Tsann Kuen wins order
Tsann Kuen Enterprise Co (燦坤), a Taiwanese home-appliance maker, won orders for coffee makers from Starbucks Corp, the Central News Agency reported, without saying where it obtained the information.
The first order totals 50,000 units for US$25 to US$30 each, giving Tsann Kuen a gross margin, or the percentage of sales left after production costs, as high as 45 percent, the Taipei-based news agency said.
The coffee makers will be available first in the US and may eventually be sold in Starbucks worldwide, the agency said.
Far Glory to take over banks
Far Glory Life Insurance Co (遠雄人壽) is planning to take over all insurance accounts, assets and liabilities of the Taiwanese branch of the Switzerland-based Zurich Life Insurance Co, the Taiwanese life insurer said in a statement issued on Thursday.
Far Glory Life Insurance, a member of the Far Glory Group, said the takeover will proceed with the business transfer and both sides have agreed that the finer details will be completed by the end of this year, the statement said.
The right of some 150,000 policyholders of Zurich Life will not be impaired by such a business transfer, it added.
Financial Supervisory Commission Vice chairperson Susan Chang (張秀蓮) said the financial authorities welcomed the proposed merger of Far Glory and Zurich's Taiwan branch, but Far Glory should maintain a capital adequacy ratio at over 200 percent, she added.
To fulfill the commission's request, Far Glory may have to raise paid-in capital by NT$1.5 billion (US$43.98 million), Chang said.
The company is expected to complete the capital-raise procedure by the end of September, she added.
Chao to head First Financial
Chao Yuan-chi (趙元旗), former president of China Development Financial Holding Corp (中華開發金控), has been appointed to take the helm as president of First Financial Holding Co (第一金控), the nation's third largest financial holding company, the Ministry of Finance said in a statement yesterday.
Chao, 55, served as presidents at both China Development Financial Holding Corp and China Development Industrial Bank (中華開發工銀) last year. Prior to joining China Development, he was executive vice president of Dah An Commercial Bank (大安商銀), a small lender which was later merged by Taishin International Bank (台新銀行) in 2002.
Chao's appointment was to fill the vacancy left by Tsai Jer-shyong (蔡哲雄) who took up the chairmanship of the Land Bank of Taiwan (土地銀行) in June.
CSMC shares fall 3 percent
Shares of CSMC Technologies Corp (華潤上華科技), a China-based supplier of chips for toys and watches, fell 3 percent on their Hong Kong trading debut after the company sold the shares at less than half the original price on weak demand. The stock closed HK$0.15 lower at HK$0.485 from its offered price of HK$0.50. The company raised HK$310.5 million (US$40 million) in its initial public offer, after selling shares at the bottom of a range marketed to investors.
The sale is the Wuxi, China-based company's second attempt to sell stock after investors shunned the original sale in June, bidding at a price lower than that sought by the company. CSMC revived the sale last week by slashing the amount it planned to raise by half.
New Taiwan dollar falls
The New Taiwan dollar yesterday traded lower against its US counterpart, declining NT$0.052 to close at NT$34.192 on the Taipei foreign exchange market.
Turnover was US$592 million.
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