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GDP growth stable last month

The economy still showed signs of steady expansion last month, the top official economic planning body said yesterday.

The index of leading indicators last month rose 0.1 percent to 148.2 points from October, when it registered a revised 0.4 percent month-on-month increase, the Council for Economic Planning and Development said.

The index is used to gauge the economy's performance in the coming months.

Last month's index of coincident indicators, which tracks the current pace of economic activity, was flat month-on-month at 152.3 points, after posting a revised 0.1 percent rise in October, it said.

The total score of monitoring indicators last month was 29 points, down from 32 points in October.

Last month's monitoring indicators had a "green light" reading, signaling steady growth.

Macronix, Qimonda to ink pact

Shares of Macronix International Co (旺宏電子), a local chipmaker that counts Nintendo Co among its clients, rose near their daily limit yesterday after saying the company would sign a contract with Qimonda AG to jointly develop chips.

Macronix's stock jumped 6.7 percent to close at NT$14.35, the highest since Dec. 13. This compares with the benchmark TAIEX's 1.9 percent gain. Macronix shares have risen 3.6 percent this year.

The Hsinchu-based chipmaker plans to sign a contract with Munich-based Qimonda ``in the near future'' on developing flash-memory chips, Macronix said in an e-mailed statement yesterday.

MediaTek approves bonus plan

MediaTek Inc (聯發科), the nation's biggest mobile phone chipmaker, yesterday said the board had approved a proposal to allocate 25 percent of its annual net income for employee bonuses, easing investors' long-term concern about potential outlays that could erode profits.

The decision meets new accounting rules requiring companies to book employee bonuses as expense rather than reserved profits.

The new policy will take effect next year, the company said in a filing to the Taiwan Stock Exchange.

Taishin offers new swap ratio

Taishin Financial Holding Co (台新金控), the second-largest shareholder with a 22 percent stake in state-run Chang Hwa Commercial Bank (彰銀), yesterday proposed a new swap ratio to accelerate its merger with Chang Hwa.

Taishin Financial's board approved a new swap ratio of 1.3:1, or one share of Chang Hwa for 1.3 shares of Taishin -- higher than the previously proposed exchange of 1.2 shares -- the company said in a statement yesterday.

The proposed swap ratio still has to be approved by Chang Hwa's board.

Businesses hiring more: survey

Forty-five percent of businesses have confirmed that they will hire more staff next year, a poll published by an online human resources firm showed yesterday.

Among the sectors, more than 50 percent of companies in the financial, investment, insurance, legal, consultancy, research and development, real estate, construction, electronics and information sectors said they would hire more staff, the poll said.

Officials of www.104.com.tw said most businesses would recruit new staff after the Lunar New Year, which falls on Feb. 7, but added that 32.5 percent of respondents had started recruitment late this month or planned to do so early next month, showing that a stiff competition for qualified personnel had begun.

The oneline firm surveyed nearly 2,700 local companies between Nov. 22 and Dec. 17.
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