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Kyodo news summary -6-(Japan Economic Newswire Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) TOKYO, Jan. 6 -- (Kyodo) _ ---------- Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance to launch fund to invest in Asian firms TOKYO - Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Co. said Thursday it will launch a 2 billion yen fund through its venture capital subsidiary to invest in small and midsize firms and start-up companies in China, Taiwan and other Asian economies. It is the first time for a Japanese nonlife insurer to enter the venture capital business in other parts of Asia. ---------- Panasonic to launch 3-D LCD TVs in U.S. in spring OSAKA - Panasonic Corp. said Thursday it will launch 3-D liquid crystal display televisions in the United States in spring. The 3-D LCD TVs will come in 32- and 47-inch models in addition to plasma versions that Panasonic has already released. Special glasses will be required for watching 3-D pictures on the TVs. ---------- U.S. gov't protests manhandling of diplomat in Vietnam HANOI - The U.S. Embassy in Vietnam on Thursday protested against the rough treatment accorded to an embassy officer while he was trying to meet with a dissident Catholic priest held under house arrest in the central city of Hue. Outgoing Ambassador Michael Michalak, speaking at a farewell press conference, described the incident that occurred Wednesday as being of "grave concern to the U.S. government." ---------- Japan to begin building facilities on southernmost island Okinotori TOKYO - Japan will begin building facilities on the country's southernmost island of Okinotori in fiscal 2011 starting April 1 in a bid to develop and utilize marine resources there and protect its 200-nautical mile exclusive economic zone around it, government sources said Thursday. The Japanese government plans to begin building a dock and a freight-handling site on Okinotori which includes two islets -- Higashikojima and Kitakojima -- to make it a base for research on marine resources. ---------- Conglomerate tycoon Li Ka-shing continues as H.K.'s richest: Forbes HONG KONG - Li Ka-shing, one of Hong Kong's richest developers and entrepreneurs, topped Forbes magazine's Hong Kong richest list with a net worth of US$24 billion, the publication said Thursday. The 2010 Hong Kong's 40 Richest also ranks Li, chairman of conglomerates Cheung Kong (Holdings) and Hutchison Whampoa that cover a variety of businesses including property development, electricity, retail, telecommunication, infrastructure and port operations locally and overseas, as the richest in greater China, three times richer than the mainland's wealthiest, Zong Qinghou of beverage giant Wahaha. ---------- 5 to file complaint against law forcing couples to use single surname TOKYO - Five people are set to file a lawsuit with the Tokyo District Court claiming that a Civil Code article forcing married couples to choose a single surname contravenes the Constitution, lawyers representing the prospective plaintiffs said Thursday. It will be the first lawsuit to contest the constitutionality of Article 750 of the Civil Code, according to the lawyers. ---------- China's J-20 fighter conducts taxiing test in Chengdu; photos CHENGDU, China - China's first radar-evading stealth fighter, the J-20, underwent a high-speed taxiing test Wednesday at an airfield in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, photographs obtained by Kyodo News showed Thursday. Since late last year, photos of what appeared to be the J-20 have been circulating on the Internet, but it was the first time that the fighter has been confirmed in photos taken at a specific time and location. (c) 2011 Kyodo News International, Inc. |