Bolstered by stable economic fundamentals, the stock market is unlikely to experience drastic fluctuations as a result of the indictment of the first lady Wu Shu-jen (吳淑珍), Hu Sheng-cheng (胡勝正), chairman of the Council for Economic Planning and Development (CEPD) said yesterday.
News of the indictment had spread before the stock market closed on Friday, but the benchmark TAIEX still advanced by 83 points to close at 7161.61, emphasizing the point that investors were unaffected, he said.
Hu made the comment after an ad hoc Cabinet meeting convened by Premier Su Tseng-chang (
Hu said the public had reacted rather peacefully over the weekend, which shows Taiwan has developed into a mature democratic nation.
The indictment might have affected the public psychologically, but investors would remain rational when trading stocks, he said.
Hu added that the premier did not give instructions to activate the National Stabilization Fund (
Deputy Minister of Finance Liu Teng-cheng (
"We'll take another look at the market situation on Monday. If it complies with the prerequisites, [such as when non-economic elements disrupt the financial market], we'll call a committee meeting," he said.
CEPD's Hu, who also serves as the chief of the Cabinet Development Fund (開發基金), said the fund could be activated to buy shares when necessary. But from a long-term point of view, he saw no imperative for the moment to use the fund.
The central bank also reiterated its stance to maintain order in the foreign exchange market, according to a statement issued after the Cabinet's meeting.
"The New Taiwan dollar's exchange rate will be decided by the market's supply and demand. However, if the exchange rate fluctuates excessively due to incidental factors, the central bank will intervene," the bank said.
Taiwan's foreign-exchange reserves stood at US$261.8 billion at the end of last month.
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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New apartments in Taiwan’s major cities are getting smaller, while old apartments are increasingly occupied by older people, many of whom live alone, government data showed. The phenomenon has to do with sharpening unaffordable property prices and an aging population, property brokers said. Apartments with one bedroom that are two years old or older have gained a noticeable presence in the nation’s six special municipalities as well as Hsinchu county and city in the past five years, Evertrust Rehouse Co (永慶房產集團) found, citing data from the government’s real-price transaction platform. In Taipei, apartments with one bedroom accounted for 19 percent of deals last