■INVESTMENT
Seoul to launch fund
South Korea will launch a US$3.94 billion fund next month to boost corporate investment as part of a drive for economic recovery, officials said yesterday. The 5 trillion-won fund was approved by President Lee Myung-bak at his meeting with business leaders and policymakers, the Ministry of Strategy and Finance said. The ministry plans to expand the fund to 20 trillion won after drawing participation from other pension funds and institutional investors.
■TRADE
Australia posts huge deficit
Australia yesterday reported its largest trade deficit in 12 months as softening commodity prices and demand hammered export earnings, dealers said. The trade deficit almost doubled to A$556 million (US$449 million) in seasonally adjusted terms in May, up from A$282 million in April, the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) said. Exports plunged 5 percent over the month, partially offset by a 4 percent fall in imports. It was the steepest fall since July last year, when Australia reported a seasonally adjusted deficit of A$717 million and was more than four times the median market expectation of A$125 million.
■ELECTRONICS
Hitachi to supply GM
Japanese electronics manufacturer Hitachi Ltd said yesterday it would supply lithium-ion batteries for hybrid vehicles to General Motors Corp next year and sharply raise production capacity to meet surging demand for gas-electric cars. Hitachi currently makes 40,000 lithium-ion batteries per month and will lift the capacity to 3 million units. “We plan to boost our production capacity for lithium-ion batteries as we expect demand for hybrid vehicles will continue to grow worldwide,” Hitachi spokesman Shinya Yamada said. He declined to say when capacity expansion would start.
■INTERNET
YouTube raises upload limit
Video-sharing site YouTube said on Wednesday it was doubling the size limit for uploads to its Web site to allow users to post more high-definition (HD) video. YouTube, in a blog post, said the size limit for uploads to the site was being doubled — from 1 gigabyte to 2 gigabytes. “The increase means you can upload longer videos at a higher resolution as well as large HD files directly from your camera,” YouTube said. “The changes allow you to share links directly to the HD version of your video, as well as embed the HD version on your blog or Web site,” it said.
■TELECOMS
Telefonica eyeing T-Mobile
Telefonica has joined Vodafone in considering a bid for T-Mobile UK, while France Telecom is weighing up a possible joint venture with the British mobile operator, the Financial Times said yesterday, citing people close to the matter. The FT on Monday reported that Vodafone, the world’s biggest mobile phone company by revenue, was exploring a bid to buy T-Mobile UK, the British arm of Deutsche Telekom.
■MINING
Rio Tinto 97% subscribed
Mining giant Rio Tinto said yesterday investors had bought 97 percent of the new London-listed shares issued by the group to help it raise US$15.2 billion. The Anglo-Australian group on June 5 announced plans to raise US$11.8 billion from the sale of fresh London-listed stock and US$3.4 billion from new shares listed in Sydney. Results of the Sydney rights issue would be announced today, the company said.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) plans to make advanced 3-nanometer chips in Japan, stepping up its semiconductor manufacturing roadmap in the country in a triumph for Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s technology ambitions. TSMC is to adopt cutting-edge technology for its second wafer fab in Kumamoto, company chairman C.C. Wei (魏哲家) said yesterday. That is an upgrade from an original blueprint to produce 7-nanometer chips by late next year, people familiar with the matter said. TSMC began mass production at its first plant in Japan’s Kumamoto in late 2024. Its second fab, which is still under construction, was originally focused on
DETERRENCE EFFORTS: Washington and partners hope demonstrations of force would convince Beijing that military action against Taiwan would carry high costs The US is considering using HMAS Stirling in Western Australia as a forward base to strengthen its naval posture in a potential conflict with China, particularly over Taiwan, the Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday. As part of its Indo-Pacific strategy, Washington plans to deploy up to four nuclear-powered submarines at Stirling starting in 2027, providing a base near potential hot spots such as Taiwan and the South China Sea. The move also aims to enhance military integration with Pacific allies under the Australia-UK-US trilateral security partnership, the report said. Currently, US submarines operate from Guam, but the island could
EMERGING FIELDS: The Chinese president said that the two countries would explore cooperation in green technology, the digital economy and artificial intelligence Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) yesterday called for an “equal and orderly multipolar world” in the face of “unilateral bullying,” in an apparent jab at the US. Xi was speaking during talks in Beijing with Uruguayan President Yamandu Orsi, the first South American leader to visit China since US special forces captured then-Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro last month — an operation that Beijing condemned as a violation of sovereignty. Orsi follows a slew of leaders to have visited China seeking to boost ties with the world’s second-largest economy to hedge against US President Donald Trump’s increasingly unpredictable administration. “The international situation is fraught
CSBC Corp, Taiwan (台灣國際造船) yesterday released the first video documenting the submerged sea trials of Taiwan’s indigenous defense submarine prototype, the Hai Kun (海鯤), or Narwhal, showing underwater navigation and the launch of countermeasures. The footage shows the vessel’s first dive, steering and control system tests, and the raising and lowering of the periscope and antenna masts. It offered a rare look at the progress in the submarine’s sea acceptance tests. The Hai Kun carried out its first shallow-water diving trial late last month and has since completed four submerged tests, CSBC said. The newly released video compiles images recorded from Jan. 29 to
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