Chinese firms to buy goods
Lenovo Group Ltd (聯想) and Haier Electronics Group Co (海爾集團) are among 40 Chinese companies that agreed to buy about US$2.2 billion in goods from Taiwan, the Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA, 外貿協會) said yesterday in a statement.
The Chinese companies will purchase US$827 million in products by the end of next month and the remaining US$1.4 billion over the coming year, TAITRA said.
“We hope to broaden our relationship with Taiwanese companies to beyond trade,” said Yu Zhongjun (余中俊), chairman of Man Jiang Science and Technology Co (滿疆科技開發), which agreed to buy US$20 million in computers from Taiwanese suppliers.
Li Shuilin (李水林), president of the Association for Trade and Economic Exchange Across the Taiwan Straits, will lead one more Chinese trade team to Taiwan by the end of this month and another by the end of next month, the statement said.
Business bank sells debt
Taiwan Business Bank (臺灣企銀) said yesterday in a statement that its board approved a proposal to sell NT$12 billion in perpetual subordinated debt to boost its capital.
The proposal is also aimed at refinancing debt to reduce interest payments, the statement said.
The bank, which focuses on loans to small and medium enterprises, may sell the debt in several tranches, it added.
Formosa bonds begin trading
Deutsche Bank AG yesterday completed the sale of its second issuance of US dollar-denominated Formosa bonds worth US$260 million. The three-year bonds, which pay investors a 3 percent annual coupon, will begin trading today on the GRETAI Securities Market.
Cynthia Chan (詹翠芳), managing director of the bank’s global markets in Taiwan, said “the listing demonstrates the ability of Taiwan’s capital markets to provide meaningful liquidity to corporate borrowers.”
Deutsche Bank, which pioneered the issuance of foreign currency-denominated bonds in Taiwan, had previously closed its first transaction of a US$250 million bond issuance in October 2006.
CMP names acting chair
China Metal Products Group (CMP Group, 勤美集團) yesterday named vice chairman Tsao Ming-hong (曹明宏) as acting chairman with immediate effect, the company said in an exchange filing.
The company’s chairman and founder Ho Ming-shiann (何明憲) was detained on June 3 by prosecutors over an embezzlement scandal, Chen Yun-nan (陳雲南), spokesman for the Taiwan Supreme Court Prosecutors Office said. The company also said it will invite accountants to supervise the company’s capital utilization to increase transparency.
Science park turnover grows
The accumulated turnover of the Southern Taiwan Science Park in March and April reached NT$65.31 billion (US$2 billion) — growth of 46.41 percent compared with the January to February figure, the park administration said in a statement on Wednesday.
The March to April turnover, however, posted a drop of 37.18 percent from the same period last year, the park administration said.
Nonetheless, the decline was the smallest for the last six months, which was a sign that the local recession had bottomed out, the statement said.
The accumulated turnover of the science park, which houses nearly 160 high-tech businesses, in the first four months of the year stood at NT$109.93 billion, which was a 46.07 percent decline from the same period last year, the statement said.
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