Guatemala talks make progress
The third round of negotiations on the signing of a free trade agreement (FTA) between Taiwan and Guatemala has been concluded smoothly, and it is expected that both countries could sign the FTA in mid-August, officials of the Ministry of Economic Affairs said yesterday.
The officials said that both sides made progress in tariff concessions for agricultural and industrial products and regulations concerning the role of the origin of certain products in the just-concluded negotiations in Los Angeles.
The officials said that both countries are scheduled to hold the fourth round of negotiations in Taipei on July 11, and Guatemala will organize a high-level delegation to come to Taiwan.
Chinfon touts Vietnam venture
Taiwan's Chinfon Group (慶豐集團) will soon receive the green light from the Vietnamese government to assemble cars and trucks in Vietnam, a company official said yesterday.
Vietnamese Prime Minister Phan Van Khai has agreed in principle for VMEP, a subsidiary of Chinfon, to increase its capital by US$70 million from US$160 million to assemble cars and trucks, said the official, who declined to be named.
Vietnam Manufacturing and Export Processing Co Ltd (VMEP) currently assembles motorbikes in the communist country.
"The Ministry of Planning and Investment will soon finalize administrative procedures for our licence," the company official said, adding that around 10,000 units will be produced each year.
Vietnamese automakers complain the market there is limited and regularly protest against massive tax rises imposed by the government over the last two years.
Chi Mei raises US$75 million
Chi Mei Optoelectronics Corp (奇美電子), Taiwan's second-largest maker of flat-panel displays used in computers and televisions, raised an additional US$75 million selling new shares, bringing the total amount raised to US$751 million, according to a term sheet sent to investors.
The company sold an additional 5 million global depositary receipts on Friday, the term sheet said. Earlier, Chi Mei sold 45 million global depositary receipts at US$15.02, representing a 4.9 percent discount to its closing price on June 9, the term sheet said. One global depositary receipt represents 10 ordinary shares.
Morgan Stanley managed the sale.
The company is expanding production capacity to compete with rivals including Taiwan's AU Optronics Corp (友達光電) and South Korea-based LG Philips LCD Co.
Carriers agree on Seoul flights
China Airlines (華航), the nation's largest air carrier, and Korean Air are launching a new code-sharing service on flights between Taipei and Seoul, the local company said yesterday.
Currently, China Airlines and Korean Air each offer nine flights per week between the two cities.
Their new joint service will give passengers holding tickets of either airline a total of 18 choices each week on the route, it said.
China Airlines and Korean Air have also started cooperation on transfer services from Taipei, via Seoul, to seven destinations in China, namely Beijing, Shanghai, Qingdao, Tianjin, Shenyang, Wuhan and Jinan, it said.
China Airlines added that the two airlines are also discussing the introduction of a joint frequent-flyer program.
NT dollar weakens
The New Taiwan dollar declined against the US dollar on the Taipei Foreign Exchange yesterday, losing NT$0.071 to close at NT$31.379. A total of US$617 million changed hands during the day's trading.
ISSUES: Gogoro has been struggling with ballooning losses and was recently embroiled in alleged subsidy fraud, using Chinese-made components instead of locally made parts Gogoro Inc (睿能創意), the nation’s biggest electric scooter maker, yesterday said that its chairman and CEO Horace Luke (陸學森) has resigned amid chronic losses and probes into the company’s alleged involvement in subsidy fraud. The board of directors nominated Reuntex Group (潤泰集團) general counsel Tamon Tseng (曾夢達) as the company’s new chairman, Gogoro said in a statement. Ruentex is Gogoro’s biggest stakeholder. Gogoro Taiwan general manager Henry Chiang (姜家煒) is to serve as acting CEO during the interim period, the statement said. Luke’s departure came as a bombshell yesterday. As a company founder, he has played a key role in pushing for the
China has claimed a breakthrough in developing homegrown chipmaking equipment, an important step in overcoming US sanctions designed to thwart Beijing’s semiconductor goals. State-linked organizations are advised to use a new laser-based immersion lithography machine with a resolution of 65 nanometers or better, the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) said in an announcement this month. Although the note does not specify the supplier, the spec marks a significant step up from the previous most advanced indigenous equipment — developed by Shanghai Micro Electronics Equipment Group Co (SMEE, 上海微電子) — which stood at about 90 nanometers. MIIT’s claimed advances last
CROSS-STRAIT TENSIONS: The US company could switch orders from TSMC to alternative suppliers, but that would lower chip quality, CEO Jensen Huang said Nvidia Corp CEO Jensen Huang (黃仁勳), whose products have become the hottest commodity in the technology world, on Wednesday said that the scramble for a limited amount of supply has frustrated some customers and raised tensions. “The demand on it is so great, and everyone wants to be first and everyone wants to be most,” he told the audience at a Goldman Sachs Group Inc technology conference in San Francisco. “We probably have more emotional customers today. Deservedly so. It’s tense. We’re trying to do the best we can.” Huang’s company is experiencing strong demand for its latest generation of chips, called
GLOBAL ECONOMY: Policymakers have a choice of a small 25 basis-point cut or a bold cut of 50 basis points, which would help the labor market, but might reignite inflation The US Federal Reserve is gearing up to announce its first interest rate cut in more than four years on Wednesday, with policymakers expected to debate how big a move to make less than two months before the US presidential election. Senior officials at the US central bank including Fed Chairman Jerome Powell have in recent weeks indicated that a rate cut is coming this month, as inflation eases toward the bank’s long-term target of two percent, and the labor market continues to cool. The Fed, which has a dual mandate from the US Congress to act independently to ensure