Shares close flat
Shares closed flat yesterday as profit-taking eroded early gains driven by an overnight rally on Wall Street, dealers said.
Investors opted to wait for more convincing leads to push stocks higher despite expectations of government support in the run-up to next year's legislative and presidential elections, they said.
The TAIEX closed up 7.42 points or 0.08 percent at 9,300.22. Turnover was NT$155.09 billion (US$4.79 billion).
Decliners led risers 1,208 to 847, with 312 stocks unchanged.
"A generally still intact upward trend was marred by investor reluctance to push prices too hastily and drastically," Taiwan Life Asset Management (台灣人壽資產管裡) assistant vice president Michael Hsu said.
The market may need more time to consolidate before trying to fully recoup losses after dropping more than 300 points from a high of nearly 9,600 points on the index last Friday, he said.
Taiwan ranks 21st in logistics
The nation ranks 21st in the world in terms of logistics, according to a report released on Monday by the World Bank Group.
Among Asia's four little dragons, Taiwan's ranking lags behind Singapore's first-place showing and Hong Kong's eighth but is ahead of South Korea's 25th.
The G7 countries were all top performers, with Germany ranking third, Japan sixth, the Britain ninth, Canada 10th, the US 14th, France 18th and Italy 22nd.
Of the seven categories in the logistics index, Taiwan ranked 25th in terms of the efficiency and effectiveness of its customs clearance process.
The nation ranked 21st in terms of IT infrastructure, 16th in terms of ease and affordability of arranging shipments, 23rd in terms of competence in the local logistics industry, 24th in ability to track and trace shipments, 43rd in domestic logistics costs and 15th in timeliness of shipments in reaching their destinations.
Defects annoy Web shoppers
Defective products are the most common problem encountered by shoppers who make purchases online, a survey found.
The survey, released yesterday by the Net Consumers Association and the Consumers Foundation, said that online shoppers also complained that they were not allowed to return purchases, that descriptions of products were misleading or incorrect, or that they were victims of online fraud, in that order.
The Net Consumers Association noted that it had received more than 1,000 complaints this year.
Although transactions for software downloads and books are quick, both buyers and sellers complained that the seven-day trial period under the Consumers Protection Law (消費者保護法) was too long, which could induce more disputes.
Metal plant opens in Kaohsiung
The US-based World Resources Co, which specializes in metal recycling, has opened a branch at the Kanshan Benchou Industrial Park in Kaohsiung County, a Ministry of Economic Affairs official said yesterday.
The ministry said that the company procures selected recyclable and metal-bearing industrial residue as raw material in the production of metal concentrates that are sold to metal producers internationally.
The Taiwan branch will procure metal-bearing industrial sludge from local electronic plants, electroplating plants and waste water plants, and make ingots for use by metal producers in the US.
The officials said metal recycling has become an important alternative to mining for ever-scarcer mineral resources.
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