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Business Quick Take

■ ELECTRONIES

LCD shipments to rise

The nation's liquid-crystal-display (LCD) TV shipments are expected to increase more than 20 percent next year, with 32 inches remaining the most popular TV module size, the Institute for the Information Industry forecast yesterday. Taiwan's LCD TV shipments have risen 73 percent to approximately 794,000 units this year, with 32-inch products accounting for 53.8 percent of the shipments, the institute said. The shipments are expected to leap another 23.4 percent to 980,000 units next year, as a result of suppliers' efforts to cut prices, it said.



■ COFFEE

Starbucks loses lawsuit

The Taipei High Administrative Court has rejected a claim by Starbucks that a local coffee chain infringed on its trademark rights by using a similar logo, the Chinese-language Apple Daily reported yesterday. The court said that E-Coffee's (壹咖啡) logo featuring a cup of steaming coffee is not similar to the female icon with a crown on her head in the Starbucks trademark. The report, which did not specify when the ruling was made, said the court believed the two logos would not confuse consumers. Starbucks first filed the trademark infringement suit against E-Coffee in October 2004 to the government's Intellectual Property Office.



■ REAL ESTATE

Shin Kong sells building

Shin Kong Bank (新光銀行) has sold a 14-story office building to a consortium composed of Tatien Co (德先), Mayer Steel Pipe Corp (美雅鋼管) and TFMI Asset Management Co (台產資產管理) for NT$7.3 billion (US$224.8 million), according to a filing with the Taiwan Stock Exchange on Friday evening. The consortium has agreed to pay 15 percent of the amount as a downpayment, while borrowing the remaining 85 percent from Shin Kong Bank, the filing said. The building, located on Minsheng E. Road in Taipei City, has a total floor space of 14,325.14 ping (47,356m2) and a 1,539.97 ping lot. Shin Kong said it expected to book a profit of NT$2.71 billion from the deal.



■ STEEL

China to up export tariffs

China will raise export tariffs on some steel products from Jan. 1 to help rein in a record trade surplus and reduce energy consumption and pollution. It didn't give details on new tax rates. Beijing will also impose export tariffs on coal, crude oil and metal ores next year, the Ministry of Finance said late yesterday. Export duties on hot-rolled coil and so-called long products will be raised to 15 percent from between 5 percent and 10 percent, the China Securities Journal reported on Dec. 21, without saying where it obtained the information. Tariffs on semi-finished products, billets and pig iron will be raised to 25 percent from 15 percent.



■ PACKAGING

Alcoa sells operations

Alcoa Inc said it has agreed to sell its packaging and consumer businesses to the Rank Group Ltd of New Zealand for US$2.7 billion. The cash deal is expected to close in the first quarter of next year, Alcoa said on Friday. Alcoa's packaging and consumer businesses generated about US$3.2 billion in revenue and US$95 million in after-tax operating income last year, representing about 10 percent of Alcoa's revenue and 3 percent of its after-tax operating income. The Alcoa businesses being sold employ about 10,000 workers in 22 countries.
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