The Taipei 101 office building laid claim to the title of the world's tallest skyscraper following a ceremony yesterday to position a 60m spire on top of the structure.
With the addition of the spire, the building boasts of a full height of 508m, eclipsing Malaysia's Petronas Twin Towers, a company executive said yesterday.
"We believe that Taipei 101 will bring a fresh taste to Taipei's skyline," said Lin Hong-ming (
PHOTO: REUTERS
Lin hopes the landmark, though still under construction, will attract more tenants in the Hsinyi district.
Though the leasing of office space is still in its initial stages, Lin expects about 80 percent of the 60,000 ping at Taipei 101 will be leased within 18 months.
"What concerns our potential tenants is how to earn more money after moving into Taipei 101 [with around-the-clock services] rather than saving money through lower rentals," Lin said.
Jones Lang LaSalle Taiwan, the primary leasing agent for the Taipei 101 tower, is not sure about the leasing prospects, however.
"We're seeking the right price and right tenants, who will have long-term occupancies. We're not in a rush," Matthew Shaw, director of Jones Lang LaSalle Taiwan, told the Taipei Times.
Property-market watchers said that slow corporate spending, a lukewarm office market, an increasing supply of office space and high rental rates charged by the Taipei Financial Center could dash the company's hopes.
"Eighty-percent occupancy is an aggressive target. I doubt many potential tenants are available now as big international companies such as Hewlett-Packard Co and IBM Corp just signed new lease contracts for new offices in the area," said Derek Huang (
Though Taiwan's economy is showing signs of recovery, the resilience has not extended to the office market, Huang added.
Carol Su (
For the moment, corporate CEOs are unlikely to rent luxury offices, Su said.
Another factor that could slow Taipei 101's leasing progress is the impact of the Sept. 11, 2001, attack on the twin towers in New York. Su said the attacks appear to have dampened multinational corporations' interest in skyscrapers.
A growing supply of office space in the Neihu and Nankang districts also put the leasing plan in trouble as those offices are attractive to companies looking for lower rental rates, Huang said.
Rents are about NT$1,100 per ping per month and NT$600 per ping per month in the Neihu and Nankang areas, respectively, according to Huang.
The rents will range from NT$3,000 to NT$4,000 per ping for tenants of Taipei 101, an official at the Taiwan Stock Exchange, one of the skyscraper's major shareholders and future tenants, said last month.
Tropical Storm Usagi strengthened to a typhoon yesterday morning and remains on track to brush past southeastern Taiwan from tomorrow to Sunday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. As of 2pm yesterday, the storm was approximately 950km east-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan proper’s southernmost point, the CWA said. It is expected to enter the Bashi Channel and then turn north, moving into waters southeast of Taiwan, it said. The agency said it could issue a sea warning in the early hours of today and a land warning in the afternoon. As of 2pm yesterday, the storm was moving at
UPDATED FORECAST: The warning covered areas of Pingtung County and Hengchun Peninsula, while a sea warning covering the southern Taiwan Strait was amended The Central Weather Administration (CWA) at 5:30pm yesterday issued a land warning for Typhoon Usagi as the storm approached Taiwan from the south after passing over the Philippines. As of 5pm, Usagi was 420km south-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan proper’s southernmost tip, with an average radius of 150km, the CWA said. The land warning covered areas of Pingtung County and the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春), and came with an amended sea warning, updating a warning issued yesterday morning to cover the southern part of the Taiwan Strait. No local governments had announced any class or office closures as of press time last night. The typhoon
DISCONTENT: The CCP finds positive content about the lives of the Chinese living in Taiwan threatening, as such video could upset people in China, an expert said Chinese spouses of Taiwanese who make videos about their lives in Taiwan have been facing online threats from people in China, a source said yesterday. Some young Chinese spouses of Taiwanese make videos about their lives in Taiwan, often speaking favorably about their living conditions in the nation compared with those in China, the source said. However, the videos have caught the attention of Chinese officials, causing the spouses to come under attack by Beijing’s cyberarmy, they said. “People have been messing with the YouTube channels of these Chinese spouses and have been harassing their family members back in China,”
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said there are four weather systems in the western Pacific, with one likely to strengthen into a tropical storm and pose a threat to Taiwan. The nascent tropical storm would be named Usagi and would be the fourth storm in the western Pacific at the moment, along with Typhoon Yinxing and tropical storms Toraji and Manyi, the CWA said. It would be the first time that four tropical cyclones exist simultaneously in November, it added. Records from the meteorology agency showed that three tropical cyclones existed concurrently in January in 1968, 1991 and 1992.
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