Business and Finance

Highwealth to target first-time home buyers

SHIFTING FOCUS:Highwealth chairman Cheng Chih-lung said the firm is to follow its peers and expand into the retail and hospitality sectors to guarantee stable fixed income

Taipei Times
Date: Jun 15, 2016
By: Crystal Hsu / Staff reporter

Highwealth Construction Corp (興富發) is to continue to target first-time and salaried home buyers and roll out small and relatively affordable housing projects across the nation.

The Taipei-based developer, which outperformed peers in terms of revenue last year, voiced confidence that real demand might underpin the market, which might fare better in the second half, if the central bank cuts interest rates again later this year.

“Gone is the era of rapid growth for the housing market,” Highwealth chairman Cheng Chih-lung (鄭志隆) told reporters on the sidelines of a shareholders’ meeting on Monday when plans were approved to issue a cash payout of NT$6 per share from net income of NT$8.12 billion (US$250.44 million), or earnings per share of NT$7.06, last year.

The earnings result represented an annual decline of 7.7 percent from 2014, in line with a tepid market.     [FULL  STORY]

Ex-ministers questioned in CTBC case

Taiwan News
Date: 2016-06-14
By: Matthew Strong, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – Former Interior Minister Liao Liou-yi and former Financial Supervisory Commission Vice Minister Lee Jih-chu were questioned by prosecutors about new accusations of questionable financial practices involving CTBC Financial Holding Co., Ltd., reports said Tuesday.

Last week, a massive series of raids and interrogations led by the Supreme Prosecutors Office Special Investigation Division (SID) uncovered allegations that US$300 million (NT$9.6 billion) in CTBC funds was diverted to private accounts, that a land deal in Taipei City’s Neihu District caused irregular losses for CTBC’s commercial bank, and that questionable transactions and possibly insider trading took place in the takeover of Taiwan Life Insurance Co., Ltd. by a CTBC affiliate.

However, Tuesday’s interviews focused on yet another aspect, last year’s NT$1.5 billion purchase by CTBC of a part of a building from the Gobo Group, reports said. The only suspect to be kept in detention last week was Gobo Chairman Chu Kuo-rung on suspicion of insider trading with Taiwan Life shares.

Prosecutors wanted to know whether the purchase by CTBC had not illegally benefited the Gobo Group, reports said.     [FULL  STORY]

Agricultural losses from heavy rain estimated at over NT$11 million

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2016/06/14
By: Chen Cheng-wei and Romulo Huang

Taipei, June 14 (CNA) Estimated agricultural losses resulting from the heavy rain that has hit Taiwan 201606140024t0001since the beginning of this month had reached NT$11.88 million (US$366,395) as of Tuesday, the Council of Agriculture (COA) reported that day.

A total of 1,668 hectares of crops were affected by the heavy rain, the COA said.

Rice was one of the worst-hit crops, with a total of 1,444 hectares affected and losses estimated at NT$9.32 million. This was followed by sweetcorn, watermelon and tomato crops.

In terms of the areas that bore the brunt of the rain, Yunlin in central Taiwan sustained the most severe damage, with agricultural losses of NT$6.05 million. This was followed by losses to the value of NT$3.06 million in Tainan and NT$2.57 million in Chiayi County, according to COA statistics.      [FULL  STORY]

Inotera tech drives Micron bid: researcher

‘IMPORTANT INFORMATION’:Taiwan Stock Exchange Corp fined Inotera Memories NT$300,000 for the belated disclosure of Micron’s delayed closing of the acquisition

Taipei Times
Date: Jun 15, 2016
By: Lisa Wang / Staff reporter

Inotera Memories Inc’s (華亞科技) fast migration to advanced 20-nanometer (nm) DRAM technology is the driving force behind Micron Technology Inc’s plan to continue its buyout of the memorychip maker, TrendForce Corp (集邦科技) said.

The Taipei-based researcher said the NT$130 billion (US$4.01 billion) acquisition would create a win-win situation for Micron and Nanya Technology Corp (南亞科技), which agreed to sell a 24 percent stake in Inotera to the US memorychip maker.

The deal is crucial for Nanya, as the share sale would give it access to next-generation technologies from Micron, extending their partnership on 20nm technology, TrendForce said in a report released on Monday after Inotera told a media briefing that Micron is to acquire the remaining 67 percent stake from Nanya and other members of Formosa Plastics Group (台塑集團).

Micron is the world’s second-largest DRAM supplier, with an 18.5 percent global market share by revenue last quarter, behind South Korea’s Samsung Electronics Co’s 46.4 percent and SK Hynix Inc’s 27.1 percent, according to TrendForce data.     [FULL STORY]

WSE trading on Monday

Taiwan News
Date: 2016-06-13
By: Central News Agency

The weighted index on the Taiwan Stock Exchange opened at 8,634.24 points today. After moving between 8,520.21 and 8,634.24, the index closed at 8,536.22 points, down 179.26. Turnover totaled NT$80.20 billion.

The weighted index, excluding the financial sector, closed at 7,258.54 points, down 153.42. A total of 1,407 stocks closed up, and 3,669 ended down with 167 unchanged.

