Business and Finance

New exchange traded fund debuts on bourse

The China Post
Date: January 1, 2017
By: CNA

TAIPEI — The first Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) tracking futures market volatility started listing on the local main board on Friday, according to the Taiwan Stock Exchange (TWSE).

The ETF — the Fubon S&P 500 VIX Short-Term Futures ETF — issued by Fubon Asset Management Co. (富邦投信), uses the S&P 500 VIX Short-Term Futures Index Excess Return as its underlying index.

The S&P 500 VIX Short-Term Futures Index ER is compiled and maintained by S&P Dow Jones Indices. The TWSE said that the new ETF is expected to provide investors with a new option at a time of increased volatility in global financial markets in a bid to hedge risks.

The new ETF will closely track the performance of the S&P 500 VIX Short-Term Futures Index ER. The VIX index refers to the CBOE Volatility Index, widely considered the best gauge of uncertainty in the market. Liao Chung-wen (廖崇文), a director at Fubon Asset Management’s investment division, said that global financial markets have been moved by a series of global events, such as the referendum in the United Kingdom on whether to exit the European Union in June and the presidential election in the United States in November.    [FULL  STORY]

Formosa Petrochemical announces fuel price hike for next week

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2016/12/31
By: Chen Cheng-wei and Romulo Huang

Taipei, Dec. 31 (CNA) Formosa Petrochemical Corp. (台塑石化), a privately owned fuel supplier in

(CNA file photo)

Taiwan, said on Saturday that it will raise gasoline and diesel prices next week, mainly due to an uptrend in international crude oil prices.

The expectation that the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and non-OPEC nations will soon begin cutting production pushed up international crude oil prices over the past week, Formosa Petrochemical said in a statement.

The crude oil price hike has led Formosa Petrochemical to increase gasoline and diesel prices by NT$0.4 (US$0.012) per liter for next week, starting from 1 a.m. on Monday.

After the adjustment, fuel prices at Formosa Petrochemical gas stations islandwide will rise to NT$22.7 per liter for super diesel, NT$25.2 per liter for 92 octane unleaded, NT$26.7 per liter for 95 unleaded and NT$29 per liter for 98 unleaded.   [FULL  STORY]

TAIEX climbs on year-end trading day

CAUTIONARY:A tax reduction on day trading could be adverse to individual investors without a sizeable turnover in the local bourse, as institutional players dominate the market

Taipei Times
Date: Dec 31, 2016
By: Lauly Li / Staff reporter

The TAIEX yesterday climbed 100.41 points, or 1.1 percent, to close at 9,253.5 on the last trading day of the year, driven by the Executive Yuan’s plan to cut transaction taxes on day trading by half in a bid to boost stock market turnover, analysts said.

Taiwan Stock Exchange (TWSE) turnover stood at NT$56.44 billion (US$1.75 billion), increasing by 6.97 percent from the previous day’s NT$52.76 billion, as foreign investors, proprietary traders and mutual funds bought a net NT$6.44 billion worth of Taiwanese shares.

“We expect the overall turnover to increase next year with contribution from the anticipated expansion of day trading,” Taiwan Stock Exchange senior executive and vice president Chien Lih-chung (簡立忠) told a news conference.

Chien said the TWSE will initiate new measures next month, such as allowing individual investors to purchase a fixed volume of shares or exchange-traded funds (ETFs) on a fixed-term basis to lend support to the local bourse.    [FULL  STORY]

Hon Hai invests nearly US$9 bil. in China plant; US prospects less clear

The China Post
Date: January 1, 2017
By: AFP

BEIJING — Taiwan tech-giant Hon Hai (also known as Foxconn) plans to build an US$8.8 billion factory in China, state media said Saturday, amid reports its billionaire boss is cooling off on future U.S. investments.

Hon Hai, a major Apple supplier, will spend the vast sum on an industrial complex in the sprawling southern city of Guangzhou.

The factory will make large-screen liquid crystal displays (LCD), the firm said at an event in the Chinese city on Friday. It will be operational by 2019.

“We have in China a government that knows how to be efficient and supports new technology,” said Hon Hai President Terry Gou in an interview with China’s 21st Century Business.

“As to whether we’ll invest in the U.S. in the future I’ve no idea. As a matter of fact, the new administration isn’t in office and its new policies aren’t in place,” Gou added.    [FULL  STORY]

Manufacturing sector flashes second straight yellow-blue indicator

The China Post
Date: December 31, 2016
By: CNA

TAIPEI — The local manufacturing sector flashed a yellow-blue light in November for the second consecutive month, improving from a blue light recorded in September, on the back of a recovery in global demand, the Taiwan Institute of Economic Research (TIER) said Friday.

The TIER, one of the country’s leading economic think tanks, uses a five-color system to describe economic activity, with red indicating overheating, yellow-red showing fast growth, green representing stable growth, yellow-blue signaling sluggish growth and blue indicating contraction.

According to the TIER, the composite index of the local manufacturing sector for November stood at 11.80 points, up from 11.05 recorded in October. The think tank has also revised upward the index for October from a previous reading of 10.45 points.

An index ranging between 10.5 points and 13 points flashes a yellow-blue light, while a blue light points to an index below 10.5 points, the TIER said.    [FULL  STORY]

State-run enterprises to help advance New Southbound Policy

Taiwan Today
Date: December 30,2016

President Tsai Ing-wen said Dec. 28 that state-run companies will help spearhead efforts to expand

Taiyen Chairman Chen Chi-yu (right) and the president of Thai cosmetics and health foods company SaveMor International display a cooperation agreement Nov. 3 in southern Taiwan’s Tainan City. (Courtesy of Taiyen)

business ties with South and Southeast Asia under the New Southbound Policy, paving the way for Taiwan’s small and medium enterprises to capitalize on opportunities in the target regions.

