■ Japan
Indicators rise again
Japan's index of leading economic indicators was above 50 percent in January for the fifth month, indicating that the economy will extend growth into this year. The index, which measures job offers, consumer confidence and other indicators of future activity, was at 55.6 percent from 66.7 percent in January, the Cabinet Office said in Tokyo. A reading above 50 percent signals an expansion in three to six months. Industrial production had its biggest gain in four months in January and exports rose for the third month in four in January.
■ Parmalat
Company gets loan
Insolvent dairy company Parmalat Finanziaria SpA said Thursday it had secured a 105.8 million euro (US$128 million) loan, which should help keep production running at its main operating unit Parmalat SpA. Separately, the company's court-appointed administrator, Enrico Bondi, asked a Parma court to sequester the personal assets of all those who served as board members and internal auditors since the company listed in 1990, sources close to prosecutors told Dow Jones newswires. Bondi is seeking to recover as many assets as possible in order to keep the insolvent dairy company running. A recent audit found its net debt exceeds US$17.3 billion.
■ Indonesia
Pertamina gets Exxon deal
State-owned Indonesian oil and gas company Pertamina has a preliminary agreement with US energy giant Exxon Mobil Corp over how to develop Indonesia's largest oil find in three decades, the Indonesian company said yesterday. Alfred Rohimone, Pertamina's finance director, said the two sides agreed to split equally any gains from the huge Cepu field on Indonesia's main island of Java. "We have reached an initial agreement," he said. "Now we are waiting for approval from Pertamina's board of commissioners." However, Exxon Mobil said in a statement that although it hoped an agreement would be reached soon, it had "no announcement to make at the present time."
■ Japan
Foreign reserves rise
Japan's foreign reserves rose US$35.61 billion in February, or 4.8 percent from the previous month, to US$776.86 billion, the Finance Ministry said yesterday. The gain reflected the government's buying of US dollars in currency markets to prevent the yen from gaining too fast and snuffing out an export-led economic recovery. Through the Bank of Japan, the Finance Ministry sold about ?3.342 trillion (US$30 billion) in February.
■ Property
Trump to build new tower
Billionaire property mogul Donald Trump is taking time out from firing wannabe tycoons on his hit TV show to build a new US$500 million luxury tower in Canada's largest city. Trump said his 68-storey 300m skyscraper split between a top end hotel and condominiums in Toronto's swanky Bay Street business district will set new standards for well-heeled guests. "Nothing like this has ever been built in Toronto," he said in a statement. "It is going to be the ultimate destination for business, pleasure and entertainment. The Donald's famous tower in New York City is one of the world's most exclusive residential properties, and Manhattan icons like New York Yankees star Derek Jeter have called it home.
INVESTIGATION: The case is the latest instance of a DPP figure being implicated in an espionage network accused of allegedly leaking information to Chinese intelligence Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) member Ho Jen-chieh (何仁傑) was detained and held incommunicado yesterday on suspicion of spying for China during his tenure as assistant to then-minister of foreign affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮). The Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said Ho was implicated during its investigation into alleged spying activities by former Presidential Office consultant Wu Shang-yu (吳尚雨). Prosecutors said there is reason to believe Ho breached the National Security Act (國家安全法) by leaking classified Ministry of Foreign Affairs information to Chinese intelligence. Following interrogation, prosecutors petitioned the Taipei District Court to detain Ho, citing concerns over potential collusion or tampering of evidence. The
Seventy percent of middle and elementary schools now conduct English classes entirely in English, the Ministry of Education said, as it encourages schools nationwide to adopt this practice Minister of Education (MOE) Cheng Ying-yao (鄭英耀) is scheduled to present a report on the government’s bilingual education policy to the Legislative Yuan’s Education and Culture Committee today. The report would outline strategies aimed at expanding access to education, reducing regional disparities and improving talent cultivation. Implementation of bilingual education policies has varied across local governments, occasionally drawing public criticism. For example, some schools have required teachers of non-English subjects to pass English proficiency
‘FORM OF PROTEST’: The German Institute Taipei said it was ‘shocked’ to see Nazi symbolism used in connection with political aims as it condemned the incident Sung Chien-liang (宋建樑), who led efforts to recall Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Lee Kun-cheng (李坤城), was released on bail of NT$80,000 yesterday amid an outcry over a Nazi armband he wore to questioning the night before. Sung arrived at the New Taipei City District Prosecutors’ Office for questioning in a recall petition forgery case on Tuesday night wearing a red armband bearing a swastika, carrying a copy of Adolf Hitler’s Mein Kampf and giving a Nazi salute. Sung left the building at 1:15am without the armband and apparently covering the book with a coat. This is a serious international scandal and Chinese
TRADE: The premier pledged safeguards on ‘Made in Taiwan’ labeling, anti-dumping measures and stricter export controls to strengthen its position in trade talks Products labeled “made in Taiwan” must be genuinely made in Taiwan, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) said yesterday, vowing to enforce strict safeguards against “origin laundering” and initiate anti-dumping investigations to prevent China dumping its products in Taiwan. Cho made the remarks in a discussion session with representatives from industries in Kaohsiung. In response to the US government’s recent announcement of “reciprocal” tariffs on its trading partners, President William Lai (賴清德) and Cho last week began a series of consultations with industry leaders nationwide to gather feedback and address concerns. Taiwanese and US officials held a videoconference on Friday evening to discuss the
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