TAIEX goes into consolidation
The stock market consolidated yesterday after rallying a day earlier, with the TAIEX encountering technical resistance at 7,300 points, dealers said.
Buying rotated to the old economy sector, such as food and financials, to offset selling in select large-cap electronics stocks, which have been hampered by lingering global demand concerns, they said.
The weighted index closed up 9.13 points, or 0.13 percent, at 7,295.46 on turnover of NT$68.24 billion (US$2.27 billion).
Per-capita debt unchanged
The average debt burden for each Taiwanese stood at NT$216,000 as of July 31, the same as the June figure, according to the latest National Debt Clock data.
As of the end of last month, the central government carried a long-term — more than one year — debt of NT$4.8745 trillion and a short-term debt of NT$150 billion. The per-capita national debt was NT$216,000, the National Treasury Agency said yesterday.
Bonds fetch record-low yields
Government bonds rallied after the Ministry of Finance sold 20-year debt at a record-low yield, reflecting demand from banks for the higher returns offered by longer-dated securities.
The ministry sold NT$30 billion of the securities at 1.597 percent.
The yield on the 1.5 percent securities maturing August 2032 dropped 1 basis point to 1.599 percent, according to GRETAI Securities Market.
Acer down on Microsoft tablet
Computer vendor Acer Inc (宏碁) yesterday said that Microsoft Corp’s decision to launch its own tablet in October would have a negative impact on its Windows ecosystem.
“Of course, we discussed the situation internally after Microsoft unveiled its ‘Surface’ tablet, and we think the impact will be negative because Microsoft cannot clearly define what its strategy is,” Acer spokesman Henry Wang (汪島雄) said.
The Financial Times reported yesterday that Acer chairman Wang Jeng-tang (王振堂) had asked the software giant to “think twice” because other PC brands might react negatively to the idea.
China Steel profit plummets
China Steel Corp (中鋼) said yesterday its pretax profit fell sharply last month from June, when it recorded large returns from its non-core business investments.
Last month, China Steel posted NT$705 million in (US$23.5 million) in pretax profit, down 38.33 percent from June and 65.91 percent lower from a year earlier.
The steelmaker registered NT$18.11 billion in sales, up 3.39 percent from June, but down 12.41 percent year-on-year.
In the first seven months of this year, China Steel posted NT$2.63 billion in pretax profit, or NT$0.17 per share, on sales of NT$128.79 billion.
Catcher sales decline 6.8%
Metal casing manufacturer Catcher Technology Co (可成科技) said on Monday that revenues declined last month because of weak handset casing shipment and delayed notebook casing demand.
Catcher said consolidated revenue was NT$3.1 billion last month, down 7.08 percent from NT$3.33 billion in June and 6.81 percent from NT$3.32 billion a year earlier.
In the first seven months of the year, accumulated revenue totaled NT$21.4 billion, up 10.77 percent from NT$19.32 billion the year before.
NT dollar edges up
The New Taiwan dollar gained ground yesterday against the US dollar, adding NT$0.005 to close at NT$29.955 on turnover of US$649 million.
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