The industrial production index rose 16.78 percent annually to a record high of 136.16 last month, thanks to robust demand for technology products and vehicles, while retail sales rose to surpass pre-COVID-19 pandemic levels, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said yesterday.
The index, an indicator measuring real output in manufacturing, electricity, mining and water supply, rose for the 14th consecutive month, ministry data showed.
The main momentum came from the sub-index of electronic components production which has a 43 percent weighting in the index expanding 26.68 percent year-on-year to 169.79, marking the 16th month it expanded by a double-digit
Line Bank Taiwan Ltd (連線商業銀行), the nation’s second Web-only bank, launched on Thursday, but promptly drew a rebuke from the regulator after its system crashed.
The virtual bank launched its banking service, integrated into the messaging app Line offered by its affiliate Line Taiwan Ltd (台灣連線), at about 5pm on Thursday, but users said they could not access the service.
People who clicked on its Web page were greeted by either a blank page or a “server is busy” message.
That was contrary to the bank’s claims that people would be able to open an account within six minutes and its promise
FSC fines three firms NT$4.5 million each for alleged stock manipulation
By Kao Shih-ching / Staff reporter
The Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) yesterday fined three asset management firms NT$4.5 million (US$159,909) each for last year buying shares in a company at the direction of a Ministry of Labor official while conducting discretionary trading for the nation’s labor funds.
Fuh Hwa Securities Investment Trust Co (復華投信), Capital Investment Trust Corp (群益投信) and Uni-President Assets Management Corp (統一投信) accepted requests from Yu Nai-wen (游迺文), former head of the Domestic Investment Division of the Bureau of Labor Funds, to purchase Far Eastern Department Store Ltd (遠東百貨) shares, the commission said.
FSC investigating Next Bank purchase
By Kao Shih-ching / Staff reporter
The Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) is conducting a financial examination of Next Bank (將來銀行), a Web-only bank that has not yet begun operations, to see if it acquired an overpriced information technology (IT) system from its largest shareholder, Chunghwa Telecom Co (中華電信), the commission said yesterday.
The commission last week received reports about the deal from a few whistle-blowers, as well as Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Alex Fai (費鴻泰).
It is rare for the commission to inspect banks that have not yet begun operations.
Financial Supervisory Commission Chairman Thomas Huang speaks at a meeting of the legislature’s Finance Committee in Taipei yesterday.
Rakuten launches 12 new services
By Kao Shih-ching / Staff reporter
Web-only Rakuten International Commercial Bank Co (樂天國際銀行) on Monday announced that it would be launching 12 new services.
The bank began operations in January, enabling clients to open digital bank accounts and take personal loans online.
Among its new services, customers would now be able to transfer up to NT$2 million (US$71,078) at a time if they have linked a predesignated account, Rakuten said in a statement.
Rakuten International Commercial Bank chief executive officer Kazuhiko Saiki holds a phone displaying the bank’s app at an event in Taipei on Sunday. The Web-only bank on Monday announced that it would be launching 12 new services.