Shin Kong chief returns to Taipei after management row

The China Post - The head of the Taiwan-based Shin Kong Mitsukoshi department store chain's Beijing operation, who was barred from leaving China over a management dispute last week, returned safely to Taipei yesterday evening, according to a senior official with the Straits Exchange Foundation. Full Story

Reporters have mixed feelings about job: survey

The China Post - Taiwan's reporters have mixed sentiments toward their job, according to a 1111 Job Bank online survey released Saturday. Full Story

AmCham complains about drug price cut

The China Post - A decision made in mid-July by the Bureau of National Health Insurance (BNHI) under the Department of Health to sharply cut reimbursement to hospitals for drug purchases not only angered domestic and foreign pharmaceutical makers, but also forced the American Chamber of Commerce in Taipei to write a letter of complaint to Premier Chang Chun-hsiung, the Central News Agency reported yesterday. Full Story

85% of manufacturing firms upbeat

The China Post - A majority of 85 percent of Taiwanese manufacturing firms responding to a recent survey are optimistic about business prospects for the second half of the year, a local think tank researcher said yesterday. Full Story

Hon Hai first-half net profit up 32 percent, in line with forecasts

The China Post - Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Taiwan's top electronics parts maker, posted a 32 percent rise in first-half net profit, in line with forecasts, on strong demand for its computer and consumer electronics products. Full Story

Quanta sees strong quarter3 after quarter2's high

The China Post - Taiwan's Quanta Computer Inc., the world's top contract laptop PC maker, Friday notched a record second-quarter profit and forecast strong growth through next year on healthy demand for laptop PCs. Full Story

Acer sides with Blu-ray in disc, storage rivalry

The China Post - Taiwan-based computer manufacturer Acer has joined the Blu-ray camp in the technology dispute over a successor to the DVD data storage and movie disc, a Blu-ray official said in Berlin Thursday. Full Story

Cosmos Bank to sell stake at big discount

The China Post - Taiwan's loss-making Cosmos Bank will sell a US$900 million stake to a U.S. hedge fund and General Electric at a steep discount, marking the latest acquisition by foreigners in the island's overcrowded financial sector. Full Story

Shin Kong in JV dispute with China partner

The China Post - Taiwan retailer Shin Kong Mitsukoshi said Friday it is in talks with mainland Chinese partner Beijing Hualian Group over disputes in running a joint venture department store in the Chinese capital. Full Story

Shin Kong Financial holds US$1.1 billion in CDOs

The China Post - Shin Kong Financial, parent of Taiwan's No.2 life insurer, said Friday it has NT$37 billion (US$1.1 billion) in U.S. collateralized debt obligations. Full Story

Formosa cuts sulfur content, boosting sales to Europe

The China Post - Formosa Petrochemicals Corp. may start to export a cleaner-burning diesel in January, targeting increased sales to Europe where stricter pollution control laws are being enforced, two company officials said. Full Story

Evergreen Marine posts second quarter profit on container rates

The China Post - Evergreen Marine Corp., Taiwan's biggest shipping line, returned to a profit in the second quarter after Asia's booming exports of toys, clothes and other goods allowed it to charge more for carrying containers. Full Story

Asian markets rise, hoping for subprime fix

The China Post - Asian markets extended gains Friday on news the U.S. government was working on a policy to ease subprime woes. Full Story

Shares close sharply higher, 2.41 percent

The China Post - Taiwan share prices closed sharply higher Friday, up 2.41 percent on follow-through buying, regional strength and support for stocks with an exposure to China, dealers said. Full Story

Dairy firms fined over price hikes

The China Post - The Cabinet-level Fair Trade Commission (FTC) yesterday slapped Taiwan's major dairy companies with fines totaling NT$11.5 million for what FTC termed as "joint raising of milk prices." Full Story

Gov't plans NT$10 bil. investment in medium-sized enterprises

The China Post - The Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) yesterday kicked off an action plan to join forces with seven selected venture capital firms to intensify investments in local small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), in a bid to generate 20,000 job opportunities. Full Story

Taiwan's trade with China rises 14%

The China Post - Taiwan's two-way trade with China shot up 14 percent in the first half of the year from the same period in 2006, boosted by rising world demand for computers and electronics products, the Taiwan government said yesterday. Full Story

