Gourmet Master Co (美食達人) stock plunged as the operator of cafe and bakery chain 85°C (85度C) got caught in crossfire with China over President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) visit to an outlet in the US for a cup of coffee.
The shares yesterday slumped 7.5 percent to close at NT$250 in Taipei trading, their lowest in more than a year and wiping US$120 million from its market value, after a newspaper in China published calls to boycott the chain for hosting Tsai at a store in Los Angeles.
Gourmet Master, which counts China as its biggest market, issued a statement on its Chinese Web site stating its support for the “1992 consensus.”
Photo: Reuters
The so-called “1992 consensus,” a term former Mainland Affairs Council chairman Su Chi (蘇起) in 2006 admitted making up in 2000, refers to a tacit understanding between the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Chinese government that both sides of the Taiwan Strait acknowledge there is “one China,” with each side having its own interpretation of what “China” means.
The incident highlights the political risks of tapping the Chinese market.
In 2004, Chi Mei Optoelectronics Corp’s (奇美電子) chairman stepped down after being singled out for his pro-independence views. International airlines were given a July 25 deadline to show Taiwan as part of China on their Web sites.
China last year accounted for 64 percent of Gourmet Master’s revenue, data compiled by Bloomberg showed.
The market has become a big “uncertainty,” where the government could punish it with measures including hygiene inspections, Reliance Securities Investment Consultant Co (德信投信) vice president Richard Lin said by telephone.
Gourmet Master’s Taiwanese Web site was down after being hacked, the Central News Agency reported yesterday, without saying how it obtained the information.
The Web site earlier had “many photos” of Tsai, the agency reported.
Three telephone calls to company spokesman Chris Lee (李翰霖) went unanswered.
Separately, Chinese food delivery platforms Meituan-Dianping (美團點評) and Ele.me (餓了麼) have taken down listings for 85°C, checks on their apps showed, amid boycott calls from social media users who said that the chain supports Taiwanese independence.
Meituan-Dianping declined to comment, while Ele.me and Gourmet Master did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
It was not clear when 85°C’s listing was taken down from the apps, but Chinese state media reported it yesterday.
Additional reporting by Reuters and staff writer
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