Stocks fell for a second day yesterday, with the TAIEX having its biggest slide in more than two months.
MediaTek Inc (聯發科技), the world's largest supplier of semiconductors, led technology-related shares lower after its second-quarter profit disappointed some investors.
The TAIEX shed 117.74 points, or 2.2 percent, to 5,259.45 -- its biggest percentage drop since April 28.
About six stocks declined for every one that gained. August futures on the benchmark fell 1.4 percent to 5,293.
"MediaTek's profit report just wasn't good enough," said Fam Hsieh, who manages the US$35 million Balance Fund at Grand Cathay Securities Trust Co (大華投信).
Hsieh's fund has risen 14.5 percent since June, the same as the TAIEX.
"The technology industry recovery has already been reflected in recent rallies," he said.
MediaTek fell NT$22, or 5.2 percent, to NT$405.
The stock has gained 42 percent this year, compared with the index's 18 percent gain. The company said yesterday after the market closed that its second-quarter profit rose 27 percent.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (台積電), the world's largest maker of computer chips on a subcontracting basis, dropped NT$1.50, or 2.5 percent, to NT$58.50.
Rival United Microelectronics Corp (聯電) lost 2.9 percent to close at NT$23.50, while computer maker Acer Inc fell just 0.8 percent to NT$48.30, and Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密) fell NT$6, or 3.7 percent, to NT$157.
Taiwan Cellular Corp (
Taiwan Cellular may take over eight units as part of a reorganization, a Chinese-language newspaper reported, without saying where it got the information.
Taiwan Cellular acting chairman Daniel Tsai (蔡明忠) will probably take the place of chairmen at the units in charge of operations such as engineering and customer service, the report said.
Among the rows of vibrators, rubber torsos and leather harnesses at a Chinese sex toys exhibition in Shanghai this weekend, the beginnings of an artificial intelligence (AI)-driven shift in the industry quietly pulsed. China manufactures about 70 percent of the world’s sex toys, most of it the “hardware” on display at the fair — whether that be technicolor tentacled dildos or hyper-realistic personalized silicone dolls. Yet smart toys have been rising in popularity for some time. Many major European and US brands already offer tech-enhanced products that can enable long-distance love, monitor well-being and even bring people one step closer to
Malaysia’s leader yesterday announced plans to build a massive semiconductor design park, aiming to boost the Southeast Asian nation’s role in the global chip industry. A prominent player in the semiconductor industry for decades, Malaysia accounts for an estimated 13 percent of global back-end manufacturing, according to German tech giant Bosch. Now it wants to go beyond production and emerge as a chip design powerhouse too, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said. “I am pleased to announce the largest IC (integrated circuit) Design Park in Southeast Asia, that will house world-class anchor tenants and collaborate with global companies such as Arm [Holdings PLC],”
Sales in the retail, and food and beverage sectors last month continued to rise, increasing 0.7 percent and 13.6 percent respectively from a year earlier, setting record highs for the month of March, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said yesterday. Sales in the wholesale sector also grew last month by 4.6 annually, mainly due to the business opportunities for emerging applications related to artificial intelligence (AI) and high-performance computing technologies, the ministry said in a report. The ministry forecast that retail, and food and beverage sales this month would retain their growth momentum as the former would benefit from Tomb Sweeping Day
Thousands of parents in Singapore are furious after a Cordlife Group Ltd (康盛人生集團), a major operator of cord blood banks in Asia, irreparably damaged their children’s samples through improper handling, with some now pursuing legal action. The ongoing case, one of the worst to hit the largely untested industry, has renewed concerns over companies marketing themselves to anxious parents with mostly unproven assurances. This has implications across the region, given Cordlife’s operations in Hong Kong, Macau, Indonesia, the Philippines and India. The parents paid for years to have their infants’ cord blood stored, with the understanding that the stem cells they contained