TAIEX drops on HTC concerns
The TAIEX trended lower yesterday, falling below the 8,800 point mark, led by smartphone maker HTC (宏達電) amid worries over the company’s newly announced deal to acquire graphics chipset designer S3 Graphics Co, dealers said.
Other high-tech heavyweights — semiconductor firms, in particular — were also under pressure as concerns lingered over weakening global demand for the third quarter of this year, they said.
The TAIEX closed down 51.02 points or 0.58 percent at 8,773.42, after moving between 8,757.47 and 8,795.88, on turnover of NT$106.87 billion (US$3.71 billion).
Oil shipments fell in June
Taiwan purchased less crude oil last month after a fire at Formosa Plastics Group (台塑集團) cut demand. Crude shipments declined 24 percent from a year earlier to 22.8 million barrels last month, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday.
Last month’s oil bill climbed 14 percent to US$2.58 billion, the ministry said in a statement.
The industrial group halted some plants at its Mailiao (麥寮) complex in Yunlin County after a fire on May 12.
Taiwan’s petroleum and coal-product output fell 13 percent in May from a year earlier, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said on June 23.
Long-term debt worth trillions
The national debt amounted to NT$207,000 per person at the end of last month, down NT$4,000 from the end of May, the finance ministry said yesterday.
As of June 30, Taiwan’s long-term debt was NT$4.6085 trillion, while its short-term debt stood at NT$178.8 billion, the ministry said.
Since December last year, the MOF has been publishing a Web-based “National Debt Clock” monthly, mainly to remind government agencies to monitor their spending and thus help lower the national debt.
Land developer to sell shares
Taiwan Land Development Corp (台灣土地開發) plans to sell 150 million new shares at NT$12.5 each to raise NT$1.88 billion, it said in a statement to the Taiwan Stock Exchange yesterday. The proceeds will be used to develop real estate projects and for investments, it said.
Powerchip reveals debt ratio
Powerchip Technology Corp (力晶科技), the nation’s second-biggest DRAM maker, said in a statement yesterday that its debt ratio was 75 percent as of the end of last month.
First bank eyes China deal
First Commercial Bank’s (第一銀行) board yesterday approved plans to sign a business cooperation agreement with China Construction Bank (中國建設銀行) to expand cross-strait banking services, according to a stock exchange filing issued by the lender’s parent, First Financial Holding Co (第一金控).
The bank said it would sign the pact with China Construction, one of China’s “Big Four,” after receiving the green light from the Financial Supervisory Commission, the filing showed.
China alters foreign cargo law
China will ban foreign companies, organizations and individuals from irregular-scheduled cargo sea transportation from Jan 1 next year, the Ministry of Transport said in a statement on its Web site on Wednesday.
NT slips against greenback
The New Taiwan dollar fell against the US currency yesterday, down NT$0.009 to close at NT$28.860. Dealers said the central bank intervened in late trade to reverse the losses posted by the US dollar.
Turnover totaled US$721 million during trading, up from US$606 million the previous session.
MULTIFACETED: A task force has analyzed possible scenarios and created responses to assist domestic industries in dealing with US tariffs, the economics minister said The Executive Yuan is tomorrow to announce countermeasures to US President Donald Trump’s planned reciprocal tariffs, although the details of the plan would not be made public until Monday next week, Minister of Economic Affairs J.W. Kuo (郭智輝) said yesterday. The Cabinet established an economic and trade task force in November last year to deal with US trade and tariff related issues, Kuo told reporters outside the legislature in Taipei. The task force has been analyzing and evaluating all kinds of scenarios to identify suitable responses and determine how best to assist domestic industries in managing the effects of Trump’s tariffs, he
TIGHT-LIPPED: UMC said it had no merger plans at the moment, after Nikkei Asia reported that the firm and GlobalFoundries were considering restarting merger talks United Microelectronics Corp (UMC, 聯電), the world’s No. 4 contract chipmaker, yesterday launched a new US$5 billion 12-inch chip factory in Singapore as part of its latest effort to diversify its manufacturing footprint amid growing geopolitical risks. The new factory, adjacent to UMC’s existing Singapore fab in the Pasir Res Wafer Fab Park, is scheduled to enter volume production next year, utilizing mature 22-nanometer and 28-nanometer process technologies, UMC said in a statement. The company plans to invest US$5 billion during the first phase of the new fab, which would have an installed capacity of 30,000 12-inch wafers per month, it said. The
Taiwan’s official purchasing managers’ index (PMI) last month rose 0.2 percentage points to 54.2, in a second consecutive month of expansion, thanks to front-loading demand intended to avoid potential US tariff hikes, the Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research (CIER, 中華經濟研究院) said yesterday. While short-term demand appeared robust, uncertainties rose due to US President Donald Trump’s unpredictable trade policy, CIER president Lien Hsien-ming (連賢明) told a news conference in Taipei. Taiwan’s economy this year would be characterized by high-level fluctuations and the volatility would be wilder than most expect, Lien said Demand for electronics, particularly semiconductors, continues to benefit from US technology giants’ effort
‘SWASTICAR’: Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s close association with Donald Trump has prompted opponents to brand him a ‘Nazi’ and resulted in a dramatic drop in sales Demonstrators descended on Tesla Inc dealerships across the US, and in Europe and Canada on Saturday to protest company chief Elon Musk, who has amassed extraordinary power as a top adviser to US President Donald Trump. Waving signs with messages such as “Musk is stealing our money” and “Reclaim our country,” the protests largely took place peacefully following fiery episodes of vandalism on Tesla vehicles, dealerships and other facilities in recent weeks that US officials have denounced as terrorism. Hundreds rallied on Saturday outside the Tesla dealership in Manhattan. Some blasted Musk, the world’s richest man, while others demanded the shuttering of his
RSS