State-run First Financial Holding Co (第一金控) on Thursday said that it seeks to grow core operations despite the COVID-19 outbreak, which it says would prove a short-term downside risk like the 2003 SARS epidemic.
The bank-focused conglomerate posted a record profit of NT$19.37 billion (US$638.64 million) last year, representing an 11.8 percent increase from a year earlier, or earnings of NT$1.55 per share.
It aims to increase the loan book of its main subsidiary First Commercial Bank (第一銀行) by 7 to 8 percent this year, almost double last year’s 4.2 percent, First Financial executive vice president Frank Fang (方螢基) told an online investors’ conference.
Although the outbreak is slowing business activity, its effects might lessen as summer approaches, Fang said, citing his experience with the SARS epidemic.
“We think it is better stay put at this stage and see how the epidemic evolves before reaching a conclusion on whether to trim our business targets,” Fang said.
Restaurants and hotels account for 2.27 percent of the group’s book, while electronic companies take up another 4.68 percent, Fang said, adding it has not made calculations on exposure to other sectors.
It is too early to predict the effects of supply-chain disruptions in China on the profitability of Taiwanese firms, but the picture would become clearer after the first quarter, he said.
First Financial said that it remains positive about doing business with Taiwanese companies seeking to move their manufacturing bases back to Taiwan from China amid US-China trade tensions and the effects of the virus.
Business disruptions might not develop into a long-term threat to corporate profits if the virus can be contained soon, and ongoing business slowdowns might lead to a strong rebound in the second half of the year, it said.
First Financial has offered credit relief to companies and individuals affected by the outbreak, it said.
Not all local companies would be negatively affected by the virus, as some might earn extra business if rivals in China and South Korea cannot deliver, Fang said.
First Financial said it aims to increase saving deposits by 6 percent and mortgage operations by 5 to 6 percent.
The group would continue to add banking branches in overseas markets this year, so it can better serve customers and generate 50 percent of overall earnings, Fang said.
Banking branches in Hong Kong, Shanghai, New York, Los Angeles and Phnom Penh were the strongest in terms of profit contributions last year, he added.
In Italy’s storied gold-making hubs, jewelers are reworking their designs to trim gold content as they race to blunt the effect of record prices and appeal to shoppers watching their budgets. Gold prices hit a record high on Thursday, surging near US$5,600 an ounce, more than double a year ago as geopolitical concerns and jitters over trade pushed investors toward the safe-haven asset. The rally is putting undue pressure on small artisans as they face mounting demands from customers, including international brands, to produce cheaper items, from signature pieces to wedding rings, according to interviews with four independent jewelers in Italy’s main
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has talked up the benefits of a weaker yen in a campaign speech, adopting a tone at odds with her finance ministry, which has refused to rule out any options to counter excessive foreign exchange volatility. Takaichi later softened her stance, saying she did not have a preference for the yen’s direction. “People say the weak yen is bad right now, but for export industries, it’s a major opportunity,” Takaichi said on Saturday at a rally for Liberal Democratic Party candidate Daishiro Yamagiwa in Kanagawa Prefecture ahead of a snap election on Sunday. “Whether it’s selling food or
CONCERNS: Tech companies investing in AI businesses that purchase their products have raised questions among investors that they are artificially propping up demand Nvidia Corp chief executive officer Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) on Saturday said that the company would be participating in OpenAI’s latest funding round, describing it as potentially “the largest investment we’ve ever made.” “We will invest a great deal of money,” Huang told reporters while visiting Taipei. “I believe in OpenAI. The work that they do is incredible. They’re one of the most consequential companies of our time.” Huang did not say exactly how much Nvidia might contribute, but described the investment as “huge.” “Let Sam announce how much he’s going to raise — it’s for him to decide,” Huang said, referring to OpenAI
The global server market is expected to grow 12.8 percent annually this year, with artificial intelligence (AI) servers projected to account for 16.5 percent, driven by continued investment in AI infrastructure by major cloud service providers (CSPs), market researcher TrendForce Corp (集邦科技) said yesterday. Global AI server shipments this year are expected to increase 28 percent year-on-year to more than 2.7 million units, driven by sustained demand from CSPs and government sovereign cloud projects, TrendForce analyst Frank Kung (龔明德) told the Taipei Times. Demand for GPU-based AI servers, including Nvidia Corp’s GB and Vera Rubin rack systems, is expected to remain high,
RSS