TSMC’s revenues slip
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, said yesterday it posted a 0.5 percent year-on-year decline in revenues last month amid slowing global demand.
The company’s revenues last month totaled US$900 million, down nearly 8 percent from August, the company’s Web site said.
TSMC’s share price closed at NT$46.10 yesterday, down 25 percent from the end of August.
Several analysts have predicted the company’s fourth-quarter revenue could drop as much as 10 percent from the previous quarter.
Chinatrust Financial posts loss
Chinatrust Financial Holding Co (中信金控), whose shareholders include Morgan Stanley, swung to a loss in the third quarter because a slump in the stock market reduced the value of its investments.
The Taipei-based financial services group posted an unaudited loss of NT$374 million (US$11.6 million), compared with a profit of NT$4.65 billion a year earlier. The figures were derived by subtracting first-half results from nine-month figures announced yesterday in an e-mailed statement.
Daniel Wu (吳一揆), chief investment officer, confirmed the figure.
Chinatrust attributed the loss to the drop in the value of its investments because of the stock market plunge. The TAIEX has lost 40 percent of its value this year, while Chinatrust’s shares have fallen 39 percent this year.
Demand for Taipei homes cools
Farglory Land Development Co (遠雄建設), the country’s largest real-estate developer, may take twice as long to sell its Taipei City residential projects after the global financial turmoil hit the local stock market, cooling demand for homes.
“A project in Taipei City would normally take five months to sell but now it will take at least eight to 10 months,” Rachel Tsai (蔡宗易), a spokeswoman for Farglory, said in an interview on Wednesday. “If you buy a house in Taipei City, it’s like a luxury product, and people who live in Taipei City have a portfolio in the stock market,” which has suffered and so that goes on to hurt sales.
To help spur demand, Farglory is widening the discount on its list price for new properties to 15 percent from 10 percent and offering free items such as furniture and appliances, Tsai said. The company last month cut its target for project completions this year to NT$30 billion from NT$36 billion, she said.
Taishin hires UBS as adviser
Taishin Financial Holdings Co (台新金控) hired UBS AG to advise on a stake sale that may raise as much as US$400 million, replacing bankrupt Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc, three people familiar with the matter said.
Taishin, owner of the country’s third-largest credit card issuer, is seeking to sell about 20 percent of itself, one of the people said, asking not to be identified because the matter is confidential. Lehman was given the job of advising on the sale this year.
Taishin is seeking capital after speculation about its bank unit’s finances prompted depositors to withdraw NT$30 billion in two weeks following Lehman’s bankruptcy.
NT dollar gains
The New Taiwan dollar ended five days of declines after the central bank lowered interest rates to ease the impact of a global credit crisis.
The NT dollar closed NT$0.011 higher at NT$32.437 against the US dollar, Taipei Forex Inc said. It earlier fell as much as NT$0.06 or 0.2 percent to NT$32.508, near this year’s weakest level of NT$32.512 set on Tuesday.
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