REAL ESTATE
Dubai prices to fall: S&P
Dubai house prices are set to fall this year because of rising supply and lower demand, though the emirate and its real-estate companies can weather the drop, according to Standard & Poor’s (S&P). Residential property prices in the emirate might retreat by 10 to 20 percent, S&P said in a statement yesterday. The slowdown follows three years of price gains in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), with the property market set to “soften” this year and early next year. Economic growth is set to ease because of the decline in oil prices, said the ratings firm, which also noted volatile local stock markets. “Real-estate companies in the UAE are better armed to deal with the current slowdown and should be able to absorb it with limited ratings impact,” credit analyst Franck Delage said in the report.
RETAIL
Starbucks ramps up loans
Starbucks Corp is more than doubling the size of a loan program for farmers that it started seven years ago to help maintain its supply of ethically sourced coffee. The company is to commit an additional US$30 million in its Global Farmer Fund program, which debuted in 2008 and has provided US$20 million in loans to more than 40,000 farmers in eight countries. The new infusion of cash is to be invested by 2020, Starbucks said in a statement yesterday. “Local commercial banks would never take the risk of these kinds of loans,” Starbucks global coffee executive vice president Craig Russell said. “As a responsible roaster, we wanted to be invested in making sure these farmers have excellent trees.” The loans have mostly been short term, helping farmers bridge the gaps between crops by providing capital for necessities like shovels and fertilizer.
FOOD
JBS to buy Moy Park
The world’s largest meat packer, Brazil’s JBS, has agreed to buy Moy Park, the British unit of Marfrig Global Foods, for US$1.5 billion, the companies said on Sunday. The purchase would solidify JBS’ strategic plans to expand into European markets. Moy Park, which originated in Northern Ireland, produces and processes poultry in Britain, Ireland, the Netherlands and France. “This transaction represents an important step in JBS’ strategy to grow its portfolio of prepared and convenient products with high value-added portfolio,” the company said in a statement. “In addition, this acquisition increases the company’s geographic diversification, with a relevant expansion of its operations in Europe.” JBS is to pay US$1.19 billion in cash for the acquisition and would take on Moy Park’s debt of £200 million (US$316.58 million). The final deal is subject to approval by JBS’ board of directors and European anti-trust regulators.
CONFECTIONERY
Ferrero eyes Thorntons
Ferrero has offered to buy British chocolate firm Thorntons PLC for £112 million (US$177.29 million), a rare acquisition by the Italian group. The deal, backed by the Thorntons board, brings together two of Europe’s best-known chocolate makers. It marks the first move by the maker of Ferrero Rocher pralines and Nutella spread since the death of its patriarch, Michele Ferrero, earlier this year. Ferrero’s death rekindled speculation about a possible takeover of the firm by larger rivals such as Mondelez International, Nestle, Mars and Hershey. However, the company has repeatedly excluded the possibility of a sale, while Ferrero CEO Giovanni Ferrero said it would consider growing through acquisitions to gain critical mass and be more competitive internationally.
DECOUPLING? In a sign of deeper US-China technology decoupling, Apple has held initial talks about using Baidu’s generative AI technology in its iPhones, the Wall Street Journal said China has introduced guidelines to phase out US microprocessors from Intel Corp and Advanced Micro Devices Inc (AMD) from government PCs and servers, the Financial Times reported yesterday. The procurement guidance also seeks to sideline Microsoft Corp’s Windows operating system and foreign-made database software in favor of domestic options, the report said. Chinese officials have begun following the guidelines, which were unveiled in December last year, the report said. They order government agencies above the township level to include criteria requiring “safe and reliable” processors and operating systems when making purchases, the newspaper said. The US has been aiming to boost domestic semiconductor
Nvidia Corp earned its US$2.2 trillion market cap by producing artificial intelligence (AI) chips that have become the lifeblood powering the new era of generative AI developers from start-ups to Microsoft Corp, OpenAI and Google parent Alphabet Inc. Almost as important to its hardware is the company’s nearly 20 years’ worth of computer code, which helps make competition with the company nearly impossible. More than 4 million global developers rely on Nvidia’s CUDA software platform to build AI and other apps. Now a coalition of tech companies that includes Qualcomm Inc, Google and Intel Corp plans to loosen Nvidia’s chokehold by going
OPENING ADDRESS: The CEO is to give a speech on the future of high-performance computing and artificial intelligence at the trade show’s opening on June 3, TAITRA said Advanced Micro Devices Inc (AMD) chairperson and chief executive officer Lisa Su (蘇姿丰) is to deliver the opening keynote speech at Computex Taipei this year, the event’s organizer said in a statement yesterday. Su is to give a speech on the future of high-performance computing (HPC) in the artificial intelligence (AI) era to open Computex, one of the world’s largest computer and technology trade events, at 9:30am on June 3, the Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA) said. Su is to explore how AMD and the company’s strategic technology partners are pushing the limits of AI and HPC, from data centers to
ENERGY IMPACT: The electricity rate hike is expected to add about NT$4 billion to TSMC’s electricity bill a year and cut its annual earnings per share by about NT$0.154 Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) has left its long-term gross margin target unchanged despite the government deciding on Friday to raise electricity rates. One of the heaviest power consuming manufacturers in Taiwan, TSMC said it always respects the government’s energy policy and would continue to operate its fabs by making efforts in energy conservation. The chipmaker said it has left a long-term goal of more than 53 percent in gross margin unchanged. The Ministry of Economic Affairs concluded a power rate evaluation meeting on Friday, announcing electricity tariffs would go up by 11 percent on average to about NT$3.4518 per kilowatt-hour (kWh)