Although Minister of Finance Lee Yuan-san (
"Without a healthy banking sector in place, Taiwan's economy will not be revived," said TSU Legislator Eric Wu (
Comparing the ongoing financial reforms to the human cardiovascular system, Hsieh Chin-ho (謝金河), president of Win-Win Weekly (今周刊), said that Lee's successor should follow through the reforms "without any bargaining, otherwise, Taiwan will be like an ailing patient with clogged veins."
Ever since Lee's resignation last week, local markets has speculated that the DPP administration's financial reforms would slow.
But the outgoing minister yesterday defended his policies, saying a misunderstanding triggered a rift between regulators and the private sector.
"I have no regrets and have done all that needs to be done," Lee told reporters while returning to his office to pack yesterday morning on the first day of an unscheduled one-week leave.
Lee, however, offered no opinion on the premier's possible choice for his replacement.
The new minister should be equipped with not only financial expertise, but also seasoned political skills to be capable of handling pressure and opposition, Hsieh said.
Local Chinese-language media is speculating that Lin Tzong-yeong (
The three, however, denied the speculation yesterday.
While praising Lee's contribution to financial reforms, Hsieh added that both former vice finance ministers Lin and Chen are suitable choices given their experience in financial and political affairs.
Also stressing the importance of reforms, William Bryson, chairman of the capital markets committee at the American Chamber of Commerce in Taipei, said yesterday that, a banker should take up the position of finance chief, since a major focus will be on cleaning up the banking sector's huge non-performing loan (NPL) mess.
While Taiwan is currently a hot NPL market in Asia, Bryson said that China's NPL market -- estimated at over US$480 billion -- is also a potential target for investors.
Taiwan's total NPL market is valued at NT$1.43 trillion (US$42 billion) -- 10 times smaller than that of China's.
"Because if the China market ever opens up, that will be a distraction to investors who are bidding on auctions here in Taiwan. China may draw the same group of investors over," said Bryson, who is also a legal consultant at Jones, Day, Reavis & Pogue (眾達法律事務所).
In addition to financial and political clout, Huang Da-yeh (
If the Financial Supervisory Board can be set up soon, the task of financial reforms should be left to the board's chairman while the finance minister should only be charged with governmental budgeting and financing tasks, he said.
Shares of contract chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) came under pressure yesterday after a report that Apple Inc is looking to shift some orders from the Taiwanese company to Intel Corp. TSMC shares fell NT$55, or 2.4 percent, to close at NT$2,235 on the local main board, Taiwan Stock Exchange data showed. Despite the losses, TSMC is expected to continue to benefit from sound fundamentals, as it maintains a lead over its peers in high-end process development, analysts said. “The selling was a knee-jerk reaction to an Intel-Apple report over the weekend,” Mega International Investment Services Corp (兆豐國際投顧) analyst Alex Huang
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TRANSITION: With the closure, the company would reorganize its Taiwanese unit to a sales and service-focused model, Bridgestone said Bridgestone Corp yesterday announced it would cease manufacturing operations at its tire plant in Hsinchu County’s Hukou Township (湖口), affecting more than 500 workers. Bridgestone Taiwan Co (台灣普利司通) said in a statement that the decision was based on the Tokyo-based tire maker’s adjustments to its global operational strategy and long-term market development considerations. The Taiwanese unit would be reorganized as part of the closure, effective yesterday, and all related production activities would be concluded, the statement said. Under the plan, Bridgestone would continue to deepen its presence in the Taiwanese market, while transitioning to a sales and service-focused business model, it added. The Hsinchu
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) has approved a capital budget of US$31.28 billion for production expansion to meet long-term development needs during the artificial intelligence (AI) boom. The company’s board meeting yesterday approved the capital appropriation plan for purposes such as the installation of advanced technology capacity and fab construction, the world’s largest contract chipmaker said in a statement. At an earnings conference last month, TSMC forecast that its capital expenditure for this year would be at the higher end of the US$52 billion to US$56 billion range it forecast in January in response to robust demand for 5G, AI and
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