■ AVIATION
Gatwick worst for delays
London's Gatwick and Heathrow airports had the worst records for delayed departing flights of all Europe's leading airports in the three months through September, the Financial Times reported. Gatwick reported 41 percent of flights delayed for more than 15 minutes at departure and Heathrow had 39 percent during the period, it said, citing figures from the Association of European Airlines. The UK airports were also among the worst for delayed flight arrivals, joining Istanbul, the newspaper said, as well as the most congested.
■ TRADE
Ivory Coast needs EU pact
Failure to sign a new trade deal with the EU before a preferential pact expires next month could cost Ivory Coast up to US$1.5 billion, the EU's top aid official said on Saturday. The EU wants to ink economic partnership agreements with nearly 80 countries in Africa, the Caribbean and Pacific regions that will replace deals deemed illegal by the WTO. Louis Michel, EU commissioner for development and humanitarian aid, said signing an agreement was of "colossal" importance for Ivory Coast. An economic partnership agreement grants the EU tariff-free access to African markets except on a few selected, sensitive goods.
■ ELECTRONICS
Samsung cuts 1,000 jobs
Samsung Electronics Co, Asia's largest maker of semiconductors, flat screens and mobile phones, has cut more than 1,000 jobs for the first time since 2002, Yonhap news agency reported, citing data submitted to South Korea's Financial Supervisory Service. According to figures reported by Samsung Electronics yesterday, its workforce totaled 85,269 at the end of September, down 1,630 from the 86,899 reported six months earlier, the Korean-language news agency said. The number of executive-level officials also declined by 15 over the same period, the report said. The cuts come as Samsung is struggling with falling prices for memory chips.
■ STEEL
Maker offers software
ArcelorMittal, the world's largest steelmaker, said it will combine its design software with building and construction programs from four companies, in an effort to increase the use of steel. The agreement was made with Germany's Nemetschek AG and its Belgian subsidiary SCIA; Finland's Tekla Oyj and two closely held French companies, Graitec and Rabobat, the Luxembourg-based steelmaker said in a statement. The software will enable architects and engineers to take advantage of ArcelorMittal products such as composite beams in construction, ArcelorMittal said.
■ GENDER EQUALITY
City of London ranks low
The City of London ranks near the bottom of UK districts with female-led companies, the Financial Times reported, citing research firm Gavurin. In the survey of 2.2 million British companies, the the City of London was second to last with 19.1 percent of its businesses run by women. London borough Tower Hamlets ranked last at 19 percent. Alnwick in Northumberland has the highest proportion of companies run by women at 31.2 percent, the newspaper cited the report as saying. London's Kensington and Chelsea ranked among the top 15 districts.
DEFENDING DEMOCRACY: Taiwan shares the same values as those that fought in WWII, and nations must unite to halt the expansion of a new authoritarian bloc, Lai said The government yesterday held a commemoration ceremony for Victory in Europe (V-E) Day, joining the rest of the world for the first time to mark the anniversary of the end of World War II in Europe. Taiwan honoring V-E Day signifies “our growing connections with the international community,” President William Lai (賴清德) said at a reception in Taipei on the 80th anniversary of V-E Day. One of the major lessons of World War II is that “authoritarianism and aggression lead only to slaughter, tragedy and greater inequality,” Lai said. Even more importantly, the war also taught people that “those who cherish peace cannot
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
The Philippines yesterday criticized a “high-risk” maneuver by a Chinese vessel near the disputed Scarborough Shoal (Huangyan Island, 黃岩島) in a rare incident involving warships from the two navies. The Scarborough Shoal — a triangular chain of reefs and rocks in the contested South China Sea — has been a flash point between the countries since China seized it from the Philippines in 2012. Taiwan also claims the shoal. Monday’s encounter took place approximately 11.8 nautical miles (22km) southeast” of the Scarborough Shoal, the Philippine military said, during ongoing US-Philippine military exercises that Beijing has criticized as destabilizing. “The Chinese frigate BN 554 was
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
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