■ Semiconductors
Intel in talks with India
Intel Corp said it is in talks with the Indian government on setting up a factory in India. Intel is helping the Indian government prepare an overall policy framework for setting up chip plants in the country, Paul Otellini, chief executive officer of Santa Clara, California-based Intel, said in Bangalore. "India today has chip design units and I will argue forever that the design part of our work, the knowledge-intensive activities that we do in Bangalore, for example, are of much more value short term to India than the factory," Otellini said. "Having said that, we continue to be in discussion with the government on assembly-test factories." India will "shortly" unveil a policy promoting semiconductor investment in India, and will consider funding such projects through equity participation, Finance Minister P. Chidambaram said on Feb. 28.
■ Computers
Microsoft unveils FlexGo
Microsoft unveiled a new pay-as-you-go technology on Monday designed to make personal computers more affordable to emerging-market customers. The program, known as FlexGo, is set for trials to begin this week in Brazil, to be followed by tests in India, China, Russia, Slovenia, Vietnam and Mexico, according to Microsoft officials. Eventually, it might even be offered to customers in the US. The scheme allows users to make a down payment on a mid-level PC, then pay for time they use on their computers with pre-paid cards similar to those sold by cell phone companies. Users will also be able to buy time via their local Internet service providers.
■ Computers
Microsoft continuing appeal
Microsoft Corp said yesterday it has no plans to give up a legal challenge in South Korean court, one day after regulators rejected its appeal of an antitrust ruling against the company. The Korea Fair Trade Commission on Monday turned down Microsoft's appeal of the decision, which included a fine of 32.5 billion won (US$34 million). The US software maker has also appealed to the Seoul High Court. In February, the commission issued a final ruling that Microsoft abused its dominant market position in South Korea by tying certain software to its Windows operating system. The preliminary ruling came in December. Under the ruling, Microsoft is required to provide a version of Windows stripped of Windows Media Player and Windows Messenger.
■ Economics
OECD raises growth forecast
Industrialized economies are growing at 3.1 percent this year, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) said yesterday, warning that the US may have to raise interest rates further but that the European Central Bank should wait. But the OECD repeatedly stressed dangers from global imbalances, principally US trade and current deficits, and quoted estimates that for the trade account to balance the US dollar might have to fall by a third to a half. Raising its global growth forecast for the year by 0.2 percentage points from an estimate six months ago, the OECD said that the US, eurozone and Japanese economies might "grow slightly above trend" in the next few months. And it forecast in its annual outlook for the global economy that the 30 OECD countries were set for growth of 2.9 percent next year, the same figure it signaled in November.
LANDMARK: Taiwan and Haiti are set to mark the 70th anniversary of diplomatic relations next year, the president said, adding that the two would deepen bilateral ties President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday pledged continued support for Haiti, particularly in food aid and healthcare, as the Caribbean nation faces ongoing social and economic challenges. Speaking at a meeting with Haitian Minister of Foreign Affairs Jean-Victor Harvel Jean-Baptiste, Lai said Taiwan would step up bilateral cooperation to help improve Haiti’s social infrastructure. Taiwan would continue supporting Haiti through initiatives aimed at improving healthcare, food security and overall development, he said. Taiwan and Haiti are set to mark the 70th anniversary of diplomatic relations next year, the president said, adding that the two nations would continue to support each other and deepen bilateral
MONTHS OF WORK: The core mission of Taiwan’s negotiators is to safeguard the national interest, public health and food security, President William Lai said Taiwan is still hoping to reach a deal with the US in ongoing tariff talks after it was not among the first batch of 14 nations to receive tariff notification letters. The US issued its first batch of tariff notification letters on Monday, but Executive Yuan spokeswoman Michelle Lee (李慧芝) yesterday confirmed that Taiwan has yet to receive one. Vice Premier Cheng Li-chun (鄭麗君) and Minister Without Portfolio Yang Jen-ni (楊珍妮), who lead the Office of Trade Negotiations, are in the US negotiating the tariff issue, the Executive Yuan said yesterday. The US in early April announced sweeping tariffs on imported goods, including
‘A SERIOUS THREAT’: Japan has expressed grave concern over the Strait’s security over the years, which demonstrated Tokyo’s firm support for peace in the area, an official said China’s military drills around Taiwan are “incompatible” with peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, Japanese Minister of Foreign Affairs Takeshi Iwaya said during a meeting with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi (王毅) on Thursday. “Peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait is important for the international community, including Japan,” Iwaya told Wang during a meeting on the sidelines of the ASEAN-related Foreign Ministers’ Meetings in Kuala Lumpur. “China’s large-scale military drills around Taiwan are incompatible with this,” a statement released by the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Thursday cited Iwaya as saying. The Foreign Ministers’ Meetings are a series of diplomatic
The New York Yankees are to host Taiwanese Heritage Day for the first time this year, the event’s organizer announced on Monday. The annual event, which has been held nearly every year since 2005, has often been hosted by the New York Mets at Citi Field, but this year it would be hosted by the New York Yankees on Sept. 10 at Yankee Stadium, organizer ROF International Sport Marketing wrote on social media. The event, which is being co-organized by the Taiwanese Chambers of Commerce of North America (TCCNA), is one of many cultural events hosted by the Yankees, the announcement said,
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