Reuters
Date June 1, 2016
By: Roger Tung

Apple Inc for the first time is planning to issue bonds in Taiwan, home to its supply chain, with the goal of raising $1 billion in funds, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters Wednesday.

The U.S. dollar bonds will have a tenor of 30 years, according to the sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Apple declined to comment when asked about the plan.

Liquidity in the Taiwanese bond market is flush, with long-term buyers of debt, primarily life insurance firms, seeking creditworthy names and chasing higher yields.

Market participants have been looking at initial yields of around 4.2 percent to 4.3 percent on the planned Apple bonds, two of the sources said.     [FULL  STORY]

Taiwan News
Date: 2016-05-31
By: Tien Yu-pin and Frances Huang, Central News Agency

Taipei, May 31 (CNA) The Taiwan Stock Exchange (TWSE) is planning to hold a seminar on the local agri-biotech industry in early June, in a bid to allow investors to gain a better understanding of potential investment opportunities in the sector.

The TWSE, which operates the local main board, said that it will team up with the Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research (CIER), one of Taiwan’s leading think tanks, to hold the seminar June 3.

CIER Vice President Wang Jiann-chyuan will preside over the seminar, which will take place in the TWSE office in the Taipei 101 tower. Several experts in the area have been invited to discuss the development of the local agri-biotech industry.

The speakers in the seminar will include government-sponsored Agricultural Technology Research Institute Vice President Lin Chun-hung, Reber Genetics Co. Chairman Chang Hsiu-Kang, Merit Biotech Inc. President Chang Chueh-chien and Lo Chang-keng of Rotam Global AgroSciences Ltd., the TWSE said     [FULL  STORY]

SELLING NOSTALGIA:The company is converting an old post office in Taipei’s Nangang District into a hotel and is looking for properties in Taichung and Tainan

Taipei Times
Date: Jun 01, 2016
By: Crystal Hsu / Staff reporter

Image Taiwan Hotel Group (印象台灣飯店集團), a young entrant to the local hospitality market, aims to turn historical buildings into themed hotel rooms in different parts of the nation to differentiate itself from its competitors and grow revenue.

The three-year-old company, which operates the Taipei City Hotel (台北城大飯店), is converting a post office in Taipei’s Nangang District (南港) into a hotel which could open for business later this year.

“The move is in line with our continued attempts to take advantage of a global trend of turning landmark buildings into themed hotels,” Image Taiwan chairman Mike Lin (林原廣) said.

While most local hoteliers are emulating their European and US peers, Image Taiwan is seeking to promote nostalgia for Taiwanese culture, Lin said.     [FULL  STORY]

Taiwan News
Date: 2016-05-30
By: Jalen Cheung and Elizabeth Hsu, Central News Agency

Taipei, May 30 (CNA) Computex Taipei 2016 has attracted 1,602 exhibitors from 30 countries, the highest in terms of the number of nations in the annual information communication technology (ICT) show in the last five years, according to the organizers.

The volume of participating countries represents a growth of 36 percent from the previous year, the organizers — the Taiwan External Trade Development Council and the Taipei Computer Association — said Monday.

Among the exhibitors, 23 percent of them are taking part in the show for the first time, the organizers added, saying the large number of exhibitors indicates a recognition of the event’s recent transition.

Computex 2016 — the largest ICT show in Asia — will cover four aspects of the show’s main theme “Building Partnerships in Internet Computing Ecosystems”: technology applications of the Internet of Things (IoT), innovation and startups, business solutions, and gaming.     [FULL  STORY]

THIN TURNOVER:A sharp drop in retail investor activity because of poor prospects of return has slowed investment momentum, putting smaller brokers at risk, Fitch said

Taipei Times
Date: May 31, 2016
By: Crystal Hsu / Staff reporter

The local stock markets’ lackluster turnover is putting pressure on the profitability of local securities houses, and smaller brokers might exit the market as poor investment prospects might further dampen the appetite of retail investors, Fitch Ratings Inc said.

“Taiwanese securities firms are facing challenges to stay viable as retail investors increasingly avoid the domestic stock market,” the international ratings agency said in a recent report.

Growing competition from online brokers could accelerate the demise of unprofitable brokers, the report said. Retail investors make up more than 90 percent of Taiwanese securities firms’ customers, while institutional investors are mainly served by foreign brokers operating locally, Fitch said.

From 2011 to last year, average daily turnover on the local bourses was NT$111 billion (US$3.4 billion), down 20 percent from five years earlier, Fitch said.     [FULL  STORY]

Taipei Times
Date: May 30, 2016
By: Staff writer with CNA

Several brokerages have a “buy” rating on Advanced Semiconductor Engineering Inc (ASE, 日月光半導體) shares after the world’s largest IC packaging and testing firm reached a deal to form a holding company with a smaller rival.

The brokerages are upbeat about ASE’s bottom line, as the deal is necessary for the local IC industry to consolidate in a bid to boost Taiwan’s competitive edge in a global market where competition has been on the rise.

On Thursday, ASE announced that it has reached an agreement to set up a holding company with Siliconware Precision Industries Co (SPIL, 矽品精密), the world’s third-largest IC packaging and testing firm.

Under the terms of the deal, each ASE common share will be swapped for 0.5 of a share in the new holding company, while each SPIL share is to be exchanged for NT$     [FULL  STORY]