Cell phone only ownership jumps in U.S.

U.S. consumers are abandoning their home telephones that are tied to land lines in unprecedented numbers. According to a National Health Interview Survey done by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention during the last half of 2008, nearly 20 percent of U.S. households said they now rely solely on their mobile phones and just 17 percent said they owned only a landline-based phone.

This is in increase of almost 3 percent of exclusive cellphone ownership over the first half of 2008. Sixty percent of households surveyed said they have both cell phones and landline phones, and one in 50 of those surveyed said they had no phone at all.

The new exclusively mobile phone only number compares to only 3 percent of U.S. households relying on mobile phones in the first half of 2003, and 43 percent owning only a landline-based phone. The CDC says that the shift to mobile only phone ownership is mostly due to the recession and consumers cutting discretionary costs. About 33 percent of adults aged 18 to 24 live in cellphone-only households, with those aged 25 to 29 accounting for 25 percent of cellphone-only homes. Those with higher incomes reported keeping both types of phones in use.

However, even those who do have land lines frequently reported that their land lines are not used for phone conversations, but are most often plugged into their computers or other technology devices. Accordingly, this means that more than 33 percent of U.S. households are only reachable by mobile phone.

This has major implications for pollsters and telemarketers, as cell phones numbers are unlisted and easily changed in the event too many unwanted calls are being received.

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Taiwan to allow China investment in its auto sector

TAIPEI, May 5 (Reuters) - Taiwan plans to open up its auto sector and part of its flagship technology industry to investments from China, an official said on Tuesday, as both sides forge closer trade ties to spur their economies.

Relations between Taiwan and auto-manufacturing giant China have improved since the island's President Ma Ying-jeou took office, with the pace of cooperation accelerating over the past few weeks after both sides signed a financial deal and a corporate tie-up. 'The auto sector is on the list of sectors that we plan to open up to China. This is our initial plan and it's not finalised yet,' Emile Chang, deputy executive secretary of the investment bureau at the economics ministry, told Reuters.

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Yahoo! BuzzChang also said the Taiwan would also allow China to invest in part of the wide-ranging information technology industry and Chinese medicine sector, but added details needed to be ironed out and the plans would still need to be approved by the cabinet.

News of potential Chinese investments coming to Taiwan have pushed the island's stock market to 7-1/2-month highs and the Taiwan dollar to its highest level this year earlier in the week.

'Taiwanese businesses, many of which have long complained about the primarily one-way flow of funds, now see a strong need to attract capital from offshore in order to survive the global crisis,' Moody's ( MCO - news - people ) said in a report.

'Meanwhile, the removal of barriers in cross-border investment also benefits mainland investors as they now enjoy the added option of a relatively more familiar market.'

Last week, China said it was setting up rules to let its companies invest in Taiwan from May, while China Mobile Phone ( CHL - news - people ) , the world's largest mobile carrier by users, said it planned to buy a 12 percent stake in Taiwan's FarEasTone .

China has claimed sovereignty over self-ruled Taiwan since the end of the Chinese civil war in 1949. Beijing has vowed to bring the self-governed democracy of 23 million people back under mainland rule, by force if necessary.