Business and Finance

Alleged theft of trade secrets probed

WIN SEMICONDUCTORS:Investigators say Chengdu Gastone offered bribes and jobs to former and current employees in exchange for key technology information

Taipei Times
Date:  Nov 07, 2015
By: Lisa Wang  /  Staff reporter

Win Semiconductors Corp (穩懋半導體) yesterday said investigators suspect some of its

Yang Kuang-yu, center, is arrested by agents of the Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau yesterday in Taoyuan on suspicion of stealing corporate secrets and personnel information to be used in talent poaching. Photo: Cheng Shu-ting, Taipei Times

Yang Kuang-yu, center, is arrested by agents of the Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau yesterday in Taoyuan on suspicion of stealing corporate secrets and personnel information to be used in talent poaching. Photo: Cheng Shu-ting, Taipei Times

former and current engineers of involvement in the theft of corporate secrets, some of which were sent on to Chinese rival Chengdu Gastone Technology Co (成都嘉石).

The investigation is the latest in a slew of trade-secret thefts linked to the nation’s technology companies, after employees of handset chipmaker MediaTek Inc (聯發科) pleaded guilty of stealing personnel information to be used in talent poaching last month.

Win Semi called on rivals to stop stealing trade secrets, poaching talent or employing any other unfair competition practices, the company said in a filing with the Taiwan Stock Exchange.     [FULL  STORY]

Taiwan October CPI up for 2nd consecutive month

Taiwan News
Date: 2015-11-05
By: Central News Agency

Taipei, Nov. 5 (CNA) Taiwan’s consumer price index (CPI) for October continued to grow, marking the second consecutive month in which the local CPI made a year-on-year increase, according to government statistics released Thursday.

The CPI rose 0.31 percent from a year earlier, largely on the back of higher food prices, while weakness in fuel prices offset the impact of more expensive food on the index, the Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) said. On a month-on-month basis, Taiwan’s CPI rose 0.09 percent in October, the DGBAS data indicates.

The data shows that after seasonal adjustments, the October figure gained 0.25 percent from a month earlier. Citing statistics compiled by the DGBAS, Tsai Yu-tai, deputy director of the agency’s census department, said that local consumer prices have shown signs of recovering stability.

Last month, food prices rose 5.10 percent from a year earlier, with prices of vegetables, fruit, frozen food, fishery items and meat up 25.08 percent, 13.01 percent, 5.40 percent, 2.14 percent, and 1.02 percent, respectively. Dining out costs also grew 1.78 percent from a year earlier. However, transportation and communications expenses fell 5.15 percent year-on-year in October after fuel costs plunged 23.34 percent from a year earlier, dragging down the overall CPI by 0.79 percentage points.      [FULL  STORY]

TIER cuts Taiwan’s 2015 GDP growth forecast to 0.83% (update)

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2015/11/05
By: Tsai Yi-chu, Y.F. Low and Frances Huang

Taipei, Nov. 5 (CNA) The Taiwan Institute of Economic Research (TIER), one of Taiwan’s 201511050044t0001major think tanks, on Thursday slashed its forecast for the country’s 2015 gross domestic product (GDP) growth to 0.83 percent.

The latest forecast is 2.28 percentage points lower than TIER’s projection in July of a 3.11 percent growth.

TIER is the second think tank to cut its economic growth forecast for Taiwan to below 1 percent.

On Oct. 15, the Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research lowered its prediction of Taiwan’s GDP growth from 3.04 percent to 0.9 percent, citing weaker exports, which it said were being dragged down by a wobbly global economy.     [FULL  STORY]

MA-XI MEETING: US was told about talks, official says

‘STRONG STAKE’:A senior US State Department official said the Singapore meeting ‘is consistent with the direction’ Washington has encouraged the two sides to move in

Taipei Times
Date: Nov 06, 2015
By: William Lowther  /  Staff reporter in WASHINGTON

Taiwan and China informed the US in advance of the official announcement that President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) would meet tomorrow in Singapore, US Assistant Secretary of State for East Asia Daniel Russel said on Wednesday.

There had been speculation that the announcement came as a surprise to Washington.

Answering questions following a speech in New York on US-Asia policy, Russel said the news of the meeting was “subsequently leaked to the press — not by us.”     [FULL  STOERY]

Taiwan shares soar to end above 8,800 points on Ma-Xi meeting

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2015/11/04
By: Frances Huang

Taipei, Nov. 4 (CNA) Shares in Taiwan moved sharply higher to close above the 201511040029t00018,800-point mark Wednesday amid hopes of closer cross-strait relations ahead of a planned meeting between President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) and Chinese leader Xi Jinping (習近平), dealers said.

Investors scrambled to buy into large-cap stocks, in particular in the bellwether electronics sector with semiconductor stocks under the spotlight, while buying spread to old economy stocks to maintain the strength of the broader market throughout the session, they said.

The weighted index on the Taiwan Stock Exchange ended up 143.83 points, or 1.65 percent, at 8,857.02, after moving between 8,754.18 and 8,864.17, on turnover of NT$127.21 billion (US$2.93 billion).

