Cosmetics maker Thai Ho Group Inc (太和生技集團) yesterday reported that sales last month rose to a record high, signaling robust inventory buildup ahead of the year-end holidays.
Sales surged 12.75 percent annually to NT$210 million (US$6.92 million), reflecting retailers’ optimism over holiday sales, including China’s Golden Week, which began on Sunday, and the Christmas season, the company said.
In particular, this year saw a stronger demand for gift sets by its major customers, such as Boots and Revlon, it said.
As of the end of last month, sales contribution from exports to Europe and the US had risen to 65 percent, with China representing 35 percent, Thai Ho said.
Sales in the July-to-September period rose 82.82 percent quarterly and 16.34 percent annually to NT$505 million, Thai Ho said, adding that annual sales growth would have been 22.44 percent if the figure were denominated in the company’s functional currency.
Thai Ho said it would continue to leverage its expertise in predicting fashion trends in the cosmetic market and envision new products with its customers.
Research and development expenditure increased from 6.2 percent of sales last year to 8.25 percent as of the end of the first half of this year.
Citing an industry report, the company said that the global cosmetics market is expected to rise from US$52 billion this year to US$80 billion by 2026, adding that it is confident in meeting rapid changes in the market.
The company posted a profit of NT$6.4 million in the first half of the year, compared with a net loss of NT$22 million a year earlier. Earnings per share were NT$0.27.
Sales in the first six months slipped 6.68 percent to NT$475 million from NT$509 million in the same period last year, company data showed.
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