■ Chip industry to grow 40%
Taiwan's chip industry is expected to grow by almost 40 percent to NT$1.14 trillion this year from a year earlier after inventory problem eases on seasonal demand in the fourth quarter, a government-funded researcher said in the latest report released yesterday. In the June-September period, chip makers made NT$296.9 billion, a 30-percent expansion from a year ago, said the Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI,工研院). ITRI did not provide comparative figure. But, makers of driving chips used in flat panels suffered about 10-percent decline in the third quarter, from the previous quarter, as sales shrank on price decline in flat panels, the researcher said. Sales in the fourth quarter will continue to grow mostly driven by seasonal demand and improved inventory, the institute said.
■ Limited inflation forecasted
Consumer prices are expected to rise less than 2 percent this year because the impact of high oil prices should be limited, said Crystal Shih (施燕), director-general of the central bank's Econo-mic Research Department. Oil product prices in Taiwan usually don't rise as much as those of crude oil, Shih said. The typhoon that hit on Monday had only limited effect on consumer prices, which are still "stable," she added. The wholesale price index rose 11.4 percent last month from a year earlier. The consumer price index increased a much smaller 2.8 percent from a year earlier, partly because of competition in the retail market.
■ Insurers to be warned on risk
The Financial Supervisory Com-mission is planning to ask insurance companies by the end of this year to stop selling high-risk insurance products that might hurt their payment capability. Insurance products, including partial investment-linked products, interest rate-floating annuity and long-term health insurance, might cause losses for insurance companies in the long term, Frank Ling (凌氤寶), a top policymaker of the commission, told an insurance seminar in Taipei on Tuesday. Government-sponsored insurance agencies will hold a seminar next month to discuss the issues, Ling said.
■ Chang Hwa's Q3 profit falls 51%
Chang Hwa Commercial Bank (彰化銀行), the nation's sixth-largest bank by assets, posted a 51 percent drop in third quarter profit. Net income fell to NT$347 million (US$10.3 million) from the NT$704 million posted for the third quarter of last year. This year's third-quarter figure was derived by subtracting first-half profit from profit of NT$884 million for January through last month, which was released by the company in a statement.
■ AU Optronics hires Citigroup
AU Optronics Corp (友達光電) hired Citigroup Inc to arrange a US$150 million loan that it will use to expand in China, people involved in the transaction said. Bayerische Landesbank and Calyon agreed to join the loan and other lenders have until the next week to participate, said the people involved, who declined to be named. The Hsinchu-based company is borrowing to boost production at its plant in Suzhou, the people said. AU Optronics this year started increasing output of larger glass panels from which more screens can be cut, helping pare production costs.
■ NT dollar gains ground
The New Taiwan dollar traded higher against its US counterpart yesterday, rising NT$0.078 to close at NT$33.615 on the Taipei foreign exchange market. Turnover was US$708 million.
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