DBS Bank Ltd (星展銀行) yesterday said that the COVID-19 outbreak would have a limited impact on its corporate banking business in Taiwan, if it is brought under control by summer.
The effects on its corporate loans could be 2 to 3 percent, but the bank still aims to pursue a high single-digit percentage growth rate this year, managing director Tony Luo (羅綸有) told a news conference in Taipei.
MILD HIT
DBS Bank’s parent company, Singapore-based DBS Group Holdings Ltd, last week forecast that the virus could knock 1 to 2 percent off its revenue this year.
DBS Bank last year approved syndicated loans of US$764 million, Luo said.
Aggregate loans to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) reached NT$29.5 billion, topping other foreign banks in Taiwan, he said.
The outbreak is expected to have a mild impact on Taiwan’s economy, compared with China’s, Luo said.
UPBEAT
Some industries in Taiwan are suffering due to the outbreak, such as food and dining, tourism, retail and transport sectors as well as those relying on Chinese suppliers, he said, adding that most industries would remain unaffected if the outbreak ends in two to three months.
“We still have an upbeat outlook for this year, as demand for funds in Taiwan should grow steadily with the return of Taiwanese companies, the development of 5G and green energy, and manufacturers’ increasing automation,” Luo said.
A HELPING HAND
Even though some companies might lose orders due to the outbreak in the first half of this year, they are expected to regain those orders in the following quarters, he said.
The bank plans to provide loans to more than 10 green energy projects of this year, he said.
If the outbreak continues more than three months, it would have a more severe impact on the Asian economy, as declining consumption in China would be a drag on economic momentum, Luo said.
DBS would provide assistance to borrowers that have solid business performance, but have seen cash flow drop due to the outbreak, Luo said.
The bank would announce the details after finalizing the measures, he said.
“So far, our Taiwanese corporate clients with operations in China are dealing with the situation well. But the SMEs might struggle more,” he said.
The demise of the coal industry left the US’ Appalachian region in tatters, with lost jobs, spoiled water and countless kilometers of abandoned underground mines. Now entrepreneurs are eyeing the rural region with ambitious visions to rebuild its economy by converting old mines into solar power systems and data centers that could help fuel the increasing power demands of the artificial intelligence (AI) boom. One such project is underway by a non-profit team calling itself Energy DELTA (Discovery, Education, Learning and Technology Accelerator) Lab, which is looking to develop energy sources on about 26,305 hectares of old coal land in
Taiwan’s exports soared 56 percent year-on-year to an all-time high of US$64.05 billion last month, propelled by surging global demand for artificial intelligence (AI), high-performance computing and cloud service infrastructure, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. Department of Statistics Director-General Beatrice Tsai (蔡美娜) called the figure an unexpected upside surprise, citing a wave of technology orders from overseas customers alongside the usual year-end shopping season for technology products. Growth is likely to remain strong this month, she said, projecting a 40 percent to 45 percent expansion on an annual basis. The outperformance could prompt the Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and
Netflix on Friday faced fierce criticism over its blockbuster deal to acquire Warner Bros Discovery. The streaming giant is already viewed as a pariah in some Hollywood circles, largely due to its reluctance to release content in theaters and its disruption of traditional industry practices. As Netflix emerged as the likely winning bidder for Warner Bros — the studio behind Casablanca, the Harry Potter movies and Friends — Hollywood’s elite launched an aggressive campaign against the acquisition. Titanic director James Cameron called the buyout a “disaster,” while a group of prominent producers are lobbying US Congress to oppose the deal,
Two Chinese chipmakers are attracting strong retail investor demand, buoyed by industry peer Moore Threads Technology Co’s (摩爾線程) stellar debut. The retail portion of MetaX Integrated Circuits (Shanghai) Co’s (上海沐曦) upcoming initial public offering (IPO) was 2,986 times oversubscribed on Friday, according to a filing. Meanwhile, Beijing Onmicro Electronics Co (北京昂瑞微), which makes radio frequency chips, was 2,899 times oversubscribed on Friday, its filing showed. The bids coincided with Moore Threads’ trading debut, which surged 425 percent on Friday after raising 8 billion yuan (US$1.13 billion) on bets that the company could emerge as a viable local competitor to Nvidia
RSS