 billion last year, according to the Semiconductor Industry Association, which forecasts double-digit growth again this year. That is adding urgency to reducing the effects of “forever chemicals” — which are also used to make firefighting foam, nonstick pans, raincoats and other everyday items — as are regulators in the US and Europe who are beginning to
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