SOLAR WAFERS
Green Energy reports growth
Green Energy Technology Inc (綠能科技), the nation’s biggest solar wafer maker, yesterday reported 16.7 percent monthly growth in revenue for last month, from NT$1.32 billion (US$41.8 million) to NT$1.54 billion. On an annual basis, the figure represented growth of 14.7 percent from NT$1.34 billion. The company said it plans to expand its reach in the US and Asian markets. Green Energy said factory utilization was more than 95 percent last month.
COMMUNICATIONS
ICT firms form group
Taiwanese information and communications technology (ICT) companies yesterday established a joint industry association, seeking to become a member of the Third-Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) to have a say in the common standards for next-generation mobile networks. The Taiwan Association of Information and Communications Standards will also help companies develop intellectual property for sectors including communications, connected devices and smart buildings, said Asustek Computer Inc (華碩電腦) vice chairman Jonathan Tsang (曾鏘聲), who is president of the new association. Working with organizations like the 3GPP can help Taiwanese companies improve their patent portfolios and help them avoid paying huge royalties to Western companies that own essential patents in the ICT industry, Tsang said at the inauguration ceremony.
ONLINE SHOPPING
Web sales on the rise
Electronic commerce transactions increased 15 percent to more than NT$900 billion in Taiwan last year from the previous year, Deputy Minister of Economic Affairs Cho Shi-chao (卓士昭) said yesterday. E-commerce transactions are expected to break the NT$1 trillion mark this year, Cho said. Cho made the remarks during a ceremony at the Nangang Software Park in Taipei, during which he officially opened this year’s Taiwan Online Shopping Festival. The two-week festival, which runs through Feb. 18, has drawn 27 online and mobile shopping platform operators, including Momo.com Inc (富邦媒), Save & Safe (大買家) and Yahoo Kimo Super Mall (Yahoo!奇摩購物中心), which are associated with 100,000 suppliers.
CURRENCY
Tranches issued, planned
Five domestic and international companies have or are set to issue six tranches of foreign currency corporate bonds in Taiwan this week, the GRETAI Securities Market (GTSM, 櫃買中心) said yesterday. The five issuers will boost the number of companies that have sold and will sell non-New Taiwan dollar-denominated corporate bonds in Taiwan to 58, a new high, the GTSM said. JPMorgan Chase & Co, a US brokerage, issued a tranche of US$215 million in corporate bonds yesterday with a maturity of 30 years and a zero coupon rate. Goldman Sachs Group Inc, another US-based financial giant, sold US$641 million in corporate bonds, with a 30 year maturity and a zero coupon rate. Also yesterday, Cayman Ton Yi Holdings Ltd, an overseas subsidiary wholly owned by Taiwan-based tin can supplier Ton Yi Industrial Corp (統一實業), issued 142 million yuan (US$22.72 million) in bonds on the local market. The tranche carried a maturity of three years and a coupon rate of 4.20 percent. The London branch of Credit Suisse AG is today scheduled to issue two tranches of international bonds, including one for US$400 million bond and another of A$60 million (US$46.2 million), while Taipei Fubon Commercial Bank (台北富邦) is scheduled to sell US$100 million worth of bonds.
purpose: Tesla’s CEO sought to meet senior Chinese officials to discuss the rollout of its ‘full self-driving’ software in China and approval to transfer data they had collected Tesla Inc CEO Elon Musk arrived in Beijing yesterday on an unannounced visit, where he is expected to meet senior officials to discuss the rollout of "full self-driving" (FSD) software and permission to transfer data overseas, according to a person with knowledge of the matter. Chinese state media reported that he met Premier Li Qiang (李強) in Beijing, during which Li told Musk that Tesla's development in China could be regarded as a successful example of US-China economic and trade cooperation. Musk confirmed his meeting with the premier yesterday with a post on social media platform X. "Honored to meet with Premier Li
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE: The chipmaker last month raised its capital spending by 28 percent for this year to NT$32 billion from a previous estimate of NT$25 billion Contract chipmaker Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp (力積電子) yesterday launched a new 12-inch fab, tapping into advanced chip-on-wafer-on-substrate (CoWoS) packaging technology to support rising demand for artificial intelligence (AI) devices. Powerchip is to offer interposers, one of three parts in CoWoS packaging technology, with shipments scheduled for the second half of this year, Powerchip chairman Frank Huang (黃崇仁) told reporters on the sidelines of a fab inauguration ceremony in the Tongluo Science Park (銅鑼科學園區) in Miaoli County yesterday. “We are working with customers to supply CoWoS-related business, utilizing part of this new fab’s capacity,” Huang said, adding that Powerchip intended to bridge
Dutch brewing company Heineken NV on Friday announced an investment of NT$13.5 billion (US$414.62 million) over the next five years in Taiwan. The first multinational brewing company to operate in Taiwan, Heineken made the statement at a ceremony held at its brewery in Pingtung County. It also outlined its efforts to make the brewery “net zero” by 2030. Heineken has been in the Taiwanese market for 20 years, Heineken Taiwan managing director Jeff Wu (吳建甫) said. With strong support from local consumers, the Dutch brewery decided to transition from sales to manufacturing in the country, Wu said. Heineken assumed majority ownership and management rights
Microsoft Corp yesterday said that it would create Thailand’s first data center region to boost cloud and artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure, promising AI training to more than 100,000 people to develop tech. Bangkok is a key economic player in Southeast Asia, but it has lagged behind Indonesia and Singapore when it comes to the tech industry. Thailand has an “incredible opportunity to build a digital-first, AI-powered future,” Microsoft chairman and chief executive officer Satya Nadella said at an event in Bangkok. Data center regions are physical locations that store computing infrastructure, allowing secure and reliable access to cloud platforms. The global embrace of AI