■ Banking
Travel fraud exposed
Japanese central bank employees have allegedly padded travel costs by ¥100 million (US$870,000), Kyodo News agency reported. The practice among some Bank of Japan staff members has been conducted over the last seven years, according to Dow Jones Newswires, which also reported the scandal, quoting unidentified sources close to the bank. The revelation is part of an ongoing investigation that began in January, when government auditors first discovered that Bank of Japan staff at two branches had charged too much for domestic business trips in recent years, Dow Jones said.
■ Aviation
HK to run Zhuhai airport
Hong Kong's airport has received approval from Beijing to manage Zhuhai Airport in the southern Chinese province of Guangdong under a joint venture agreement, in a move that aims to foster an integrated southern China aviation hub. The Hong Kong airport paid 198 million yuan (US$24.8 million) for a 55 percent stake in the joint venture, the Airport Authority said in a statement late on Wednesday. The Zhuhai municipal government contributed 162 million yuan. The new company, Zhuhai-Hong Kong Airport Management Co, will pay a franchise fee for the right to manage and operate Zhuhai Airport for 20 years.
■ Electronics
Ladies love gadgets: survey
A survey has found that women prefer tech gadgets like plasma televisions and iPods to more traditional luxuries like designer footwear and diamond jewelery. The Girls Gone Wired survey by women's cable television channel Oxygen Network found that 77 percent of women surveyed would prefer a new plasma television to a diamond solitaire necklace and 56 percent would opt for a new plasma TV over a weekend vacation in Florida. Oxygen CEO Geraldine Laybourne said the results showed that women have largely closed the technology gender gap with men.
■ Automobiles
Ford reports higher losses
Ford Motor Co said that its second-quarter loss was more than double what the automaker previously reported due to higher-than-expected pension costs, and added that its luxury car division will not turn a profit this year. In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday, Ford said it revised its loss to US$254 million, or US$0.14 per share, from the previously announced loss of US$123 million, or US$0.07 per share. That contrasts with a profit of US$946 million, or US$0.47 per share, posted in the second quarter of last year. Ford attributed the revision to an increase in full-year pension curtailment expenses to US$1.2 billion, up from its previous projection of US$1 billion.
■ Automobiles
Toyota to improve recalls
Toyota Motor Corp yesterday submitted a report to the government, pledging to improve its information system on vehicle claims and its defect-checking system. In a report, Toyota said it would keep the records on defects for 10 years, instead of the current five years, while it would keep records on defects that have led the manufacturer to consider recalls for 20 years, instead of 10 years. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport issued an instruction demanding improvement of Toyota's recall-related operations. The ministry is expected to inspect the company by the end of the year.
UPDATED (3:40pm): A suspected gas explosion at a shopping mall in Taichung this morning has killed four people and injured 20 others, as emergency responders continue to investigate. The explosion occurred on the 12th floor of the Shin Kong Mitsukoshi in Situn District (西屯) at 11:33am. One person was declared dead at the scene, while three people were declared deceased later after receiving emergency treatment. Another 20 people sustained major or minor injuries. The Taichung Fire Bureau said it received a report of the explosion at 11:33am and sent rescuers to respond. The cause of the explosion is still under investigation, it said. The National Fire
ACCOUNTABILITY: The incident, which occured at a Shin Kong Mitsukoshi Department Store in Taichung, was allegedly caused by a gas explosion on the 12th floor Shin Kong Group (新光集團) president Richard Wu (吳昕陽) yesterday said the company would take responsibility for an apparent gas explosion that resulted in four deaths and 26 injuries at Shin Kong Mitsukoshi Zhonggang Store in Taichung yesterday. The Taichung Fire Bureau at 11:33am yesterday received a report saying that people were injured after an explosion at the department store on Section 3 of Taiwan Boulevard in Taichung’s Situn District (西屯). It sent 56 ambulances and 136 paramedics to the site, with the people injured sent to Cheng Ching Hospital’s Chung Kang Branch, Wuri Lin Shin Hospital, Taichung Veterans General Hospital or Chung
ALL-IN-ONE: A company in Tainan and another in New Taipei City offer tours to China during which Taiwanese can apply for a Chinese ID card, the source said The National Immigration Agency and national security authorities have identified at least five companies that help Taiwanese apply for Chinese identification cards while traveling in China, a source said yesterday. The issue has garnered attention in the past few months after YouTuber “Pa Chiung” (八炯) said that there are companies in Taiwan that help Taiwanese apply for Chinese documents. Minister of the Interior Liu Shyh-fang (劉世芳) last week said that three to five public relations firms in southern and northern Taiwan have allegedly assisted Taiwanese in applying for Chinese ID cards and were under investigation for potential contraventions of the Act Governing
‘LAWFUL USE’: The last time a US warship transited the Taiwan Strait was on Oct. 20 last year, and this week’s transit is the first of US President Donald Trump’s second term Two US military vessels transited the Taiwan Strait from Sunday through early yesterday, the Ministry of National Defense said in a statement, the first such mission since US President Donald Trump took office last month. The two vessels sailed south through the Strait, the ministry said, adding that it closely monitored nearby airspace and waters at the time and observed nothing unusual. The ministry did not name the two vessels, but the US Navy identified them as the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Ralph Johnson and the Pathfinder-class survey ship USNS Bowditch. The ships carried out a north-to-south transit from