TAIEX rises 0.03 percent
The TAIEX closed up 0.03 percent yesterday because of a lack of market momentum despite easing oil prices, dealers said.
The TAIEX closed 2.27 points higher, ending at 8,750.02, after moving between 8,730.74 and 8,824.41, on turnover of NT$119.225 billion (US$4.066 billion).
Falls in oil prices prompted a rebound in traditional shares, with shipping shares ending 1.6 percent higher.
Meanwhile, flat-panel shares opened higher, but dropped during trade to finish lower, one day after the central government eased restrictions to allow manufacturers in the industry to build or invest in factories in China.
The financial sector posted the biggest gains of the day, ending up 0.7 percent. A total of 2,243 stocks closed up, 2,057 were down and 556 remained unchanged.
Developer buys in Taichung
Prince Housing & Development Corp (太子建設) bought 2,103m2 of land in Greater Taichung for NT$544 million to develop into residential property, the property developer said in a statement to Taiwan Stock Exchange yesterday.
Meanwhile, Farglory Land Development Co (遠雄建設) plans to invest US$49.5 million to set up a company, Nanjing Development Ltd, to develop real estate in China, the Taipei-based company said in a exchange statement.
Energy demand quickens
Energy demand rose at the fastest pace in 10 months as electricity use by factories increased amid the economic recovery.
Combined consumption of coal, petroleum, gas, thermal energy and electricity climbed 6.1 percent in January from a year earlier to the equivalent of 10.3 million kiloliters of oil, or about 2.09 million barrels a day, according to an e-mailed report from the Bureau of Energy yesterday. The increase was the most since the 16 percent gain in March last year.
Power consumption rose 5.7 percent to 18.6 billion kilowatt-hours in January, while consumption of petroleum products declined 0.21 percent to the equivalent of 4.49 million kiloliters of oil in January, according to the bureau. Coal imports gained 2.5 percent to 5.03 million tonnes, while imports of liquefied natural gas increased 22 percent to 1.11 billion cubic meters, it said.
Asustek shows sales drop
Asustek Computer Inc (華碩電腦), the world’s No. 6 PC brand, posted a decline of 30.3 percent in sales last month from a year ago to NT$14.2 billion because of fewer working days.
Last month’s figure was also a decline of 28 percent from NT$19.9 billion a month earlier, according to a company statement.
Accumulated sales for the first two months dropped 21 percent year-on-year to NT$34.1 billion, the statement said.
Nan Kang Tire buys back stock
Nan Kang Rubber Tire Co (南港輪胎) plans to buy back 5 million common shares, or 0.74 percent of its outstanding stock, at between NT$42 and NT$50 each from today to May 8, the company said in a statement to the stock exchange yesterday.
Shares repurchased from the open market would be transferred to employees, the Taipei-based company said.
Chung Loong ups investment
The board of Chung Loong Paper Holdings Ltd (Cayman) decided to raise investment in China by $15 million, parent Cheng Loong Corp (正隆) said in a statement to the stock exchange yesterday.
NT rises against greenback
The New Taiwan dollar rose against the US dollar yesterday, up NT$0.042 to close at NT$29.395.
Turnover totaled US$729 million during the trading session.
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