Chunghwa sale `impossible'
Chunghwa Telecom Co (中華電信) said plans to sell shares abroad in the first quarter may be scrapped because the paperwork isn't ready, forcing the government to depend on next week's NT$63.8 billion (US$1.84 billion) domestic sale to pay debt and plug a budget deficit.
"It's kind of impossible.... We would have had to prepare necessary financial documents earlier," Chunghwa spokeswoman Shen Fufu said of the planned sale of American depositary receipts.
Goldman Sachs Group Inc's contract to advise on sale, due to expire last month, has been renewed, said Mei Zhang, a spokeswoman with Goldman.
The government has delayed several overseas sales the past two years and suffered four flops in domestic sales, amid doubts about Chunghwa's progress in cutting costs and trimming its workforce. The government, which still owns 95 percent of the company, didn't improve its chances by pricing the shares at a 2 percent premium to Friday's closing price, analysts said.
"If Chunghwa could commit to restructuring and management would sign on to cost cuts, we might be interested in buying the shares," said Devan Kaloo, who helps manage US$2.6 billion for Aberdeen Asset Management Asia Ltd, and doesn't own shares in Chunghwa Telecom.
Research group predicts growth
Seeing that the economy is gradually recovering from the global economic recession, analysts at the Taiwan Research Institute forecast that a 3.42 percent economic growth rate for 2003 is possible.
The institute yesterday released a report on the economic prospects, pointing out that although domestic consuming power and investment willingness have remained low over the past few months, the country will manage to attain a 3.12 percent economic growth this year.
According to the report, in the second quarter of next year, the nation will be able to see the effectiveness of the government's reformative monetary and financial policies.
The report predicts that domestic investment willingness will recover next year, with the investment amounts increasing by 6.48 percent from the level of 2002.
In addition, as a member of the WTO, international trade is expected to attain sustained growth in the coming years, according to the report.
Cathay eyes China opportunities
Hong Kong-based carrier Cathay Pacific Airways (國泰航空) said yesterday it is interested in buying a stake in China Eastern Airlines (中國東方航空) and other carriers based in China but no deals have been reached.
Cathay corporate communications manager Lisa Wong was responding to a media report which claimed the carrier was in talks with Shanghai-based China Eastern Airlines.
The Sing Tao Daily reported yesterday that Cathay was in the early stages of talks with China Eastern Airlines to take a stake in the Chinese carrier.
"We are looking at opportunities in the Chinese aviation market, but in what form and what scope, we are still in very initial stages and we have not made any confirmation yet."
Cathay Pacific chief executive David Turnbull was quoted as saying last week the company is interested in taking minority stakes in Chinese airlines.
The talk comes as Cathay attempts to win rights to resume flights to China.
NT dollar strengthens
The new Taiwan dollar gained against the US dollar on the Foreign Exchange yesterday, ending up NT$0.097 to close at NT$34.805.
A total of US$338 million changed hands.
Agencies
Intel Corp chief executive officer Lip-Bu Tan (陳立武) is expected to meet with Taiwanese suppliers next month in conjunction with the opening of the Computex Taipei trade show, supply chain sources said on Monday. The visit, the first for Tan to Taiwan since assuming his new post last month, would be aimed at enhancing Intel’s ties with suppliers in Taiwan as he attempts to help turn around the struggling US chipmaker, the sources said. Tan is to hold a banquet to celebrate Intel’s 40-year presence in Taiwan before Computex opens on May 20 and invite dozens of Taiwanese suppliers to exchange views
Application-specific integrated circuit designer Faraday Technology Corp (智原) yesterday said that although revenue this quarter would decline 30 percent from last quarter, it retained its full-year forecast of revenue growth of 100 percent. The company attributed the quarterly drop to a slowdown in customers’ production of chips using Faraday’s advanced packaging technology. The company is still confident about its revenue growth this year, given its strong “design-win” — or the projects it won to help customers design their chips, Faraday president Steve Wang (王國雍) told an online earnings conference. “The design-win this year is better than we expected. We believe we will win
Quanta Computer Inc (廣達) chairman Barry Lam (林百里) is expected to share his views about the artificial intelligence (AI) industry’s prospects during his speech at the company’s 37th anniversary ceremony, as AI servers have become a new growth engine for the equipment manufacturing service provider. Lam’s speech is much anticipated, as Quanta has risen as one of the world’s major AI server suppliers. The company reported a 30 percent year-on-year growth in consolidated revenue to NT$1.41 trillion (US$43.35 billion) last year, thanks to fast-growing demand for servers, especially those with AI capabilities. The company told investors in November last year that
Power supply and electronic components maker Delta Electronics Inc (台達電) yesterday said it plans to ship its new 1 megawatt charging systems for electric trucks and buses in the first half of next year at the earliest. The new charging piles, which deliver up to 1 megawatt of charging power, are designed for heavy-duty electric vehicles, and support a maximum current of 1,500 amperes and output of 1,250 volts, Delta said in a news release. “If everything goes smoothly, we could begin shipping those new charging systems as early as in the first half of next year,” a company official said. The new
RSS