■ Failed bank set for auction
The government will try to auction off the failed Kaohsiung Business Bank (高雄企銀) on May 31, the Ministry of Finance's Central Deposit Insurance Corp (中央存保) president, Johnson Chen (陳戰勝), said at a press conference. It's the second time the agency will seek bidders for the operations, assets and liabilities of the lender, which has 46 branches. Chen didn't give a target figure for the sale. The government failed in December to sell the remaining operations, assets and liabilities of the bank after bidding fell short of the floor price. Last June, Dallas-based Lone Star Funds won a bid to buy the bad loans of failed lender Kaohsiung Business Bank for NT$8.23 billion (US$245 million), paying less than two-fifths of the face value of the loans. Then minister of finance Lin Chuan (林全) said last month the government expects to exhaust a NT$140 billion fund created to help banks clean up bad loans and dispose of failed lenders, after the sale of Kaohsiung bank.
■ Plastics firm predicts growth
Nan Ya Plastics Corp (南亞塑膠), the nation's biggest plastics maker, forecast "significant growth" for sales and an increase in profit this year even as high oil prices and China's plans to curb growth may hurt demand for chemicals. President Wu Chin-jen (吳欽仁) declined to give specific figures during the annual shareholders' meeting in Taipei. Profit last year rose by a quarter to NT$17.2 billion (US$515 million) as sales climbed 22 percent to NT$127.6 billion. Oil futures in New York since May 11 have exceeded US$40, a cost the company may not pass on to customers, Wu said. Almost half of sales come from China, Hong Kong and other markets. If China were to impose curbs to prevent oversupply in some industries, the long-term effect would be "beneficial" for Nan Ya Plastics' investments there, Wu said.
■ Tycoon buys film firm shares
Li Ka-shing (李嘉誠), Asia's richest businessman, paid HK$34.6 million (US$4.4 million) for 17 percent of Golden Harvest Entertainment Ltd (嘉禾), becoming the second-largest shareholder of the Hong Kong film distributor. Garex Resources Ltd, a company owned by Li, bought 150.4 million Golden Harvest shares from Acer Inc at HK$0.23 each, Hong Kong-based Golden Harvest said in a statement. The transaction boosted Garex Resources's stake to 20.1 percent. Li is a close associate of Golden Harvest founder Raymond Chow (邵逸夫) and helped the company fend off a hostile takeover bid in 1998, Sing Tao Daily reported on May 15.
■ NT dollar gains
The New Taiwan dollar had its biggest weekly gain in seven as the nation's shares advanced, and on speculation that exporters sold dollars to bring home earnings. "The NT dollar gained today as there was a surge in the stock market and exporters came in to sell dollars," said Gary Huang, a currency trader at Union Bank of Taiwan (聯邦銀行). The currency rose 0.34 percent this week, its biggest gain since the period ended April 2. It closed NT$0.068, or 0.2 percent, higher today at NT$33.549 against its US counterpart on the Taipei foreign exchange market. Turnover was US$660 million, compared with the previous day's US$596 million. "The central bank appeared to be in the market today, which was why the NT dollar rose less than other Asian currencies," Huang said. "The central bank probably won't let NT dollar strengthen past 33.50 next week," he said.
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