© Copyright 1996 The Northern Trust Company. All rights reserved. Distributed by permission of the copyright owner.
Source: Northern Trust Atlas

Area(sq. km.): 36,000
Population: 21,100,000 As of Date: Mid-year 1994
GDP (USD billions): 261.00 As of Date: 1995
Avg. GDP growth rate %: 6.40 As of Date: 1991-1995

Currency: (TWD) New Taiwan dollar Exch Rate (per USD): 27.5 As of: 12/6/96

Major Exports:

Electrical equip.
Machinery
Plastics
Textiles

Northern Trust Subcustodian
Central Trust of China
49, Wu Chang Street, Sec. 1
Taipei, Taiwan, 10006
Republic of China

Economic Diversity

Agriculture 3.40
Industry 39.30
Services 57.30

Market Performance

MSCI Index
1990 -55.40
1991 12.14
1992 -26.17
1993 82.32
1994 19.70
1995* -31.42

* Year to date as of: 8/31/95

Legal / Regulatory Environment

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) regulates direct foreign portfolio investment in the Taiwanese capital markets. The SEC, created in 1960 as a division of the Ministry of Finance, implements the "Regulations Governing Securities Investment by Overseas Chinese and Foreign Investors and Procedures for Remittance", which is the main legislation establishing the framework for foreign investment in Taiwan. The other regulatory body in Taiwan that oversees foreign investment is the Central Bank of China, which reviews the flow of New Taiwanese Dollars (TWD) into and out of the country. While the market was effectively opened to all types of foreign investors in early 1996, registration approval as a foreign investor is still required prior to investment. Two classes of foreign investors have been created from the new regulations issued in March 1996. The first class is called Qualified Foreign Institutional Investors (QFIIs) who are defined as: banks, brokers, investment managers, government investment companies, pension funds and insurance companies. QFIIs were the only group of investors who were eligible for investment prior to March 1996.

The complete article by The Northern Trust Company - covers Legal/Regulatory Environment, Trading and Settlement Practices, Taxation and more - is available to Yearbook subscribers at Taiwan..

The contents of this report are intended for informational purposes only and are not to be construed as investment advice or guidance.