SEMICONDUCTORS
Phison profit surges
Local NAND flash memory controller supplier Phison Electronics Corp (群聯電子) posted a pretax profit of NT$640 million (US$20.03 million) for last month, up 43 percent from NT$447 million in September. In the first 10 months, Phison posted a record-high pretax profit of NT$4.42 billion, according to a company filing with the Taiwan Stock Exchange on Monday. Phison said that robust demand for memorychips used in mobile phones and servers boosted prices over the past quarter and it expects the uptrend to extend into next quarter. The company said it could meet about 20 percent of orders placed by its clients.
SERVICES
Da Lue to launch Web site
Da Lue International Holding Co Ltd (大略), a Cayman Islands-registered wedding services provider, yesterday said that its e-commerce platform is to start operations in China next month. With a capital investment of US$6.5 million, the platform is to provide wines, cosmetics and wedding-related products for newlyweds, the company said in a statement. Revenue from its e-commerce sector is expected to reach NT$500 million per year, it said.
ECONOMY
GDP to grow 1.6%: Taishin
Taishin Securities Investment Advisory Co (台新投顧) expects the nation’s GDP to grow 1.6 percent next year, from an estimated 1 percent this year, as external demand improves mildly. Corporate profits could rise 5.9 percent next year, compared with a projected annual decline of 1.1 percent this year, Taishin economist Mason Li (李鎮宇) said. Technology firms would outperform other sectors, Lee said, adding that the TAIEX would fluctuate between 8,300 and 9,800 points.
SMARTPHONES
HTC unveils three models
HTC Corp (宏達電) has launched three new smartphone models, including the 10 Evo, which uses a USB type-C socket for its headphones instead of a headphone jack, in an effort to boost its local sales, the company announced yesterday. The phone has a 5.5-inch touchscreen and comes with 3GB of RAM and 32GB or 64GB of storage space. The dust and water-resistant phone is available in three different colors — gray, gold and silver. The 32GB model is priced at NT$17,900 and the 64GB model at NT$19,900, HTC said. Another new model is the HTC Desire 10 Pro, which features high-resolution cameras on the front and back, an integrated fingerprint sensor and 64GB of internal storage space, the company said. The 5.5-inch, dual SIM phone comes in four colors — stone black, polar white, royal blue and valentine lux — and retails at NT$12,900, HTC said. Preorders for the two new models can be made until Wednesday next week, it added.
FOREIGN EXCHANGE
Yuan fixing rate raised
The People’s Bank of China (PBOC) yesterday raised its yuan fixing for the first time in 13 days as the US dollar’s ascent eased, reinforcing speculation that policymakers are prepared to step up measures to slow the currency’s decline. The bank hiked its daily reference rate by 0.3 percent to 6.8779 per US dollar, ending a 12-day decline that took the rate to its weakest level since June 2008. The PBOC’s fixings for the past four days were higher than Mizuho Bank Ltd and Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd had forecast. Investors should consider trimming bearish bets on the yuan as authorities are countering depreciation pressures more forcefully, BNP Paribas SA strategists wrote in a note on Monday.
Stephen Garrett, a 27-year-old graduate student, always thought he would study in China, but first the country’s restrictive COVID-19 policies made it nearly impossible and now he has other concerns. The cost is one deterrent, but Garrett is more worried about restrictions on academic freedom and the personal risk of being stranded in China. He is not alone. Only about 700 American students are studying at Chinese universities, down from a peak of nearly 25,000 a decade ago, while there are nearly 300,000 Chinese students at US schools. Some young Americans are discouraged from investing their time in China by what they see
MAJOR DROP: CEO Tim Cook, who is visiting Hanoi, pledged the firm was committed to Vietnam after its smartphone shipments declined 9.6% annually in the first quarter Apple Inc yesterday said it would increase spending on suppliers in Vietnam, a key production hub, as CEO Tim Cook arrived in the country for a two-day visit. The iPhone maker announced the news in a statement on its Web site, but gave no details of how much it would spend or where the money would go. Cook is expected to meet programmers, content creators and students during his visit, online newspaper VnExpress reported. The visit comes as US President Joe Biden’s administration seeks to ramp up Vietnam’s role in the global tech supply chain to reduce the US’ dependence on China. Images on
New apartments in Taiwan’s major cities are getting smaller, while old apartments are increasingly occupied by older people, many of whom live alone, government data showed. The phenomenon has to do with sharpening unaffordable property prices and an aging population, property brokers said. Apartments with one bedroom that are two years old or older have gained a noticeable presence in the nation’s six special municipalities as well as Hsinchu county and city in the past five years, Evertrust Rehouse Co (永慶房產集團) found, citing data from the government’s real-price transaction platform. In Taipei, apartments with one bedroom accounted for 19 percent of deals last
US CONSCULTANT: The US Department of Commerce’s Ursula Burns is a rarely seen US government consultant to be put forward to sit on the board, nominated as an independent director Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, yesterday nominated 10 candidates for its new board of directors, including Ursula Burns from the US Department of Commerce. It is rare that TSMC has nominated a US government consultant to sit on its board. Burns was nominated as one of seven independent directors. She is vice chair of the department’s Advisory Council on Supply Chain Competitiveness. Burns is to stand for election at TSMC’s annual shareholders’ meeting on June 4 along with the rest of the candidates. TSMC chairman Mark Liu (劉德音) was not on the list after in December last