ENTERTAINMENT
Sony Q2 profit skyrockets
Sony Corp yesterday reported that its fiscal second-quarter profit zoomed 26-fold from the same period last year, boosted by the success of its imaging sensors, game products and the latest Spider-Man movie. Tokyo-based Sony reported a July-to-September profit of ¥130.9 billion (US$1.2 billion), up from ¥4.8 billion reported in the same period last year. Quarterly sales rose 22 percent to ¥2.06 trillion. The Japanese electronics and entertainment giant raised its full-year profit forecast to ¥380 billion, up by nearly 50 percent from its earlier forecast of ¥255 billion profit.
TIREMAKERS
Michelin to start Thai guide
Michelin, facing fierce competition from lower-cost Chinese competitors as it expands in Asia, is counting on a little luxury splash from haute cuisine to boost its brand image. The French company is introducing its eponymous restaurant guide for Bangkok next month as part of a broader effort to increase the brand’s appeal in Asia. In July, it bought a 40 percent stake in the US-based Robert Parker wine guide, which hosts tasting events on the continent, including in Singapore, Hong Kong and Macau, where Michelin already has food guides. While selling tires might seem to have little to with finding a tasty coq au vin at a fancy restaurant, Michelin sees the unprofitable guides as helping to position its brand as high-quality.
AIRLINES
Ryanair earnings jump 11%
Ryanair Holdings PLC’s first-half earnings gained 11 percent as price declines stabilized over the peak summer months, more than offsetting the cost of a pilot shortage that triggered flight cancelations for about 700,000 passengers. Net income in the six months to Sept. 30 rose to 1.29 billion euros (US$1.5 billion), compared with 1.17 billion euros a year earlier, Dublin-based Ryanair said yesterday. Europe’s biggest discount airline stood by its forecast for full-year profit in the range of 1.4 billion euros to 1.45 billion euros, even after paying out 25 million euros in refunds and 40 million euros for extra staffing costs.
REAL ESTATE
NZ to ban foreign buyers
New Zealand’s new government yesterday said it would change the law to prevent foreigners from buying existing homes in the South Pacific nation to reduce speculation and make it easier for first-time buyers to enter the market. “Foreign speculators will no longer be able to buy houses in New Zealand from early next year,” New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said at news conference in Wellington. New Zealand house prices have surged over the past few years, driving the average value in biggest city Auckland to more than NZ$1 million (US$684,870).
ALCOHOL
Giants eye pot possibilities
A decision by Corona distributor Constellation Brands Inc to buy a minority stake in a Canadian pot company marked the first major foray by an alcohol brand into the nascent marijuana industry. With the taboo now broken, brewers and distillers such as Molson Coors Brewing Co, Anheuser-Busch InBev NV, Diageo PLC and Pernod Ricard SA might already be examining the marijuana space, beverage industry analysts said, adding that Constellation’s move only intensifies the competitive pressure. Victor, New York-based Constellation agreed to pay about C$245 million (US$190.8 million) for a 9.9 percent stake in Canopy Growth Corp, a Canadian seller of medicinal marijuana products.
China has claimed a breakthrough in developing homegrown chipmaking equipment, an important step in overcoming US sanctions designed to thwart Beijing’s semiconductor goals. State-linked organizations are advised to use a new laser-based immersion lithography machine with a resolution of 65 nanometers or better, the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) said in an announcement this month. Although the note does not specify the supplier, the spec marks a significant step up from the previous most advanced indigenous equipment — developed by Shanghai Micro Electronics Equipment Group Co (SMEE, 上海微電子) — which stood at about 90 nanometers. MIIT’s claimed advances last
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) has appointed Rose Castanares, executive vice president of TSMC Arizona, as president of the subsidiary, which is responsible for carrying out massive investments by the Taiwanese tech giant in the US state, the company said in a statement yesterday. Castanares will succeed Brian Harrison as president of the Arizona subsidiary on Oct. 1 after the incumbent president steps down from the position with a transfer to the Arizona CEO office to serve as an advisor to TSMC Arizona’s chairman, the statement said. According to TSMC, Harrison is scheduled to retire on Dec. 31. Castanares joined TSMC in
EUROPE ON HOLD: Among a flurry of announcements, Intel said it would postpone new factories in Germany and Poland, but remains committed to its US expansion Intel Corp chief executive officer Pat Gelsinger has landed Amazon.com Inc’s Amazon Web Services (AWS) as a customer for the company’s manufacturing business, potentially bringing work to new plants under construction in the US and boosting his efforts to turn around the embattled chipmaker. Intel and AWS are to coinvest in a custom semiconductor for artificial intelligence computing — what is known as a fabric chip — in a “multiyear, multibillion-dollar framework,” Intel said in a statement on Monday. The work would rely on Intel’s 18A process, an advanced chipmaking technology. Intel shares rose more than 8 percent in late trading after the
FACTORY SHIFT: While Taiwan produces most of the world’s AI servers, firms are under pressure to move manufacturing amid geopolitical tensions Lenovo Group Ltd (聯想) started building artificial intelligence (AI) servers in India’s south, the latest boon for the rapidly growing country’s push to become a high-tech powerhouse. The company yesterday said it has started making the large, powerful computers in Pondicherry, southeastern India, moving beyond products such as laptops and smartphones. The Chinese company would also build out its facilities in the Bangalore region, including a research lab with a focus on AI. Lenovo’s plans mark another win for Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who tries to attract more technology investment into the country. While India’s tense relationship with China has suffered setbacks