Record Wall Street helps shares
Shares closed 1.19 percent higher yesterday, taking their lead in active trade from another record finish on Wall Street after upbeat US corporate earnings reports, dealers said.
Technology bellwether stocks largely regained momentum, but non-tech industrials and financials were a mixed bag due to select profit-taking after their recent strong performance, they said.
The TAIEX rose 112.59 points to 9,585.90, the high for the day, on turnover of NT$221.91 billion (US$6.79 billion). The index hit an intraday low of 9,487.95.
Risers led decliners 919 to 564, with 133 stocks unchanged.
Meanwhile, the New Taiwan dollar posted its strongest gain in almost two weeks as foreign investors increased purchases of stocks.
The NT dollar advanced by NT$0.035 to close at NT$32.790 on the Taipei Forex Inc. Turnover was US$1.260 billion, up from US$523 million the previous day.
Bionet misled customers
The Fair Trade Commission yesterday fined Bionet Corp (訊聯生物科技) NT$400,000 (US$12,200) for fraudulent advertising in line with the Fair Trade Act (公平交易法).
Bionet, known for its cord blood preservation business, has claimed on TV commercials and its Web site that the firm has the biggest market share and the largest customer base.
But the commission found that Bionet did not post the best performances compared with six other competitors in 2004 and 2005, nor did it secure the most customers during these two years.
Acer files suit against HP
Acer Inc said yesterday it filed a counterclaim of patent infringement against Hewlett-Packard Development Co (HP) before the Eastern District of Texas Court in the US.
The latest counterclaim is part of Acer's response to HP's patent infringement suit against the company filed at the same court earlier this year, Acer said in a statement to the Taiwan Stock Exchange.
Acer said HP infringed on its patents on dual-frequency antenna and DVD-ROM head technologies.
In late March, HP filed a lawsuit against Acer for violating five patents.
HP filed another suit against Acer in April at the International Trade Commission over infringement of four of the same patents.
At the time, Acer sued three of its contract manufacturing partners -- Quanta Computer Inc (廣達電腦), Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密) and Wistron Corp (緯創) -- in connection with the lawsuit.
Chinese interest rates to rise
China's central bank announced yesterday it would raise interest rates for the third time this year, a day after government data showed the economy expanded by a blistering 11.9 percent in the second quarter and 11.5 percent for the first six months of the year.
The benchmark lending and deposit rates will each rise by 0.27 percentage points from today, the People's Bank of China said.
The main lending rate is now 6.84 percent, while the deposit rate is 3.33 percent.
Chang Hwa calls for advice
Chang Hwa Commercial Bank (彰化銀行) will select an investment bank by tender to advise on a merger with Taishin Financial Holding Co (台新金控), which would create the nation's second-largest financial services firm by assets.
Bids should be submitted this month, Chang Hwa executive vice president James Shih (施建安) said yesterday.
Taishin Financial, which owns 22.5 percent of Chang Hwa, plans to acquire the remaining 77.5 percent through a share swap and thus turn Chang Hwa into a wholly owned unit this year. The government owns 15.6 percent of the firm.
INVESTOR RESILIENCE? An analyst said that despite near-term pressures, foreign investors tend to view NT dollar strength as a positive signal for valuation multiples Morgan Stanley has flagged a potential 10 percent revenue decline for Taiwan’s tech hardware sector this year, as a sharp appreciation of the New Taiwan dollar begins to dent the earnings power of major exporters. In what appears to be the first such warning from a major foreign brokerage, the US investment bank said the currency’s strength — fueled by foreign capital inflows and expectations of US interest rate cuts — is compressing profit margins for manufacturers with heavy exposure to US dollar-denominated revenues. The local currency has surged about 10 percent against the greenback over the past quarter and yesterday breached
MARKET FACTORS: Navitas Semiconductor Inc said that Powerchip is to take over from TSMC as its supplier of high-voltage gallium nitride chips Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) yesterday in a statement said that it would phase out its compound semiconductor gallium nitride (GaN) business over the next two years, citing market dynamics. The decision would not affect its financial targets announced previously, the world’s biggest contract chipmaker said. “We are working closely with our customers to ensure a smooth transition and remain committed to meeting their needs during this period,” it said. “Our focus continues to be on delivering sustained value to our partners and the market.” TSMC’s latest move came unexpectedly, as the chipmaker had said in its annual report that it has
Rick Cassidy, the chairman of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co's (TSMC, 台積電) US subsidiary, TSMC Arizona Corp, plans to retire, but the company has yet to name a successor. After Cassidy made his intention to retire known, TSMC Arizona held a special general meeting and approved a resolution that Cassidy would not continue as chairman and would not remain as a director, TSMC said in a statement filed with the Taiwan Stock Exchange last night. The meeting also approved a plan to appoint TSMC Arizona president Rose Castanares as a director, the company said, adding that Cassidy has been named as an advisor
SECURITY WARNING: The company possesses key 3-nanometer technology, and Taiwan should prevent it from being transferred to China, a lawmaker said The Ministry of Economic Affairs yesterday said it would conduct a “strict review” of any proposed acquisition of Taiwanese tech company Source Photonics Co (索爾思光電), following media reports that a Chinese firm was planning to buy the company in the Hsinchu Science Park (新竹科學園區). Local media reported that Suzhou Dongshan Precision Manufacturing Co (東山精密), China’s largest printed circuit board manufacturer, had announced plans to acquire Source Photonics for 5.9 billion yuan (US$823.1 million). The ministry said it has not received an application from Source Photonics and has formally notified the company that any buyout would constitute a change in its ownership structure. The
RSS