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Cabinet eases ceiling on PRC, Hong Kong stock investment (Jul 4)
The Cabinet on Thursday completely lifted a ceiling on the investment by Taiwan-based mutual funds in stocks listed in Hong Kong and Macao and eased a similar restriction on the size of stakes in companies listed on stock markets in the People's Republic of China. The move is part of an unilateral program to ease long-standing restrictions on operations and investments by Taiwan financial services companies in the PRC and its "special administrative regions" of Hong Kong and Macau adopted since the Kuomintang administration under President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) took office May 20. In a statement released on Thursday, the Cabinet said it would entirely drop the existing 10 percent ceiling on investments by onshore funds, discretionary accounts and offshore mutual funds managed by Taiwan securities investments and trust companies in Hong Kong - listed "H-shares" and "red-chip" shares and ease the similar ceiling for investments in PRC stocks to 10 percent from the current 0.4 percent of ...


Fulltech to build largest fiberglass yarn plant in Central Taiwan (Jul 4)
Fulltech Fiber Glass Corp., Taiwan's leading fiberglass maker, recently broke ground for its second fiberglass yarn plant at Huwei, Yulin County of central Taiwan, which will focus on the production of industrial-use fiberglass yarn and will be the world's largest of its kind with annual production capacity of 45,000 tons.

The company's first plant is located in Touliu, also Yulin County, turning out both electronic-class and industrial-use fiberglass yarn. The projected second plant, with investment capital of NT$4.6 billion (US$148.39 million at US$1 = NT$31), will be focused on the production of industrial-use fiberglass yarn only. With the participation of the second plant, Fulltech is very likely to become the world's largest manufacturer of fiberglass yarn within five years.

Chang Ping-chao, chairman of the company, indicated that the average gross profit rate of fiberglass yarn is over 40% and the corresponding rate for the yarn used in such industries as aviation, heat-resista...


Microsoft Taiwan teams with Chief Telecom on VoIP service (Jul 4)
Microsoft Taiwan recently announced it would tap the VoIP market by working with Chief Telecom Inc., a subsidiary of Taiwan's No.1 telecom provider Chunghwa Telecom Co., Ltd.

The collaboration will have Chief Telecom offer VoIP service on Microsoft's MSN instant-messaging program. Consumers click on a telephone logo on MSN instant messaging option list on PCs to sign up as members and buy credit points for the service offered by Chief.

The rate of the service is around 50% below the average charge on traditional telephone service. For instance, making local calls on the service`s network costs only NT$0.66 per minute and making mobile calls on the network costs around NT$3.2 per minute.

The partnership is expected to threaten PChome Online of Taiwan, which is contracted to offer Skype-based VoIP service, in consideration of eight million MSN users in Taiwan. Worldwide, Skype has signed up 390 million users including seven million Taiwanese users.

PChome Online's executives pointed ou...


FPG sets up program to save energy across-the-board (Jul 4)
The Formosa Plastics Group (FPG), Taiwan's No.1 petrochemical manufacturing conglomerate, recently began an across-the-board program to cut energy use-rallying all its divisions to achieve the set goal to save 3% in energy consumption by the end of this year.

The program has the group instructing all its business units to reclaim coal ash as a cement replacement, substitute LED road lights for all traditional lights at factory locations, equip all offices with energy-efficient fluorescent tubes, and shut off half of all lights from 18:00 to 08:00 daily.

The group even plans to publish a white paper on environment and report on social responsibility this year to publicize its efforts and accomplishments in eco-protection and social feedbacks.

The group's administration has set up an ad hoc committee to draft energy-saving and emission-reduction plans for all of the group's business units, with such plans setting energy-conservation and emission-reduction goals for manufacturing proce...


CMC to export locally assembled cars to new markets (Jul 4)
Taiwan-based automaker China Motor Corp. (CMC), in partnership with Mitsubishi Motors of Japan, will begin exporting locally assembled cars to new markets as Central Asia and Africa this year, according to Kenneth Yen, CEO of the Yulon Group and chairman of CMC.

Yen made the statement at CMC shareholder meeting, also stressing that CMC is expected to become one of Mitsubishi's overseas production bases.

Last year, CMC exported around 4,100 locally assembled cars, up 243% from 2006, including over 1,200 Mitsubishi Zinger commercial vans and about 2,0000 Delica commercial vans (under Dodge's brand logo to Mexico).

CMC is scheduled to continue strengthening exports to major markets such as the Philippines, Mexico, the Middle East, and Latin America this year, and in the second half the company's locally assembled Mitsubishi Zinger vans are expected to be exported to Central Asia and Africa through Mitsubishi`s sales channels.

