■ Telecoms
New phone for China market
Motorola Inc, the world's second-largest maker of cellular phones, said it will debut a new phone in China in the third quarter and introduce its so-called push-to- talk mobile service in the country this year. Motorola will introduce a phone that works on both the GSM and CDMA standards, using China Unicom Ltd and Verizon Communications as launch customers, said company president Mike Zafirovski. Also this year, China may become the 19th country in which Motorola sells its mobile service that allows users to talk at the push of a button rather than dialing a number. "The Global Phone will have high-tier capabilities, mostly geared toward the traveling business executive," Zafirovski told reporters in Beijing. "We'll be able to increase our market share here because we're one of the few players that actually have push-to-talk handsets."
■ Automobiles
New Chinese rules coming
China's long-awaited blueprint for the develop-ment of its auto industry, expected to be launched within days, will ease some planned restrictions for foreign vehicle manufac-turers while erecting others, state press said yesterday. As part of the new policy, the government would raise barriers to entry to one of China's fastest growing industries by insisting new projects must have a minimum investment of 2 billion yuan (US$240 mil-lion), the China Daily said. However, some measures previously included in the draft policy -- such as banning manufacturers from selling imported and domestically-made cars through the same channels -- have been dropped after protests from multina-tionals. Foreign branded cars made through joint ventures currently account for 90 percent of passenger car sales in China.
■ Aviation
Valuair seeking investors
Singapore's first budget airline, Valuair, is on the lookout for new investors as it beefs up its fledgling route network, a spokesman said yesterday. The company is also hopeful it will soon be able to secure landing rights in Jakarta, resolving an administrative dispute with Indonesian aviation authorities, spokesman Nilesh Pritam said. The dispute prevented the planned launch of Valuair's service to Jakarta earlier this month. Ticket sales on the route have been suspended. Valuair began operating May 1 and serves Bangkok and Hong Kong from Singapore. Nilesh said Valuair wants to add more routes by the end of the year, but did not name the planned destinations. "We're looking to fly to high density destinations that are about five hours away. We would like to fly to a few more by end of the year,"Pritam said. Valuair's first round of fund-raising raised S$33 million (US$19.4 million).
■ Automobiles
Fiat chairman dies
Fiat chairman Umberto Agnelli, who helped lead his family's vast Turin-based automaker out of hard
times and into better financial shape, has died of cancer little more than a year after taking the com-pany's top position, a Fiat spokesman said yesterday. He was 69. He died late Thursday, Fiat spokesman Raffaello Porro said. The company acknowledged that Agnelli was undergoing serious treatment for cancer last month. Agnelli, who was long sidelined in his family's auto empire, got his chance to take over after his elder brother Giovanni Agnelli died in January last year.
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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