DoCoMo to sell Fujitsu, High Tech Computer Corp. phones

The China Post - NTT DoCoMo Inc., Japan's biggest mobile-phone company, will sell smart phones made by Fujitsu Ltd. and Taiwan's High Tech Computer Corp. (HTC) to attract business users. The phones will be sold from the first quarter of next year, Tokyo-based DoCoMo said Thursday. Full Story

Chunghwa says 10% profit growth in 2007 'achievable'

The China Post - Chunghwa Telecom Co., Taiwan's largest phone operator, said 2007 profit growth of 10 percent is "achievable" as depreciation costs fall and sales will beat an earlier projection. Full Story

Recession hits communication products sector

The China Post - Taiwan's communication equipment production has recently recorded its first recession since 2002, with the output value for the first half of this year registering a decline of 5.4 percent over the same period of 2006, according to statistics released yesterday by a non-profit research center. Full Story

EVA Air's Q2 loss widens as Taiwan cargo traffic falls

The China Post - EVA Airways Corp., Taiwan's second-largest carrier, posted a wider loss in the second quarter because of a slump in the island's air-cargo demand. Full Story

Uni-President doubles second-quarter profit: Citigroup report

The China Post - Uni-President Enterprises Corp., Taiwan's biggest processed food maker, climbed to a record in Taipei after second-quarter profit doubled and Citigroup Inc. raised its price target for the stock. Full Story

Taiwan flour millers seek 46,000 tons of United States wheat

The China Post - The Taiwan Flour Millers Association, which represents 34 grain users, reissued a tender to import 46,000 tons of U.S. No. 1 wheat after it failed to buy the grain on Tuesday. Full Story

Consumer confidence hits 6-year low in August

The China Post - Consumer confidence reached a six-year low in August due to price increases and stock declines amid U.S. subprime woes, a report showed yesterday. Full Story

Shares close 1.48% higher

The China Post - Taiwan share prices closed 1.48 percent higher Thursday as investors were encouraged by optimism on Wall Street that the U.S. Fed might cut its key rate and give the market a big push, dealers said. Full Story

Oil, commodity price hikes cost locals dearly: survey

The China Post - Surging oil and commodity prices have incurred a combined estimated extra expenditure of NT$46 billion (US$1.4 billion) per month for local people aged over 18, according to the results of a survey released by a local magazine yesterday. Full Story

Businesspeople protest against 'unsafe' Chinese bed sheets

The China Post - A group of Taiwanese businesspeople protested yesterday over the import of Chinese-made bed sheets they say contain toxic substances. Full Story

Cabinet approves revisions to land tax law

The China Post - The Cabinet yesterday approved a set of revisions to the land tax law, allowing nationals to enjoy a preferential land value increment tax rate of only 10 percent during their lifetime on earnings from sales of residential houses, instead of the existing practice of "just once for life." Full Story

Taiwan to attend Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Business Summit in Australia

The China Post - Prominent Taiwanese business leaders met Wednesday morning in anticipation of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Australia 2007 Business Summit in Sydney, Australia, Sept. 2 through Sept. 7. Full Story

Nine firms awarded 'Rising Star' for export performance

The China Post - The Small and Medium Enterprises Association (SMEA) rewarded yesterday nine SMEs with the "Rising Star Award" in recognition of their contribution to Taiwan's export performance. Full Story

Shares fall 0.97% as late buying curtails early falls

The China Post - Taiwan share prices closed down 0.97 percent Wednesday as late buying curtailed early falls triggered by Wall Street's overnight slump, dealers said. Full Story

No plans for Taiwan to import China liquor

The China Post - The government currently has no plans to allow liquor from China to be imported into Taiwan, Executive Yuan Secretary General Chen Chin-jun said yesterday. Full Story

China to put tax on Taiwan bisphenol A products

The China Post - Starting today, China will impose a five-year anti-dumping tax of 5.3 to 6 percent on bisphenol A products made by some Taiwan companies, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce announced yesterday. Full Story

China Steel Q2 net up 56% vs. year ago

The China Post - Taiwan's China Steel Corp., the island's biggest steel maker, said its net profit jumped 56 percent in the second quarter due to a low base and as high raw material costs supported prices. Full Story

Wang deals Acer to No. 3 with Gateway buy

The China Post - Since taking the helm at Taiwan's top PC maker two years ago, J. T. Wang has trumped his opponents by building Acer Inc. into the world's No.3 computer maker. Full Story

