ITRI sees manufacturing gloom
The nation’s manufacturing output is to grow at a slower pace next year than it has this year, as four major industries are to be impacted by global economic uncertainties, the Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI, 工研院) forecast yesterday.
The manufacturing sector’s output is forecast to rise 2.86 percent to NT$18.25 trillion (US$600.5 billion) next year compared with this year, when output is predicted to increase 3.26 percent year-on-year to NT$17.74 trillion, ITRI’s Industrial Economic Knowledge Center told a press conference.
The institute said that the forecast for this year has been revised upward from the 3.19 percent estimate it made in July because it felt that the information and electronics industry would make a solid improvement in the second half of the year.
Food service sector to do well
The nation’s food service industry is likely to turn in a good overall performance for the year, given the NT$280.2 billion in revenue that it registered in the first eight months, representing annual growth of 4.6 percent, Vice Minister of Economic Affairs Bill Cho (卓士昭) said yesterday at a food industry forum in Taipei.
Cho said a strong food and drink service sector can help promote developments in agriculture, tourism, exhibitions and culture, but stopped short of addressing the possible impact the recent adulterated oil scandals will have on the industry.
The food service sector’s revenue topped NT$400 billion for the first time last year, rising by an annual 1.6 percent to NT$400.7 billion, ministry statistics show, and Cho said that revenue could be even higher this year.
Sony may cut smartphone goal
Sony Corp may cut its annual sales target for smartphones for the second time this year, according to a person familiar with the matter.
The revision could be announced when the Japanese electronics conglomerate releases second-quarter earnings on Friday next week, the person said, asking not to be identified because the information is confidential.
The company in July said it expects to sell 43 million of its Xperia devices in the 12 months ending in March, lowering an earlier projection of 50 million.
AUO to cap working hours
AU Optronics Corp (AUO, 友達光電), the nation’s No. 2 LCD panel maker, yesterday said it would cap salaried employees’ working hours at 80 for a two-week period, with the regulation to take effect on Nov. 1.
Under the Labor Standards Act (勞動基準法), the total number of working hours should not exceed 84 hours within a two-week period.
AUO said in a statement that the new measure would benefit more than 20,000 employees.
Google axes Himax option
Himax Technologies Inc (奇景光電) on Tuesday announced that Google Inc has decided not to exercise its previously issued purchase option to make an additional investment in its subsidiary, Himax Display Inc (立景光電), which supplies liquid-crystal-on-silicon microdisplay technology for Google Glass.
The US search engine giant acquired a 6.3 percent stake in Himax Display in October last year and had the option to increase its stake to 14.8 percent. Google’s decision to opt out of second-round investment will not affect the two companies’ strategic partnership, Himax Technologies said.
The companies did not elaborate on Google’s decision.
iPhones to top Apple target
Deutsche Bank expects shipments of Apple Inc’s iPhone to beat its manufacturer’s forecast during the holiday season because of strong demand for the new larger-screen iPhone 6 models.
The bank said in a client note on Tuesday that iPhone shipments would reach 65 million to 70 million units this quarter, implying 65 to 78 percent growth from the 39.3 million iPhones sold in the previous quarter. That would be higher than Apple’s growth guidance of a sequential increase of 51 to 58 percent.
On Monday, Apple said it shipped 12.3 million iPads and 5.5 million Mac computers in the last quarter.
TPK denies Hon Hai rumors
TPK Holding Co Ltd (宸鴻) yesterday called media speculation that Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密) could invest in the touchpanel supplier totally ungrounded.
TPK also issued a statement to clarify that there have not been any changes in management at the company, as reported by local media, but its shares still fell 6.55 percent to close at NT$157 in Taipei trading yesterday.
On Tuesday, shares rose as high as NT$172 on speculation that Hon Hai would acquire some TPK shares at NT$130 per share. The stock ended at NT$168 on Tuesday.
O-film Tech may buy Wintek unit
Shenzen, China-based O-film Tech Co Ltd (歐菲光科技) may be planning to buy Taiwanese touchpanel manufacturer Wintek Corp’s (勝華科技) plant in Suzhou, China, local media reported on Tuesday.
On Oct. 13, Wintek said it had filed a court petition seeking a restructuring of its business.
Since 2010, the firm has been incurring losses amid escalating competition, with its loss per share rising to NT$5.55 last year from NT$1.64 in 2012 and NT$1.16 in 2011.
In the first half of this year, Wintek posted an additional NT$1.71 in losses per share.
Stephen Garrett, a 27-year-old graduate student, always thought he would study in China, but first the country’s restrictive COVID-19 policies made it nearly impossible and now he has other concerns. The cost is one deterrent, but Garrett is more worried about restrictions on academic freedom and the personal risk of being stranded in China. He is not alone. Only about 700 American students are studying at Chinese universities, down from a peak of nearly 25,000 a decade ago, while there are nearly 300,000 Chinese students at US schools. Some young Americans are discouraged from investing their time in China by what they see
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
MAJOR DROP: CEO Tim Cook, who is visiting Hanoi, pledged the firm was committed to Vietnam after its smartphone shipments declined 9.6% annually in the first quarter Apple Inc yesterday said it would increase spending on suppliers in Vietnam, a key production hub, as CEO Tim Cook arrived in the country for a two-day visit. The iPhone maker announced the news in a statement on its Web site, but gave no details of how much it would spend or where the money would go. Cook is expected to meet programmers, content creators and students during his visit, online newspaper VnExpress reported. The visit comes as US President Joe Biden’s administration seeks to ramp up Vietnam’s role in the global tech supply chain to reduce the US’ dependence on China. Images on
New apartments in Taiwan’s major cities are getting smaller, while old apartments are increasingly occupied by older people, many of whom live alone, government data showed. The phenomenon has to do with sharpening unaffordable property prices and an aging population, property brokers said. Apartments with one bedroom that are two years old or older have gained a noticeable presence in the nation’s six special municipalities as well as Hsinchu county and city in the past five years, Evertrust Rehouse Co (永慶房產集團) found, citing data from the government’s real-price transaction platform. In Taipei, apartments with one bedroom accounted for 19 percent of deals last