■ Software
Microsoft eyes India
A Microsoft Corp executive said that moving some software development work to India would help the company save money and accomplish more, according to a presentation obtained by a Washington state union. Moving some work to India could "leverage the Indian economy's lower cost structure," according to slides from a July presentation by Senior Vice President Brian Valentine of the Windows operating system group. The slides were posted on the Web site of the Washington Alliance of Technology Workers. Microsoft spokeswoman Stacy Drake confirmed their authenticity. Redmond, Washington-based Microsoft, which is investing US$400 million in India over three years, plans to hire 5,000 workers by June 30 to add to the more than 50,000 it had at the start of its fiscal year in July.
■ Economics
Germany stagnates
Germany's economy stagnated in the fourth quarter as unemployment at a 4-and-a-half-year high sapped consumer confidence and the government cut spending. GDP was unchanged in the fourth quarter from the previous three months, the Federal Statistics Office said. Economists had expected a contraction of 0.1 percent. The economy expanded 0.5 percent from the year-ago period. Europe's largest economy, which last year grew at its slowest pace in almost a decade, has barely expanded since a recession in the second half of 2001. German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder's popularity is waning as companies from truck maker MAN AG to Deutsche Bank AG eliminate jobs. "The consumer will be a brake on the economy" this year, said David Kohl, an economist at Bank Julius Baer in Frankfurt.
■ Wireless
Qualcomm to reduce stake
Qualcomm Inc, whose patents are the basis for cellphones used by about 140 million people, said its investment in wireless operators will slow because a surge in users will only come at the end of next year. The San Diego-based company, which develops technology for the use of high-speed mobile data services such as downloading video on cellphones, said it hasn't decided how much it will spend on these investments this year. "The amount of money we invest in operators would decline over time, but we are opportunistic and there are always special opportunities that come along that we'd consider," Jeff Jacobs, Qualcomm's president of global development, said in an interview in Singapore.
■ Biotech
GM corn approved
A new corn genetically designed to resist rootworm can go onto the market, the Environmental Protection Agency announced. "This new variety of corn pest control holds great promise for reducing reliance on conventional insecticides now used on millions of acres of corn in the US" Stephen Johnson, an assistant administrator at the EPA, said Tuesday. Monsanto, a St. Louis biotech company, designed the corn variety so it would produce its own insecticide to fend off rootworm, a pest whose larvae feed off the plant's roots. The plant's pesticide is derived from a protein contained in a natural soil bacterium called Bt, or Bacillus thuringiensis. Farmers have had to depend on chemical insecticides and alternating soybean and corn crops every other year to control rootworm.
SECURITY: As China is ‘reshaping’ Hong Kong’s population, Taiwan must raise the eligibility threshold for applications from Hong Kongers, Chiu Chui-cheng said When Hong Kong and Macau citizens apply for residency in Taiwan, it would be under a new category that includes a “national security observation period,” Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said yesterday. President William Lai (賴清德) on March 13 announced 17 strategies to counter China’s aggression toward Taiwan, including incorporating national security considerations into the review process for residency applications from Hong Kong and Macau citizens. The situation in Hong Kong is constantly changing, Chiu said to media yesterday on the sidelines of the Taipei Technology Run hosted by the Taipei Neihu Technology Park Development Association. With
CARROT AND STICK: While unrelenting in its military threats, China attracted nearly 40,000 Taiwanese to over 400 business events last year Nearly 40,000 Taiwanese last year joined industry events in China, such as conferences and trade fairs, supported by the Chinese government, a study showed yesterday, as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive toward Taipei alongside military pressure. China has long taken a carrot-and-stick approach to Taiwan, threatening it with the prospect of military action while reaching out to those it believes are amenable to Beijing’s point of view. Taiwanese security officials are wary of what they see as Beijing’s influence campaigns to sway public opinion after Taipei and Beijing gradually resumed travel links halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the scale of
A US Marine Corps regiment equipped with Naval Strike Missiles (NSM) is set to participate in the upcoming Balikatan 25 exercise in the Luzon Strait, marking the system’s first-ever deployment in the Philippines. US and Philippine officials have separately confirmed that the Navy Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS) — the mobile launch platform for the Naval Strike Missile — would take part in the joint exercise. The missiles are being deployed to “a strategic first island chain chokepoint” in the waters between Taiwan proper and the Philippines, US-based Naval News reported. “The Luzon Strait and Bashi Channel represent a critical access
Pope Francis is be laid to rest on Saturday after lying in state for three days in St Peter’s Basilica, where the faithful are expected to flock to pay their respects to history’s first Latin American pontiff. The cardinals met yesterday in the Vatican’s synod hall to chart the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Francis’ successor, as condolences poured in from around the world. According to current norms, the conclave must begin between May 5 and 10. The cardinals set the funeral for Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square, to be celebrated by the dean of the College
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