The Ministry of Economic Affairs yesterday approved applications from nine small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to invest a total of NT$4.6 billion (US$152.8 million) in Taiwan through a government subsidy program.
The new projects would generate 435 job opportunities, the ministry said.
The ministry gave the green light to traditional Chinese medicine maker Kodak Pharmaceutical Co (科達製藥), straw maker Eco Fin Co Ltd (益可芬), Li Sheng Color Printing Co Ltd (力盛彩色印刷), Shang Shun Concrete Products Ltd Co (上順水泥), Chin Chih Metal Industrial Co Ltd (青志金屬工業), Kai Jung Industrial Co Ltd (鍇榮實業) and three other firms in the metal processing and pump making industries.
Kodak Pharmaceutical, the nation’s second-largest traditional Chinese medicine maker, would invest more than NT$900 million in setting up a new production facility, the ministry said.
Eco Fin plans to invest more than NT$70 million to launch a smart manufacturing plant in Taoyuan’s Lujhu District (蘆竹) that would produce polypropylene and polylactic acid straws, the ministry said.
Seeking to establish a presence in Japan, Li Sheng, which supplies high-end foldable cotton packages used for food products, tobacco, alcohol and cosmetics, among other products, is to invest more than NT$500 million to establish a new plant in Miaoli County’s Houlong Township (後龍), the ministry said.
Seeking to expand its production capacity in Kaohsiung’s Dafa Industrial Park (大發工業區) while adding a green touch, Shang Shun plans to invest NT$40 million to purchase environmentally friendly machinery for mixing construction materials, the ministry said.
Chin Chih, a major powder metallurgy specialist, is to invest nearly NT$1.3 billion in setting up a new production facility in Miaoli’s Tongluo Science Park (銅鑼科學園區), the ministry said, adding that the firm counts Japanese automakers Nissan Motor Co and Mazda Motor Corp among its customers.
In a bid to increase export orders, plastic injection molding service provider Kai Jung plans to invest NT$90 million to purchase computer numerical control machinery for its existing plant in Tainan’s Shalun Industrial Park (沙崙工業區), the ministry said.
High precision metal processor Hwa Ying Industrial Group (樺瑩工業) plans to invest NT$700 million to expand its production facility in New Taipei City’s Sijhih District (汐止); JKE Precision Industry Co Ltd (昆兆益) is to invest NT$300 million to set up an automated plant in Taichung’s Taiping District (太平); and valve and pump maker Tai Shyang Industry Co Ltd (泰翔工業) is to invest NT$300 million to construct a new plant in Taoyuan’s Guanyin District (觀音), the ministry said.
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