INTERNET
EU regulators charge Google
The EU yesterday formally charged US Internet giant Google Inc with abusing its search engine dominance and launched a sensitive probe into its omnipresent Android mobile phone operating system. On the first count, the European Commission said it had sent a formal “Statement of Objections” to Google, charging it with “systematically favoring its own comparison shopping product in its general search results pages.” The commission’s preliminary view is that “such conduct infringes EU antitrust rules because it stifles competition and harms consumers,” a statement said. Google is facing a fine of up to 10 percent of its annual sales, which translates as US$66 billion for last year.
ECONOMY
Inflation rises in Germany
Inflation in Europe’s biggest economy crept higher last month, final data showed yesterday. The German national consumer price index rose by 0.3 percent year-on-year in March, up from 0.1 percent in February, the federal statistics office Destatis said in a statement. The Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices was also back in positive territory, rising by 0.1 percent year-on-year last month, compared with a drop of 0.1 percent the previous month.
EMPLOYMENT
S Korea jobless rate falls
South Korea’s jobless rate fell to 4 percent last month, state data showed yesterday, but unemployment among young people continued to rise. The overall rate was down from the 4.6 percent registered in February — the highest for five years — but slightly up on the 3.9 percent figure from a year ago, according to state-run Statistics Korea. The jobless rate last month among people aged 15 to 29 was 10.7 percent, and 9.5 percent among those aged 25 to 29.
FOOD & BEVERAGE
Nestle to sell Davigel
Nestle SA said it is in exclusive negotiations to sell its Davigel frozen-food division to the Brakes Group, a European catering supplier. The Vevey, Switzerland-based food company yesterday said it is not disclosing financial details of the prospective deal, which is subject to consultations with employee councils and approval by competition authorities. Nestle announced in November last year that it was exploring “strategic options” for Davigel. The Brakes Group is owned by private equity manager Bain Capital.
ENTERTAINMENT
Digital, physical sales on par
A music industry body said global revenue from digital music matched that from physical albums and compact discs for the first time last year. The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry’s annual digital music report released on Tuesday showed that digital and physical sales each accounted for 46 percent of the US$14.97 billion in global music revenues. Income from performance rights and synchronization revenue made up the rest. The total was down 0.4 percent from 2013.
CHIPMAKERS
Intel Q1 earnings climb
Intel Corp, the world’s largest maker of semiconductors, on Tuesday reported slightly higher first-quarter earnings, reflecting aggressive cost management in a weak market for personal computers. Intel reported that net income rose by 3 percent to US$2 billion, compared with the year-ago quarter. Intel’s per-share income rose by 8 percent, to US0.41 per share, reflecting a smaller number of shares outstanding, owing to stock buybacks. Revenue was flat, at US$12.8 billion.
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],”