Formosa International Hotels Corp (晶華國際酒店集團) yesterday pressed the government to reinstall a wage subsidy for the hospitality industry, which has seen business slump by 50 percent amid spreading COVID-19 infections.
The industry could fare even worse as more Taiwanese vacation abroad following shortened quarantine periods, which would nevertheless continue to keep foreign tourists away, Formosa International Hotels chairman Steven Pan (潘思亮) told a shareholders’ meeting.
“The industry is in need of quick relief, instead of stimulus measures slated for next month,” Pan said, questioning the wisdom of the government’s plan to spend NT$5.5 billion (US$185.14 million) shoring up domestic travel, starting on
Formosa International Hotels Corp (FIH, 晶華國際酒店集團) yesterday proposed to distribute a cash dividend of NT$12.39 per share although the COVID-19 pandemic continues to weigh on its business operations.
The dividend scheme followed the Taipei-based hospitality provider’s announcement that net profit last year increased more than threefold to NT$2.24 billion (US$78.46 million), while consolidated revenue fell 9.08 percent to NT$4.93 billion from a year earlier.
The financial results translated into earnings per share of NT$17.09, up 182.35 percent from a year earlier, company data showed.
A soft lockdown in May last year due to a local COVID-19 outbreak took a toll on the company’s