Foxconn starts Vietnam operations

The China Post - Taiwan's Foxconn, the world's top maker of outsourced electronics, yesterday started operations in northern Vietnam, kicking off investment plans it says will reach US$5 billion. Full Story

Chi Mei to invest NT$2.4 billion in display module unit

The China Post - Chi Mei Optoelectronics Corp., Taiwan's second-largest liquid-crystal display maker, said it will invest NT$2.4 billion in a new business to make small and medium-sized display modules. Full Story

Taiwan seeks coal-fired power plants to plug shortfall

The China Post - Taiwan is seeking private companies to invest in the island's power generation sector with a preference for coal-fired plants, in an an attempt to boost supply amid concerns of blackouts that could affect thousands. Full Story

Taiwan Power plans issuing NT$25 billion in 5-year bonds

The China Post - Taiwan Power Co. (Taipower) plans to issue about NT$25 billion worth of five-year secured corporate bonds in the second half to boost its working capital, a senior company official said. Full Story

The Ministry of Economic Affairs to open offshore wind turbines

The China Post - The Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) is set to open up six sea areas off the coast of Taiwan for wind turbine installations, with an estimated power generation capacity of 300,000 kilowatts in the first stage of its "offshore wind power development guidelines," government sources reported yesterday. Full Story

LDK wins US$495 mil. deal from Neo Solar Power

The China Post - LDK Solar Co., a Chinese maker of materials used to produce solar cells, won a contract worth about US$495 million from Taiwan's Neo Solar Power Corp., gaining a second order with a Taiwanese company in less than two weeks. Full Story

Taiwan's economy expands at a faster-than-expected 5.07%

The China Post -Taiwan's economy grew at a faster-than-expected pace in the second quarter as consumers and companies spent more while exports to China increased. Gross domestic product expanded 5.07 percent from a year earlier, the strongest rate in 1 1/2 years, outpacing the median estimate of 4.35 percent in a Bloomberg News survey. Full Story

Taiwan's export orders at record highs on demand from Japan, China, and Europe

The China Post - Taiwan's export orders climbed more than expected to record highs in July on a surge in demand from China, Japan and Europe, signaling economic growth may quicken. Orders, indicative of actual shipments in the next three months, rose 23.5 percent from a year earlier, accelerating from June's 15.2 percent increase, beating the 16 percent median estimate in a Bloomberg News survey. Full Story

BenQ posts first profit in seven quarters on share selloff

The China Post - BenQ Corp., the Taiwanese electronics maker whose chairman stands trial on insider-trading charges, posted its first profit in seven quarters on gains from selling shares in flat-screen affiliate AU Optronics Corp. Full Story

Regulators force Cosmos bank to increase capital before September

The China Post - Cosmos Bank Taiwan, 10 percent owned by General Electric Co.'s consumer lending unit, must find an investor to boost its capital before the end of the month, Taiwan's financial regulator said. Taipei-based Cosmos is seeking a capital injection of NT$27.3 billion. Full Story

Family Mart and Niko Mart merger approved

The China Post - The Cabinet-level Fair Trade Commission (FTC) yesterday approved a merger between Family Mart and Niko Mart, Taiwan's two convenience store chains, paving the way for a reshuffle in the island's convenience store market. Full Story

Formosa Petrochemical profits up 64 percent

The China Post - Formosa Petrochemical Corp., Taiwan's second-biggest fuel supplier, posted a 64 percent gain in first-half profit after the government eased controls over gasoline and diesel prices. Full Story

Taiwan stocks attract overseas buyers

The China Post - Overseas investors yesterday bought a net NT$11.7 billion of Taiwan's stocks, helping to lift the benchmark TAIEX index. Foreign investors had been net sellers for the previous nine sessions. Full Story

High Tech shares gain on Sprint phone order

The China Post - High Tech Computer Corp., the world's largest maker of handsets that use Microsoft Corp.'s Windows operating system, rose on Taiwan's stock exchange after a report said the company won mobile-phone orders from Sprint Nextel Corp. Full Story

Teco shares post gain on Syntax-Brillian stake

The China Post - Teco Electric & Machinery Co. shares posted their biggest four-day gain in more than three years, after the producer of appliances agreed to buy a stake in U.S. television maker Syntax-Brillian Corp. Full Story