TSIA says unhurt by port woes
The shutdown of US West Coast ports will not have a direct impact on Taiwan's semiconductor industry, the Taiwan Semiconductor Industry Association (TSIA, 台灣半導體協會) said yesterday. TSIA secretary-general Gordon Chen (陳文咸) said that because the export of the semiconductor industry's finished goods or the import of its raw materials are all through air transport, there will be no direct effect from the shutdown of the ports on Taiwan's semiconductor industry. However, he said that if the shutdown drags on, it will surely harm to the overall economy. Chen said that because of the intertwining of the world's industries, the recovery of the semiconductor sector will be adversely affected by the work stoppage. He predicted that it will not be until after January that the Tai-wan's semiconductor industry will show signs of recovery.
Factory closures decline
A total of 340 factories closed in Taiwan in August, 12.8 percent fewer than in the same period a year earlier, the Ministry of Eco-nomic Affairs said yesterday. During the same period, the number of company start-ups rose 34 percent from a year earlier to 434. "The figures signalled the economy was improving," a ministry official said. In the eight months ending in August, the number of factory closures totalled 2,205, down 40.58 percent year-on-year. Nearly 5,200 factories were shut down last year as the economy suffered its first ever full-year contraction.
TSMC sales up year-on-year
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufac-turing Co (台積電) said yesterday its sales in September totalled NT$12.76 billion (US$364.57 million), down 5.8 percent from August but up 37 percent from a year earlier. Up to September, the company's sales rose 29.2 percent from a year earlier to NT$119.81 billion, said TSMC. September's decline from the month before was slightly better than market expectations but the overall downward trend will remain in place at least up to November, SinoPac Securities Corp (建華證券) analyst Joyce Hsu said. TSMC and United Microelectronics Corp (聯電) have been the targets of foreign sell-offs for weeks over their uncertain outlook amid the sluggish global demand for high-tech products.
Polaris seeks ties with E*Trade
Polaris Securities Co (寶來證券), one of Taiwan's top three Internet brokerages by trading volume, is in talks with E*Trade Group to form an alliance to expand operations. Polaris "may cooperate with E*Trade to widen its business," said Shau Dai Lin, chairman of Polaris International Securities Investment Trust Co (寶來投信), a unit of Polaris Securities Group. Shau didn't say what kind of alliance Polaris was seeking or when it would start. Polaris said last month it was seeking a US partner to expand in Taiwan and China.
NT dollar maintains slide
The NT dollar yesterday ended trading at its lowest closing level in nine-and-a-half months against its US counterpart on speculation domestic companies will increase US dollar purchases to pay for crude oil imports. The local unit slid NT$0.049, or 0.1 percent, to close at NT$35.118 on the Taipei foreign exchange market. That is the unit's weakest close since Dec. 27. The turnover was US$583 million, up from the previous day's US$546 million. Overseas investor net sales of Taiwan's stocks for an eighth straight session also reduced demand for the currency, analysts said. International money managers sold almost a net NT$16 billion (US$455 million) of Taiwan stocks in the eight-day period.
Anna Bhobho, a 31-year-old housewife from rural Zimbabwe, was once a silent observer in her home, excluded from financial and family decisionmaking in the deeply patriarchal society. Today, she is a driver of change in her village, thanks to an electric tricycle she owns. In many parts of rural sub-Saharan Africa, women have long been excluded from mainstream economic activities such as operating public transportation. However, three-wheelers powered by green energy are reversing that trend, offering financial opportunities and a newfound sense of importance. “My husband now looks up to me to take care of a large chunk of expenses,
SECTOR LEADER: TSMC can increase capacity by as much as 20 percent or more in the advanced node part of the foundry market by 2030, an analyst said Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) is expected to lead its peers in the advanced 2-nanometer process technology, despite competition from Samsung Electronics Co and Intel Corp, TrendForce Corp analyst Joanne Chiao (喬安) said. TSMC’s sophisticated products and its large production scale are expected to allow the company to continue dominating the global 2-nanometer process market this year, Chiao said. The world’s largest contract chipmaker is scheduled to begin mass production of chips made on the 2-nanometer process in its Hsinchu fab in the second half of this year. It would also hold a ceremony on Monday next week to
TECH CLUSTER: The US company’s new office is in the Shalun Smart Green Energy Science City, a new AI industry base and cybersecurity hub in southern Taiwan US chip designer Advanced Micro Devices Inc (AMD) yesterday launched an office in Tainan’s Gueiren District (歸仁), marking a significant milestone in the development of southern Taiwan’s artificial intelligence (AI) industry, the Tainan City Government said in a statement. AMD Taiwan general manager Vincent Chern (陳民皓) presided over the opening ceremony for the company’s new office at the Shalun Smart Green Energy Science City (沙崙智慧綠能科學城), a new AI industry base and cybersecurity hub in southern Taiwan. Facilities in the new office include an information processing center, and a research and development (R&D) center, the Tainan Economic Development Bureau said. The Ministry
State-run CPC Corp, Taiwan (CPC, 台灣中油) yesterday signed a letter of intent with Alaska Gasline Development Corp (AGDC), expressing an interest to buy liquefied natural gas (LNG) and invest in the latter’s Alaska LNG project, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said in a statement. Under the agreement, CPC is to participate in the project’s upstream gas investment to secure stable energy resources for Taiwan, the ministry said. The Alaska LNG project is jointly promoted by AGDC and major developer Glenfarne Group LLC, as Alaska plans to export up to 20 million tonnes of LNG annually from 2031. It involves constructing an 1,290km
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