TAIPEI: ONE of the world's richest Chinese tycoons, Mr Wang Yung-ching, has died at age 91.

The founder of Formosa Plastics died on Wednesday in the United States, leaving behind a petrochemical empire spanning Taiwan, the US, as well as China.

The rise of a tycoon Mr Wang Yung-ching was named the second wealthiest man in Taiwan by Forbes Asia in June this year. -- PHOTO: AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE 1917: Wang Yung-ching is born to a farming family in Hsintien, outside Taipei. ... more

He was at the New Jersey home of his daughter when he started to have breathing problems at around 7am US time. He was sent to hospital but died of heart failure nearly three hours later. He is survived by two sons and seven daughters from his second and third marriages.

Mr Wang, who was named Taiwan's second wealthiest man by Forbes Asia in June, had an estimated US$6.8 billion (S$10 billion) fortune.

Yesterday, politicians in Taiwan were united in paying tribute to the man once voted the most influential figure in Taiwan for his entrepreneurial smarts and foresight.

China's official Xinhua news agency picked up news of his death within hours, noting that he 'attached great importance to the exchanges and cooperation across the Taiwan Strait'.

'He had repeatedly called for the acceleration and expansion of trade and economic cooperation with the Chinese mainland in recent years,' wrote Xinhua.

One of the first to invest in China, Taiwan-born Mr Wang believed that if Taipei worked together with Beijing like brothers, it would be the best for the island's future.

Global Views Monthly Magazine's founder Charles Kao said that no one from China and Taiwan could hold a candle to Mr Wang in terms of his perseverance, discipline, achievements, and the extent of his business and social contributions.

'He's a historical figure who would be hard to surpass.'

President Ma Ying-jeou has expressed his utmost respect for the late tycoon's outstanding contribution to Taiwan's economy.

In his statement, he also expressed admiration for Mr Wang's foresight when it came to cross-strait issues.

Democratic Progressive Party chairman Tsai Ing-wen paid tribute to Mr Wang. 'The path taken by Formosa Plastics mirrors the history of Taiwan's post-war economy,' she said.

Born in 1917 to a poor farming family in Hsintien, outside Taipei, Mr Wang started working at the age of nine after his father, a tea farmer, fell ill.

At age 15, armed with only primary school education, he worked as an apprentice in a rice shop before raising enough money to start his own business.

He gained an edge over his bigger rivals by washing the dirt from rice grains and making home deliveries - considerable innovations during those times.

At age 26, Mr Wang went into timber, cashing in on the post-war building boom.

But one of his most significant business moves was made in 1954, when he went big on plastics, setting up Formosa Plastics, now one of the world's largest makers of PVC.

He went on to set up two other companies downstream to make products using materials from his first company.

As his business grew in the 1960s and 1970s, so did Taiwan's economy, which took off on the back of exports like the plastic products made by Mr Wang's companies.

When Taiwan moved from making cheap toys and textiles to semiconductors and computers, the Formosa Group did the same.

And it was Formosa that led the charge when Taiwanese companies started to move their manufacturing bases to China in the 1990s.

Besides being admired for his business acumen, Mr Wang was widely known for his thrifty ways. He was known for taking cold showers, not wasting a single drop of dairy creamer and preferring the humble minced pork rice to sumptuous dishes.

He had also been active in building schools in China and had taken the lead in donating money to help victims of the Sichuan earthquake earlier this year.

Yesterday, the stock prices of companies under the Formosa Group fell in response to news of Mr Wang's death.

hoaili@sph.com.sg