JAPAN
Exports continue to decline
The country’s exports last month shrank for a fourth straight month as weakness in global demand continues to weigh on the economy. One of the bright spots in recent data — increasing shipments to the US — could darken if trade talks with the administration of US President Donald Trump that began this week turn sour. The value of exports to the US rose for a sixth month, by 4.4 percent, generating a bilateral surplus of ¥683.6 billion (US$6.1 billion), the Ministry of Finance said. Sales to China slumped, driving a 2.4 percent drop in total exports. The figures came as negotiators wrapped up an initial round of trade talks in Washington that are being used by the US to try to crack open the country’s agricultural market and reduce the US trade deficit. The country is trying to avoid tariffs or quotas on auto exports, as well as a possible currency clause.
AUTOMAKERS
BMW issues China recall
Germany’s BMW AG is to recall 360,000 vehicles in China as part of the worldwide effort to root out defective airbags made by now-defunct Japanese supplier Takata Corp, regulators in Beijing said. About 20 people have died in accidents linked to defects in Takata airbags since 2013, prompting a massive worldwide recall of at least 100 million vehicles from a wide range of manufacturers. The recall would affect nearly 273,000 models built by BMW’s joint venture with Brilliance China Automotive Holdings Ltd (華晨中國汽車控股) and more than 87,000 imported BMW vehicles, the Chinese State Administration for Market Regulation said. The agency said in statement posted on its Web site late on Tuesday that a defect could cause the airbags to eject debris at passengers if deployed. The China recall affects more than two dozen different BMW models built between 2000 and last year, including several each in the i, X and M series, as well as other models.
SEMICONDUCTORS
ASML announces forecast
ASML Holding NV has forecast second-quarter sales in line with analysts’ expectations, as Europe’s largest semiconductor-equipment maker won orders for three more of its newest lithography machines. The Veldhoven, Netherlands-based company predicted sales of 2.5 billion euros to 2.6 billion euros (US$2.83 billion to US$2.94 billion) for the second quarter, compared with an average analyst estimate of 2.55 billion euros. ASML reported sales of 2.74 billion euros a year earlier.
AVIATION
Boeing fix reviewed
A board of pilot experts appointed by US aviation regulators has reviewed Boeing Co’s proposed software fix for the grounded 737 MAX aircraft and concluded that pilots would not need additional simulator training once the plane is returned to service. The report by a US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Flight Standardization Board is an important first step in reviewing the still-unfinished upgrade to the 737 MAX family of aircraft. It was posted on the FAA’s Web site and the public has until April 30 to make comments. The proposal calls for stepped up training on the anti-stall system called MCAS that is linked to two fatal crashes, but stops short of requiring costly simulator training that could complicate the plane’s return to service. The Chicago-based planemaker is devising a software fix to make the system less aggressive and to prevent it from making the repeated nose-down commands seen in the accidents.
Among the rows of vibrators, rubber torsos and leather harnesses at a Chinese sex toys exhibition in Shanghai this weekend, the beginnings of an artificial intelligence (AI)-driven shift in the industry quietly pulsed. China manufactures about 70 percent of the world’s sex toys, most of it the “hardware” on display at the fair — whether that be technicolor tentacled dildos or hyper-realistic personalized silicone dolls. Yet smart toys have been rising in popularity for some time. Many major European and US brands already offer tech-enhanced products that can enable long-distance love, monitor well-being and even bring people one step closer to
Malaysia’s leader yesterday announced plans to build a massive semiconductor design park, aiming to boost the Southeast Asian nation’s role in the global chip industry. A prominent player in the semiconductor industry for decades, Malaysia accounts for an estimated 13 percent of global back-end manufacturing, according to German tech giant Bosch. Now it wants to go beyond production and emerge as a chip design powerhouse too, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said. “I am pleased to announce the largest IC (integrated circuit) Design Park in Southeast Asia, that will house world-class anchor tenants and collaborate with global companies such as Arm [Holdings PLC],”
TRANSFORMATION: Taiwan is now home to the largest Google hardware research and development center outside of the US, thanks to the nation’s economic policies President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday attended an event marking the opening of Google’s second hardware research and development (R&D) office in Taiwan, which was held at New Taipei City’s Banciao District (板橋). This signals Taiwan’s transformation into the world’s largest Google hardware research and development center outside of the US, validating the nation’s economic policy in the past eight years, she said. The “five plus two” innovative industries policy, “six core strategic industries” initiative and infrastructure projects have grown the national industry and established resilient supply chains that withstood the COVID-19 pandemic, Tsai said. Taiwan has improved investment conditions of the domestic economy
Sales in the retail, and food and beverage sectors last month continued to rise, increasing 0.7 percent and 13.6 percent respectively from a year earlier, setting record highs for the month of March, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said yesterday. Sales in the wholesale sector also grew last month by 4.6 annually, mainly due to the business opportunities for emerging applications related to artificial intelligence (AI) and high-performance computing technologies, the ministry said in a report. The ministry forecast that retail, and food and beverage sales this month would retain their growth momentum as the former would benefit from Tomb Sweeping Day