■SEMICONDUCTORS
Unimicron to acquire rival
Unimicron Technology Corp (欣興電子), a Taiwan-based maker of circuit boards, plans to acquire Phoenix Precision Technology Corp (全懋精密) to expand its market share. In the all-stock acquisition, each Phoenix share will be exchanged for 60 percent of a Unimicron share, the companies said in separate exchange filings on Friday. The swap ratio indicates Unimicron will get Phoenix at a 6.5 percent discount, according to Bloomberg calculations based on Friday’s closing share prices.
■BANKING
Bankruptcies in HK surge
Bankruptcies in Hong Kong soared as the territory’s recession deepened, reaching the highest level since the aftermath of the SARS epidemic in 2003. A total of 1,500 bankruptcy petitions were filed last month, up from 1,266 in January, the Official Receiver’s Office said on its Web site on Friday. Filings last month were the highest since October 2003, after SARS caused the city to slide into its last recession. The number of bankruptcy petitions increased to 11,620 last year from 10,918 in 2007.
■ECONOMY
PRC not the solution: expert
A recovery in China’s economy is not enough to haul the world out of its economic crisis because it is still a developing country, Xinhua news agency cited a leading Chinese economist as saying yesterday. A pickup in Chinese growth would have a positive but limited effect on the world economy, which needs a rally in major economies to recover, said Fan Gong, a member of the central bank’s monetary policy committee.
■AVIATION
Air France offers new class
Air France hopes to woo back crisis-hit executives who are deserting premium airline tickets with a new seat category priced half way between business and economy. Set for launch on April 1, the “Premium Voyageur” cabin promises long-haul passengers more leg space than economy class at a “highly competitive” price pitched at small and medium-sized businesses. The new cabin will be introduced on Paris flights to New York, Tokyo and Osaka — popular business routes — and then gradually phased in on all long-haul flights operated by Boeing 777s, Airbus A340s and A330s.
■BANKING
FDIC shutters FirstCity Bank
Regulators on Friday shut down FirstCity Bank in Georgia, marking the 18th failure this year of a federally insured US bank. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp (FDIC) was appointed receiver of the failed bank in Georgia, with more expected to succumb because of the recession. The FDIC estimated that the cost to the deposit insurance fund from the closing of FirstCity Bank would be about US$100 million. The fund now stands at its lowest level in nearly a quarter-century at US$18.9 billion as of Dec. 31, compared with US$52.4 billion at the end of 2007.
■TELECOMS
3D porn on iPhones
IPhone lovers can use their hot devices to view steamy adult videos in 3D. Adult entertainment titan Pink Visual is filming porn videos that can be viewed in 3D on iPhones encased in Wazabee 3DeeShells tailored for the popular Apple mobile devices by German firm Spatial View. 3DeeShell is described as “protective skin” that iPhones can slide into. A window built into the shell allows 3D viewing without special eyeglasses. Pink Visual saw visits to its video service soar after Christmas as people turned on new iPhones and tapped into porn.
BYPASSING CHINA TARIFFS: In the first five months of this year, Foxconn sent US$4.4bn of iPhones to the US from India, compared with US$3.7bn in the whole of last year Nearly all the iPhones exported by Foxconn Technology Group (富士康科技集團) from India went to the US between March and last month, customs data showed, far above last year’s average of 50 percent and a clear sign of Apple Inc’s efforts to bypass high US tariffs imposed on China. The numbers, being reported by Reuters for the first time, show that Apple has realigned its India exports to almost exclusively serve the US market, when previously the devices were more widely distributed to nations including the Netherlands and the Czech Republic. During March to last month, Foxconn, known as Hon Hai Precision Industry
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) and the University of Tokyo (UTokyo) yesterday announced the launch of the TSMC-UTokyo Lab to promote advanced semiconductor research, education and talent development. The lab is TSMC’s first laboratory collaboration with a university outside Taiwan, the company said in a statement. The lab would leverage “the extensive knowledge, experience, and creativity” of both institutions, the company said. It is located in the Asano Section of UTokyo’s Hongo, Tokyo, campus and would be managed by UTokyo faculty, guided by directors from UTokyo and TSMC, the company said. TSMC began working with UTokyo in 2019, resulting in 21 research projects,
Ashton Hall’s morning routine involves dunking his head in iced Saratoga Spring Water. For the company that sells the bottled water — Hall’s brand of choice for drinking, brushing his teeth and submerging himself — that is fantastic news. “We’re so thankful to this incredible fitness influencer called Ashton Hall,” Saratoga owner Primo Brands Corp’s CEO Robbert Rietbroek said on an earnings call after Hall’s morning routine video went viral. “He really helped put our brand on the map.” Primo Brands, which was not affiliated with Hall when he made his video, is among the increasing number of companies benefiting from influencer
Quanta Computer Inc (廣達) chairman Barry Lam (林百里) yesterday expressed a downbeat view about the prospects of humanoid robots, given high manufacturing costs and a lack of target customers. Despite rising demand and high expectations for humanoid robots, high research-and-development costs and uncertain profitability remain major concerns, Lam told reporters following the company’s annual shareholders’ meeting in Taoyuan. “Since it seems a bit unworthy to use such high-cost robots to do household chores, I believe robots designed for specific purposes would be more valuable and present a better business opportunity,” Lam said Instead of investing in humanoid robots, Quanta has opted to invest
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