Taiwan's TWSE Index fell for the fourth day in five yesterday, led by memory chipmakers such as Nanya Technology Corp (南亞科技) on a newspaper report that a rise in chip prices may lag expectations in the second half of the year. Nanya Technology, the country's largest memory chipmaker, fell NT$0.50, or 1.5 percent, to NT$33.90. Cheng Loong Corp (正隆) led gains in companies with operations in China after the government this week vowed to present the Legislative Yuan in September with a draft proposal for direct transportation links with China. "The trend for electronics stocks is still downward, so I'm buying China-concept stocks
The closer the economic relations between Taiwan and China, the better the security of East Asia and the world is guaranteed, Chris Anderson, editor in chief of Wired magazine said. Anderson said that he believes that Taiwan's economic strength will not be weakened if Tai-wanese manufacturers relocate their wafer production facilities to China. Rather, Anderson said, such economic exchanges may reinforce Taiwan's economic vitality. To support his view about Taiwan's high-tech competitive advantages, Anderson cited the successful business model of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) and United Microelectronics Corp (UMC, 聯電), the country's two largest chipmakers. He said that the TSMC was chosen
A BLESSING A Canadian-based aviation organization has proposed to reduce insurance premiums by establishing a non-profit airline insurance company
Taiwan airlines applauded a proposal by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) to reduce insurance premiums that have skyrocketed for local carriers in the wake of Sept. 11 and are likely to be further inflated by the recent China Airlines (華航) crash. Member airlines of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) voiced their strong support for Canada-based ICAO's plan which calls for the establishment of a non-profit airline insurance company which would seek financing from the world market and provide affordable third-party coverage. The company would be financed by the airlines with initial state support and provide industry-wide coverage of between US$1
Taiwan stocks rose as Yang Ming Marine Transport (陽明海運) gained on a Web site report that said China authorized a cross-strait shipping association to negotiate the opening of direct shipping links with Taiwan. Taiwan currently bans direct trade, transport and postal links with China, which considers the island a renegade province. "It's progress," said Liu Ju-ming, who manages NT$500 million (US$15 million) in stocks at Asia Pacific Securities Investment Trust Co (金亞太投信). "The speed of talks may be slow, but there's a chance for a breakthrough." The TAIEX rose 71.62, or 1.3 percent, to 5599.42, its first advance in four days. Within the
Cathay Financial Holding Co (國泰金控) made an offer for United World Chinese Commercial Bank (世華銀行), setting the stage for a showdown with rival Fubon Financial Holding Co (富邦金控), which is also seeking to buy Taiwan's tenth-largest lender. "Cathay submitted a draft proposal which includes an offer and a request to conduct due diligence," United World Executive Vice President Andrew Tsai (蔡清雲) said. The board is yet to agree to let Cathay examine its books, he said. Cathay's life insurance unit also paid NT$1.27 billion (US$37 million) to lift its stake in United World to 12.26 percent from about 11 percent, Cathay said
PRICE GOUGING? Wholesalers and companies that buy large quantities of sugar want access to the global sugar market, saying the monopoly charges too much
Large buyers of sugar are sour on a price cut by Taiwan Sugar Corp (Taisugar, 台糖), saying the reduction by the monopoly company yesterday didn't go far enough. Taisugar said yesterday that it was lowering prices by NT$1.5 per kilogram to NT$15 for wholesalers and companies that consume large quantities of sugar. Despite the reduction, buyers said prices were still too high. "Taisugar, which accounts for nearly 80 percent of the nation's sugar market, is still capable of manipulating prices," said Sunny Chen (陳朝陽), secretary-general of Taiwan Confectionery, Biscuits and Floury Food Industries Association (糖果餅乾麵食同業公會). Taisugar had at one point controlled the entire market. But
Honda Motor Co has set up its own office in Taiwan after severing a 41-year partnership with Sanyang Industry Co (三陽工業) in January, a Honda official told the Taipei Times yesterday. "We just launched our Taiwan office over the weekend and expect to have a solid footing in local car market," said Chen Chun-liang (陳俊亮), a public relations manager with Honda Taiwan Co (台灣本田). Honda's contract with Sanyang finishes at the end of this month. Sales for Japan's second-largest carmaker in Taiwan fell 44 percent last year to about 20,000 units, according to Honda. Honda originally said it would spend NT$170 million initially
Stocks fell as chipmakers such as United Microelectronics Corp (聯電) tracked declines in their US peers after the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index slumped to its lowest in more than seven months. UMC fell NT$1.50, or 3.4 percent, to NT$43.30. HSBC Securities (Asia) Ltd cut its 2002 earnings forecast for the world's No. 2 made-to-order chipmaker by more than a tenth, citing lower third-quarter sales growth as customers cut back orders. "Chipmakers' third-quarter orders aren't so clear," said Jeff Chen, who manages NT$3.8 billion (US$109 million) in stocks at E. Sun Securities Investment Trust Co (玉山投信). "Investors are moving into safer stocks such as
The fate of Taiwan's first civilian flight school, which began its maiden enrollment this April, is now up in the air at a time when its sponsor body is being reorganized following the May 25 crash of China Airlines Co (華航) flight CI611. One of the results of the air tragedy in which all 225 people aboard were killed is that the China Aviation Development Foundation (CADF, 航發會) -- China Airlines' largest shareholder with a 72-percent stake in the airline -- has decided to sell off all its shares in China Airlines by the end of next
LOOKING UP The nation's second-biggest chipmaker says that it is looking at a minimum 40 percent sequential increase ins second quarter parent sales
