Flat-panel maker Innolux Corp (群創) is to invest NT$70.1 billion (US$2.29 billion) in Taiwan, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said yesterday, after approving the company’s plan to participate in a government program encouraging Taiwanese firms to return and invest at home.
Innolux’s investment is by far the largest among the 153 applications submitted to the program since the beginning of the year.
The applicants have pledged to invest NT$697.1 billion — of which NT$200 billion has been committed for this year — and create 56,294 job opportunities, the ministry said.
Facing rising production costs in China and an oversaturated flat-panel market, as well as trade difficulties due to US tariffs on Chinese-made goods, the Miaoli-based Innolux has decided to set up an automated “Zero Touch” production facility in Tainan’s Southern Taiwan Science Park (南部科學園區), the ministry said.
To cut personnel and manufacturing costs, the company over the past five years has been developing automation systems and smart manufacturing solutions.
It is also moving its television assembly line to Tainan, the ministry said, adding that the company aims to increase TV shipments to 6 million units this year, up from 1.8 million units last year.
Innolux is focusing on producing large LCD panels with high contrast and high refresh rates, as it looks to strengthen its presence on the global gaming market, the ministry said.
Other high-value-added products such as panels illuminated by mini LED backlights, curved LCD panels for automotive applications, screens with built-in fingerprint readers as well as applications such as virtual and augmented reality are to be part of the company’s focus, the ministry added.
Super Micro Computer Inc’s application to participate in another government-subsidized program promoting investment in Taiwan has also been approved, the ministry said.
The San Jose, California-based company is to invest NT$10 billion in a center devoted to research and development of advanced servers, as well as expanding its logistics center and introducing automated assembly lines, the ministry said.
Super Micro’s plan is expected to create 1,700 job opportunities, it said.
The ministry said it has also approved an application by IC trays manufacturer Sunrise Plastics Industry Co (晨州塑膠) to invest NT$1.6 billion in constructing an automated production plant in Taichung’s Waipu District (外埔), which would provide 47 job opportunities.
Taiwan’s foreign exchange reserves hit a record high at the end of last month, surpassing the US$600 billion mark for the first time, the central bank said yesterday. Last month, the country’s foreign exchange reserves rose US$5.51 billion from a month earlier to reach US$602.94 billion due to an increase in returns from the central bank’s portfolio management, the movement of other foreign currencies in the portfolio against the US dollar and the bank’s efforts to smooth the volatility of the New Taiwan dollar. Department of Foreign Exchange Director-General Eugene Tsai (蔡炯民)said a rate cut cycle launched by the US Federal Reserve
Handset camera lens maker Largan Precision Co (大立光) on Sunday reported a 6.71 percent year-on-year decline in revenue for the third quarter, despite revenue last month hitting the highest level in 11 months. Third-quarter revenue was NT$17.68 billion (US$581.2 million), compared with NT$18.95 billion a year earlier, the company said in a statement. The figure was in line with Yuanta Securities Investment Consulting Co’s (元大投顧) forecast of NT$17.9 billion, but missed the market consensus estimate of NT$18.97 billion. The third-quarter revenue was a 51.44 percent increase from NT$11.67 billion in the second quarter, as the quarter is usually the peak
The US government on Wednesday sanctioned more than two dozen companies in China, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates, including offshoots of a US chip firm, accusing the businesses of providing illicit support to Iran’s military or proxies. The US Department of Commerce included two subsidiaries of US-based chip distributor Arrow Electronics Inc (艾睿電子) on its so-called entity list published on the federal register for facilitating purchases by Iran’s proxies of US tech. Arrow spokesman John Hourigan said that the subsidiaries have been operating in full compliance with US export control regulations and his company is discussing with the US Bureau of
Pegatron Corp (和碩), a key assembler of Apple Inc’s iPhones, on Thursday reported a 12.3 percent year-on-year decline in revenue for last quarter to NT$257.86 billion (US$8.44 billion), but it expects revenue to improve in the second half on traditional holiday demand. The fourth quarter is usually the peak season for its communications products, a company official said on condition of anonymity. As Apple released its new iPhone 17 series early last month, sales in the communications segment rose sequentially last month, the official said. Shipments to Apple have been stable and in line with earlier expectations, they said. Pegatron shipped 2.4 million notebook
RSS