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August 26, 2000
TOKYO, AUG 25 (UNB/AP) - Japan's Bridgestone Corp. said Friday group net profit tumbled 48.5 percent in the first six months of the fiscal year on expenses incurred from its massive tire recall in the United States. The tire maker reported group net profit of 18.90 billion yen(dlrs 176.6 million) in the half-year through June 30, down from 36.68 billion yen (dlrs 342.8 million) in the same period last year, the company said. Profit was dragged down mainly by a 37.2 billion yen (dlrs 347.7 million) charge that Bridgestone/Firestone Inc., the company's U.S. subsidiary, took from its recall two weeks ago of 6.5 million tires produced in North America. Most of the tires were mounted as original equipment on Ford Motor Co. sport-utility vehicles and light trucks, and a small batch was used for Mazda Motor Co. trucks. The recall will also affect some vehicles sold in Japan and other Asian markets. Sales for the period fell 4.8 percent to 991.24 billion yen (dlrs 9.3 billion), down from 1.041 trillion yen (dlrs 9.7 billion) in the first six months of 1999, the company said. --- KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) - The head of a debt-laden telecommunications company said he was confident of acquiring a coveted license from the Malaysian government to launch the next generation of mobile phone technology. Time dotCom Managing Director Halim Saad said his company would have a better chance of snagging the 3G, or Third Generation, license because it had an extensive fiber optic network throughout the country. "We believe our chances of obtaining a 3G license are better(than our competitors) because we already have a ready-built backbone network which is able to support 3G," Halim told Dow Jones Newswires in an interview on Thursday. Telecom companies from around the world are currently locked in a bidding battle to seal rights to the new technology that promises to transmit data 40 times faster e phone company. Sohu.com said it has launched a Web site, www.olympic.sohu.com, to deliver news and history of the Olympics, as well as profiles of athletes and travel information about Australia, where the Games are to be held next month. The content of the Web site will available on handsets of China Mobile's subscribers, Sohu.com said. No financial details of the partnership were disclosed. China Mobile is the parent of Hong Kong-listed China Mobile (Hong Kong) Ltd. |