Share prices slip
Share prices closed down 0.55 percent yesterday on Wall Street’s lackluster performance overnight ahead of the US second quarter earnings report later this week, dealers said.
The TAIEX fell 42.13 points to 7,597.42 on turnover of NT$90.23 billion (US$2.81 billion).
The market opened up 0.33 percent but profit taking emerged as the index moved closer to the nearest technical resistance level at around 7,700 points. Many investors retreated from the trading floor and waited for the quarterly profit reports by companies in the US markets, dealers said.
A total of 2,034 stocks closed down, 1,037 higher, and 325 remained unchanged.
China ties could be risky: S&P
Growing reliance on Chinese demand and production may pose risks for the ratings of Taiwan’s biggest companies, Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services (S&P) said yesterday.
China’s efforts to cool its economy, rising wages and overcapacity may hurt profitability and could hinder a recovery in the credit profiles of Taiwan’s Top 100 companies, S&P said.
Other uncertainties include the pace of the recovery in global demand and the risk of interest-rate increases, it said in a statement.
The credit profiles of Taiwan’s technology firms are more volatile than those of their non-technology counterparts who are in a better position to maintain their profiles over the next two years, S&P said.
“Global competition, shortening product and technology life cycles and rapidly changing consumer preferences have affected companies’ credit profiles differently,” credit analyst Raymond Hsu (許智清) said.
Chip equipment sales to rise
Global semiconductor-equipment sales are expected to climb 104 percent this year to US$32.5 billion, and rise a further 9 percent in 2011, industry organization SEMI said in a statement yesterday.
Taiwan will be the largest market for chip equipment, accounting for US$9.18 billion in sales this year and US$9.28 billion next year, SEMI said.
Formosa shuts cracker
Formosa Petrochemical Corp (台塑石化), Taiwan’s only publicly traded oil refiner, shut a residue fluid catalytic cracker on Monday because of an “equipment fault” that will probably curb gasoline exports next month.
The No. 1 cracker, which processes fuel oil into light products, may be closed for seven to 10 days, spokesman Lin Keh-yen (林克彥) said by telephone. It has a capacity of 84,000 barrels a day, he said.
“Gasoline shipments may be affected and we will be discussing with customers,” he said.
The company said last Wednesday it halted operations at the No. 1 ethylene plant following a fire.
Intermediate ready to invest
Intermediate Capital Group PLC, a provider of loans for leveraged buyouts, said it’s “on track” to invest £150 million (US$225 million) to £200 million in the fiscal year.
The company continues “to exercise caution given the fragility of the economic recovery,” London-based Intermediate Capital said in a statement yesterday.
The sale of investments “continued to be strong” with the asset disposals of Geoservices SA and Sebia SA in the first quarter, it said.
Intermediate Capital also repaid its mezzanine finance at the end of last month in Taiwan Broadband Communications Co as the company completed its refinancing.
NT dollar dips
The New Taiwan dollar fell against the US dollar yesterday, down NT$0.05 to close at NT$32.30. Turnover totaled US$717 million during the trading session.
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