■ Stocks fall on profit-taking
Shares fell yesterday following declines on Wall Street and profit-taking after Tuesday's mini-rally. The TAIEX fell 38.01 points, or 0.6 percent, to 6,067.34, on turnover of NT$74.84 billion (US$2.27 billion).
"Investors were quick to pocket profits," said Andrew Teng (鄧安瀾), sales manager at Taiwan International Securities (金鼎證券). "Otherwise the gain wouldn't have just lasted for one day, given we are approaching the fourth-quarter peak season [for technology companies]," Teng said.
Other traders saw signs of caution in yesterday's drop.
"Investors are searching for stronger signals before they can be sure that the market is really on an upward path," said Alex Huang, assistant vice president at Barits International Securities (倍利證券).
He added the market will likely continue to drop before the release of leading indicators data, and revenue figures for this month from local companies.
■ Yang Ming, Wan Hai to partner
Yang Ming Marine Transport Corp (陽明海運) and Wan Hai Lines Ltd (萬海航運) plan next month to share cargo space on routes between China and the Middle East to better serve customers while reducing cost, the two companies announced yesterday.
Yang Ming is the nation's second largest container shipper while Wan Hai is the largest intra-Asia shipper. Their new partnership will begin from Oct. 3, the companies said.
■ Asustek foresees shipment rise
Asustek Computer Inc (華碩), the world's largest maker of computer motherboards, expects a sharp rise in shipments of its motherboards and laptop computers this year due to robust demand, a senior company official said yesterday.
This year, Asustek sees its shipments of motherboards rising to 52 million units, up from 42 million units last year, global marketing director Sunny Han (韓德行) said.
The company expects to ship 5 million motherboards this month, exceeding its monthly production capacity of 4 million units.
Shipments of laptop computers are also rising, likely to reach 4 million units this year from the 2.8 million units last year, Han said.
Asustek's own brand of notebook computers account for about 45 to 47 percent of total shipments, up from less than 40 percent last year, and the contract orders make up the rest.
■ TAITRA to open Thailand office
Officials announced plans yesterday to open a new trade center in Thailand to promote Taiwan's products and encourage more investment in the kingdom.
The Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA, 外貿協會) will open the new center in Thailand on Oct. 3, as a stepped-up effort to court the Thai market for Taiwanese goods, officials said.
■ Nan Ya Plastics to cut staff
Nan Ya Plastics Corp (南亞塑膠) plans to cut 3,000 employees, or about 20 percent of its workforce, in the next three years to streamline operations, a Chinese-language newspaper reported, citing executive vice president Wu Chia-chau (吳嘉昭).
Nan Ya Plastics has a workforce of about 15,000, the paper said. Taiwan's largest plastics maker said on May 24 that it plans to cut 1,000 employees this year as it closes some unprofitable operations.
■ NT falls against greenback
The New Taiwan dollar turned weak against its US counterpart yesterday, declining NT$0.04 to close at NT$33.088 on the Taipei foreign exchange market.
Turnover was US$751 million, up from US$748 million the previous day.
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