TAIEX down slightly
The TAIEX edged down 0.06 percent yesterday, as gains in the electronics sector were offset by profit taking and weakness in regional markets. Some investors also decided to stay on the sidelines and wait to see if Taiwan and China sign a memorandum of understanding on a cross-strait currency settlement mechanism this week as expected, dealers said.
The weighted index ranged between a high of 7,495.81 and a low of 7,428.84 before closing down 4.82 points at 7,436.30 on turnover of NT$ 72.59 billion (US$2.42 billion). A total of 1,726 stocks closed up and 2,269 finished down, while 463 remained unchanged.
MOEA experts visit China
A team of experts organized by the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MEA) departed for Tianjin and Beijing on Sunday with the aim of assisting Taiwanese businessmen in the two cities on market expansion, brand building and technological upgrading and transformation, the ministry said.
The team will also brief Taiwanese businessmen there on Thursday’s signing of an investment protection agreement between Taiwan and China, the ministry said in a statement.
The team, led by Terry Lee (李聰貴), deputy director-general of the ministry’s Department of Investment Services, is scheduled to return to Taiwan on Saturday.
Banks ink cooperation pact
State-run Land Bank of Taiwan (土地銀行) has signed a memorandum of understanding with China Merchants Bank (招商銀行), according to a statement issued by the Taiwanese lender yesterday.
Land Bank said in the statement that the two banks would seek cooperation in corporate banking, trade financing and other fund businesses. It said it hoped the cooperation with the Chinese bank would facilitate its business expansion in China.
New lighting standards
The government is planning to announce newly established national standards for the smart lighting industry today in a bid to expand demand and worldwide business opportunities, according to the government-funded Institute for Information Industry.
These standards are expected to improve the efficiency of lighting management, improve safety during nighttime activities, create an energy-saving and smart lighting environment, and explore high value-added business opportunities worldwide, the institute said recently. The five sets of standards for Taiwan’s LED lighting products were approved by the nation’s six major lighting associations after consultations, the institute said.
Capcom opens Taiwan branch
Capcom, a Japanese developer and publisher of video games, has opened an office in Taiwan that will serve as a base for expansion into the wider Asian online gaming market.
Capcom chief operating officer Haruhiro Tsujimoto said at a press conference in Taipei on Friday last week the company had chosen Taiwan because of the country’s abundant talent in the gaming industry and its good relations with Japan.
The Japanese company is known for its best-selling video games such as Resident Evil, Street Fighter and Mega Man. Capcom’s expansion into Taiwan follows a similar move by South Korean game developer CJ E&M Corp, which entered into a joint venture with Taiwan’s Cayenne Entertainment Technology Co (紅心辣椒) in April to expand its global online gaming market.
NT dollar falls
The New Taiwan dollar fell against the US dollar yesterday, declining 0.015 to close at NT$30.005. Turnover totaled about US$361 million during the trading session.
Stephen Garrett, a 27-year-old graduate student, always thought he would study in China, but first the country’s restrictive COVID-19 policies made it nearly impossible and now he has other concerns. The cost is one deterrent, but Garrett is more worried about restrictions on academic freedom and the personal risk of being stranded in China. He is not alone. Only about 700 American students are studying at Chinese universities, down from a peak of nearly 25,000 a decade ago, while there are nearly 300,000 Chinese students at US schools. Some young Americans are discouraged from investing their time in China by what they see
MAJOR DROP: CEO Tim Cook, who is visiting Hanoi, pledged the firm was committed to Vietnam after its smartphone shipments declined 9.6% annually in the first quarter Apple Inc yesterday said it would increase spending on suppliers in Vietnam, a key production hub, as CEO Tim Cook arrived in the country for a two-day visit. The iPhone maker announced the news in a statement on its Web site, but gave no details of how much it would spend or where the money would go. Cook is expected to meet programmers, content creators and students during his visit, online newspaper VnExpress reported. The visit comes as US President Joe Biden’s administration seeks to ramp up Vietnam’s role in the global tech supply chain to reduce the US’ dependence on China. Images on
New apartments in Taiwan’s major cities are getting smaller, while old apartments are increasingly occupied by older people, many of whom live alone, government data showed. The phenomenon has to do with sharpening unaffordable property prices and an aging population, property brokers said. Apartments with one bedroom that are two years old or older have gained a noticeable presence in the nation’s six special municipalities as well as Hsinchu county and city in the past five years, Evertrust Rehouse Co (永慶房產集團) found, citing data from the government’s real-price transaction platform. In Taipei, apartments with one bedroom accounted for 19 percent of deals last
US CONSCULTANT: The US Department of Commerce’s Ursula Burns is a rarely seen US government consultant to be put forward to sit on the board, nominated as an independent director Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, yesterday nominated 10 candidates for its new board of directors, including Ursula Burns from the US Department of Commerce. It is rare that TSMC has nominated a US government consultant to sit on its board. Burns was nominated as one of seven independent directors. She is vice chair of the department’s Advisory Council on Supply Chain Competitiveness. Burns is to stand for election at TSMC’s annual shareholders’ meeting on June 4 along with the rest of the candidates. TSMC chairman Mark Liu (劉德音) was not on the list after in December last