MANUFACTURING
Sector remains in recession
The local manufacturing sector remained in a recession last month, as the latest composite index flashed a blue light for the 12th consecutive month, the Taiwan Institute of Economic Research (TIER, 台灣經濟研究院) reported yesterday. The streak of 12 blue lights was the longest for manufacturing activity in Taiwan since the global financial crisis between July 2008 and May 2009, the institute said. The score of the composite index reached 9.98 points last month and that in February revised down from 11.02 to 9.26 points, the institute said.
ELECTRONICS
Sharp to announce layoffs
Sharp Corp is planning to layoff about 1,000 employees as part of its efforts to strengthen its financial structure after the loss-incurring Japanese firm inked an agreement to sell a majority stake to Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密) earlier this month, according to a news report. The Nihon Keizai Shimbun said that although Hon Hai said it would retain as many of Sharp’s employees as possible after the acquisition deal, as the Japanese firm’s financial condition is worse than expected, the Taiwanese shareholder is likely to be forced to cut Sharp’s workforce.
GAMING
Macronix posts Q1 loss
Macronix International Co (旺宏電子), which supplies memory chips for Japanese video game console maker Nintendo Co, yesterday posted a net loss of NT$891 million (US$27.6 million) in the first quarter of this year, compared with losses of NT$1.67 billion in the previous quarter. The company’s gross margin recovered to 15 percent in the first quarter from 8 percent in the previous quarter, while revenue fell 9 percent quarter-on-quarter to NT$5.09 billion due to seasonal factors, Macronix said. As the company’s net value fell to NT$4.84 per share in the first quarter, trading in Macronix shares is likely to be restricted to cash-only transactions. The Taiwan Stock Exchange is likely to announce Macronix is to be suspended for margin trading on its shares.
LIGHTING
Coretronic’s earnings dim
Coretronic Corp (中光電), a manufacturer of LCD backlight modules, yesterday reported earnings per share of NT$0.59 for the first quarter, after net income increased 10.7 percent annually to NT$322 million. Coretronic, which also produces energy-saving items, visual-solution products and projectors, said revenue in the first quarter declined by 12.1 percent from a year earlier to NT$13.896 billion, affected by seasonally low demand and impacts from an earthquake in February.
BANKING
Taishin payout approved
Taishin Financial Holding Co (台新金控) yesterday said its board had approved a plan to distribute a cash dividend of NT$0.483 per share and a stock dividend of 7.24 percent. The dividend payout was based on the company’s net income of NT$13.2 billion for last year, or earnings per share of NT$1.39. On Wednesday, the Taipei District Court ruled partly in favor of Taishin Financial in its dispute with the Ministry of Finance over the control of Chang Hwa Commercial Bank’s (彰化銀行) board. Credit Suisse Group AG yesterday said Taishin might use the court ruling as a foundation to work with the incoming government that is more supportive of Taishin’s control over Chang Hwa. The next board elections for Chang Hwa are to take place in June next year.
BUSINESS UPDATE: The iPhone assembler said operations outlook is expected to show quarter-on-quarter and year-on-year growth for the second quarter Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密) yesterday reported strong growth in sales last month, potentially raising expectations for iPhone sales while artificial intelligence (AI)-related business booms. The company, which assembles the majority of Apple Inc’s smartphones, reported a 19.03 percent rise in monthly sales to NT$510.9 billion (US$15.78 billion), from NT$429.22 billion in the same period last year. On a monthly basis, sales rose 14.16 percent, it said. The company in a statement said that last month’s revenue was a record-breaking April performance. Hon Hai, known also as Foxconn Technology Group (富士康科技集團), assembles most iPhones, but the company is diversifying its business to
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
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
Qualcomm Inc, the world’s biggest seller of smartphone processors, gave an upbeat forecast for sales and profit in the current period, suggesting demand for handsets is increasing after a two-year slump. Revenue in the three months ended in June will be US$8.8 billion to US$9.6 billion, the company said in a statement Wednesday. Excluding certain items, earnings will be US$2.15 to US$2.35 a share. Analysts had projected sales of US$9.08 billion and earnings of US$2.16 a share. The outlook signals that the smartphone market has begun to bounce back, tracking with Qualcomm’s forecast that demand would gradually recover this year. The San