Barclays Capital PLC has cut its sequential growth forecast for notebook computer shipments in the third quarter to 7 percent, from a previous estimate of 10 percent, after Taiwan’s major notebook makers reported weaker-than-expected shipments for last month.
The foreign brokerage said it expected further cuts in orders because the slowing global economy and weak end-market demand have put a damper on the back-to-school shopping season for the notebook market this year.
Taiwan’s major notebook makers, such as Quanta Computer Inc (廣達), Compal Electronics Inc (仁寶), Wistron Corp (緯創), Pegatron Corp (和碩), Asustek Computer Inc (華碩) and Acer Inc (宏碁) released monthly sales data last week that showed shipments slowing ahead of the launch of Windows 8-equipped devices in the fourth quarter.
With data suggesting global notebook shipments were down 16 percent last month from June, Barclays said the figure was bigger than its estimate of a 14 percent monthly decrease.
“Channel inventory remained on the high side,” Barclays Capital hardware and components research head Kirk Yang (楊應超) said in a research report issued over the weekend.
In addition, Yang attributed the declining shipments to global economic uncertainties that have dragged down notebook sales and consumers’ waiting for the launch of Windows 8, which is scheduled to hit the market on Oct. 26.
Compared with notebook shipments, shipments for desktops and computer motherboards, which reported 1 percent growth for last month from June, were better than Barclays’ forecast of a 1 percent monthly decline.
Yang said he believed the better figures were the result of companies’ aggressive promotion activities and a modest recovery in Chinese demand.
Looking at this quarter, the brokerage said it maintained its previous shipments forecast for the sector — an increase of 6 percent from the second quarter — although the forecast would still be below normal seasonal figures of a 9 percent increase, according to the report.
DIVIDED VIEWS: Although the Fed agreed on holding rates steady, some officials see no rate cuts for this year, while 10 policymakers foresee two or more cuts There are a lot of unknowns about the outlook for the economy and interest rates, but US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell signaled at least one thing seems certain: Higher prices are coming. Fed policymakers voted unanimously to hold interest rates steady at a range of 4.25 percent to 4.50 percent for a fourth straight meeting on Wednesday, as they await clarity on whether tariffs would leave a one-time or more lasting mark on inflation. Powell said it is still unclear how much of the bill would fall on the shoulders of consumers, but he expects to learn more about tariffs
NOT JUSTIFIED: The bank’s governor said there would only be a rate cut if inflation falls below 1.5% and economic conditions deteriorate, which have not been detected The central bank yesterday kept its key interest rates unchanged for a fifth consecutive quarter, aligning with market expectations, while slightly lowering its inflation outlook amid signs of cooling price pressures. The move came after the US Federal Reserve held rates steady overnight, despite pressure from US President Donald Trump to cut borrowing costs. Central bank board members unanimously voted to maintain the discount rate at 2 percent, the secured loan rate at 2.375 percent and the overnight lending rate at 4.25 percent. “We consider the policy decision appropriate, although it suggests tightening leaning after factoring in slackening inflation and stable GDP growth,”
Meta Platforms Inc offered US$100 million bonuses to OpenAI employees in an unsuccessful bid to poach the ChatGPT maker’s talent and strengthen its own generative artificial intelligence (AI) teams, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has said. Facebook’s parent company — a competitor of OpenAI — also offered “giant” annual salaries exceeding US$100 million to OpenAI staffers, Altman said in an interview on the Uncapped with Jack Altman podcast released on Tuesday. “It is crazy,” Sam Altman told his brother Jack in the interview. “I’m really happy that at least so far none of our best people have decided to take them
PLANS: MSI is also planning to upgrade its service center in the Netherlands Micro-Star International Co (MSI, 微星) yesterday said it plans to set up a server assembly line at its Poland service center this year at the earliest. The computer and peripherals manufacturer expects that the new server assembly line would shorten transportation times in shipments to European countries, a company spokesperson told the Taipei Times by telephone. MSI manufactures motherboards, graphics cards, notebook computers, servers, optical storage devices and communication devices. The company operates plants in Taiwan and China, and runs a global network of service centers. The company is also considering upgrading its service center in the Netherlands into a
RSS