HSBC profits fall on impairment of US$2.4 billionAFP, HONG KONGHSBC Holdings PLC yesterday said pretax profit slipped more than 40 percent in the third quarter, citing an impairment on the planned disposal of its retail banking operations in France. The Asia-focused giant said pretax profit fell by US$2.3 billion to US$3.1 billion year-on-year, while net profit dropped 46 percent to US$1.91 billion. People walk past an HSBC Holdings PLC branch in Hong Kong on Feb. 22. While reclassifying the French division, the bank “recognized an impairment of US$2.4 billion,” which affected the third-quarter figures, but adjusted pretax profit rose 18 percent to US$6.5 billion, beating analysts’ estimates. HSBC is headquartered in London, but makes the vast majority of its profits in Asia, especially in China and Hong Kong.

Virus claims might drop as quarantine rule relaxesBy Kao Shih-ching / Staff reporterClaims for COVID-19 insurance policies could drop next month as the government plans to relax one of its quarantine rules, but property insurers might still proceed with their capital injection plans, the Financial Supervisory Commission said yesterday. As many COVID-19 insurance policies have been designed to pay policyholders for being quarantined, property insurers would have fewer compensation claims following the rule change, the commission said. Photo: CNAEach property insurer could pay NT$1 billion or NT$2 billion (US$30.94 million or US$61.88 million) less in compensation based on the eased rule, Chinese-language news reports said. “COVID-19 insurance is unlike accident insurance or fire insurance, the premiums of which can be adjusted based on a fixed mechanism. Whether and how property insurers should compensate policyholders of COVID-19 insurance hinges on the nation’s anti-virus regulations,” Insurance Bureau Deputy Director-General Thomas Chang (張玉煇) said.

More than 70% of firms plan Lunar New Year bonusStaff writer, with CNAMore than 70 percent of companies in Taiwan have said they would pay their employees a cash bonus at the end of the lunar year in January next year, with most of them planning to give 1.17 months’ wage on average, a yes123 job bank survey released yesterday found. The other 73.3 percent are planning to pay a bonus similar to this year’s, which averaged 1.17 months’ salary, it said. Photo: Tyrone Siu, ReutersMeanwhile, 8.9 percent of the companies polled by the job bank said they had decided not to give their employees a bonus in January, and 19.7 percent were still considering the issue. Regarding employees’ expectations, the poll found that 72.1 percent were anticipating a year-end bonus of 1.06 months’ salary on average, while 27.9 percent did not think they would receive a bonus. A similar survey carried out by yes123 last year found that 66.9 percent of companies in Taiwan had planned to give bonuses, while 4.8 percent did not intend to.

Philips to cut 4,000 jobs on losses from faulty respiratorsAFP, THE HAGUEDutch medical device manufacturer Royal Philips NV yesterday said that it would cut 4,000 jobs as another massive penalty for faulty sleep respirators pushed it into loss. Philips has been bedeviled by faulty devices that put users with sleep apnea at risk of inhaling toxic foam. The logo of Royal Philips NV hangs on the company’s headquarters building in Amsterdam on Jan. 29, 2019. Photo: ReutersPhilips had already set aside 900 million euros over the faulty respirators and had warned two weeks ago that it would take the 1.3 billion euro charge this quarter. “This includes the difficult but necessary decision to immediately reduce our workforce by around 4,000 roles globally,” Jakobs said.

LOCAL INITIATIVES VITALWhile the impact of hate speech online has already been documented in several Asian countries in recent years, analysts say that tech firms have not ramped up resources to improve content moderation, particularly in local languages. In Indonesia, “significant hate speech” online targets religious and racial minority groups, as well as LGBTQ+ people, with bots and paid trolls spreading disinformation aimed at deepening divisions, a report from Article 19 found in June. It is accessed via WhatsApp and has about 37,000 users -- a sliver of the nation’s more than 80 million WhatsApp users. Tattle’s team crowdsourced a list of offensive words and phrases that are used commonly online, that the tool then blurs on users’ timelines. “We’ve seen the harm that hate speech can cause.

