■ Agreement inked with Belgium
Taiwan and Belgium signed an agreement to avoid double taxation in Brussels on Wednesday. Chen Chien-jen (程建人), Taipei's representative to Belgium, and Hugues Mignot, director of the Belgian Trade Association in Taipei, signed the agreement. The agreement will reduce the tax burden on Taiwanese and Belgian manufacturers and enhance their willingness to invest in each other's country, officials said. According to a statement released by the Taipei Representative Office in Belgium Wednesday, Taiwan has invested around US$30 million in Belgium, while Belgium has invested in 18 projects in Taiwan, mostly in the financial, trade, telecommunications and precision machinery sectors.
■ China investments approved
The government has approved 16 applications for China-bound investments totaling US$304.36 million, the Investment Commission said yesterday. The commission also gave the green light to eight inbound investment applications from foreigners and overseas Chinese for a total of US$231.05 million, it said in a statement. Of the applications for China-bound investments, Formosa Plastics Corp (台塑) was given approval to invest US$69 million; Nan Ya Plastics Corp (南亞塑膠) NT$26 million; Shinkong Life Insurance Co (新光人壽), NT$24.57 million and VIA Technologies Inc (威盛電子) NT$3.9 million. China has replaced the US as Taiwan's largest market since November 2002. For inbound investments, Japan's Millea Holdings Inc wholly-owned subsidiary Millea Asia Pte Ltd won approval to invest in US$44.06 million in Allianz President General Insurance (AZPG), a joint venture between the Uni-President group (統一) and Germany-based Allianz AG.
■ Bank in first stage of IPO
Taiwan Cooperative Bank (合作金庫), the nation's second-largest lender by assets, raised NT$190.4 million (US$5.6 million) selling 7.5 million shares in the first stage of its initial public offering. The shares fetched an average price of NT$25.39 at an auction, higher than the base price of NT$13.95, the Taiwan Stock Exchange said in a statement. The exchange, which conducted the auction, said all shares on offer were sold. The sale was part of the bank's plan to sell 20 million shares, or a 0.9 percent stake, in a listing scheduled for late this month or November. It's the first IPO in the nation's financial services industry since January last year when First Financial Holding Co (第一金控) went public. Based on today's average selling price, the entire IPO may raise NT$507.8 million. The government wants to reduce its 60 percent stake in the bank to 46 percent by the end the year, Chairman Sean Chen (陳沖) said on Sept. 8.
■ Bank says not holding talks
Cosmos Bank Taiwan (萬泰銀行) said it has no "solid mergers and acquisitions talks" in progress after a report the company may buy rival Changhua Fifth Credit Cooperative (彰化五信) to expand in central Taiwan. "There are no solid mergers and acquisitions talks at the moment," Cosmos Bank said in a statement to the Taiwan Stock Exchange, after a Chinese-language newspaper reported that the bank may take over Changhua Fifth Credit Cooperative. The credit cooperative has six branches in the city of Changhua.
■ NT dollar stronger
The New Taiwan dollar yesterday turned strong against its US counterpart, rising NT$0.02 to close at NT$33.87 on the Taipei foreign exchange market. Turnover was US$572 million.
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