■ Chip revenue rises
Taiwan's two top chipmakers on Tuesday reported a jump in revenue of nearly 50 percent in February compared to the same month last year, indicating that the semiconductor sector's recovery is still on track. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (台積電), the world's biggest producer of made-to-order chips, posted revenue of NT$18.39 billion last month, up from NT$12.35 billion, or a 49 percent increase from the same month last year. United Microelectronics Corp (聯電), the world's No. 2 contract maker of chips, reported that February revenue rose to NT$8.03 billion, a 48 percent rise, from NT$5.44 billion a year earlier.
■ Pedigree dog food withdrawn
Effem Foods Taiwan Inc announced on Monday that it will withdraw its Pedigree Dry dog food from Taiwan in the wake of reports of increased renal illness among dogs in Taiwan, a substantial number of which were being fed with the produce, a company statement said. The company also said it will suspend shipments to other countries, including Thailand, the Philippines, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam and Korea. The company is arranging alternative sources of supply, the statement said. Allan West, general manager of Effem Foods, said that consumers with unopened pack of the food could request a refund by presenting their invoices to the retailers where they purchased the food.
■ WTO legal body joined
Taiwan yesterday officially joined the Advisory Centre on WTO Law (ACWL), an institute that will assist developing countries in World Trade Organization dispute settlement, as its 35th member country. Yen Ching-chang (顏慶章), Taiwan's permanent representative to the global trade body, signed the protocol with ACWL executive director Frieder Roessler yesterday, saying that the move will help Taiwan resolve WTO disputes as Taiwan lacks experience in dealing with legal issues in the WTO. In addressing his welcome to Taiwan, Roessler said he was confident that the institute would provide the best legal service for Taiwan in the future. The ACWL was established in July 2001 and has provided legal assistance to developing countries in 16 WTO disputes.
■ Cement industry faces probe
The Fair Trade Commission has decided to conduct an investigation of local cement producers in response to complaints from downstream users, concerned that producers had formed a cartel to manipulate supplies to keep prices artificially high, the commission announced yesterday. Currently, the annual domestic sales volume of cement is estimated to be around 15 million metric tons, accounting for only 70 percent of annual cement production capacity of around 22 million metric tons. The current price of cement, however, is NT$2,250 per metric ton, much higher than producers' production and marketing costs which are estimated at around NT$1,600, the commission said. The commission will investigate whether the high price involves any illegality such as price fixing or excessive profits. Violators of the f the fair trade regulations could be fined NT$25 million, the commission said.
■ NT dollar rises
The New Taiwan dollar yesterday traded higher against the US dollar on the Taipei Foreign Exchange, rising NT$0.076 to close at NT$33.327 with a turnover of US$1.025 billion.
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