Indian economy faces external risksBloombergThe Indian economy faces risks from the external sector, as foreign capital inflows could be hurt by US Federal Reserve monetary tightening while concerns about elevated global energy prices cloud the near-term outlook, the Indian Ministry of Finance said in a monthly report released on Saturday. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, left, and UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres scatter rose petals on a statue portraying Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, India’s first deputy prime minister after the country gained independence in 1947, in Kevadia, India, on Thursday. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi speaks at an event in Gandhinagar, India, on Wednesday. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party is heading into elections in his home state of Gujarat and in the northern state of Himachal Pradesh later this year amid continuing discontent over unemployment and high inflation. Data from the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy show that the unemployment rate has stayed above 6.5 percent since October last year.

India launches 36 satellites delayed by war in UkraineAP, NEW DELHIIndia yesterday launched a rocket carrying 36 private Internet satellites, stepping in to keep the orbital constellation growing after a months-long interruption related to the war in Ukraine. The liftoff from southern India was the first launch for London-based OneWeb since breaking with the Russian Space Agency in March because of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. Indian Space Research Organisation Chairman S. Somanath speaks at an event in Bangalore, India, on July 11. It was the 14th launch of OneWeb satellites and relied on the country’s heaviest rocket, normally reserved for Indian government spacecraft. With the war in Ukraine still raging, it could open an opportunity for India as many countries shun Russian launch services.

Surfers, miners fight over South Africa’s white beachesLocals say the expansion of mining on the coast about 300km north of Cape Town is chasing off fish and tourists, and lowering employment opportunitiesBy Linda Givetash / AFP, DORINGBAAI, South AfricaTo those who live there, it is like a little piece of heaven, boasting pink flamingos, white beaches and blue ocean waters. Yet this stretch of South Africa’s west coast has also become a battleground, pitching mining firms against environmentalists fearful that one of nature’s last wild treasures is being bulldozed away. Mining companies say they bring much-needed jobs to the area, while abiding by environmental rules. From off-shore diamond prospecting to the construction of a new harbor, several projects threaten to scar the area, a biodiversity hotspot home to dolphins, seals and succulent plants, Protect the West Coast said. “We’ve got to show them that there’s a much better way.”Campaigners are optimistic, emboldened by victories scored elsewhere by environmentalists.

Driverless vehicle development sets ablaze a bonfire of billions of dollarsBy David Welch / BloombergAutonomous vehicle companies and suppliers have collectively spent about US$75 billion developing self-driving technology, with scant sign of meaningful revenue emerging from robo-car services after all that cash incineration. Photo: ReutersCruise LLC, owned by General Motors Co (GM), raised money at a roughly US$30 billion valuation early last year. GM chief executive Mary Barra dismissed Cruise counterpart Dan Ammann late last year. TuSimple replaced founder and chief executive Lu Cheng (呂程) in March, and its general counsel James Mullen resigned last month. While there was a test driver at the wheel, the human ceded to the robot 94 percent of the time, Kodiak chief executive and founder Don Burnette said.

DPP figures weigh in on TPP scandals in HsinchuBy Jason Pan / Staff reporterProminent Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) figures yesterday rallied support for the party’s Hsinchu mayoral candidate, Shen Hui-hung (沈慧虹), as the candidates of other parties held separate campaign events, canvassed and led motorcades in the city. 5, while Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Hsinchu mayoral candidate Lin Ken-jeng (林耕仁) would be No. 3 and Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Hsinchu mayoral candidate Ann Kao (高虹安) would be No. Meanwhile, DPP and KMT Hsinchu City councilor candidates separately said the TPP should explain its choice of candidates, referring to Yeh and another candidate who had been charged with drunk driving. “Shen has been a a civil servant for 32 years, including seven years in the Hsinchu City Government.