Tsai made the comments during a weekly meeting of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party’s Central Executive Committee focused on the New Southbound Policy. The president also serves as DPP chairperson.

Minister without Portfolio Deng Chen-chung, who heads the Executive Yuan’s Office of Trade Negotiations, the agency responsible for coordinating the policy, attended the meeting to update committee members on the progress of the initiative.

Deng said that several state-run enterprises are already exploring cooperative arrangements with businesses in the regions. He cited as an example efforts by Taiyen Biotech Co., a majority government-owned former salt manufacturer headquartered in southern Taiwan’s Tainan City, to expand its operations in Southeast Asian countries including Indonesia and Thailand.    [FULL  STORY]

TIP launches electronics index

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2016/12/30
By: Tien Yu-pin and Frances Huang

Taipei, Dec. 30 (CNA) Taiwan Index Plus Corp. (TIP, 台灣指數公司), an index provider owned by the Taiwan Stock Exchange, has unveiled a new index featuring the country’s major high-tech stocks, in a bid to provide a new option to investors interested in the local electronics sector.

The newly launched TIP TAIEX+ IT Elite 30 Index (TIP ITE 30) comprises 30 electronics heavyweights and will serve as an indication of the strength of Taiwan’s high-tech industry, the TIP said.

Among the top 10 constituents of the TIP ITE 30 index in terms of market capitalization, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s largest contract chip maker, was at the top, followed by telecom services provider Chunghwa Telecom Co. (中華電), integrated circuit designer MediaTek Inc. (聯發科), power management solution provider Delta Electronics Inc. (台達電) and telecom operator Taiwan Mobile Co. (台灣大).

The other five stocks were smartphone camera lens maker Largan Precision Co. (大立光), telecom services provider Far EasTone Telecommunications Co. (遠傳), metal casing supplier Catcher Technology Co. (可成), IC packaging and testing firm Siliconware Precision Industries Co. (矽品) and Industrial computer maker Advantech Co. (研華), in that order.    [FULL  STORY]

TAIEX climbs on year-end trading day

CAUTIONARY:A tax reduction on day trading could be adverse to individual investors without a sizeable turnover in the local bourse, as institutional players dominate the market

Taipei Times
Date: Dec 31, 2016
By: Lauly Li / Staff reporter

The TAIEX yesterday climbed 100.41 points, or 1.1 percent, to close at 9,253.5 on the last trading day of the year, driven by the Executive Yuan’s plan to cut transaction taxes on day trading by half in a bid to boost stock market turnover, analysts said.

Taiwan Stock Exchange (TWSE) turnover stood at NT$56.44 billion (US$1.75 billion), increasing by 6.97 percent from the previous day’s NT$52.76 billion, as foreign investors, proprietary traders and mutual funds bought a net NT$6.44 billion worth of Taiwanese shares.

“We expect the overall turnover to increase next year with contribution from the anticipated expansion of day trading,” Taiwan Stock Exchange senior executive and vice president Chien Lih-chung (簡立忠) told a news conference.

Chien said the TWSE will initiate new measures next month, such as allowing individual investors to purchase a fixed volume of shares or exchange-traded funds (ETFs) on a fixed-term basis to lend support to the local bourse.    [FULL  STORY]

Brain drain a severe issue for Taiwan’s tech industry: NDC

Taiwan News
Date: 2016/12/29
By: Wendy Lee , Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – Taiwan is currently facing a serious problem of brain drain and especially in the tech industry, the National Development Council (NDC) said Thursday.

Around 500,000 to one million tech workers have gone to China to work, the NDC said, alongside other industries such as business management and technical personnel.

A poll conducted by 1111 Job Bank also showed that 25 percent of Taiwanese citizens working abroad have no intention of returning home, while 80 percent of Taiwanese have either had the experience of working overseas or have the intention to do so.

While Taiwan government has long been aware of the problem, policies and procedures in place to reverse the situation have been widely considered to be insufficient.    [FULL  STORY]

Costco to offer discounts not free breakfast at new shop opening

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2016/12/29
By: Chen Cheng-wei and Frances Huang

Taipei, Dec. 29 (CNA) Costco, an American membership-only wholesale club, said on Thursday that it plans to offer discounts to members at the opening of its new store in New Taipei’s Xinzhuang District instead of free breakfast and gifts as it did in the past.

This will be the first time Costco has not offered free breakfast and gifts at the opening of a new outlet in Taiwan. The decision is intended to prevent a traffic jam in the vicinity of the new Xinzhuang store when it opens on Jan. 7.

In April, the wholesale operator opened a store in the Taipei suburb of Beitou, the 12th outlet for Costco in Taiwan and the fourth in Taipei and New Taipei. Its offering of free breakfast and gifts attracted a great number of members who lined up before the store opened, causing serious traffic congestion , which prompted police to impose traffic controls.

Chao Chien-hua (趙建華), an executive at Costco Taiwan, said that the Xinzhuang store will provide exclusive incentives to members who shop there on the opening day, including up to 50 percent off selected products, such as U.K. made detergent, scallops from Hokkaido and food supplements.   [FULL  STORY]