CHIPMAKERS
Intel makes 10nm progress
Intel Corp shares on Tuesday jumped the most since March after a research report stoked optimism about its delayed next-generation manufacturing technology and sent rival Advanced Micro Devices Inc tumbling. A ramp up of Intel’s 10-nanometer (nm) production could begin as soon as April next year, four to six weeks earlier than current projections, BlueFin Research Partners, a boutique research firm based in Boston, Massachusetts, said in a research note. Intel gained as much as 5.2 percent while rival AMD fell 8.6 percent. Intel is making “significant strides” toward its 10nm yield target prompting informal discussions with several suppliers about the possibility that the ramp could begin before June, BlueFin said. Intel’s 10nm production has been hampered by delays as the Santa Clara, California-based company struggles to shift to the more advanced manufacturing technique. That has fueled optimism that AMD could take share in the market for central processing units used in personal computers and servers that has been dominated by Intel.
RETAIL
Walmart buying Eloquii
Walmart on Tuesday said it is acquiring an online plus-size fashion brand called Eloquii Design Inc, extending its buying spree of niche brands as it tries to compete better with online leader Amazon.com. Walmart declined to disclose the purchase price, but says the move will help it get a foothold into the US$21 billion plus-size women’s clothing arena. Eloquii also operates five retail stores. It says its executive team, including CEO Mariah Chase, and its 100 employees would continue to be based in Long Island City, New York, and Columbus, Ohio.
UNITED KINGDOM
Economic growth on track
Growth in the nation’s dominant service sector was strong enough to keep the economy on track for a “robust” expansion in the third quarter. IHS Markit said its Purchasing Managers’ Index for the industry slipped to 53.9 last month, down from 54.3 in August and just below economists’ forecasts for a reading of 54. Job creation climbed to a seven-month high, though optimism remained subdued in the face of political uncertainty. Taken with previous surveys for the manufacturing and construction sectors, the performance was enough to leave the nation on course for growth of just under 0.4 percent in the third quarter, Markit said. That is the same pace as the three months through June and about the level that Bank of England policymakers estimate is the economy’s potential. The report also showed a sharp rise in input costs, which may help back up the arguments of central bank officials who have said that limited and gradual interest rate increases are needed to control inflation.
HOSPITALITY
Belmond attracts interest
Belmond Ltd, which owns luxury hotels around the world and New York City’s iconic 21 Club, has attracted interest from potential buyers, according to people familiar with the matter. KSL Capital Partners LLC, Blackstone Group LP, KKR & Co, Ashkenazy Acquisition Corp, Hyatt Hotels Corp and Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc are among parties weighing an offer for all or part of the company, some of the people said. Belmond, with a market value of US$1.8 billion, in August said that it was working with Goldman Sachs Group Inc and JPMorgan Chase & Co to evaluate a sale. Belmond also owns train lines, river cruises and safaris.
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
Taiwan Transport and Storage Corp (TTS, 台灣通運倉儲) yesterday unveiled its first electric tractor unit — manufactured by Volvo Trucks — in a ceremony in Taipei, and said the unit would soon be used to transport cement produced by Taiwan Cement Corp (TCC, 台灣水泥). Both TTS and TCC belong to TCC International Holdings Ltd (台泥國際集團). With the electric tractor unit, the Taipei-based cement firm would become the first in Taiwan to use electric vehicles to transport construction materials. TTS chairman Koo Kung-yi (辜公怡), Volvo Trucks vice president of sales and marketing Johan Selven, TCC president Roman Cheng (程耀輝) and Taikoo Motors Group
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