Business Briefs

■ UMC plans China investment
United Microelectronics Corp (UMC, 聯電) said yesterday it plans to invest up to US$50 million in the printed circuit board business in Jiangsu Province of eastern China. UMC, the second-largest contract microchip maker after Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (台積電), plans to invest up to US$20 million in Suzhou and US$30 million in Kunshan, a UMC spokesman said. The two plans, if approved by the government, will be UMC's first authorized investments in China, the spokesman said.

■ Ford Lio Ho looks to diesel
Ford Lio Ho Motor Co (福特六和), the nation's fourth-biggest automaker, said that it will introduce more diesel-powered vehicles this year to cater to growing demand. The Focus TDCi is expected to be available in the third quarter, while Mondeo large sedans will come by the end of the year, or early next year, Ford Lio Ho president Jeffery Nemeth said at a media gathering on Tuesday. Another diesel version that might hit local shores is the S-Max multi-purpose vehicle, he said. The company said it has plans to offer a series of diesel cars from mid to large-sized sedans to recreational vehicles as such cars are gaining momentum here. Meanwhile, Ford Lio Ho is also talking to various countries for possibilities to export locally assembled Ford Escape and Mazda Tribute sports utility vehicles, after successfully exporting the first batch to Japan, New Zealand and Australia last May.

■ Citigroup rates HTC a `buy'
High Tech Computer Corp (HTC, 宏達電), the world's largest maker of handsets using Microsoft Corp's Windows operating system, was rated "buy" in new coverage at Citigroup Inc which said the market has already "priced in a worst-case scenario" on the stock. "We believe the market previously was overoptimistic and underestimated the competition. Now the market may be overly negative as HTC shifts to a branded strategy" from a contract manufacturing model, Taipei-based analyst Kent Chan (陳衛斌) wrote in a report dated yesterday. He has a 12-month price target of NT$650 on the stock. Shares of HTC climbed 1.1 percent to close at NT$487 at the close of trade in Taipei yesterday.

■ Chen praises science park
President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) said on Thursday he was looking forward to seeing the Central Taiwan Science Park (中部科學園區) in Taichung County become the world's most competitive industrial hub. Chen made the remarks while attending a name plaque unveiling ceremony for the Central Taiwan Science Park Administration office. The park now accommodates 85 high-tech companies, with more than NT$1.7 trillion (US$514.5 billion) in accumulated capital investment, Chen said, adding that the park has so far created over 17,000 jobs.

■ NT dollar hits four-month low
The New Taiwan dollar dropped to a four-month low as investors sold stocks on speculation that slowing US growth will sap demand for Taiwanese goods. The local currency dropped 0.2 percent this week to NT$33.102 in Taipei, the weakest since last November, according to Taipei Forex Inc. Global funds this week offloaded a net US$1.7 billion of Taiwanese shares as concern increased that issues with US subprime mortgages may slow the world's biggest economy.