■ Privatization
India cancels plan
India's finance ministry yesterday said it has scrapped plans made by the previous government to privatize 13 state-run companies, all of which are profitable. The junior finance minister told parliament of the decision to call off the planned divestment in 13 companies was made in keeping with an agreement that the governing Congress party signed with its left-wing political allies when it came to power last year. The 13 companies include the National Aluminum Co, Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd, Engineers India Ltd, Shipping Corp of India Ltd, National Building Construction Corp Ltd and National Fertilizers Ltd.
■ Aviation
China to open up west
China plans to allow overseas carriers to operate an unlimited number of international flights in the country's west in hopes of boosting growth in the relatively underdeveloped region, state media said yesterday. "There will be no more limits on overseas carriers' applications for operating international flights in western areas," the China Daily newspaper quoted civil aviation official Yang Guoqing (楊國慶) as saying. The report gave few specifics, but Yang appeared to indicate that restrictions would be lifted over six provinces and autonomous regions in western China that are now home to 32 airports. Passenger traffic in those areas, which include the important tourism regions of Tibet and Yunnan Province, rose 35 percent last year over the previous year, the report said.
■ Regional groups
ASEAN integration needed
ASEAN "needs more work" on economic integration and has a long way to go before the 10-nation grouping can match the level found in Europe, the next head of the WTO said, according to media reports yesterday. "There is no ASEAN budget, no customs union and no single currency," as in a large part of Europe, Pascal Lamy, the EU's former trade commissioner, told the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy in a Monday lecture marking the institution's first anniversary yesterday. The 10 leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations have yet to commit to deep economic integration, though targets have been set to deliver "some progress" by 2020, said Lamy, who takes over next month as the new WTO head. European economic integration, which evolved after the devastation of World War II, cannot serve as a model for ASEAN nations due to the huge difference between the regions, Lamy said.
■ Banking
China mulls foreign control
China is considering selling control of a state-owned bank to foreign investors for the first time, news reports said yesterday. The government is reviewing proposals to sell a major stake in the Guangdong Development Bank (廣東開發銀行), a mid-size lender based in southern China, the Financial Times and the Asian Wall Street Journal reported, citing unidentified sources. Chinese rules limit foreigners to owning 25 percent of a Chinese bank, but the Financial Times said regulators were considering a possible deal that could let buyers control up to 51 percent of Guangdong Development's shares through local joint ventures. The Journal said five to 10 possible investors had expressed interest in the bank and the government is expected to make a decision by the end of the year.
ENDEAVOR MANTA: The ship is programmed to automatically return to its designated home port and would self-destruct if seized by another party The Endeavor Manta, Taiwan’s first military-specification uncrewed surface vehicle (USV) tailor-made to operate in the Taiwan Strait in a bid to bolster the nation’s asymmetric combat capabilities made its first appearance at Kaohsiung’s Singda Harbor yesterday. Taking inspiration from Ukraine’s navy, which is using USVs to force Russia’s Black Sea fleet to take shelter within its own ports, CSBC Taiwan (台灣國際造船) established a research and development unit on USVs last year, CSBC chairman Huang Cheng-hung (黃正弘) said. With the exception of the satellite guidance system and the outboard motors — which were purchased from foreign companies that were not affiliated with Chinese-funded
PERMIT REVOKED: The influencer at a news conference said the National Immigration Agency was infringing on human rights and persecuting Chinese spouses Chinese influencer “Yaya in Taiwan” (亞亞在台灣) yesterday evening voluntarily left Taiwan, despite saying yesterday morning that she had “no intention” of leaving after her residence permit was revoked over her comments on Taiwan being “unified” with China by military force. The Ministry of the Interior yesterday had said that it could forcibly deport the influencer at midnight, but was considering taking a more flexible approach and beginning procedures this morning. The influencer, whose given name is Liu Zhenya (劉振亞), departed on a 8:45pm flight from Taipei International Airport (Songshan airport) to Fuzhou, China. Liu held a news conference at the airport at 7pm,
KAOHSIUNG CEREMONY: The contract chipmaker is planning to build 5 fabs in the southern city to gradually expand its 2-nanometer chip capacity Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s biggest contract chipmaker, yesterday confirmed that it plans to hold a ceremony on March 31 to unveil a capacity expansion plan for its most advanced 2-nanometer chips in Kaohsiung, demonstrating its commitment to further investment at home. The ceremony is to be hosted by TSMC cochief operating officer Y.P. Chyn (秦永沛). It did not disclose whether Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) and high-ranking government officials would attend the ceremony. More details are to be released next week, it said. The chipmaker’s latest move came after its announcement earlier this month of an additional US$100 billion
Authorities yesterday elaborated on the rules governing Employment Gold Cards after a US cardholder was barred from entering Taiwan for six years after working without a permit during a 2023 visit. American YouTuber LeLe Farley was barred after already being approved for an Employment Gold Card, he said in a video published on his channel on Saturday. Farley, who has more than 420,000 subscribers on his YouTube channel, was approved for his Gold Card last month, but was told at a check-in counter at the Los Angeles International Airport that he could not enter Taiwan. That was because he previously participated in two
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