■ Oil
Prices rise again in US.
US oil prices struck a fresh record high above US$44 a barrel yesterday, on contin-uing concerns that any hiccup in the tightly stretched supply chain could lead to a major dis-ruption in global crude flows. US crude struck US$44.28 a barrel, US$0.13 up from Tuesday's settle-ment and the highest since oil futures were launched on the New York Mercantile Exchange in 1983. London's Brent crude was US$0.18 higher at US$40.82 a barrel. Oil's latest boost was triggered on Tuesday, when the head of the OPEC producers' cartel said there was no spare oil imme-diately available to cool ed-hot prices.
■ Oil
PetroChina scraps gas plan
A Chinese state oil company has called off plans for a foreign consortium inclu-ding Royal Dutch/Shell and ExxonMobil to invest in a multibillion-dollar pipeline to supply natural gas to China's booming eastern cities, according to Shell. The announcement came as PetroChina Co said its workers on Tuesday welded into place the last segment of the 4,000km-long pipeline that links gas fields in the northwest to Shanghai and nearby cities. The US$5.2 billion pipeline was the first major energy project opened to foreign investors. Shell said the consortium failed to find "common ground" with PetroChina.
■ Banking
Foreign firms' limits eased
China has announced new steps meant to ease the expansion of foreign banks, cutting capital requirements and scrapping a waiting period for opening branch offices. The measures take effect Sept. 1 and will help China comply with inter-national standards, the China Banking Regulatory Commission said in a statement issued late on Tuesday. The government has promised to let foreign banks compete on an equal footing with Chinese banks by 2006 under the terms of its WTO membership. The latest changes affect foreign banks licensed to handle the yuan, China's tightly regu-lated currency, and will "reduce the operating costs of foreign banks and pro-mote their healthy develop-ment," the commission's statement said. The capital requirement for branches dealing with Chinese com-panies will be cut by 25 percent to 300 million yuan (US$36 million), while the limit for branches handling individuals will fall by 15 percent to 500 million yuan, the agency said. It said a one-year waiting period between the openings of new bank branches will be scrapped.
■ Pharmaceuticals
Bristol-Myers to pay SEC
Bristol-Myers Squibb Co, the largest US maker of AIDS drugs, will pay at least US$75 million to settle a US Securities and Exchange Commission probe of whether the company encouraged wholesalers to buy excessive supplies, people familiar with the matter said. The settlement may be announced today, the people said. The com-pany has been under SEC scrutiny since 2002 over "channel stuffing" -- giving incentives to wholesalers to buy more drugs than they could sell. Bristol-Myers agreed last week to settle related shareholder lawsuits for US$300 million, the largest payment by a drug company in a securities-fraud case in US history. Bristol-Myers in March last year restated more than US$2.5 billion in revenue, saying it improperly booked sales to two of its largest wholesalers after shipping more goods than they needed for retail demand.
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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