The United Microelectronics Corp (UMC, 聯電) said yesterday it expects strong sales growth in the second quarter followed by continued and solid growth in the third quarter. Robert Tsao (曹興誠), chairman of the country's second-biggest microchip maker, told reporters after a shareholders meeting that while he would rather not speculate on the final quarter, he was not pessimistic. However, he said more precise estimate figures were not immediately available. When asked to elaborate, UMC Spokesman Liu Chi-tung (劉啟東) said the company was looking at a minimum 40 percent sequential increase in second quarter parent sales, followed by double-digit percentage growth in the third. With
Taiwan stocks fell, led by lenders such as First Commercial Bank (第一銀行), after a report raised concern the government won't save problematic banks from collapsing. Banks that fail to improve their operations will have to exit the industry, the local Chinese-language media reported, citing Minister of Finance Lee Yung-san (李庸三). Taiwan wants to destroy the myth that banks can't go out of business, Lee said in the report. The TAIEX fell 104.57, or 1.8 percent, to 5571.08. In the past three months, the index has dropped 0.4 percent compared with the bank and insurance subindex's 13.8 rally, which was driven by optimism that
Taiwan stocks fell, led by exporters such as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), on concern earnings may decline after the local currency climbed to its highest level in almost a year against the US dollar. The TAIEX fell 60.54, or 1.1 percent, to 5,675.65. Within the index, about six stocks fell for every five that rose. The total value of trade was NT$64.7 billion (US$1.9 billion), more than two-fifths below the six-month daily average of NT$121.3 billion. The New Taiwan dollar yesterday rose 0.1 percent to NT$34.19 on Thursday. A strengthening local currency may narrow exporters' profit margins, which have already
The China Aviation Development Foundation (CADF) will find it even more difficult to sell 1.7 billion China Airlines (CAL) shares at their net value of NT$18.4 per share in the wake of last Satur-day's crash, a market observer said yesterday. Referring to Premier Yu Shyi-kun's directive on Wednesday that CAL -- now perhaps the developed world's most dangerous airline -- should be fully privatized within two years, the observer said that the CADF, as the biggest shareholder, has been trying to sell CAL shares over the past four years. The observer noted that immediately after the last major
NOT SO POPULAR TSMC and four other Taiwanese companies passed over the biggest securities firm by capital when looking for an agent to sell their shares
Merrill Lynch & Co, Asia's top arranger of share sales last year, fell to seventh place this year, failing to win a share of US$2 billion of business in Taiwan, where it's the No. 2 foreign broker. The biggest securities firm by capital wasn't hired to sell shares for Taiwan Semiconductor Man-ufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) and four other companies in the nation, which accounted for more than half the US$4.3 billion of stock sold to global investors this year by Asian companies outside Japan. "Taiwan is becoming increasingly important given the state of the markets elsewhere in Asia," said Ernest Ip, a
HUNGER FOR STABILITY Investors flocked to financial services yesterday, hoping that few surprises await there, with the TAIEX climbing 112.96 points, to 5726.19
Taiwan stocks advanced, lead by Hua Nan Financial Holdings Co (華南金控), after the owner of the nation's fifth-largest lender by assets yesterday forecast earnings growth in the next five years as its bank unit writes off bad loans. "Unlike electronics stocks, no more unexpected news will come out of the financial sector," said Jeremy Chang, who manages NT$840 million (US$25 million) in shares at Cathay Securities Investment Trust (國泰投信). "For the next month or so, I'm moving funds out of electronics and into financials." The TAIEX climbed 112.96, or 2 percent, to 5736.19 as about five stocks rose for each one
NITTY GRITTY Lin Yi-fu met US and Mexican trade officials to discuss free trade, easier visa access for Taiwan's buisness people and upcoming APEC talks
Minister of Economic Affairs Lin Yi-fu met (林義夫) met with US US Trade Representative Robert Zoellick Wednesday to discuss matters of mutual interest. The bilateral talks took bilateral talks took place on the sidelines of an annual trade on the sidelines of an annual trade ministers conference of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum. Lin conference of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum. Lin said after his 30-minute meeting with Zoellick that they had exchanged views on a broad range of bilateral trade issues, including the possibility of signing a free trade agreement, possibility issues related to an existing Taiwan-US of signing a
CTB Financial Holding Co (交銀金控) joined Taiwan's two largest financial groups in a battle to buy control of United World Chinese Commercial Bank (世華銀行), United World said. The winner will catapult to the top spot in the nation's financial services industry. Cathay Financial Holding Co (國泰金控) and Fubon Financial Holding Co (富邦金控), Taiwan's two biggest financial companies, already have stakes in United World, which is 27 percent owned by the government and also want to take it over. CTB has joined the bidding, and ``all three are in a race to become Taiwan's biggest financial holding company,'' said Gregory Wang Kuo-hua (汪國華),
Taipei Times: Has it been difficult to sell fitness in Asia? Eric Levine: When I first came out here, people told me -- we started in Hong Kong -- they said Chinese people won't want to work out, the women are skinny and they won't sweat. I said, okay, that's fine, thank you for that. But when we did the body fat testing on the women, they were as high as the United States, because they don't have any lean muscle mass. TT: No. Really? Levine: Really. They're not big, but being big doesn't mean you're in shape just
Taiwan stocks fell for a second day, led by Asustek Computer Inc (華碩電腦), after consumer spending in the US rose less than expected in April, damping expectations of a revival in demand for computers and the parts used to run them. The TWSE Index shed 46.30, or 0.8 percent, to 5623.23 as about five stocks fell for every two that rose. Trade totaled NT$49 billion (US$1.4 billion), almost three-fifths below the six-month daily average of NT$121.5 billion, and the slowest since Oct. 30. "Electronics are too weak, so the whole market is weak," said Roger Chiao, who helps manage NT$6 billion (US$175
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