Asustek Computer Inc (華碩), the world’s No. 5 PC brand, yesterday said it stopped shipments to Russia to avoid the tumbling ruble, adding that it would maintain its quarterly outlook.
“We stopped shipments two weeks ago due to the ruble’s decline against the US dollar,” Asustek spokesman David Chang (張偉明) told the Taipei Times.
Chang said Asustek will book foreign exchange losses this quarter, but the ruble would have only limited impact on Asustek’s fourth-quarter profitability.
Asustek said quarterly laptop shipments would grow 7.84 percent sequentially to 5.5 million units.
“We will resume shipments to Russia once the ruble stabilizes,” Chang said.
Russia contributes between 5 and 6 percent to Asustek’s total revenues, Chang said.
PC brand Acer Inc (宏碁) reportedly said that it has not decided whether to stop shipments.
Acer spokeswoman Claire Yang (楊琬如) was quoted by Unique Satellite TV (非凡新聞) as saying that products have already shipped.
Asustek shares dropped 0.3 percent to NT$335 yesterday in Taipei trading, while Acer shares jumped 2.91 percent to NT$21.2.
The domestic unit of the Chinese-owned, Dutch-headquartered chipmaker Nexperia BV will soon be able to produce semiconductors locally within China, according to two company sources. Nexperia is at the center of a global tug-of-war over critical semiconductor technology, with a Dutch court in February ordering a probe into alleged mismanagement at the company. The geopolitical tussle has disrupted supply chains, with some carmakers reportedly forced to cut production due to chip shortages. Local production would allow Nexperia’s domestic arm, Nexperia Semiconductors (China) Ltd (安世半導體中國), to bypass restrictions in place since October on the supply of silicon wafers — etched with tiny components to
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