■ Shares close lower
Shares closed 1.04 percent lower yesterday after initial gains driven by Wall Street's modest overnight rise were eroded by concerns over weak oil prices and corporate earnings, dealers said.
The TAIEX closed down 79.97 points at 7,618.55, on turnover of NT$160.62 billion(US$4.9 billion).
Decliners outnumbered gainers 1,055 to 223, with 104 stocks unchanged.
Fears of further reports of possible losses by companies from their holdings in Rebar Asia Pacific Group (力霸亞太企業集團) unit Asia Pacific Broadband Telecom Co (亞太固網) also weighed on the market, dealers said.
■ TAITRA off to India
The quasi-official Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA, 外貿協會) is organizing a trade delegation to help local manufacturers tap India's market, a TAITRA official said yesterday.
According to the official, the delegation is scheduled to make a fact-finding visit to Mumbai and Chennai from May 9 to May 19 to explore trade opportunities.
While there, the delegation will hold consultations with local businesspeople, the official said, adding that local businesses dealing in information technology products, machinery, textiles as well as parts and accessories for automobiles were welcome to take part in the delegation.
In addition, the group might take advantage of the upcoming trade promotion tour to visit the emerging market of Sri Lanka, the official said.
■ Optoelectronics up 11%
The total production value of Taiwan's optoelectronics industry was NT$1.27 trillion (US$38.8 billion) last year, up 11 percent from 2006's NT$1.15 trillion, according to statistics released by the Photonics Industry and Technology Development Association (PIDA) yesterday.
The figure represented 13 percent of the global optoelectronics market last year.
The ratio is expected to increase 1 percent this year.
In the next few years, the optoelectronics industry growth rate is estimated to average 12 percent and the total output value could reach NT$1.84 trillion in 2009.
Of the total output value of US$39 billion last year, the display industry generated US$25.2 billion, or 64.6 percent, followed by the opto-storage industry (US$7.2 billion or 18.6 percent) and the opto-input devices (US$2.6 billion or 7 percent), according to PIDA.
The total production value of the top ten optoelectronics products reached around NT$1.2 trillion, around 95 percent of total industry output.
The No. 1 product line was thin-film transistor liquid-crystal displays.
■ Mega profit down
Mega Financial Holding Co (兆豐金控), the nation's second-largest financial company by market capitalization, posted a steep decline in profit last quarter.
Net income at the company fell to NT$4.05 billion (US$124 million) from NT$6.33 billion a year earlier, a company report said.
January-December profit was NT$18.4 billion at Mega, based on unaudited figures -- 18 percent less than the NT$22.5 billion posted a year earlier.
■ NT dollar loses ground
The New Taiwan dollar continued losing ground against its US counterpart yesterday, following a weak Japanese yen, finance analysts said.
The financial scandal affecting the Rebar Asia Pacific Group (力霸亞太企業集團) also weighed on the NT dollar, they added.
The local currency closed NT$0.015 lower at NT$32.774 against the greenback on the Taipei Forex Inc, on turnover of US$924 million.
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