Financial venture to be set up
China Development Financial Holding Corp (中華開發金控), the nation's fifth-biggest financial services company by market value, said today its fully owned asset management company plans to set up a NT$70 million (US$2.18 million) venture with Argyle Street Management Ltd.
China Development Asset Management Corp (中華開發資產管理) plans to set up the new asset management company before selling a 51 percent stake to Argyle Street, parent China Development Financial said in a statement to the Taiwan Stock Exchange. It didn't give other details.
Economic chief departs for US
Minister of Economic Affairs Ho Mei-yueh (何美玥) departed for the US yesterday to attend the annual board of directors' meeting of the US-Taiwan Business Council and to promote the signing of a free trade agreement (FTA) between the two countries.
Ho will deliver a speech on the outlook of US-Taiwan economic relations during the meeting set for Dec. 10 in Washington, officials said.
She will later attend an FTA presentation held by the council and the Institute for International Economics, and will also try to win the support of the US Congress and government for the signing of an FTA with Taiwan, they said.
Ho will then fly to Germany Dec. 11 to solicit investment in Taiwan by German manufacturers.
She might also hold an unofficial ministerial meeting with her German counterpart and is expected to visit the headquarters of major German manufacturers, including Merck, AFC, Trumph, Bosch and Siemens.
Nation number four in insurance
The nation's insurance penetration rate was the fourth-highest in the world last year, with premium income from insurance accounting for 11.3 percent of GDP, according to a report released yesterday by the Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics.
South Africa claimed the top position at 15.9 percent, Britain came in second at 13.4 percent, followed by Switzerland at 12.7 percent, the report said.
By value, the US topped the list, posting US$1.55 trillion in premium income last year, followed by Japan, which reported US$478.9 billion and Britain, which reported US$246.7 billion.
Meanwhile, Switzerland had the highest insurance density with its per capita premiums amounting to US$5,660 last year.
The four Asian dragons ranked between 19th and 23rd place, with Hong Kong posting US$1,833 in per capita premiums, Singapore posting US$1,621, Taiwan posting US$1,433 and South Korea posting US$1,243.
UMC revenue drops
United Microelectronics Corp (UMC, 聯電), the world's second-largest contract chipmaker, reported its revenue last month dropped to NT$9.28 billion (US$289.45 million) from the NT$10.06 billion posted in October.
However, last month's figure represents a rise of 21 percent compared to the NT$7.70 billion (US$240.17 million) reported for November last year.
UMC said its revenue in the first 11 months of the year rose 42 percent to NT$108.43 billion (US$3.38 billion) from NT$76.51 billion (US$2.38 billion) for the same period last year.
NT dollar weakens
Like other Asian currencies, the New Taiwan dollar yesterday pared losses on speculation China's government will adjust its yuan peg to allow for an appreciation, luring investors to the region's assets.
The local currency weakened NT$0.03, or 0.1 percent, to close at NT$32.10 against its US counterpart on the Taipei foreign exchange market.
Turnover was US$614 million.
Taiwan Transport and Storage Corp (TTS, 台灣通運倉儲) yesterday unveiled its first electric tractor unit — manufactured by Volvo Trucks — in a ceremony in Taipei, and said the unit would soon be used to transport cement produced by Taiwan Cement Corp (TCC, 台灣水泥). Both TTS and TCC belong to TCC International Holdings Ltd (台泥國際集團). With the electric tractor unit, the Taipei-based cement firm would become the first in Taiwan to use electric vehicles to transport construction materials. TTS chairman Koo Kung-yi (辜公怡), Volvo Trucks vice president of sales and marketing Johan Selven, TCC president Roman Cheng (程耀輝) and Taikoo Motors Group
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FUTURE PLANS: Although the electric vehicle market is getting more competitive, Hon Hai would stick to its goal of seizing a 5 percent share globally, Young Liu said Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密), a major iPhone assembler and supplier of artificial intelligence (AI) servers powered by Nvidia Corp’s chips, yesterday said it has introduced a rotating chief executive structure as part of the company’s efforts to cultivate future leaders and to enhance corporate governance. The 50-year-old contract electronics maker reported sizable revenue of NT$6.16 trillion (US$189.67 billion) last year. Hon Hai, also known as Foxconn Technology Group (富士康科技集團), has been under the control of one man almost since its inception. A rotating CEO system is a rarity among Taiwanese businesses. Hon Hai has given leaders of the company’s six