POLICY CHANGE: The Industrial Development Bureau may remove products such as laptops and 8-inch wafers from a list that allows them a five-year tax exemption
By Jessie Ho
The Industrial Development Bureau is proposing to exclude 110 products, including notebook computers and computer motherboards, from the so-called "emerging important and strategic industries," an official at the bureau said yesterday.

[ FULL STORY ]

By Jackie Lin
Singapore Airlines yesterday announced that it is raising fuel surcharges to offset the impact from surging jet-fuel costs.

[ FULL STORY ]

By Jackie Lin
China Airlines (華航), the nation's largest air carrier, yesterday inaugurated its first nonstop flight from Taipei to Vienna.

[ FULL STORY ]

SEMICONDUCTORS: Investors sold their shares on fears that damage to packaging facilities may affect performance for up to the next two quarters
By Lisa Wang
Shares of Advanced Semiconductor Engineering Inc (ASE, 日月光半導體) yesterday took a nosedive on the first trading session after a weekend fire at one of its plants in northern Taiwan, as investors worried the damage would take a toll on the company's bottom line.

[ FULL STORY ]

By Amber Chung
The nation's notebook computer market is expected to see robust growth of nearly 20 percent in the second quarter, driven by rebounding market demand, a recovery in conditions for product retailers and possible price wars, Hewlett-Packard (HP) Taiwan Ltd said yesterday.

[ FULL STORY ]

By Jessie Ho
The government is considering to keep providing low-interest loans for first-time home buyers as a means of stimulating the property market, as the NT$300 billion (US$9.59 billion) that has been allocated to preferential loans is expected to run out by the end of next month, Premier Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) said.

[ FULL STORY ]

CARS: The local manufacturer said it hopes to finalize the agreement sometime in the fourth quarter of this year, which would allow it to import the Czech vehicles
By Amber Chung
Formosa Automobile Corp (台朔汽車), the auto-manufacturing arm of Formosa Plastics Group (台塑集團), confirmed yesterday that the carmaker has signed a draft agreement with Skoda Auto AG to introduce the Czech vehicles into Taiwan, probably by the end of this year.

[ FULL STORY ]

Global semiconductor equipment sales may rise as much as 5 percent this year as demand for consumer electronics increases, said Stanley Myers, president of industry group Semiconductor Equipment & Materials International.

[ FULL STORY ]

By Lisa Wang
HannStar Display Corp (瀚宇彩晶), one of Taiwan's leading suppliers of flat screens, yesterday posted its third consecutive quarterly losses as prices collapsed in the wake of a supply glut.

[ FULL STORY ]

■ TAIEX closes flat
[ FULL STORY ]