Business and Finance

President declares savings of over NT$50 million

ICRT Radio News
Date: 2018-03-31

According to the latest “Clean Politics Report” published by the Control
Yuan, President Tsai Ing-wen reported total savings of just over NT$52
million as part of her assets.

According to the Control Yuan. Tsai has total savings of NT$52.18 million,
which is NT$2.9 million more than she reported in October 2016.

Under her name, Tsai has securities worth NT$4.13 million, a NT$1.1 million
investment in Dongdao Corp, and a lease to the company for land on which she
receives NT$90,000 per month, all of which showed no change from the report
from 2016.

Also unchanged from the previous report are four plots of land she owns —
two in Taipei’s Songshan District, one in Da’an District, and the other in
New Taipei’s Yonghe District — and one house each in Da’an District and
Yonghe District.

The Clean Politics report showed she has outstanding mortgages totaling
NT$8.93 million.    [SOURCE]

Ministry lists 10 ‘coolest’ tech firms in Taiwan

Of top 10 Taiwan tech industry leaders, half innovate with AI 

Taiwan News 
Date: 2018/04/01
By: Renée Salmonsen, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — On Saturday the Taiwan Ministry of Science and Technology

Top 10 “coolest” tech firms include web designers, health innovations, safety updates, and more. (By Wikimedia Commons)

published a list of the island’s most cutting-edge tech firms, “2017’s Top 10 coolest tech firms in Taiwan.”

Firms were selected by a 22-person committee. They had to pass three rounds of endorsements and were judged on having the “coolest” products, customer service, and operating methods, according to TechNews.

The Ministry’s Top 10 list included:

 

  • Appier
  • CloudMile Ltd.
  • Gogoro
  • Health2Sync
  • iStaging
  • JARVISH
  • Maisense Inc.
  • MoBagel Inc.
  • Umbo CV
  • Viscovery

Of the firms selected, five use AI, Appier, CloudMile, MoBagel, Umbo CV, Viscovery, two use IoT, Gogoro and JARVISH, and one employs AR/VR, iStaging.

Companies presented their products in June at the Taiwan Tech Arena (TTA) held in the Taiwan Arena.    [FULL  STORY]

New electricity rates to take effect April 1

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2018/03/31
By: Huang Ya-chuan and Ko Lin

Taipei, March 31 (CNA) Taiwan’s new electricity rates, which come with an average hike

CNA file photo

of 3 percent, will take effect beginning April 1, according to state-run utility Taiwan Power Co. (Taipower).

From Sunday, electricity rates will be raised by an average of NT$2.6253 (US$0.09) per kilowatt-hour (kWh), Taipower said.

Households that use less than 500 kWh and small businesses that use less than 1,500 kWh per month will not have their electricity rates increased, the company said.

This means the existing 10.55 million households that use less than 500 kWh per month or 740,000 small businesses that use less than 1,500 kWh per month will not be affected, it said.    [FULL  STORY]

Taiwan is ranked third-largest IC exporter: ministry

Taipei Times
Date:  Apr 01, 2018
By: Staff writer, with CNA

Taiwan was ranked as the third-largest integrated circuit exporter in the world in 2016, overtaking Singapore, the Ministry of Finance said on Friday.

In its latest report on global IC exports, the ministry said that Taiwan’s outbound semiconductor sales increased by an annual 10.6 percent in 2016 to US$86.12 billion.

The figure accounted for 13.6 percent of the global IC exports in 2016 and lifted Taiwan one notch higher in the world rankings to third place, displacing Singapore, the ministry said.

The increase in Taiwan’s IC exports reflected higher global demand for mobile devices, the Internet of Things, automotive electronics, high-performance computing and other applications, the ministry said.    [FULL  STORY]

Four Taiwanese women make Forbes 30 under 30 Asia

Radio Taiwan International
Date: 2018-03-29

Four Taiwanese women made it on the 2018 Forbes 30 under 30 Asia list. The list highlights a total of 300 movers and shakers under 30 years old in 10 categories.

Stephanie Tang was featured as the managing director of Rookie Fund, which invests in student entrepreneurs throughout Asia. The fund focuses on urban areas with less capital and provides students with training in venture investing. To date, it has raised over US$250,000.

