12/12/2025

FRIDAY | DEC 12, 2025

17

BIZ & FINANCE

Filipino typhoon survivors sue Shell

ZTE may pay US$1 billion to US over foreign bribery allegations: Sources

SINGAPORE: Cryptocurrencies tumbled yesterday and bitcoin fell back below the US$90,000 threshold in a renewed signal of market jitters as fresh concerns about artificial intelligence profits weighed on technology stocks. Risk sentiment turned sour after US cloud firm Oracle’s profit and revenue outlook missed forecasts and executives flagged higher spending – a sign AI infrastructure outlays are not turning profits as quickly as investors had hoped. Bitcoin was last down 2.5% at US$90,056.24, while ether tumbled 4.3% to US$3,196.62, erasing the past two days of gains, extending weakness that began in the US trading session on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve cut interest rates. “What we saw last night was even though risk assets were HONG KONG: Chinese telecoms equipment maker ZTE Corp may pay more than US$1 billion (RM4.1 billion) to the US government to resolve years-old allegations of foreign bribery, according to two people familiar with the matter. ZTE, which already paid some US$2 billion in penalties to US authorities over export violations during President Donald Trump’s first term, has for years faced probes by authorities around the world into alleged bribes to secure telecom contracts. This year, the Justice Department has moved ahead with a US investigation into ZTE for allegedly violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) in South America and other regions, the sources said. The act prohibits payments or anything of value to foreign officials to obtain business. US officials, Reuters is reporting for the first time, are working on a resolution that could see ZTE pay more than US$1 billion, the sources said, or possibly US$2 billion or more, one said, based in part on alleged gains from corrupt contracts. ZTE’s Hong Kong-listed shares tumbled more than 12% yesterday, while its Shenzhen shares fell by their daily limit of 10%. In a statement to the Hong Kong stock exchange yesterday, ZTE said it is engaged in “ongoing communication” with the Justice Department on the investigation. “The company consistently commits to comprehensively strengthening its compliance system and building an industry-leading compliance framework.” “The company opposes all forms of corruption and maintains a zero-tolerance policy toward any individuals who may be involved in such activities.” It remains unclear when a deal might be reached. A settlement with the US would require approval from the

doing well, crypto didn’t really want to know about it,” said Tony Sycamore, market analyst at IG. “The crypto space really needs to see more convincing evidence that the washout we saw from that Oct 10 selloff is complete, and at this point in time it just doesn’t look like it’s there.” Standard Chartered on Tuesday slashed its expectations that bitcoin would hit US$200,000 by the end of 2025, lowering its forecast to US$100,000. “We think buying by Bitcoin digital asset treasury companies is likely over,“ said Geoff Kendrick, global head of digital assets research at Standard Chartered. “We now think future Bitcoin price increases will effectively be driven by one leg only – ETF buying.” – Reuters Chinese government, sources said. Liu Pengyu, a spokesman for the Chinese embassy in Washington, said he was not aware of the specifics of the ZTE matter, but added: “China has always required Chinese companies to operate legally abroad and abide by local laws and regulations.” FCPA cases often surface years after the misconduct and the Justice Department investigation has found that with ZTE, the most recent bribery-related act occurred in 2018, one of the sources said. The other source described potential charges as a criminal conspiracy to commit bribery. Both sources said ZTE struck business deals in South America that the DOJ suspects involved bribery, with one of the sources pointing to Venezuela. A hefty settlement could weaken ZTE’s finances – the company earned US$1.16 billion in profit last year. But without a deal, the US could reinstate the Commerce ban on American suppliers such as Qualcomm, whose Snapdragon chips power ZTE’s high-end phones. ZTE still sources from Intel, AMD and other American firms for its phones, servers, and networking gear. The US has a long history of investigating foreign bribery in telecoms, announcing agreements and payouts in recent years for cases involving companies based in Sweden, Russia and Venezuela. In 2015, Norway’s Government Pension Fund Global said ZTE was linked to corruption allegations in 18 countries, with investigations in 10 – including Algeria, the Philippines and Zambia –spanning 1998 to 2014. “All relate to the payment of bribes to public officials to secure the award of contracts,”the Council on Ethics wrote, recommending ZTE’s exclusion from the fund. Suspected bribes ranged from several million to tens of millions of dollars. – Reuters

