Taiwan, Singapore to allow companies trade on each other's bourses

TAIPEI - The stock exchangees of Taiwan and Singapore will allow their companies to list on each other's bourses by end of 2014, the Taiwan exchange said on Tuesday, in the island's latest attempt to boost its competitiveness across Asian markets.

Chairman Lee Shui-der of the Taiwan Stock Exchange (TWSE) said the TWSE and the Singapore Exchange (SGX) had agreed to such a cross-border trade, aiming to pick 30 to 50 companies from each side.

"We have met and we both hoped to increase trading by doing so," Lee said. "It is for sure a trend for stock exchanges to globalise." Lee did not say which companies would be chosen for the cross-border trade, but a local newspaper reported they included blue chips such as Taiwan's TSMC and Hon Hai Precision . Both are suppliers of Apple Inc.

Singaporean companies included Singapore Airlines and Singapore Telecommunications, the Commercial Times said.

The TWSE is set to sign a memorandum of understanding with the Shanghai Stock Exchange later this year, in a move that would strengthen capital market links across the Taiwan Straits.

Business ties between Taiwan and China have steadily increased since Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou took office in 2008. Both sides signed a yuan clearing deal last year, opening the door for Taiwan to become an offshore centre with Hong Kong and Singapore.