A government urban renewal project targeting four areas will boost the already red-hot property market in the long-run, but a bid to develop a Taiwanese version of "Wall Street" could be difficult to achieve, market watchers said yesterday.
Premier Chang Chun-hsiung (張俊雄) confirmed yesterday that the Cabinet will announce tomorrow a multibillion dollar project to renew the Huakuang Community adjoining the Taiwan Democracy Memorial Hall, Taipei City's Nangang District, areas near Keelung Harbor and the rail station, and areas along Kaohsiung Harbor all the way to Kaohsiung Railway Station.
Encouraged by the yet-to-be-announced incentive, asset-rich stocks that stand to benefit from the urban renewal project rallied yesterday on the local bourse. Shares of Taiwan Tea Corp (
"Property prices in the areas will certainly rise due to the better infrastructure and landscape," Su Chi-jung (
Of the four state-owned areas to be released to the market, Huakuang Community -- which at present is home to dormitories for government officials, restaurants and a market -- is the most prominent, which could attract bids from constructors, Su said.
The government intends to develop the 4.5 hectare area into Taiwan's "Wall Street" by relocating the Financial Supervisory Commission office from Banciao (板橋) to the district, as well as encouraging private banking institutions to set up their headquarters in the area.
The move could help boost the comparatively low office building rental in the area, but for the district to replace Xinyi District as a financial center may be overambitious, Su said.
In addition to Chinatrust Financial Holding Co (中信金控), many financial institutions and companies, such as the Taiwan Stock Exchange Corp (證交所), moved to Xinyi District after the completion of Taipei 101, making the district's financial hub status difficult to beat in the short term, Su said.
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