The top 10 stocks in terms of trading volume were 2891, 00632R, 00637L, 2885, 00633L, 2330, 2317, 2303, 2353 and 3481.

The top 10 stocks in terms of trading value were 2330, 2317, 2498, 2891, 2454, 3008, 00632R, 00633L, 1476 and 1216.

The top 10 stocks in terms of market capitalization were 2330, 2317, 2412, 6505, 1301, 1303, 1326, 2882, 2881 and 3008.     [FULL  STORY]

NDC expects Taiwan economy to improve in H2

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2016/06/13
By: Chen Cheng-wei and Frances Huang

Taipei, June 13 (CNA) The head of Taiwan’s top planning agency, the National Development Council

CNA file photo

CNA file photo

(NDC), expects Taiwan’s economy to improve in the second half of the year, citing economic data that points to a recovery. At a hearing of the Economics Committee of the Legislative Yuan, NDC chief Chen Tain-jy (陳添枝) said that while the global economy remained sluggish, Taiwan has showed signs of recovering.

Among the positive signs cited by Chen was the local purchasing managers’ index (PMI) remaining in expansion mode in May, when it rose for the third consecutive month to 54.9, up 0.3 points from a month earlier.

Index readings above 50 indicate an expansion in manufacturing, while a figure of below 50 signals contraction.

While Taiwan’s exports fell year-on-year in May for the 16th consecutive month, Chen said machinery imports continued to increase, an indication that manufacturers continue to invest for growth.     [FULL  STORY]

Asus gloomy on revenue

Taipei Times
Date: Jun 14, 2016
By: Lauly Li / Staff reporter

Asustek Computer Inc (華碩) yesterday cut its revenue forecast for this quarter by 5 percent due to weaker-than-expected notebook sales and lower average selling prices of its smartphones because of product-cycle dissipation.

The PC vendor expects to post from NT$90 billion to NT$95 billion (US$2.77 billion to US$29.29 billion) in revenue this quarter, a fall from its previous estimate of NT$95 billion to NT$100 billion, according to a company statement submitted to the Taiwan Stock Exchange yesterday.

Operating margin this quarter would be from 4 percent to 4.5 percent, a similar range to the previous quarter’s 4.3 percent, Asustek said.

“The reason we trimmed the quarterly revenue outlook is mainly due to softer-than-expected notebook demand in China and southeast Asian countries,” Asustek spokesman Nick Wu (吳長榮) said by telephone.

The remarks came with Asustek’s release of its monthly brand consolidated revenue results, which it said dropped 6 percent year-on-year to NT$28.7 billion last month.     [FULL  STORY]

Taiwan shares plunge on global market volatility

The hina Post
Date: June 14, 2016
By: CNA

TAIPEI–Shares in Taiwan took a beating to close below the 8,600-point mark Monday, reflecting p05cvolatility in global financial markets caused by fears that the United Kingdom will vote to exit the European Union later this month, dealers said.

Selling appeared across the board, with large-cap stocks, such as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC, 台積電), leading the downturn, dealers said.

The weighted index on the Taiwan Stock Exchange closed down 179.26 points, or 2.06 percent, at 8,536.22, after moving between 8,520.21 and 8,634.24, on turnover of NT$80.20 billion (US$2.48 billion).

Steep Falls in European Markets

The market opened down 0.93 percent in reaction to steep falls in European markets at the end of last week after a poll in the British online newspaper, the Independent, showed 55 percent of respondents saying they would vote for the UK to exit the EU.     [FULL  STORY]

Taiwan, China carriers launch sales amid falling cross-strait travel

Taiwan News
Date: 2016-06-12
By: Central News Agency

As tourism between Taiwan and China continues to shrink, Taiwanese airlines are turning their attention to Northeast Asia, offering 30 percent reductions compared with last summer.

Summer visitors to Tokyo can obtain round trip airfares of NT$4,988 (US$154) to NT$8,282 from Taiwan this year, compared with the summer specials of NT$15,000 to NT$18,000 last year.

Civil Aeronautics Administration statistics show a 30 percent increase in the number of flights from Taiwan to Northeast Asia so far this summer, compared with the same period last year, and a 40 percent increase to Japan alone.

Taiwan’s flagship carrier China Airlines (CAL) has increased its weekly flights between Taipei and Seoul in South Korea from 70 last summer to 106 this summer.     [FULL  STORY]

NDC to set up new site for recruitment of foreign talent

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2016/06/12
By: Chen Cheng-wei and Kay Liu

Taipei, June 12 (CNA) A new government portal site will be launched in late June to recruit foreign 201606120011t0001talent, the National Development Council (NDC) said Sunday.

The site, called “Contact Taiwan,” will integrate recruitment services that are currently handled separately by several government ministries, including the Ministry of Economic Affairs and the Ministry of Education, the NDC said.

The site, which will be launched June 28, is also part of an initiative to combine the talent databases currently operated by various ministries and Taiwan’s overseas offices, the NDC said.

The NDC said it also plans to streamline the processing of documents for the employment of white-collar foreign workers in Taiwan.     [FULL  STORY]