More businesses closed in Taiwan last year than the previous year, the latest statistics compiled by the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) showed, with the number of companies registered with the government falling by more than 20,000 as of November from a year ago.
As of the end of November, 578,815 companies were registered with the government, down from 599,521 at the end of 2007, MOEA statistics showed.
It was the first time that the number had dipped below 580,000. At the end of 2001 the figure was at 582,537, the MOEA said, attributing the low figure to the burst of the Internet bubble that year.
The MOEA predicted that the figure would be lower once last month’s closures were tallied.
MOEA officials attributed the decrease in registered companies to the financial crunch that has swept the globe.
During the first 11 months of last year, there were 27,824 applications for new businesses, representing an annual contraction of 10.4 percent, MOEA tallies showed. A total of 29,921 new companies opened for the whole of 2001.
A total of 155 companies applied for government funds to help them tackle financial difficulties during the period from Sept. 30 to Wednesday, with around 74 percent of them classified as small or medium-sized businesses, MOEA statistics showed.
Huawei Technologies Co’s (華為) latest smartphones carry a version of the advanced made-in-China processor it revealed last year, results from an independent analysis showed. This underscored the Chinese company’s ability to sustain production of the controversial chip. The Pura 70 series unveiled last week sports the Kirin 9010 processor, research firm TechInsights found during a teardown of the device. This is a newer version of the Kirin 9000s, made by Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp (SMIC, 中芯) for the Mate 60 Pro, which had alarmed officials in Washington who thought a 7-nanometer chip was beyond China’s capabilities. Huawei has enjoyed a resurgence since
purpose: Tesla’s CEO sought to meet senior Chinese officials to discuss the rollout of its ‘full self-driving’ software in China and approval to transfer data they had collected Tesla Inc CEO Elon Musk arrived in Beijing yesterday on an unannounced visit, where he is expected to meet senior officials to discuss the rollout of "full self-driving" (FSD) software and permission to transfer data overseas, according to a person with knowledge of the matter. Chinese state media reported that he met Premier Li Qiang (李強) in Beijing, during which Li told Musk that Tesla's development in China could be regarded as a successful example of US-China economic and trade cooperation. Musk confirmed his meeting with the premier yesterday with a post on social media platform X. "Honored to meet with Premier Li
Dutch brewing company Heineken NV on Friday announced an investment of NT$13.5 billion (US$414.62 million) over the next five years in Taiwan. The first multinational brewing company to operate in Taiwan, Heineken made the statement at a ceremony held at its brewery in Pingtung County. It also outlined its efforts to make the brewery “net zero” by 2030. Heineken has been in the Taiwanese market for 20 years, Heineken Taiwan managing director Jeff Wu (吳建甫) said. With strong support from local consumers, the Dutch brewery decided to transition from sales to manufacturing in the country, Wu said. Heineken assumed majority ownership and management rights
GROWTH DRIVERS: The firm expects to benefit from generative AI applications for smartphones, higher average selling price of flagship chips and market share gains Smartphone chip designer MediaTek Inc (聯發科) yesterday said it estimates that revenue would expand at an annual rate of about 15 percent this year, as a proliferation of generative artificial intelligence (AI) applications for premium smartphones are fueling demand for its flagship smartphone chips. It expects its smartphone chip revenue to outgrow the company’s average growth rate this year, benefiting primarily from the higher average selling price of its flagship smartphone chips and market share gains. The flagship chip revenue is to soar 50 percent year-on-year this year, MediaTek told an investor conference yesterday. As a whole, this year’s gross margin is