Profit-taking hits TAIEX
The TAIEX closed down 0.80 percent yesterday on profit-taking ahead of strong technical resistance at about the 8,400-point mark, dealers said.
The index fell 66.96 points to 8,287.09, after moving between 8,278.72 and 8,348.39, on turnover of NT$106.59 billion (US$3.47 billion).
The market opened down 5.66 points and moved upward to reach and intraday high, before investors pocketed their recent strong gains until the end of the trading session, dealers said.
A total of 2,731 stocks closed down, while 1,125 were up and 280 remaining unchanged.
Steel maker buys Solarion stake
Walsin Lihwa Corp (華新麗華), a copper cable and specialty steel maker, said on Thursday that it had signed an agreement to acquire a 49 percent stake in German solar cell firm Solarion AG.
Apart from the acquisition of the stake, Walsin Lihwa will also gain access to Solarion’s patents in copper-indium-gallium-diselenide (CIGS) thin-film solar cell production technology through licensing, the agreement states.
Based on the patent licensing, Walsin Lihwa will be able to independently produce and market CIGS-based solar energy products.
The total consideration of the transactions was 60 million euros (NT$2.55 billion), while Walsin Lihwa is expected to receive 20 million euros in subsidies from the Leipzig City Government, the city where Solarion is located, under an incentive program to solicit foreign investment.
ProMOS posts nine-month loss
ProMOS Technologies Inc (茂德科技) reported a nine-month loss of NT$7.91 billion, or NT$3.11 per share, compared with a loss of NT$18 billion, or NT$7.06 per share, a year earlier, the chipmaker said in a statement to the Taiwan Stock Exchange yesterday.
Cathay swings back to profit
Cathay Financial Holding Co (國泰金控) yesterday reported a net profit of about NT$5 billion in the third quarter of this year, reversing a loss of NT$1 billion in the first half, the company said in a filing to the Taiwan Stock Exchange.
Earnings per share were NT$0.49 last quarter, after the company posted a net loss of NT$0.1 per share in the first six months. Total consolidated assets were NT$4.6 trillion in the first three quarters, the statement said.
The company said in August that it expected to swing back into profit in the second half by boosting investments overseas, especially in China, and retiring low-margin products after sinking into red in the first half of the year.
FSC fines Union Insurance
The Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) on Thursday imposed a fine of NT$300,000 on Union Insurance Co (旺旺友聯產保) for failing to notify the commission of a boardroom reshuffle.
The company violated information disclosure rules that requires all insurers to file reports within two days of replacing an independent board member, the commission said in a statement.
NT dollar continues climb
The value of the New Taiwan dollar increased for a second straight month as global funds purchased more local stocks to benefit from the nation’s economic growth.
The NT dollar gained this week on optimism the US Federal Reserve would step up asset purchases to support economic growth, driving funds into higher-yielding emerging-market assets.
The NT dollar rose 1.9 percent this month to NT$30.782 against its US counterpart, Taipei Forex Inc data showed.
The currency, which gained 0.1 percent yesterday and 0.4 percent this week, has appreciated 4.4 percent this year.
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