The market opened up 0.53 percent in an initial reaction to a rising Wall Street, where the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed up 0.50 percent, and buying accelerated as investors were encouraged by the upcoming Ma-Xi meeting to raise their holdings to push up the index even higher by the close, dealers said.     [FULL  STORY]

Restructuring leaves TPK in the red

IMPAIRED ASSETS:The touchpanel maker wrote down NT$18.97 billion, mainly from idle equipment, as lackluster notebook demand affected its factory utilization rate

Taipei Times
Date:  Nov 05, 2015
By: Lisa Wang  /  Staff reporter

TPK Holding Co (宸鴻), a major supplier of touchpanels for Apple Inc’s iPhone 6S and

TPK Holding Co chairman Michael Chiang tells a press conference in Taipei yesterday that the company posted a third-quarter loss of NT$19.39 billion. Photo: CNA

TPK Holding Co chairman Michael Chiang tells a press conference in Taipei yesterday that the company posted a third-quarter loss of NT$19.39 billion. Photo: CNA

Watch, yesterday reported a quarterly loss of NT$19.39 billion (US$595 million) due to massive asset impairments.

The company said it is undertaking a drastic restructuring as lackluster demand for touchscreen notebook computers has affected its factory utilization rate, leaving some of its equipment idle.

TPK posted NT$18.97 billion in impaired assets last month, mainly from unprofitable and idled equipment.     [FULL  STORY]

PMI shows manufacturing remains soft

Taipei Times
Date:  Nov 03, 2015
By: Crystal Hsu  /  Staff reporter

The official manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) stood at 46 last month, virtually unchanged from 46.1 in September, indicating the operating conditions for local manufacturers remained soft without concrete signs of improvement, the Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research (CIER, 中華經濟研究院) said yesterday.

It is the fourth consecutive month of downturn for the indicator which, aims to gauge the health of the manufacturing industry.

“It is too early to tell if the worst is over given the poor PMI value, though some component measures showed signs of easing,” CIER president Wu Chung-shu (吳中書) said at a media briefing.     [FULL  STORY]

Easycard to be allowed to conduct third-party payments

Taiwan News
Date: 2015-11-03
By: Central News Agency

Taipei, Nov. 3 (CNA) The Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC,) said Tuesday that Taiwan’s consumers will be allowed to conduct third-party online payments with Easycard  and other registered prepaid cards.

The Legislative Yuan passed the amendment to the Act Governing Issuance of Electronic Stored Value Cards in June that authorizes Easycard and three other existing electronic stored value cards to conduct third-party online payments, according to the FSC. The amendment builds on another bill passed by the Legislature in January that provided a legal basis for local companies to run third-party online payment businesses, the FSC added.

Easycard, which is issued by Easycard Corp., is one of the cards that will be allowed to offer third-party payment services. It is currently used primarily to pay MRT and bus fares and make purchases — worth a maximum of NT$1,000 (US$31) per transaction and NT$3,000 per day — in convenience stores and other authorized shops.     [FULL  STORY]

ECCT calls for accelerated completion of new Taoyuan airport terminal

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2015/11/03
By: Lin Ye-fong, Wang Shu-fen and Evelyn Kao

Taipei, Nov. 3 (CNA) The European Chamber of Commerce Taiwan (ECCT) on Tuesday

Photo courtesy of Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport

Photo courtesy of Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport

urged the government to accelerate the construction of a third terminal and a third runway at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport and start the building of a smaller fourth terminal before operations at Terminal 3 commence.

The Ministry of Transportation and Communications (MOTC) is set to finish the construction of the airport’s Terminal 3 and put it into operation by the end of 2020.

In its 2016 position papers, the ECCT said that in view of Taiwan’s infrastructure development lagging behind the rapidly increasing number of foreign tourists, it suggests the government should swiftly overhaul the airport, accelerate the construction of Terminal 3 and a third runway, and set up a transit stop for cruise ships at the Port of Keelung.     [FULL  STORY]

Experts clash over fintech initiative

CODDLED SHEEP:The digitization of Taiwan’s financial services has been ignored for too long as they push for growth to keep up with global change, analysts said

Taipei Times
Date: Nov 03, 2015
By: Ted Chen  /  Staff reporter

Members of the Financial Technology Consulting Committee yesterday clashed over an initiative aimed at accelerating development to ensure that the nation is prepared for changes as the global market increases the digitization of financial services.

The Financial Supervisory Commission in September formed a new office, along with a consulting committee made up of 15 to 20 experts drawn from the financial and technology sectors, to oversee the integration of resources for boosting development of financial technology (fintech), a crucial emerging industry that would enable the nation to maintain its competitiveness amid the “Bank 3.0” shift.

As of yesterday, NT$200 million (US$6.11 million) of a planned NT$1 billion fund earmarked for the endeavor had been collected from financial-sector companies, the commission said.     [FULL  STORY]