A German court in May ruled that firms could, in principle, be held responsible for harm caused by their emissions, fuelling hopes that other countries would follow suit. Shell dismissed the lawsuit as “a baseless claim”, with a spokesperson saying “it will not help tackle climate change or reduce emissions”. “The suggestion that Shell had unique knowledge about climate change is simply not true,” the firm added. The claimants are seeking financial compensation for “lives lost, injuries sustained and homes destroyed”, NGOs supporting the lawsuit said. Shell, along with many rival energy giants, has scaled back various climate objectives to focus more on oil and gas in order to raise profits. The United Nations in 2022 said destruction caused by Typhoon Rai was “badly underestimated” in initial assessments, tripling the number of people “seriously affected” to nine million. The Philippines – ranked among the most vulnerable nations to the impact of climate change – is hit by an average of 20 storms every year. The UK lawsuit follows an historic climate ruling by the International Court of Justice in The Hague in July, which declared states had an obligation under international law to address the threat of climate change. ICJ advisory opinions are not legally enforceable but are seen as highly authoritative in steering national courts, legislation and corporate behaviour around the globe. – AFP

In a joint statement, the NGOs backing the suit said it represents “a decisive step to hold Shell accountable for the deaths, injuries and destruction left by the climate-fuelled storm”. While typhoons are a regular weather pattern in Southeast Asia, scientists have long warned that climate change is making storms more intense because a warmer atmosphere holds more moisture and warmer seas can turbocharge the systems. In Manila yesterday, Greenpeace climate campaigner Virginia Benosa Llorin called the lawsuit a “test case to hold the corporations accountable”. The suit will be the “first time claimants in the Global South are bringing action related to significant personal injury and property damage ... caused through the alleged acts of common measures in the Global North”, added UK-based lawyer Joe Snape via videolink. Plaintiff Rickcel Inting, a fisherman, told AFP his family had lost “everything in an instant” when Typhoon Rai slammed into Bohol province, surviving only because they lashed themselves to a thick column on their rooftop. “Shell caused what we have suffered because of its actions, causing pollution and harming the environment ... they owe poor individuals like us,” said the 46-year-old, adding he had never been able to afford to replace his lost fishing boats. The lawsuit marks the latest step in a wider international movement to assign responsibility to major companies for climate damage.

LONDON: Survivors of a deadly 2021 typhoon in the Philippines have filed a lawsuit against British oil giant Shell, seeking financial compensation for climate-related devastation, three NGOs supporting them said yesterday. Typhoon Rai struck the southern and central regions of the Philippines in December 2021, toppling power lines and trees and unleashing deadly floods that killed over 400 people and left hundreds of thousands homeless. The lawsuit on behalf of 103 survivors argues Shell’s carbon emissions contributed to climate change, impacting Philippine communities. Trixy Elle, a plaintiff from a fishing community whose home and four boats were swept away in the typhoon, told AFP the lawsuit was about getting justice. “Island residents like us contribute only a small percentage of pollution. But who gets the short stick? The poor like us,” said Elle, who is still paying off high-interest loans she needed to rebuild. “I am not speaking only for my community but for all Filipinos who experience the effects of climate crises,” the 34-year-old said, adding her now 13-year-old son still suffers from trauma caused by the storm. o Lawsuit argues that oil giant’s carbon emissions contributed to climate change

Bitcoin dips below US$90,000 as AI worries dent risk appetite

Elle (centre, left) and other typhoon survivors pose for photos during a press conference at a hotel in Manila yesterday. – AFPPIC