Taiwan Cellular Corp (台灣大哥大) and three other Taiwanese companies delayed plans to sell shares to domestic or overseas investors after slumps in their share prices and global stock markets.
Taiwan Cellular, the island's biggest mobile telephone company, which had planned to sell US$342 million of stock by March, has yet to offer the shares. Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密) the sixth-biggest company in Taiwan, planned to sell US$400 million of its shares by August.
``I don't think the markets are receptive to an offering this year,'' said William Newton, a Taiwan Cellular spokesman. ``The window for a sale is between now and November, and markets aren't expected to recover during that time.'' Taiwan Cellular shares have plunged 41 percent since Aug. 22, last year, when the company said it planned to sell shares to overseas investors. Hon Hai shares have fallen 34 percent since plans for an overseas share sale were announced May 25.
The technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index has slumped 11 percent, and Taiwan's key TWSE Index has fallen 13 percent since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the US.
Katherine D'Arcy, a spokeswoman for Salomon Smith Barney Inc, which is managing Taiwan Cellular's sale, declined to comment. Dorothy Lee, a spokeswoman for Goldman Sachs Group Inc, which is managing Hon Hai's sale, also declined to comment.
FarEasTone Telecommunications Co (遠傳電信), Taiwan's fourth-biggest mobile telephone company, said it postponed to December plans to sell as many as 10 million shares in an initial public offering.
Charlene Wang, manager of FarEasTone's investor relations department, said the company has until Dec. 11 to complete an offering to local investors.
Capital Securities Corp (群益證券) and National Securities Corp (建弘證券) are managing FarEasTone's share sale.
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