Bulletproof vests to be donated to crisis-torn HaitiStaff writer, with CNATaiwan is planning to donate bulletproof vests to the Haitian National Police (HNP) to help the Caribbean country tackle a political, economic and security crisis, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Tuesday. Taiwan would send bulletproof vests to the diplomatic ally before the end of the year, Hsie said, adding that the details of the donation, including the number of vests and the delivery date, would be disclosed later. The Taiwanese embassy in Haiti has since the middle of last month been temporarily closed for safety reasons. The embassy is also maintaining close contact with all Taiwanese in the country, and has advised them to avoid any unnecessary travel and remain vigilant, she said. Over the past several years, the ministry has had a “red” travel alert, the highest on its four-level scale, for Haiti, warning people not to travel to the country.

War drills carried out to test critical infrastructure‘WORST-CASE SCENARIO’: Exercises trained staff at ports and railways, while military drills provided a ‘live’ experience to enhance capabilities for shore-based operationsBy Lee Hsin-fang, Lo Tien-pin and Jake Chung / Staff reporters, with staff writerPrompted by communication blackouts during the war in Ukraine and heightened military tensions across the Taiwan Strait, the Executive Yuan has launched drills to test the handling of critical infrastructure in the event of war, a person familiar with the matter said. The drills were based on a worst-case scenario, in which all critical infrastructure points were simultaneously attacked, the source said. Firefighters counter a simulated attack on the Hulin substation in Taipei’s Xinyi District during the annual Wanan air defense exercise on July 25. It simulated foreign hostile undercover agents hijacking mobile missile launcher trucks to interrupt communication links, the reports said. The defending troops fended off the simulated attack using truck-mounted 20mm cannons and 40mm grenade launchers, they said.

GDP growth forecast cut, expected to slow furtherDECLINING TRADE: Exports are forecast to grow only 2.28 percent next year, with trade data worsening quarter by quarter as inflation is tamed, a researcher saidBy Crystal Hsu / Staff reporterThe Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research (CIER, 中華經濟研究院) yesterday cut its forecast for GDP growth this year to 3.28 percent from 3.56 percent, and expects the pace to slow further to 2.81 percent next year as downside risks heighten at home and abroad. The Taipei-based institute blamed the downward revisions on stubbornly high global inflation and drastic monetary tightening that weakened demand for Taiwanese exports. “Despite the slowdown, Taiwan should register GDP growth of 3 percent for four straight years, which is pretty good,” CIER president Chang Chuang-chang (張傳章) said. DGBAS Minister Chu Tzer-ming (朱澤民) told lawmakers yesterday that the agency would likely need to trim this year’s growth forecast due to disappointing exports. A weak New Taiwan dollar is favorable for exports, but would intensify imported inflation and capital outflows, he said.

Taiwan, US mum on reported arms production planStaff writer, with CNATaiwan and the US have remained tight-lipped about a reported plan to jointly produce weapons that would increase the production of US-designed arms and accelerate their transfer to Taipei. The non-profit US-Taiwan Business Council on Wednesday told Reuters that the idea was in the early planning stages. Initial discussions on the matter focused on whether to allow US defense companies to provide weapons technology to manufacturers in Taiwan, or to produce the arms in the US using Taiwan-made parts, Nikkei Asia said. In Taipei, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) and the Ministry of National Defense yesterday declined to comment on the news reports. MOFA spokeswoman Joanne Ou (歐江安) said that the US government, across party lines, maintains close cooperation with Taiwan to bolster Taiwan’s self-defense and asymmetrical warfare capabilities through arms sales.

Export orders from China last month contracted by 28 percent annually to US$11.55 billion, as Beijing’s “zero COVID” policy hurt the world’s second-largest economy and curtailed Chinese consumer spending, the ministry said. Taiwan’s exports last quarter contracted 1.1 percent year-on-year to US$169.78 billion from US$171.71 billion, ending nine consecutive quarters of expansions. Photo: CNAThe fourth quarter is expected to have a weak start, as export orders are forecast to drop at an annual rate of between 1 percent and 3.6 percent, or US$57 billion and US$58.5 billion, the ministry said. The US’ latest semiconductor export controls on China should have limited effect on local companies based on its preliminary assessment, it said. Orders for base metals dipped 31 percent year-on-year and 6.1 percent monthly to US$2.23 billion last month, amid soft demand for steel products worldwide, the data showed.