Taiwan food company cautious on SE Asia

Taiwan food company cautious on SE Asia

TAIPEI (Reuters): Taiwan food giant President Enterprises said yesterday it was temporarily suspending all investment projects in Southeast Asia due to currency volatility and high risks there.

Chief executive officer Kao Ching-yuan, in an interview with Reuters, nevertheless said President would use a government-led fact-finding mission to Southeast Asia to seek out opportunities for business mergers or acquisitions in the battered region.

"We have decided temporarily to suspend all investment projects in Southeast Asia because of currency volatility and high risks there at the moment," Kao said by telephone.

Among the investment projects that would be suspended, Kao mentioned two in the Philippines, one involving an oil refinery and the other an instant noodle plant.

Kao said the two Philippines projects were budgeted at less than T$10 billion. He did not elaborate.

Kao, who also is chairman of Chinese National Federation of Industries, Taiwan's largest industrial association, nonetheless expressed his interest in merging with or acquiring Southeast Asian businesses.

Kao is a ranking member of a 10-day government-led business mission to Southeast Asia starting from Sunday.

"We are still very interested in merging or acquiring businesses there if we have the chance," Kao said.

Kao gave no details of what President was seeking.

Chiang Pin-kung, Taiwan's top economic policymaker, will lead the mission organized by executives from major manufacturing and financial industries to show concern for the region during its currency crisis.

Chiang, chairman of the cabinet's Council for Economic Planning and Development, told Reuters in an interview on Friday that his delegation was not carrying any offers of economic or financial aid to the battered region.

The mission will visit high-level officials in the four countries to show concerns after they were severely hit by recent Asian currency crisis, officials said.

Delegation members also planned to hold talks with Taiwanese investors in the four countries and seek out new investment opportunities there, officials said.

Officials of Taiwan's central bank and several ministries have said that Taiwan had received a number of requests for financial help from unspecified Southeast Asian countries.

Taipei has said it was willing in principle to help, and has proposed putting US$4 billion into a regional fund, but has made clear that its main aim is membership in the International Monetary Fund.

Communist China, Taiwan's ideological rival since a 1949 civil war split, has blocked the island's entry to the IMF and most other international organizations as part of a diplomatic embargo aiming to pressure Taiwan under Beijing's sovereignty.