Taiwanese-born John Yuyi was also named for her artistic work. She is known for her temporary tattoos which led to her collaboration with brands like Gucci.   [FULL  STORY]

Report: British Minister for Investment Graham Stuart to visit Taiwan next month

Taiwan News
Date: 2018/03/29
By: George Liao, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News)—British Minister for Investment Graham Stuart will visit Taiwan on

British Minister for Investment Graham Stuart (photo from the British Office Taipei website)

April 9 and 10, during which he will announce major Taiwanese investments in the UK and witness the signing of the MoU regarding cooperation of offshore wind turbines and marine engineering projects between the two countries, according to information released by the British Office Taipei,  a Chinese-language Liberty Times report said on Thursday.

Stuart will also visit President Tsai Ing-wen and meet with British company representatives in Taiwan as well as Taiwanese industry leaders, the report said.

The report also said that Stuart will hold a press conference at Yeshealth iFarm (源鮮智), a farm in Taoyuan City dedicated to the development of sustainable agriculture technology, during his visit to Taiwan. Media reports have said that the UK used to rely on vegetable imports from EU countries because the climate in the UK is not congenial for growing vegetables. After its exit from the EU, the UK will have to find solutions for its vegetable supply, and therefore it is expected that the UK will work with Yeshealth iFarm to build a farm of new agriculture technology in York, according to the Liberty Times report.    [SOURCE]

Taiwan shares close down 0.18%

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2018/03/29
By: Evelyn Kao

Taipei, March 29 (CNA) Taiwan shares closed down 19.74 points or 0.18 percent at 10,845.92 Thursday on turnover of NT$116.374 billion (US$3.99 billion).
[FULL  STORY]

Taipei mulls renewing Jakarta deal

COOPERATION: The agreement was designed to protect investment in each other’s territory. Taiwanese firms last year invested US$397 million in Indonesia, up 166% from 2016

Taipei Times
Date: Mar 30, 2018
By: Kuo Chia-erh  /  Staff reporter, in JAKARTA

The government is assessing the feasibility of renewing an economic cooperation agreement with Indonesia to foster bilateral trade and investment, as part of efforts to push the New Southbound Policy, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said yesterday.

A feasibility assessment, which began at the end of last year, is expected to be completed later this year, Vice Minister of Economic Affairs Wang Mei-hua (王美花) said before the opening ceremony of the Taiwan Expo in Jakarta.

“An assessment was finished in 2012, but things have changed [over the past few years]. We have to take into account the present situation,” Wang told reporters.

The government plans to renew a bilateral investment agreement with Indonesia aimed at protecting investment in each other’s territory.    [FULL  STORY]

Yuanta Adjusts GDP Forecast to 2.4%

ICRT Radio News
Date: 2018-03-28

One of Taiwan’s leading economic think tanks has raised this year’s predicted
GDP growth to 2.4 percent.

This is a 0.2 percent increase from the Yuanta-Polaris Research Institute’s
last prediction of 2.2, but looking at the trend across each quarter, the
numbers aren’t quite as rosy.

The institute is predicting a downward slope of growth through 2018, with the
first quarter growing at 2.89 percent, the second at 2.87, then 2.07 percent
in the third, and finally 1.86 percent growth for the fourth quarter of the
year.    [FULL  STORY]

Circular economy should link up with smart cities, ex-WTO chief tells Taiwan

Faster trade possible thanks to circular economy

Taiwan News 
Date: 2018/03/28
By: Matthew Strong, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – The circular economy should link up with the currently popular

Former WTO Director-General Pascal Lamy. (By Associated Press)

concept of smart cities, former World Trade Organization (WTO) Director-General Pascal Lamy said in Taipei Wednesday.

The Frenchman was addressing the 33rd Pacific Economic Community Seminar, devoted to “Smart Cities and Trade,” the Liberty Times reported.

The event discussed how to combine several fashionable concepts to promote faster trade and a sustainable economy.

Putting the circular economy into practice would be a key element in fostering global economic growth for the future, Lamy told the meeting. A consensus needed to be reached by local and central governments and across borders to amend laws in order to achieve structural change, he said.    [FULL  STORY]