■ Tourism
SARS hurts Thailand
Thailand's tourist arrivals may fall by half during the Songkran and Easter holidays as people stay home because of the deadly respiratory disease that has killed at least 111 people worldwide, most of them in Asia. Arrivals next week may drop from 200,000 last year, the Kasikorn Research Center Co, formerly the Thai Farmers Research Center Co, wrote in a report. The report forecasts a 40 percent decline in tourism revenue during the holidays. "During Songkran we may have 80 percent occupancy, but for Easter we are expecting just 50 percent occupancy," said James Batt, managing director of Laguna Resorts & Hotels Pcl in Phuket.
■ Multinationals
China plans to groom firms
China plans to groom 50 companies to become among the world's top 500 multinationals within the next 12 years, state media reported yesterday. Officials want to achieve this ambitious objective via a "go-out" strategy that encourages local companies to invest more abroad, the China Daily said. But some state-employed economists think the government is not doing enough yet to implement this strategy, according to the paper. "The government should have a special commission and fund to tackle this demanding and pressing task," said Lin Yaoqin, an economist at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, the top think tank.
■ Tourism
Travelers skirt Vietnam
Passenger numbers at the airport of Vietnam's largest city have fallen almost 30 percent since the first case of a deadly flu-like virus was discovered in the country a month ago, the Vietnam News reported. Although there have been no confirmed cases of severe acute respiratory syndrome in Ho Chi Minh City, the disease has cut into passenger traffic at Tan Son Nhat International Airport, the paper said, without citing anyone. The report didn't specify over what period the drop was recorded, and didn't give actual passenger numbers.
■ Communications
WorldCom to change name
WorldCom Inc, which filed the largest US bankruptcy after disclosing accounting errors expected to reach US$11 billion, will change its name to MCI next week, a person familiar with the matter said. WorldCom became the No. 2 US long-distance telephone company in 1998 when it bought MCI Communications Corp. The Wall Street Journal earlier today reported the name change. A new name may help WorldCom break with the company's past, analysts have said. Capellas is trying to clean up WorldCom's finances to guide it out of bankruptcy this year.
■ Newspapers
Murdoch considers selling
News Corp's Independent Newspapers Ltd is in talks to sell its New Zealand newspapers, raising speculation Rupert Murdoch may sell publications in smaller markets, after the US$6.6 billion acquisition of DirecTV reinforced his focus on pay-television. John Fairfax Holdings Ltd, Australia's second-biggest newspaper publisher, will offer NZ$1.2 billion (US$660 million) to buy Independent Newspapers' New Zealand publications, a person familiar with the transaction said. "It's possible that Murdoch may be getting out of print to focus on electronic media and his satellite business," said Paul Xiradis, who oversees the equivalent of US$670 million of equities at Ausbil Dexia Ltd.
TYPHOON: The storm’s path indicates a high possibility of Krathon making landfall in Pingtung County, depending on when the storm turns north, the CWA said Typhoon Krathon is strengthening and is more likely to make landfall in Taiwan, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said in a forecast released yesterday afternoon. As of 2pm yesterday, the CWA’s updated sea warning for Krathon showed that the storm was about 430km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point. It was moving in west-northwest at 9kph, with maximum sustained winds of 119kph and gusts of up to 155kph, CWA data showed. Krathon is expected to move further west before turning north tomorrow, CWA forecaster Wu Wan-hua (伍婉華) said. The CWA’s latest forecast and other countries’ projections of the storm’s path indicate a higher
SLOW-MOVING STORM: The typhoon has started moving north, but at a very slow pace, adding uncertainty to the extent of its impact on the nation Work and classes have been canceled across the nation today because of Typhoon Krathon, with residents in the south advised to brace for winds that could reach force 17 on the Beaufort scale as the Central Weather Administration (CWA) forecast that the storm would make landfall there. Force 17 wind with speeds of 56.1 to 61.2 meters per second, the highest number on the Beaufort scale, rarely occur and could cause serious damage. Krathon could be the second typhoon to land in southwestern Taiwan, following typhoon Elsie in 1996, CWA records showed. As of 8pm yesterday, the typhoon’s center was 180km
TYPHOON DAY: Taitung, Pingtung, Tainan, Chiayi, Hualien and Kaohsiung canceled work and classes today. The storm is to start moving north this afternoon The outer rim of Typhoon Krathon made landfall in Taitung County and the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春半島) at about noon yesterday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, adding that the eye of the storm was expected to hit land tomorrow. The CWA at 2:30pm yesterday issued a land alert for Krathon after issuing a sea alert on Sunday. It also expanded the scope of the sea alert to include waters north of Taiwan Strait, in addition to its south, from the Bashi Channel to the Pratas Islands (Dongsha Islands, 東沙群島). As of 6pm yesterday, the typhoon’s center was 160km south of
STILL DANGEROUS: The typhoon was expected to weaken, but it would still maintain its structure, with high winds and heavy rain, the weather agency said One person had died amid heavy winds and rain brought by Typhoon Krathon, while 70 were injured and two people were unaccounted for, the Central Emergency Operation Center said yesterday, while work and classes have been canceled nationwide today for the second day. The Hualien County Fire Department said that a man in his 70s had fallen to his death at about 11am on Tuesday while trimming a tree at his home in Shoufeng Township (壽豐). Meanwhile, the Yunlin County Fire Department received a report of a person falling into the sea at about 1pm on Tuesday, but had to suspend search-and-rescue
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