OFF TRACK: One top executive of the THSRC blamed a Japanese contractor for slow work, while another said there's no wiggle room left in the construction schedule
By Jessie Ho
The Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp (THSRC, 台灣高鐵), which is building the nation's first bullet train, is likely to miss its October deadline, according to an interview yesterday with THSRC chairwoman Nita Ing (殷琪) in the Chinese-language Liberty Times, the Taipei Times' sister paper.

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NEW SERVICE: Increased operating costs from the launch of the high-speed service next quarter will keep earnings below last year's level, the firm said
By Lisa Wang
Chunghwa Telecom Co (中華電信), Taiwan's largest phone company, yesterday said earnings may shrink for the first time in years due to rising operating costs from the debut of its next-generation wireless service.

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TAX REFORM: The finance minister said a proposal from legislators for tax breaks based on the length of ownership of a piece of property was redundant
By Joyce Huang
Minister of Finance Lin Chuan (林全) yesterday flatly rejected a proposal initiated by lawmakers to lower incremental land-value tax rates for landowners who have owned their properties for a minimum of 20 years.

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By Jessie Ho
Apple Computer Inc yesterday unveiled the iPod shuffle, a new member of its best-selling iPod music player family, to Taiwan consumers, which it expects will become a hot item when it hits store shelves early next month.

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By Joyce Huang
HSBC yesterday claimed to have outperformed Citibank Taiwan in the local retail assets market after achieving 36 percent growth rate last year.

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ROSY VISION: Chairman Terry Gou says some employees will have to work over New Year's to meet demand. Meanwhile, its handset group is reading its Hong Kong IPO
By Lisa Wang
Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密), the world's top component maker of computer-related products, expects its first-quarter sales to jump 30 percent over the same period last year, boosted by sustained demand from Christmas, a company executive said yesterday.

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Credit Suisse First Boston (CSFB) says investors this year should buy Taiwan construction-related stocks such as Taiwan Cement Corp (台灣水泥) and Continental Engineering Corp (大陸工程) to take advantage of increased government infrastructure spending and as a "defense" against slowing exports.

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Share prices closed 0.2 percent lower in thin trade yesterday, unable to extend recent gains on a lack of fresh leads and caution ahead of upcoming corporate results, dealers said.

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CP to boost plant spending
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