Taiwan Cement to list GDRs on Luxembourg stock exchange

Taiwan Cement Corp said Tuesday that it has issued US$549m-worth of global depositary receipts (GDRs). 

The GDRs, issued a day earlier, are scheduled to list on the Luxembourg stock exchange on 3 August, according to Taiwan Cement.



The proceeds from the GDR sale will be used to invest in the company's subsidiaries overseas, which will help them repay part of their loans, while the funds will also be used to improve the company's financial structure, which is expected to lower its borrowing costs in the future.

It is the first time Taiwan Cement has sold GDRs since it launched a listing on the Taiwan Stock Exchange in February 1962.

 Taiwan Cement said the GDR sale was the largest in value for any Taiwanese firm to raise funds overseas over the past five years, and also the largest by any Taiwanese cement maker since 2010.



Taiwan Cement said it issued 87.50m GDRs, which represent 437.5m common shares. Each GDR is priced at US$6.27, an equivalent of TWD38.4 (US$1.25) per common share.



The GDR sale is part of Taiwan Cement's fund-raising activity, worth up to TWD40bn (U$1.3m) for 2018, announced by the company in June. In addition to the GDR sale, financial experts suggest Taiwan Cement is also likely to sell company bonds overseas or issue new shares in the local market.