■ Semiconductors
China equiment sales up
Applied Materials Inc, the world's biggest maker of chipmaking equipment, forecast China sales will more reach almost US$1 billion this year, driven by rising demand for semiconductors used in mobile phones and other electronics. China sales will account for 10 percent to 15 percent of revenue, up from 1 percent, or US$100 million, in 2000, Mike Splinter, chief executive of the Santa Clara, California-based company, said in an interview in Shanghai. The outlook for demand is "a bit unclear, with inventory having worked down throughout the industry," Splinter said. Chipmakers "are very aware of their inventory levels, and they are really managing that tightly. It's good for the industry." Splinter's prediction for China sales is in line with the US$1 billion he forecast in May.
■ Tourism
Bangkok tops Web bookings
Bangkok remains the top destination for Asia-Pacific travelers who book flights and hotel rooms online, followed by Hong Kong and Singapore, according to a survey released yesterday. The Indonesian resort island of Bali also kept its position as one of the top 10 destinations for the second consecutive quarter in the survey carried out by ZUJI, a leading online travel portal in the region. The Indonesian capital Jakarta was in fourth place, followed by Kuala Lumpur and London. Bali was the seventh most popular destination, trailed by Taipei, Los Angeles and Colombo, Sri Lanka, which rounded up the top 10 list.
■ Industry
`Lord Moneybags' dies
Former industrialist Lord Hanson, a one-time playboy who became one of the biggest figures in UK corporate history, has died in London from cancer, the BBC reported yesterday. He was 82. Hanson, once engaged to the actress Audrey Hepburn, built the industrial group Hanson Plc into one of the UK's most powerful companies after decades of deal-making on both sides of the Atlantic. Along with the late Lord White, Hanson built an industrial empire worth nearly ?11 billion (US$20.16 billion) that ranged from chemicals and tobacco to energy and building. He bought undervalued, unglamorous companies and then improved performance by ejecting managers and cutting costs. Critics saw him as a ruthless expansionist who symbolized uncaring big business in the 1980s. He was nicknamed "Lord Moneybags" by one tabloid newspaper.
■ Software
Oracle sweetens bid for foe
Oracle Corp sweetened its hostile bid for rival business software maker PeopleSoft Inc to US$9.2 billion on Monday, a 14 percent increase aimed at resolving the long-running takeover battle between the bitter foes. The new all-cash bid of US$24 per share raises the stakes from US$21 per share -- an offer that PeopleSoft rejected as inadequate in May. It marked the fourth time that Oracle has revised its bid since it began its attempt to buy PeopleSoft nearly 17 months ago. Oracle described its latest bid as its "best and final offer," determined to resolve a soap opera that has featured acerbic exchanges between both sides. The company also said it will abandon the takeover attempt if a majority of PeopleSoft's shareholders haven't accepted the new offer by a midnight Nov. 19 deadline.
Japan has deployed long-range missiles in a southwestern region near China, the Japanese defense minister said yesterday, at a time when ties with Beijing are at their lowest in recent years. The missiles were installed in Kumamoto in the southern region of Kyushu, as Japan is attempting to shore up its military capacity as China steps up naval activity in the East China Sea. “Standoff defense capabilities enable us to counter the threat of enemy forces attempting to invade our country ... while ensuring the safety of our personnel,” Japanese Minister of Defense Shinjiro Koizumi said. “This is an extremely important initiative for
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文) today accepted an invitation from Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) to lead a delegation to China next month, saying she hopes to promote the peaceful development of cross-strait relations and bring stability to the Taiwan Strait. “I am grateful and happy to accept this invitation,” Cheng said in a statement from the KMT chairperson’s office. Cheng said she hopes both sides can work together to promote the peaceful development of cross-strait relations, enhance exchange and cooperation, bring stability to the Taiwan Strait and improve people’s livelihoods. At today's news conference, Cheng said any efforts to
MORE POPULAR: Taiwan Pass sales increased by 59 percent during the first quarter compared with the same period last year, the Tourism Administration said The Tourism Administration yesterday said that it has streamlined the Taiwan Pass, with two versions available for purchase beginning today. The tourism agency has made the pass available to international tourists since 2024, allowing them to access the high-speed rail, Taiwan Railway Corp services, four MRT systems and four Taiwan Tourist Shuttles. Previously, five types of Taiwan Pass were available, but some tourists have said that the offerings were too complicated. The agency said only two types of Taiwan Pass would be available, starting from a three-day pass with the high-speed rail and a three-day pass with Taiwan Railway Corp. The former costs NT$2,800
The nation’s fastest supercomputer, Nano 4 (晶創26), is scheduled to be launched in the third quarter, and would be used to train large language models in finance and national defense sectors, the National Center for High-Performance Computing (NCHC) said. The supercomputer, which would operate at about 86.05 petaflops, is being tested at a new cloud computing center in the Southern Taiwan Science Park in Tainan. The exterior of the server cabinet features chip circuitry patterns overlaid with a map of Taiwan, highlighting the nation’s central position in the semiconductor industry. The center also houses Taiwania 2, Taiwania 3, Forerunner 1 and
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