Taipei- Guatemala and Taiwan on Wednesday agreed to strengthen bilateral ties by expanding trade and increasing exchange visits.

President Alvaro Colom of Guatemala on his four-day visit to Taiwan was expected to discuss bilateral relations with President Ma Ying-jeou and attend Taiwan's National Day celebrations.

Taipei - Taiwan's September exports suffered their largest decline in six years due to the global recession, the Taiwan Finance Ministry said Tuesday.

In September, Taiwan's exports totalled 21.85 billion US dollars, down 1.6 per cent year on year, the biggest fall since April 2004.

The biggest decline was in exports to China and Hong Kong, which fell 16.3 per cent year on year. China and HK together account for 35 per cent of Taiwan's export.

Taipei - On the international arms market, it is believed that money can buy anything. But not in the case of Taiwan.

The government of Taiwan, holder of the world's fifth-largest foreign currency reserves - 281.1 billion US dollars - believes it desperately needs to buy modern weapons to guard against a possible attack from China.

Yet with China's power growing year by year, fewer and fewer countries are willing to sell arms to Taiwan, for fear of offending China.

China sees Taiwan as its breakaway province and has vowed to recover the island by force if Taipei seeks formal independence from - or indefinitely delays unification with - the mainland.

Taipei  - Taiwan stocks fell more than 4 per cent by mid-morning Monday as investors worried about the global economic slump.

The Taiex dropped 236.53 points, or 4.12 per cent, to close at 5,505.

"Major Asian shares dived today because, despite the passing of the 700-billion-US-dollar rescue package in the US Congress, many Americans don't think the package can solve all of America's economic problems," said Chiu Hsin-lin, executive vice president of the Industrial Bank of Taiwan Securities.

Taipei  - Taiwan stocks fell more than 3 per cent by mid-morning Monday as investors worried about the global economic slump.

The Taiex dropped 176.67 points, or 3.08 per cent, to 5,565.56 three hours into trading.

"Major Asian shares dived today because, despite the passing of the 700-billion-US-dollar rescue package in the US Congress, many Americans don't think the package can solve all of America's economic problems," said Chiu Hsin-lin, executive vice president of the Industrial Bank of Taiwan Securities.