■ Wireless devices
Blackberry to expand
Research in Motion Ltd, maker of the BlackBerry wireless e-mail device, aims this year to double of the number of service providers in Asia, the South China Morning Post said, citing vice president Norman Lo. The company aims to add 10 to 15 wireless operators to the current 15 in Asia, the Hong Kong-based newspaper said. Globally, the company aims to add 100 operators this year, it said. The company reached an agreement with China Mobile (Hong Kong) Ltd and expects to introduce its products in China this year, the newspaper said.
■ Automobiles
Siemens may drop bid
Siemens AG said it may halt talks to take over a South Korean car audio-equipment maker after it was asked to raise its bid. Korea Deposit Insurance Co, which owns almost 35 percent of Hyundai Autonet Co, is asking Siemens and its venture partner Hyundai Motor Co to raise their bid prices. "We are surprised that the Korea Deposit Insurance is asking for a higher price," Siemens Ltd Seoul said an e-mailed statement. "We are at the moment considering plans to stop the negotiations for the takeover."
■ Automobiles
Nissan boosts output
Nissan Motor will invest ¥5 billion (US$45 million) to boost output capacity in Mexico amid rising competition from South Korean auto makers in the North American market, a report said yesterday. Nissan, Japan's second-largest carmaker controlled by Renault of France, will raise annual production capacity by 33 percent to 400,000 units at its passenger car plant in Mexico, the business daily Nihon Keizai Shimbun said. The company also plans to launch production of a new, low-priced subcompact car at the Mexican plant to compete against South Korea's Hyundai Motor, it said.
■ Appliances
Whirlpool bids for Maytag
Whirlpool Corp announced an offer to acquire fellow appliance maker Maytag Corp for US$1.37 billion in cash and stock, topping an earlier offer that Maytag accepted from an investment group. Whirlpool said on Sunday that its offer of US$17 per share for Iowa-based Maytag represents a 21 percent premium over the offer from Triton Acquisition Holding Co. Whirlpool would also assume Maytag's debt of US$969 million. The Michigan-based appliance maker has annual sales of more than US$13 billion and 68,000 employees worldwide. It markets Whirlpool, KitchenAid, Brastemp, Bauknecht, Consul and other major brand names to consumers in more than 170 countries.
■ Technology
Philips' profits fall
The Dutch technology conglomerate Philips Electronics NV said yesterday that sales and operating profit fell in the second quarter, due to problems at its LG.Philips joint venture in displays and weakness in semiconductor and technology markets in general. Net profit rose to US$1.18 billion in the second quarter, while sales fell 3 percent from a year ago. Philips said growth in sales of medical and lighting equipment was offset by falls at semiconductors and its displays. LG.Philips, the company's joint venture in displays, contributed just US$12 million to earnings as a glut in the international market for flat-panel televisions and computer screens hurt selling prices.
The Philippines is working behind the scenes to enhance its defensive cooperation with Taiwan, the Washington Post said in a report published on Monday. “It would be hiding from the obvious to say that Taiwan’s security will not affect us,” Philippine Secretary of National Defense Gilbert Teodoro Jr told the paper in an interview on Thursday last week. Although there has been no formal change to the Philippines’ diplomatic stance on recognizing Taiwan, Manila is increasingly concerned about Chinese encroachment in the South China Sea, the report said. The number of Chinese vessels in the seas around the Philippines, as well as Chinese
NEXT GENERATION: The four plants in the Central Taiwan Science Park, designated Fab 25, would consist of four 1.4-nanometer wafer manufacturing plants, TSMC said Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) plans to begin construction of four new plants later this year, with the aim to officially launch production of 2-nanometer semiconductor wafers by late 2028, Central Taiwan Science Park Bureau director-general Hsu Maw-shin (許茂新) said. Hsu made the announcement at an event on Friday evening celebrating the Central Taiwan Science Park’s 22nd anniversary. The second phase of the park’s expansion would commence with the initial construction of water detention ponds and other structures aimed at soil and water conservation, Hsu said. TSMC has officially leased the land, with the Central Taiwan Science Park having handed over the
URBAN COMBAT: FIM-92 Stinger shoulder-fired missiles from the US made a rare public appearance during early-morning drills simulating an invasion of the Taipei MRT The ongoing Han Kuang military exercises entered their sixth day yesterday, simulating repelling enemy landings in Penghu County, setting up fortifications in Tainan, laying mines in waters in Kaohsiung and conducting urban combat drills in Taipei. At 5am in Penghu — part of the exercise’s first combat zone — participating units responded to a simulated rapid enemy landing on beaches, combining infantry as well as armored personnel. First Combat Zone Commander Chen Chun-yuan (陳俊源) led the combined armed troops utilizing a variety of weapons systems. Wang Keng-sheng (王鏗勝), the commander in charge of the Penghu Defense Command’s mechanized battalion, said he would give
‘REALISTIC’ APPROACH: The ministry said all the exercises were scenario-based and unscripted to better prepare personnel for real threats and unexpected developments The army’s 21st Artillery Command conducted a short-range air defense drill in Taoyuan yesterday as part of the Han Kuang exercises, using the indigenous Sky Sword II (陸射劍二) missile system for the first time in the exercises. The armed forces have been conducting a series of live-fire and defense drills across multiple regions, simulating responses to a full-scale assault by Chinese forces, the Ministry of National Defense said. The Sky Sword II missile system was rapidly deployed and combat-ready within 15 minutes to defend Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport in a simulated attack, the ministry said. A three-person crew completed setup and
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