■ MARKETS
Japan to tighten regulations
Japan aims to increase fines for accounting fraud, insider trading and other violations of securities laws following a series of high-profile scandals, a news report said yesterday. The Financial Services Agency will submit a bill to parliament next year to bring fines closer to levels imposed in the US, according to a report in Japan's largest business newspaper, the Nikkei. Critics say the current fines, set by the agency based on individual cases, are too small to deter companies from illegal activity. The move to boost penalties follows a string of high-profile accounting fraud cases.
■ ENERGY
Oil-from-coal effort may end
China is considering halting efforts to make oil from coal due to concerns about the expense and energy demands, a state news agency yesterday quoted an official as saying. China is hoping to ease its rising dependence on imported oil by promoting alternative energy sources such as oil-from-coal and solar, wind and nuclear power. "Liquefied coal projects consume a lot of energy, though the successful industrialization of liquefied coal could help reduce the country's dependence on petroleum," Xinhua news agency said, citing an official of the National Development and Reform Commission on Saturday.
■ TOURISM
IDB, Elad to build US casino
Israel's IDB Development Corp and Elad Group agreed in principle to form a joint venture to develop a Las Vegas hotel and casino project for between US$6 billion and US$8 billion. The venture, which will be held equally by the two companies, will build the complex on a 14 hectare site now occupied by the New Frontier Hotel in Las Vegas, IDB said yesterday in a statement to the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange. The project, to be called "The Plaza," will include a casino, a 3,500-room hotel, luxury apartments and shops, it said. Tel Aviv-based IDB's holdings include insurance, retail and industrial companies mainly in Israel.
■ ELECTRONICS
Samsung to invest in Russia
Samsung Electronics Co, the world's largest liquid-crystal-display television maker, will invest US$57 million in a television factory in Russia to meet rising demand for digital TVs in the region. Samsung will begin building the plant next month in Russia's Kaluga State, southwest of Moscow, and complete construction by October 2008, the Suwon, South Korea-based company said in a statement yesterday. Samsung plans to make 2.2 million digital TVs annually from the factory in 2010, the company said. Samsung currently has television factories in Korea, Mexico, China, Slovakia, Hungary, Thailand, Indonesia and Brazil, according to the statement.
■ AUTOMAKERS
Denso to set up offshoot
Japanese auto-parts maker Denso will produce eco-friendly fuel-injection equipment for diesel engines in China to meet growing demand for cleaner vehicles there, a report said yesterday. Denso Corp would set up a subsidiary in Changzhou, Jiangsu Province, and build a plant to produce the equipment, possibly in 2009, the Japanese business daily Nikkei said. The company's investment in the plant was estimated at ¥5 billion (US$41 million), the daily said. The injection systems would be supplied chiefly for use in locally produced commercial vehicles.
Taiwanese Olympic badminton men’s doubles gold medalist Wang Chi-lin (王齊麟) and his new partner, Chiu Hsiang-chieh (邱相榤), clinched the men’s doubles title at the Yonex Taipei Open yesterday, becoming the second Taiwanese team to win a title in the tournament. Ranked 19th in the world, the Taiwanese duo defeated Kang Min-hyuk and Ki Dong-ju of South Korea 21-18, 21-15 in a pulsating 43-minute final to clinch their first doubles title after teaming up last year. Wang, the men’s doubles gold medalist at the 2020 and 2024 Olympics, partnered with Chiu in August last year after the retirement of his teammate Lee Yang
FALSE DOCUMENTS? Actor William Liao said he was ‘voluntarily cooperating’ with police after a suspect was accused of helping to produce false medical certificates Police yesterday questioned at least six entertainers amid allegations of evasion of compulsory military service, with Lee Chuan (李銓), a member of boy band Choc7 (超克7), and actor Daniel Chen (陳大天) among those summoned. The New Taipei City District Prosecutors’ Office in January launched an investigation into a group that was allegedly helping men dodge compulsory military service using falsified medical documents. Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) has been accused of being one of the group’s clients. As the investigation expanded, investigators at New Taipei City’s Yonghe Precinct said that other entertainers commissioned the group to obtain false documents. The main suspect, a man surnamed
US Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent and US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer began talks with high-ranking Chinese officials in Switzerland yesterday aiming to de-escalate a dispute that threatens to cut off trade between the world’s two biggest economies and damage the global economy. The US delegation has begun meetings in Geneva with a Chinese delegation led by Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng (何立峰), Xinhua News Agency said. Diplomats from both sides also confirmed that the talks have begun, but spoke anonymously and the exact location of the talks was not made public. Prospects for a major breakthrough appear dim, but there is
The number of births in Taiwan fell to an all-time monthly low last month, while the population declined for the 16th consecutive month, Ministry of the Interior data released on Friday showed. The number of newborns totaled 8,684, which is 704 births fewer than in March and the lowest monthly figure on record, the ministry said. That is equivalent to roughly one baby born every five minutes and an annual crude birthrate of 4.52 per 1,000 people, the ministry added. Meanwhile, 17,205 deaths were recorded, resulting in a natural population decrease of 8,521, the data showed. More people are also leaving Taiwan, with net
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