■ Central Banking
BOJ favors rate hike
Bank of Japan Governor Toshihiko Fukui wants to raise interest rates early but gradually, warning there is a risk of not moving soon enough to fend off inflation, a report said yesterday. "I will handle [rates] quickly and gradually," Fukui said in an interview with the Yomiuri Shimbun. "If we fail to adjust policy, worrying too much about the downside risk to the economy, we will rather create more risk."
■ Aviation
AirAsia wants more planes
Low-cost aviation pioneer AirAsia Bhd plans to accelerate its fleet expansion to accommodate a rapid increase in passenger traffic, the airline's group chief executive, Tony Fernandes, said yesterday. Fernandes told the Aviation Outlook industry conference that he expected AirAsia to carry 16 million passengers in the fiscal year ending next June, up from 9.31 million in the last fiscal year. The carrier has ordered 100 Airbus A320s, has options
on another 30 and is considering buying yet more planes, Fernandes said. "We could do with a lot more aircraft," he said.
■ Food
Nissin rescues Myojo
Japanese instant noodle giant Nissin Food Products is in tie-up talks with Myojo Foods in order to fend off a hostile takeover bid by a US fund for its rival, a report said yesterday. If an agreement is reached, Nissin will likely launch a friendly offer for Myojo to trump a hostile approach by Steel Partners Japan Strategic Fund for Myojo, the Nihon Keizai Shimbun said without citing sources. Nissin, known for its flagship Cup Noodle products, has emerged as a "white knight" after Myojo sought its help to fend off an unwanted suitor, the report said.
Taiwan’s Lee Chia-hao (李佳豪) on Sunday won a silver medal at the All England Open Badminton Championships in Birmingham, England, a career best. Lee, 25, took silver in the final of the men’s singles against world No. 1 Shi Yuqi (石宇奇) of China, who won 21-17, 21-19 in a tough match that lasted 51 minutes. After the match, the Taiwanese player, who ranks No. 22 in the world, said it felt unreal to be challenging an opponent of Shi’s caliber. “I had to be in peak form, and constantly switch my rhythm and tactics in order to score points effectively,” he said. Lee got
EMBRACING TAIWAN: US lawmakers have introduced an act aiming to replace the use of ‘Chinese Taipei’ with ‘Taiwan’ across all Washington’s federal agencies A group of US House of Representatives lawmakers has introduced legislation to replace the term “Chinese Taipei” with “Taiwan” across all federal agencies. US Representative Byron Donalds announced the introduction of the “America supports Taiwan act,” which would mandate federal agencies adopt “Taiwan” in place of “Chinese Taipei,” a news release on his page on the US House of Representatives’ Web site said. US representatives Mike Collins, Barry Moore and Tom Tiffany are cosponsors of the legislation, US political newspaper The Hill reported yesterday. “The legislation is a push to normalize the position of Taiwan as an autonomous country, although the official US
CHANGE OF TONE: G7 foreign ministers dropped past reassurances that there is no change in the position of the G7 members on Taiwan, including ‘one China’ policies G7 foreign ministers on Friday took a tough stance on China, stepping up their language on Taiwan and omitting some conciliatory references from past statements, including to “one China” policies. A statement by ministers meeting in Canada mirrored last month’s Japan-US statement in condemning “coercion” toward Taiwan. Compared with a G7 foreign ministers’ statement in November last year, the statement added members’ concerns over China’s nuclear buildup, although it omitted references to their concerns about Beijing’s human rights abuses in Xinjiang, Tibet and Hong Kong. Also missing were references stressing the desire for “constructive and stable relations with China” and
‘CROWN JEWEL’: Washington ‘can delay and deter’ Chinese President Xi Jinping’s plans for Taiwan, but it is ‘a very delicate situation there,’ the secretary of state said US President Donald Trump is opposed to any change to Taiwan’s “status quo” by force or extortion and would maintain that policy, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told the Hugh Hewitt Show host on Wednesday. The US’ policy is to maintain Taiwan’s “status quo” and to oppose any changes in the situation by force or extortion, Rubio said. Hewitt asked Rubio about the significance of Trump earlier this month speaking with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (台積電) chairman C.C. Wei (魏哲家) at the White House, a meeting that Hewitt described as a “big deal.” Asked whether the meeting was an indication of the
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