IN BRIEF (Page 16)
Aerospace investment
Canada announced on Monday (local time) it would spend $780 million over the next five years to boost its aerospace industry.
The funds would be used by local companies for "research and development", Industry Minister Maxime Bernier said in a statement, but must be repaid within 15 years.
Stock leaps
Shares in E.ON, the biggest German power supplier, were the biggest gainers on the Frankfurt stock exchange yesterday following the announcement that it is dropping its record-breaking takeover bid for Spanish electricity supplier Endesa.
E.ON shares topped an intraday high of 109.68 euros, up 7.58 euros or 7.4 percent on the day shortly after trading opened.
Bangladesh listing
Norway's Telenor said yesterday it plans to list its GrameenPhone subsidiary on the stock exchange in Bangladesh after rejecting a claim by Nobel Laureate Muhammad Yunus (above) for control of the telecom firm.
Telenor owns 62 percent of GrameenPhone, Bangladesh's leading mobile phone company with more than 12 million subscribers. It is also the largest private enterprise in Bangladesh.
Charges lodged
The European Commission has sent formal charges to major record companies and Apple Inc, alleging they are restricting music sales in Europe, a Commission spokesman said on Monday.
European Commission spokesman said agreements between Apple and the record companies violate the European Union's rules that prohibit restrictive business practices.
Slowing growth
Growth cooled in March in the US factory sector in line with slower overall economic activity, the Institute of Supply Management said on Monday (local time).
The ISM said its index of national industrial activity dipped to 50.9 percent from 52.3 percent in February. Any reading over 50 indicates expansion, so the report suggests the sector is growing at a modest pace.
US overtaken
European stock exchanges have overtaken those in the United States in value for the first time since World War I, the Financial Times said yesterday.
Twenty-four European markets, including those in Russia and emerging eastern countries, "saw their capitalization rise to $15,720 billion at the end of last week", the FT said, citing Thompson Financial data. The equivalent figure for US markets was $15,640 billion, the newspaper said.
Protection sought
New Century Financial Corp filed for bankruptcy protection on Monday (local time) amid a surge in homeowner defaults, the biggest mortgage lender to collapse in the slumping US housing market.
The Irvine, California-based company fired 3,200 employees, or 54 percent of its work force.
No big change
Australia's trade deficit was little changed at A$838 million in February, defying expectations of a widening, as export growth matched imports in what might be a sign of a long-awaited export upturn.
The deficit compared to A$832 million in January and was well below market forecasts of A$1.2 billion. Exports rose 2.1 percent in the month to a seasonally adjusted A$18.55 billion.
Agencies
(China Daily 04/04/2007 page16)
