■AVIATION
Airlines seek new venture
US carriers United and Continental and Japan’s All Nippon Airways asked for approval for a new joint trans-Pacific venture to compete against other global alliances. The airlines filed an application with the US Department of Transportation for antitrust immunity “to create a more efficient and comprehensive trans-Pacific network, generating substantial service and pricing benefits for consumers.” The airlines said the venture would enable them to compete more effectively with other global alliances. Approval would give them authority to jointly manage trans-Pacific activities including scheduling, pricing and sales. The announcement came a day after the US Justice Department said a tie-up of British Airways and American Airlines for trans-Atlantic flights would lead to “competitive harm” and called for restrictions on the deal.
■AUTOMOBILES
Share know-how: Chavez
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez told foreign automakers on Wednesday to share their technology with local businesses or they will be told to leave the country. Chavez gave the ultimatum to Ford, GM, Toyota and Fiat during a public ceremony in Caracas. There was no immediate response from the companies, which all have assembly plants in Venezuela. If his demand isn’t met, Chavez said, “I invite you to pack up your belongings and leave. I’ll bring in the Russians, the Belarusians, the Chinese.” Last year, auto plants in Venezuela produced 135,042 cars and trucks. But Venezuela’s currency controls have the industry struggling to obtain the cash they need to import enough parts and pay down debts.
■IRELAND
Immigrants returning home
Tens of thousands of immigrants who flocked to Ireland to seek work during its Celtic Tiger economic boom appear to have gone home during the recession, official data out on Wednesday showed. A Central Statistic Office (CSO) analysis of personal public service numbers (PPSN) that are needed to get a job or claim welfare showed that of the 967,800 foreigners assigned numbers from 2002 to last year, only 425,600 were working at some time during 2008. The number of PPSNs allocated to foreigners fell sharply last year to 154,834, a 28 percent drop from the 2007 figure of 215,265. The CSO said the largest drop was for the EU accession states, which fell by over half to 65,700. The number of PPSNs issued peaked at 226,807 in 2006. The CSO said the economic downturn contributed to the low first-year employment rate for last year, when only 48 percent of immigrants got jobs.
■MALAYSIA
Unpopular tax watered down
Malaysia has watered down an unpopular property gains tax, saying the 5 percent levy will only be imposed on properties sold within five years of purchase, reports said yesterday. Prime Minister Najib Razak reportedly said the decision was made following appeals from industry groups, and that the government would forgo tax revenue amounting to 200 million ringgit (US$59 million) a year. “We are willing to forgo a substantial amount of revenue so that the sector can expand and grow,” he was quoted as saying by the Edge financial daily. The tax, imposed on financial gains made on the sale of a property, was announced by Najib in the budget for next year in October. It is being reintroduced after being removed in 2007, in a move aimed at broadening Malaysia’s tax base to finance various development projects.
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
RULES BROKEN: The MAC warned Chinese not to say anything that would be harmful to the autonomous status of Taiwan or undermine its sovereignty A Chinese couple accused of disrupting a pro-democracy event in Taipei organized by Hong Kong residents has been deported, the National Immigration Agency said in a statement yesterday afternoon. A Chinese man, surnamed Yao (姚), and his wife were escorted by immigration officials to Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, where they boarded a flight to China before noon yesterday, the agency said. The agency said that it had annulled the couple’s entry permits, citing alleged contraventions of the Regulations Governing the Approval of Entry of People of the Mainland Area into the Taiwan Area (大陸地區人民進入台灣地區許可辦法). The couple applied to visit a family member in
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