HTC denies reshuffle report
HTC Corp (宏達電), the smartphone vendor that turned profitable last quarter after three straight quarters of operating losses, yesterday denied a media report that it had reshuffled its senior management, which had been led by chief executive Peter Chou (周永明) for 10 years.
According to news Web site TechNews.tw, HTC had appointed financial officer Chang Chia-lin (張嘉臨) as chief executive and head of product research and development David Chen (陳文俊) as chief operating officer after shareholders at the company’s annual general meeting last month expressed their dissatisfaction over the performance of the management team.
In response, HTC said in an e-mailed statement that “Peter Chou, CEO of HTC, has full and final decisionmaking responsibilities. HTC’s board and broad employee base remain committed to Peter Chou’s leadership.”
AUO consolidated sales dip
AU Optronics Corp (AUO, 友達光電) yesterday reported consolidated sales of NT$34.096 billion (US$1.14 billion) for last month, down 2.6 percent from May and 7.9 percent from the previous year.
Sales in the second quarter were NT$102.042 billion, up 8.8 percent quarter-on-quarter, but down 9.2 percent year-on-year, the company said in a statement.
AUO said its shipments of large-sized panels totaled 28.85 million units in the second quarter, down 1.1 percent from the first quarter and 5.5 percent from the previous year, while those of small and medium-sized panels were more than 46.3 million units, representing a 38.4 percent increase from the previous quarter and 26.6 percent growth from the same period of last year.
Primax forecasts rosy quarter
Computer and handset peripherals maker Primax Electronics Ltd (致伸) yesterday said its sales for this quarter could hit another record level, driven by camera modules for mobile devices and digital audio electronics for home appliances.
The company’s forecast came after it released its sales for last quarter, which rose 17 percent quarter-on-quarter and 32 percent year-on-year to NT$13.58 billion, the highest level since the company relisted on the Taiwan Stock Exchange in the third quarter of 2012, Primax said in a statement.
In the first six months of the year, cumulative sales totaled NT$25.18 billion, up 20 percent from the previous year, it said.
Powertech posts mixed results
Powertech Technology Inc (力成), which provides packaging and testing services for memorychip makers, yesterday said its consolidated revenue for last month reached NT$3.52 billion, down 3.8 percent month-on-month, but up 10.2 percent year-on-year.
Revenue in the second quarter totaled NT$10.58 billion, up 14.67 percent from the first quarter, the highest level in the past seven quarters.
In the first half of the year, cumulative revenue totaled NT$19.81 billion, up 6.13 percent year-on-year.
Firms eye Ghost Month boost
E-commerce businesses are looking to boost summer sales this year, particularly during Ghost Month, which this year runs from July 27 to Aug. 24, when food for ritualistic offerings is usually in high demand.
PChome Store Inc (商店街市集), a popular shopping platform, said it is starting a campaign to promote more than 35,000 different types of food and drinks ahead of the festival and is expecting a 30 percent annual increase in the sale of such items.
Other online shopping sites, such as Yahoo Kimo Inc (雅虎奇摩) and Go Happy (快樂購物網), are also planning special promotions.
China has claimed a breakthrough in developing homegrown chipmaking equipment, an important step in overcoming US sanctions designed to thwart Beijing’s semiconductor goals. State-linked organizations are advised to use a new laser-based immersion lithography machine with a resolution of 65 nanometers or better, the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) said in an announcement this month. Although the note does not specify the supplier, the spec marks a significant step up from the previous most advanced indigenous equipment — developed by Shanghai Micro Electronics Equipment Group Co (SMEE, 上海微電子) — which stood at about 90 nanometers. MIIT’s claimed advances last
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) has appointed Rose Castanares, executive vice president of TSMC Arizona, as president of the subsidiary, which is responsible for carrying out massive investments by the Taiwanese tech giant in the US state, the company said in a statement yesterday. Castanares will succeed Brian Harrison as president of the Arizona subsidiary on Oct. 1 after the incumbent president steps down from the position with a transfer to the Arizona CEO office to serve as an advisor to TSMC Arizona’s chairman, the statement said. According to TSMC, Harrison is scheduled to retire on Dec. 31. Castanares joined TSMC in
EUROPE ON HOLD: Among a flurry of announcements, Intel said it would postpone new factories in Germany and Poland, but remains committed to its US expansion Intel Corp chief executive officer Pat Gelsinger has landed Amazon.com Inc’s Amazon Web Services (AWS) as a customer for the company’s manufacturing business, potentially bringing work to new plants under construction in the US and boosting his efforts to turn around the embattled chipmaker. Intel and AWS are to coinvest in a custom semiconductor for artificial intelligence computing — what is known as a fabric chip — in a “multiyear, multibillion-dollar framework,” Intel said in a statement on Monday. The work would rely on Intel’s 18A process, an advanced chipmaking technology. Intel shares rose more than 8 percent in late trading after the
FACTORY SHIFT: While Taiwan produces most of the world’s AI servers, firms are under pressure to move manufacturing amid geopolitical tensions Lenovo Group Ltd (聯想) started building artificial intelligence (AI) servers in India’s south, the latest boon for the rapidly growing country’s push to become a high-tech powerhouse. The company yesterday said it has started making the large, powerful computers in Pondicherry, southeastern India, moving beyond products such as laptops and smartphones. The Chinese company would also build out its facilities in the Bangalore region, including a research lab with a focus on AI. Lenovo’s plans mark another win for Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who tries to attract more technology investment into the country. While India’s tense relationship with China has suffered setbacks