Taiwan Business Quick Take
Investors lock in earnings
The TAIEX closed little changed yesterday after investors locked in their earlier gains on the first trading session after the 228 Peace Memorial Day long weekend. Fears of possible further volatility on Wall Street and a likely continued increase in yields of US Treasury bills affected market sentiment, dealers said. The TAIEX ended down 6.92 points, or 0.04 percent, at 15,946.88, on turnover of NT$333.389 billion (US$11.77 billion). Foreign institutional investors sold a net NT$6.78 billion of shares on the main board yesterday.
LIQUOR
KKL increases prices
Kinmen Kaoliang Liquor Inc (KKL, 金門酒廠) yesterday announced a 6 to 12 percent price hike for some of its products, effective immediately. It is its first price hike in nine years. The firm, which boasts a share of more than 80 percent of Taiwan’s white spirits market, said it made the decision to reflect production cost increases. Many of the company’s regional dealers in Kinmen County said the hike was too high and asked whether the price adjustment was proportionate to the increase in production costs or simply a move to increase revenue for the county government, which owns 99 percent of KKL’s shares. The actual price increases were not announced.