Taiwan’s auto sales are expected to increase by nearly 13 percent to 370,000 vehicles this year, with next year’s sales remaining flat because of the economic slowdown, Yulon Motor Co (裕隆汽車) said yesterday.
The domestic auto industry’s recovery from the 2008 global financial crisis has steadily strengthened in the past few years, with sales rising 11.27 percent year-on-year to 327,615 vehicles last year following an increase of 28.3 percent to 294,423 vehicles in 2009, government data showed.
However, whether next year’s sales get stuck in low gear is largely dependent on the growth of the economy against the backdrop of the presidential and legislative elections next month, the debt crisis in Europe and economic growth in the US and China, said Kenneth Yen (嚴凱泰), chairman of Yulon Group (裕隆集團).
Yen made the remarks on the sidelines of a ceremony to mark the launch of Yulon’s first Luxgen-brand sedan model, Luxgen 5.
“Car sales for next year will stay at between 360,000 units and 370,000 units,” local cable TV network UBN quoted Yen as saying.
Yulon, which assembles vehicles for Nissan Motor Co of -Japan and makes the self-developed Luxgen brand sports utility vehicle (SUV), enjoys a market share of 11.6 percent in Taiwan, second only to Hotai Motor Co’s (和泰汽車) market share of 40.1 percent. Hotai distributes both Toyota and Lexus cars in Taiwan.
The new Luxgen 5 sedan comes with a 1.8 liter or 2 liter engine. According to Yulon, the 1.8 liter model is priced from NT$690,000 to NT$800,000 (US$22,900 to US$26,500), while the 2 liter model sells from NT$770,000 to NT$910,000.
The company hopes the new Luxgen 5 can help it secure a 10 percent share in the local sedan market, or about 20,000 units a year.
Based on the exterior design and accessories the Luxgen 5 offers, it is “highly competitive,” Dave Chiou (邱義昇), who tracks the manufacturing industry for Citigroup Global Markets, said in a note yesterday, adding that the car’s competitors in Taiwan would be the Toyota Altis (Corolla), the Ford Focus and the Honda Civic.
Yulon has been selling the Luxgen--brand SUV in China since September through its joint venture with China’s Dongfeng Motor Co (東風汽車).
Yulon said it would start selling the Luxgen 5 sedan in China by the end of next year.
After several years flying high as Asia’s best Nvidia Corp proxy, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) is increasingly vying with other artificial intelligence (AI) stocks for investor attention. Stock traders are chasing a wider array of beneficiaries as mainstream usage of AI creates demand for hardware beyond the most-advanced chips TSMC makes for Nvidia. Subthemes from the deepening memory crunch to advances in robotics are also luring bids. At the same time, investment caps on single stocks are pushing funds to diversify, while retail investors long familiar with TSMC through its US depositary receipts are being offered a broader set of
Netherlands-based semiconductor equipment supplier ASML Holding NV yesterday said that it is planning to hire an additional 1,000 people in Taiwan this year in response to growing demand from clients. ASML had previously planned to recruit 600 people this year, but that the plan has been adjusted upward, ASML vice president and ASML Taiwan general manager Grace Wang (汪佳慧) told reporters. ASML has a workforce of more than 4,500 in Taiwan, accounting for about 10 percent of its global total, Wang said. This year’s recruitment campaign would focus on adding people in the customer support, manufacturing and supply chain domains to assist ASML
UNDER MICROSCOPE: Taiwan detained three people who allegedly conspired to buy servers in Taiwan and export them using fraudulent documentation, prosecutors said Nvidia Corp chief executive officer Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) on Saturday urged Super Micro Computer Inc to tighten up on compliance after Taiwan detained three people this week for allegedly making fraudulent declarations about artificial intelligence (AI) servers made by its US partner. The development marked the nation’s first crackdown on semiconductor smuggling, which grew after the US slapped restrictions on exports of high-end chips such as Nvidia AI accelerators to China. Nvidia is “rigorous” in explaining regulations to all of its partners, Huang told reporters after arriving in Taipei. “Ultimately Super Micro has to run their own company,” he said in response to
Nvidia Corp yesterday announced that CEO Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) would attend an employee meeting in Taipei tomorrow to celebrate the launch of the company’s Taiwan headquarters project. Huang would attend a gathering at the site of Nvidia’s planned headquarters in Beitou Shilin Technology Park (北投士林科技園區), the company said in a statement. After arriving in Taiwan on Saturday last week, Huang told reporters that he plans to meet with Quanta Computer Inc (廣達) chairman Barry Lam (林百里) and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) chairman C.C. Wei (魏哲家), and would attend the groundbreaking ceremony for Nvidia’s Taiwan headquarters tomorrow. Nvidia has not yet applied
RSS