Amtran Technology Co (瑞軒), which makes TVs for Vizio Inc and Xiaomi Corp (小米), yesterday said that it plans to accelerate its capacity expansion in Vietnam to help clients circumvent heavy tariffs imposed by the US on Chinese goods.
The company started shipping slim-screen TVs to clients from its Vietnamese plant last month as it reallocated some production out of its Chinese manufacturing site in Suzhou, Amtran said.
The first-phase expansion to produce 2 million TVs per year is expected to cost US$39.6 million, Amtran said.
Washington in September raised tariffs on TVs imported from China to 20 percent from 5 percent amid a trade dispute with Beijing.
“To minimize operational risks, we have started a new development plan to build a second plant adjacent to the existing one in Vietnam,” Amtran spokesman Scottie Chiu (邱裕平) said by telephone yesterday.
Amtran expects to complete the second-phase expansion in the third quarter next year, Chiu said.
He did not provide financial details for the new expansion plan as it is still subject to the approval of the company’s board of directors.
As Amtran is ahead of its rivals in reallocating TV manufacturing outside China, the company has an advantage when capturing new orders amid a changing global trade environment, Chiu said.
The company started assembling TVs for Samsung Electronics Co at the end of last year, and it is expecting orders to increase gradually this year and next year.
The Vietnamese plants would also serve as a stepping-stone to ASEAN and EU nations, given their geographic advantages, Chiu said.
Vietnam has signed numerous free-trade agreements with other nations, including one with the EU which is to take effect next year, allowing Vietnamese goods to enjoy preferential tariffs, he said.
Amtran aims to ship 4 million flat-panel TVs this year, up 17.65 percent from 3.4 million last year, he said.
The company has 1,800 employees in China and 1,300 in Vietnam.
In the first three quarters, Amtran’s net profit more than tripled to NT$144.31 million (US$4.78 million), or earnings per share of NT$0.18, from NT$31.41 million in the same period last year.
Revenue grew 13.61 percent year-on-year to NT$11.02 billion in the first three quarters.
After several years flying high as Asia’s best Nvidia Corp proxy, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) is increasingly vying with other artificial intelligence (AI) stocks for investor attention. Stock traders are chasing a wider array of beneficiaries as mainstream usage of AI creates demand for hardware beyond the most-advanced chips TSMC makes for Nvidia. Subthemes from the deepening memory crunch to advances in robotics are also luring bids. At the same time, investment caps on single stocks are pushing funds to diversify, while retail investors long familiar with TSMC through its US depositary receipts are being offered a broader set of
UNDER MICROSCOPE: Taiwan detained three people who allegedly conspired to buy servers in Taiwan and export them using fraudulent documentation, prosecutors said Nvidia Corp chief executive officer Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) on Saturday urged Super Micro Computer Inc to tighten up on compliance after Taiwan detained three people this week for allegedly making fraudulent declarations about artificial intelligence (AI) servers made by its US partner. The development marked the nation’s first crackdown on semiconductor smuggling, which grew after the US slapped restrictions on exports of high-end chips such as Nvidia AI accelerators to China. Nvidia is “rigorous” in explaining regulations to all of its partners, Huang told reporters after arriving in Taipei. “Ultimately Super Micro has to run their own company,” he said in response to
TECH RELIANCE: Growth is increasingly reflecting an unequal K-shaped distribution, where technology sectors outperform and other industries struggle, an expert said Standard Chartered Bank has significantly raised its forecast for Taiwan’s economic growth to 9.5 percent this year, up from 7.6 percent previously, citing surging artificial intelligence (AI) demand driving exports, semiconductor production and investment. The upgrade reflects a sustained AI supercycle that continues to fuel demand for advanced chips and technology infrastructure, which form the backbone of Taiwan’s exports, the bank said in a report this week. “We raise our 2026 growth forecast to reflect a much stronger-than-expected first-quarter GDP figure,” Standard Chartered senior economist for greater China and Asia Tommy Wu (胡東安) said in the report. Driven largely by a 35.3 percent
Two of Taiwan’s international carriers, Starlux Airlines Co (星宇航空) and EVA Airways Corp (長榮航空), have retained the five-star airline rating awarded by international airline review organization Skytrax. Starlux was awarded the distinction for a second consecutive year, while EVA Air received it for the 11th straight year, Skytrax said in statements released yesterday and on Thursday last week, respectively. The five-star rating is considered one of the airline industry's highest honors and is awarded following professional audits of airline product and frontline service standards, Skytrax said. The ratings are based on in-depth assessments using unified global quality standards rather than customer review scores
RSS