In China, CMC`s reinvested affiliate South East (Fujian) Motor ...


Taiwan's economic indicator flashes yellow-blue in May (Jul 4)
Taiwan's economic indicator in May flashed "yellow blue" for the first time in 12 months with the composite scores tumbling six points from a month earlier to 21 points, and the leading indicator fell for the seventh consecutive month, according to the Council for Economic Planning and Development (CEPD).

Among the nine components making up the economic indicator, five fell, including stock price, industrial production, machineries & electrical equipment imports, manufacturing sales, and sales of wholesale, retail and food services.

In May, the leading indicator edged down by 0.2 of a percentage point, which was the seventh monthly consecutive fall while the coincident indicator fell by 0.5 of a percentage point for the third consecutive monthly drop.

Hu Chung-yin, vice chairman of CEPD, indicated that the six-point fall of composite score in May was the largest of its kind in 11 years and was out of expectation as well. Nevertheless, Hu believed that the expanding domestic demand and ...


Exhibition of woodworking machinery, suppliers opens in Taipei (Jul 4)
> Taipei, July 4 (CNA) Interwood Taipei is the perfect showcase for the image and competitive advantages of Taiwan's woodworking machinery and supplies industry, Vice Economics Minister Fadah Hsieh said Friday at the opening of the show.

Featuring saws, shaping machines, molding machines, bonding machines, sanders and other woodworking equipment and materials, the show, held once every three years, is set to run July 4-7 at the Taipei World Trade Center Exhibition Hall 1.

"Exports of Taiwanese woodworking machinery grew steadily in 2007, reaching US$684 million (NT$20.8 billion) and representing an 8.4 percent rise year-on-year," Hsieh said.

The vice minister said this exporting strength also led to this year's record-setting size and participation of the show, which he said showcases the image and competitive advantages of the domestic woodworking machinery industry.

The exhibition, held by the Taiwan External Trade Develop...


Prices lower on Taipei futures market (Jul 4)
Taipei, July 4 (CNA) Prices on Taipei's stock futures market were lower Friday as the Taiwan Stock Exchange Capitalization Weighted Index for July fell 196 points to close at 7,100, with 68,335 contracts changing hands.

TAIEX Index futures for August lost 188 points to finish at 6,974, with 654 contracts traded, while September futures fell 189 points to close at 6,944, with 169 contract transactions.

December futures dropped 186 points to finish at 6,930, with 51 contract transactions, while March futures moved down 185 points to close at 6,935, with four contracts traded.

Taiwan International Mercantile Exchange reference levels for TAIEX Index futures trading were set Friday at 7,296 for July, 7,162 for August, 7,133 for September, 7,116 for December and 7,120 for March.

The Taiwan stock exchange's benchmark TAIEX index dropped 165.69 points to finish at 7,228.41, on turnover of NT$98.25 billion (US$3.23 billion).

Ele...


Chinese tourists sample signature Taiwanese produce (Jul 4)
Taipei, July 4 (CNA) All arriving Chinese tourists who took the first weekend direct cross-strait charter flights to Taiwan Friday were given a Taiwanese signature farm product as gift by the Council of Agriculture (COA).

The council had prepared 756 gifts -- ranging from fresh fruit, such as mangoes, grapes and pears, to tea, coffee and fresh flowers -- to be given to the Chinese tourists entering from Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport and Taipei Songshan Airport, according to a COA official.

Nearly 750 Chinese tourists were scheduled to arrive in Taiwan Friday on the first day of the historic launch of Friday-to-Monday direct charter flight services.

The COA expressed hope that all the visiting Chinese tourists will sample or appreciate Taiwan's agricultural products, which are of high quality, wide variety and safe, as well as fresh, the official said.

In the first weekend of the direct cross-strait services, more than 3,500 ...


Top Chinese tourism official arrives for visit (Jul 4)
Taipei, July 4 (CNA) China's top official in charge of tourism arrived in Taiwan on an Air China flight Friday to take part in the landmark launch of weekend direct cross-strait charter flight services.

Shao Qiwei, director of the China National Tourism Administration, who was among the first batch of Chinese tourists to take the maiden weekend direct cross-strait charter flights to Taiwan Friday, is visiting Taiwan in his capacity as president of the Beijing-based Cross Strait Tourism Exchange Association.

Shao was met upon his arrival at Taiwan Taoyuan Internatinal Airport by his Taiwanese counterpart -- Janice Lai, director general of the Tourism Bureau under the Ministry of Transportation and Communications -- who is acting as Shao's host in her capacity as president of the Taipei-based Tourism and Travel Association across the Taiwan Strait.

In a short speech delivered at the airport, Shao offered his appre...