Taipei - Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp (TSMC), the world's largest contract chipmaker, on Monday revised down its fourth-quarter production target owing to the global recession.

"The company now expects fourth-quarter revenue to be between 63 billion and 65 billion Taiwan dollars (1.9 billion-1.96 billion US dollars), instead of the previous expectation of 69 billion-71 billion Taiwan dollars," TSMC said in a statement.

Taipei - Taiwan's China Airli

Taipei- Taiwan and China will hold the last round of consultations next week to prepare for launching direct shipping in mid-December, a newspaper said Saturday.

The United Daily News (UDN) said that China's Cross-Strait Shipping Association will send a delegation to Taiwan on December 2 to discuss technicalities of direct shipping with Taiwan's shipping officials.

During the eight-day visit, the delegation will hold talks with its Taiwan counterparts on the details of direct shipping as well as disputes between the two sides.

Taipei  - Tibet's exiled spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, said Friday that he hopes to visit Taiwan in 2009, in what would be his first visit in seven years and an apparent reversal of a policy of avoiding the island for fear of angering China.

"Taiwan-China ties are developing smoothly, so maybe this is a good time, the Dalai Lama told Elta TV in the northern Indian city of Dharamsala. "I haven't visited Taiwan for several years, but I have never forgotten Taiwan."

The Dalai Lama praised Taiwan's democracy in the televised interview.

Taipei  - Taiwan's Foreign Affairs Ministry said Friday that two of the island's major air carriers were to bring home people from Taiwan who have been stranded in Thailand because of the occupation of Bangkok's two airports by anti-government protestors.

"We have coordinated with China Airlines and EVA Airways to help bring our people back," said Chang Chi-ping, deputy ministry spokesman.

He said about 500 people from Taiwan were still stranded at Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi International Airport but would be transferred to airports outside Bangkok from where the two airlines would take them back to Taiwan.

Taipei  - Star Cruises, the world's third-largest cruise line and the leading Asia-Pacific cruise line, plans to launch a cruise service between Taiwan and China in early 2009, its Taiwan manager said Friday.

"Since Taiwan has dropped the ban on direct shipping with China, we will apply to launch regular cruise service between Taiwan and China next spring," Andy Lew said.