■ Germany
August trade surplus down
The German trade balance showed a surplus of 11.2 billion euros (US$14.1 billion) in August, down from 13.2 billion euros in July, official data showed yesterday. On a 12-month basis, the German trade surplus was lower than the 11.6 billion euros recorded in August last year, the federal statistics office, Destatis, calculated in preliminary figures. The statisticians calculated that Germany, the biggest eurozone economy, exported 69.4 billion euros worth of goods in August, up 9.6 percent on the year, while imports rose even more strongly, expanding 12.5 percent to 58.2 billion euros. Taking into account trade in services and income, Germany's current account showed a surplus of 2.4 billion euros in August, down from 7.2 billion euros in July and 3.0 billion euros in August last year.
■ Airlines
BA executive resigns
British Airways' commercial director Martin George resigned yesterday, admitting that some staff in his department may have been involved in inappropriate discussions with competitors about fuel surcharges. George, had been on leave of absence since June when the Office of Fair Trading and the US Justice Department began an investigation into alleged price-fixing agreements on fuel surcharges. Iain Burns, British Airways' head of communications, also resigned. He also had been on a leave of absence. Robert Boyle, British Airways' director of planning, was appointed to replace George as commercial director. Thomas Coops, former communications director at Abbey National, was appointed to Burns' post on an interim basis, the company said.
■ Aviation
Emirates orders 10 jets
Dubai's government-owned carrier Emirates Airline said on Sunday it has finalized an order for 10 freighter versions of Boeing Co's 747 jumbo jet. The deal is worth US$2.8 billion at list prices, though airlines typically negotiate discounts on bulk orders. Emirates SkyCargo, the company's air freight division, will receive its first delivery of the planes in 2010, said Sheik Ahmed Bin Saeed Al Maktoum, chairman of Dubai-based Emirates. "Dubai has seen tremendous growth in the opportunities to provide our customers across the globe custom-tailored freight solutions," Sheik Ahmed said. "Moreover, developing this side of our business is elemental to Emirates maintaining a leading position amongst the world's airlines and we will take full advantage of the extended capacity these new Boeing freighters offer."
■ Oil
Firm investing in Riau
ChevronTexaco's Indonesian unit is to spend US$1 billion to help boost output at its declining oil fields in Riau Province, company president Suwito Anggoro said. Enhanced oil recovery technology would be used to limit the decline in output there to 8 percent to 9 percent per year, he told reporters late on Sunday. Chevron Pacific Indonesia's output is 500,000 barrels of oil per day, nearly half of the country's entire output. Its Riau operations account for about 430,000 barrels per day. Anggoro said the company was also planning to invest US$6 billion in developing a gas field off the province of East Kalimantan. He gave no further details. The gas field is expected to start production in 2012, although Indonesian Vice President Jusuf Kalla has asked the company to make it sooner.
TYPHOON: The storm’s path indicates a high possibility of Krathon making landfall in Pingtung County, depending on when the storm turns north, the CWA said Typhoon Krathon is strengthening and is more likely to make landfall in Taiwan, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said in a forecast released yesterday afternoon. As of 2pm yesterday, the CWA’s updated sea warning for Krathon showed that the storm was about 430km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point. It was moving in west-northwest at 9kph, with maximum sustained winds of 119kph and gusts of up to 155kph, CWA data showed. Krathon is expected to move further west before turning north tomorrow, CWA forecaster Wu Wan-hua (伍婉華) said. The CWA’s latest forecast and other countries’ projections of the storm’s path indicate a higher
SLOW-MOVING STORM: The typhoon has started moving north, but at a very slow pace, adding uncertainty to the extent of its impact on the nation Work and classes have been canceled across the nation today because of Typhoon Krathon, with residents in the south advised to brace for winds that could reach force 17 on the Beaufort scale as the Central Weather Administration (CWA) forecast that the storm would make landfall there. Force 17 wind with speeds of 56.1 to 61.2 meters per second, the highest number on the Beaufort scale, rarely occur and could cause serious damage. Krathon could be the second typhoon to land in southwestern Taiwan, following typhoon Elsie in 1996, CWA records showed. As of 8pm yesterday, the typhoon’s center was 180km
TYPHOON DAY: Taitung, Pingtung, Tainan, Chiayi, Hualien and Kaohsiung canceled work and classes today. The storm is to start moving north this afternoon The outer rim of Typhoon Krathon made landfall in Taitung County and the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春半島) at about noon yesterday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, adding that the eye of the storm was expected to hit land tomorrow. The CWA at 2:30pm yesterday issued a land alert for Krathon after issuing a sea alert on Sunday. It also expanded the scope of the sea alert to include waters north of Taiwan Strait, in addition to its south, from the Bashi Channel to the Pratas Islands (Dongsha Islands, 東沙群島). As of 6pm yesterday, the typhoon’s center was 160km south of
STILL DANGEROUS: The typhoon was expected to weaken, but it would still maintain its structure, with high winds and heavy rain, the weather agency said One person had died amid heavy winds and rain brought by Typhoon Krathon, while 70 were injured and two people were unaccounted for, the Central Emergency Operation Center said yesterday, while work and classes have been canceled nationwide today for the second day. The Hualien County Fire Department said that a man in his 70s had fallen to his death at about 11am on Tuesday while trimming a tree at his home in Shoufeng Township (壽豐). Meanwhile, the Yunlin County Fire Department received a report of a person falling into the sea at about 1pm on Tuesday, but had to suspend search-and-rescue
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