■ Automobiles
Phantom's value ghostly
Depreciation is a fact of life for any new car owner, but purchasers of the super-luxury Rolls-Royce Phan-tom could be in for a shock -- it sheds value at a rate of ?910 (US$1,700 ) every week. According to a specialist car valuation guide for British motor dealers, the Phantom loses more than half its whopping ?252,000 purchase price in three years, the Financial Times said. The calculation by the Glass's Guide publication is an estimate, the paper said, given that no examples of the Phantom, a large, powerful and exceed-ingly luxurious four-door saloon, have been sold in Britain as yet.
■ Aviation
Beijing buys Airbus A330s
China signed a contract to buy US$2 billion worth of Airbus passenger planes and a French-made TV satellite yesterday, the last full day of an official visit to France by Deputy Prime Minister Zeng Peiyan (曾培炎). At a ceremony hosted by Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin, The head of China Eastern Airlines signed a firm order for 20 Airbus A330-200s with an option on a further 10 of the wide-bodied jets. The head of Chinese satellite operator Chinasat also signed an order for a TV satellite from French technology group Alcatel. Other deals signed included a technology-transfer accord for high-speed electric trains between Alstom and China's CNR Datong Electric Locomotive Co as well as research and cooperation agreements for Chinese nuclear power plants. Zeng visited Airbus' headquarters in southern France on Thursday and also visited a factory belonging to Alstom, the maker of high-speed TGV trains. Zeng was to meet with President Jacques Chirac later yesterday before returning home today.
■ Economy
Japan sees 13-year CCI high
Sentiment by Japanese consumers last month hit the highest level since September 1991, the Cabi-net office said yesterday. The unadjusted consumer confidence index for nationwide households, excluding single-person households, rose 2.9 points from April to 48.3, marking the highest reading since September 1991's 48.5 points. The index is cal-culated by assigning points on the basis of whether consumers believe their sentiment in four categories -- employment, overall livelihood, income growth and inclination to purchase durable goods -- in the coming six months will "improve," "improve some-what," "remain unchanged," "deteriorate somewhat" or "deteriorate."
■ Automobiles
Japan seeks fine
Japan's transport ministry yesterday applied to a Tokyo court to fine scandal-plagued Mitsubishi Motors for failing to recall trucks to fix a clutch defect that led to a fatal accident. The filing with the Tokyo District Court is the latest bad news to hit the automaker, whose sales are plummeting, after its former president and five other executives were arrested for the cover-up on Thursday. The court is to determine what penalty may apply, up to a legal limit of ?200,000 (US$1,820) against Mitsubishi Motors Corp, ministry official Masami Morita said. "The company did not issue a recall even while repairing vehicles for what it knew was a defect," Morita said. Transport "This was a deadly weapon on wheels," Minister Nobuteru Ishihara said. "The accident could have been prevented."
CSBC Corp, Taiwan (台灣國際造船) yesterday released the first video documenting the submerged sea trials of Taiwan’s indigenous defense submarine prototype, the Hai Kun (海鯤), or Narwhal, showing underwater navigation and the launch of countermeasures. The footage shows the vessel’s first dive, steering and control system tests, and the raising and lowering of the periscope and antenna masts. It offered a rare look at the progress in the submarine’s sea acceptance tests. The Hai Kun carried out its first shallow-water diving trial late last month and has since completed four submerged tests, CSBC said. The newly released video compiles images recorded from Jan. 29 to
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) plans to make advanced 3-nanometer chips in Japan, stepping up its semiconductor manufacturing roadmap in the country in a triumph for Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s technology ambitions. TSMC is to adopt cutting-edge technology for its second wafer fab in Kumamoto, company chairman C.C. Wei (魏哲家) said yesterday. That is an upgrade from an original blueprint to produce 7-nanometer chips by late next year, people familiar with the matter said. TSMC began mass production at its first plant in Japan’s Kumamoto in late 2024. Its second fab, which is still under construction, was originally focused on
DETERRENCE EFFORTS: Washington and partners hope demonstrations of force would convince Beijing that military action against Taiwan would carry high costs The US is considering using HMAS Stirling in Western Australia as a forward base to strengthen its naval posture in a potential conflict with China, particularly over Taiwan, the Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday. As part of its Indo-Pacific strategy, Washington plans to deploy up to four nuclear-powered submarines at Stirling starting in 2027, providing a base near potential hot spots such as Taiwan and the South China Sea. The move also aims to enhance military integration with Pacific allies under the Australia-UK-US trilateral security partnership, the report said. Currently, US submarines operate from Guam, but the island could
The partisan standoff over President William Lai’s (賴清德) proposed defense budget has raised questions about the nation’s ability to adequately fund its own defense, the US Congressional Research Service (CRS) said in a report released on Tuesday. The report, titled Taiwan: Defense and Military Issues, said the government has increased its defense budget at an average annual rate of 5 percent from 2019 to 2023, with about 2.5 percent of its GDP spent on defense in 2024. Lai in November last year proposed a special budget of about US$40 billion over eight years, and said he intends to increase defense spending to
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