■STOCKS
LSE may list in Shanghai
London Stock Exchange (LSE) Group Plc and Seaspan Corp, a Hong Kong shipper, may seek to list in Shanghai, joining a growing number of foreign companies seeking to take advantage of domestic demand and a stronger yuan. The LSE, the operator of the London and Milan bourses, wants to list in China’s commercial hub by the end of next year, CEO Xavier Rolet said at a financial forum in Shanghai. Seaspan would be interested if the Shanghai Stock Exchange opens to overseas companies, Seaspan CEO Gerry Wang (王友貴) said at the same forum.
■SAUDIA ARABIA
No plans to buy debt: bank
The government has no plans to buy European sovereign debt, the country’s central bank governor Muhammad al-Jasser was quoted as saying by al-Watan newspaper yesterday. The kingdom also won’t implement banking fees proposed by the IMF, al-Jasser said. The central bank also expects no acute inflationary pressure in the second quarter, according to a report released on its Web site.
■LUXURY
Demand rising: De Beers
De Beers, the world’s largest diamond company, said first-half sales were “much stronger” this year, according to executive director Jonathan Oppenheimer. “The extra demand is coming from a sense that people are keen to celebrate special events again,” Oppenheimer said in an interview at the Fortune Global Forum in Cape Town yesterday. He said the option of investing in diamonds as a safe haven is being investigated and he supports the idea of an exchange-traded fund for diamonds “in principle.”
■BANKING
Deutsche Bank still hiring
Deutsche Bank AG boss Josef Ackermann said in an interview yesterday the lender is still hiring hundreds of people for its investment bank. Ackermann said he’s “worried about regulatory arbitrage” and supports a “level playing field” from banking reforms and the G20 meeting in Canada over the weekend.
■INVESTMENT
Losses doubled: Mumtalakat
Bahrain’s government investment company said in a statement on Saturday losses more than doubled last year as the economic slump hurt key businesses. The Mumtalakat fund said losses increased to 183 million dinars (US$485.4 million) from 69 million dinars a year earlier. Mumtalakat is a holding company mostly focused on state-run businesses in the Persian Gulf island nation. It says it spent the last year restructuring some of its holdings. Mumtalakat says the global downturn particularly hurt business at its money-losing airline Gulf Air and at Alba, an aluminum smelting company.
■INVESTMENT
Aabar to go private
Shares of the Abu Dhabi investment fund with the largest stake in German automaker Daimler are down over 5 percent in early trading after its board called for a vote to take the firm private. Aabar Investments said in a regulatory filing posted yesterday that its board approved plans to hold the shareholder vote on July 26. It first floated the possibility of going private early last week. The company says the move is “essential” and will give it “greater operational flexibility” as it pursues additional investments. Going private would allow Aabar to disclose less information than it does now.
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
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
CELEBRATION: The PRC turned 75 on Oct. 1, but the Republic of China is older. The PRC could never be the homeland of the people of the ROC, Lai said The People’s Republic of China (PRC) could not be the “motherland” of the people of the Republic of China (ROC), President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday. Lai made the remarks in a speech at a Double Ten National Day gala in Taipei, which is part of National Day celebrations that are to culminate in a fireworks display in Yunlin County on Thursday night next week. Lai wished the country a happy birthday and called on attendees to enjoy the performances and activities while keeping in mind that the ROC is a sovereign and independent nation. He appealed for everyone to always love their
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