The government plans to tap Wu Chi-chang (
The move was unexpected because Lin's two-year term does not expire until the end of the year, the Chinese-language Commercial Times reported yesterday.
The newspaper, citing a high-ranking official at the Ministry of Economic Affairs, said the ministry has recommended to the Cabinet that Wu be appointed because Lin has completed the task appointed him by the ministry.
The Chinese-language Economic Daily News carried a similar story yesterday, saying that the Cabinet would soon approve Wu's appointment and he would be elected as Taiyen chairman at a board meeting this week at the earliest.
Both papers said Lin has been a controversial figure since he took the helm of Taiyen in late 2005.
He was criticized for making no significant progress on business front, despite large-scale job reshuffles and a bold attempt to align the distributing channel for the company's popular cosmetic products, the reports said.
Taiyen posted a pre-tax profit of NT$145 million (US$4.42 million) in the first six months of the year, which represented almost a 30 percent decline from its net income of NT$206 million a year ago.
Revenues were also down 18 percent roughly to NT$1.17 billion during the first half of the year from NT$1.43 billion a year earlier, the company's data showed.
Taiyen shares were up 1.85 percent at NT$33 on Friday on the Taiwan Stock Exchange.
Wu, 64, a former board director of Taiyen, developed close ties with President Chen Shui-bian (
He also led 5,000 supporters from Chen's hometown, Tainan, to counter the anti-Chen campaign led by former Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) chairman Shih Ming-teh (
In other developments, the Cabinet is reportedly considering changes at other state-run companies, including Taiwan Sugar Corp (台糖), Tang Eng Iron Works Corp (唐榮) and Taiwan Power Co (台電), the Economic Daily News reported, without citing sources.
The Cabinet approved the appointment of Lin Wen-yuan (林文淵) to replace Chiang Yao-chung (江耀宗) as China Steel Corp (中鋼) chairman 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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