TAIEX edges up 0.2 percent
The TAIEX closed slightly higher yesterday after moving in a narrow range amid cautious sentiment toward the global economy, following reports showing US manufacturing growth slowed last month, dealers said.
The financial sector came under pressure as investors unloaded their holdings despite new measures to boost cross-strait financial exchanges announced after a meeting between Taiwanese and Chinese financial regulators, the dealers said.
The weighted index closed up 13.94 points, or 0.18 percent at 7,913.18, on turnover of NT$57.46 billion (US$1.93 billion).
Fuh Hwa to launch yuan funds
Fuh Hwa Securities Investment Trust Co (復華投信) yesterday said it would pioneer the launch of yuan-denominated mutual funds in Taiwan after yuan transactions were allowed in early February.
Fuh Hwa said it is scheduled to raise funds for two planned mutual funds — the Fuh Hwa RMB (renminbi) Money Fund and the Fuh Hwa Emerging Market RMB Fixed Income Fund — between May 6 and May 17.
Fuh Hwa president Steven Chou (周輝啟) said the two funds would provide local investors with alternative investment instruments.
AT&T to sell latest HTC model
AT&T Inc, the US’ second-largest wireless carrier, will be the sole telecoms operator to sell HTC Corp’s (宏達電) flagship HTC One with 64-gigabyte storage capacity in the US.
AT&T will offer two versions of the new HTC One — the 64GB model, on which it has exclusive distribution rights among telecoms operators, and a 32GB model — the carrier said in a commercial video uploaded to YouTube on Friday.
It offered no details on the retail launch date and pricing for the new phones.
Next Media buyers pull out: FTC
The Fair Trade Commission (FTC) yesterday said it had received notice from the potential buyers of Next Media (壹傳媒) indicating their wish to withdraw from the deal.
The notice was submitted by attorneys representing the consortium of buyers, the commission said, adding that it would hold an internal meeting today to discuss the matter.
The deal fell through last month and Next Media said it would retain its print business in Taiwan.
Tax evasion clause moves up
The legislature’s Finance Committee on Monday approved on first reading a clause to prevent income tax evasion.
Once the clause passes its third reading in the legislature, starting in 2015, companies registered in some tax havens will still have to pay income taxes if their “place of effective management (PEM)” is in Taiwan.
The clause will also require controlled foreign corporations, or CFCs, to pay tax in Taiwan.
Energy lamps drive growth
Retail sales of light bulbs grew substantially last year, driven by increasing demand for energy-saving products, the local branch of market research firm GfK Group said recently.
Taiwanese consumers spent NT$5.5 billion to buy 57.9 million light bulbs and tubes last year, representing a 3 percent drop in volume, but a 20 percent increase in revenue from a year earlier, GfK Taiwan said in a research note.
Energy-saving lighting options, such as LED lights and T5 fluorescent tubes, were the main contributors to the sales growth, the company said.
NT dollar advances
The New Taiwan dollar closed higher against the US dollar yesterday, rising NT$0.008 to NT$29.920 on turnover of US$556 million.
Taiwan Transport and Storage Corp (TTS, 台灣通運倉儲) yesterday unveiled its first electric tractor unit — manufactured by Volvo Trucks — in a ceremony in Taipei, and said the unit would soon be used to transport cement produced by Taiwan Cement Corp (TCC, 台灣水泥). Both TTS and TCC belong to TCC International Holdings Ltd (台泥國際集團). With the electric tractor unit, the Taipei-based cement firm would become the first in Taiwan to use electric vehicles to transport construction materials. TTS chairman Koo Kung-yi (辜公怡), Volvo Trucks vice president of sales and marketing Johan Selven, TCC president Roman Cheng (程耀輝) and Taikoo Motors Group
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
RECORD-BREAKING: TSMC’s net profit last quarter beat market expectations by expanding 8.9% and it was the best first-quarter profit in the chipmaker’s history Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), which counts Nvidia Corp as a key customer, yesterday said that artificial intelligence (AI) server chip revenue is set to more than double this year from last year amid rising demand. The chipmaker expects the growth momentum to continue in the next five years with an annual compound growth rate of 50 percent, TSMC chief executive officer C.C. Wei (魏哲家) told investors yesterday. By 2028, AI chips’ contribution to revenue would climb to about 20 percent from a percentage in the low teens, Wei said. “Almost all the AI innovators are working with TSMC to address the
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],”