Cathay Financial Holding Co (國泰金控), the nation’s largest financial services provider, said yesterday it made a net profit of NT$1.21 billion (US$41 million) last month, down from NT$1.40 billion in January because of less working days in the month.
In the first two months of the year, however, Cathay Financial posted a net profit of NT$2.61 billion, compared with a net loss of NT$1.54 billion a year earlier, thanks to rising fee incomes from its banking unit, the company said in an e-mailed statement.
Based on the financial holding firm’s 10.15 billion issued shares, net profit for the first two months translated into NT$0.26 in earnings per share, the Taipei-based company said.
Among Cathay Financial’s major business units, Cathay United Bank (國泰世華銀行) posted a net profit of NT$1.14 billion last month. The lender saw profits hit NT$1.99 billion, or NT$0.38 per share, in the first two months.
That was followed by Cathay Life Insurance Corp (國泰人壽), the group’s flagship unit and the nation’s largest life insurer, which made a profit of NT$60 million last month and NT$450 million in the first two months, company data showed.
“Owing to rising sales in high-yield products, Cathay Life saw its first-year premiums grow by an industry-leading 66.1 percent to NT$7 billion last month,” the statement said.
The company’s non-life insurance unit, Cathay Century Insurance Co (國泰產險), made a net profit of NT$40 million last month and NT$170 million in the first two months, the statement showed.
On Tuesday, Cathay Financial said its non-life insurance unit had obtained permission to set up a branch in Hanoi, Vietnam, after it opened a branch in Ho Chi Minh City in December.
INVESTOR RESILIENCE? An analyst said that despite near-term pressures, foreign investors tend to view NT dollar strength as a positive signal for valuation multiples Morgan Stanley has flagged a potential 10 percent revenue decline for Taiwan’s tech hardware sector this year, as a sharp appreciation of the New Taiwan dollar begins to dent the earnings power of major exporters. In what appears to be the first such warning from a major foreign brokerage, the US investment bank said the currency’s strength — fueled by foreign capital inflows and expectations of US interest rate cuts — is compressing profit margins for manufacturers with heavy exposure to US dollar-denominated revenues. The local currency has surged about 10 percent against the greenback over the past quarter and yesterday breached
MARKET FACTORS: Navitas Semiconductor Inc said that Powerchip is to take over from TSMC as its supplier of high-voltage gallium nitride chips Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) yesterday in a statement said that it would phase out its compound semiconductor gallium nitride (GaN) business over the next two years, citing market dynamics. The decision would not affect its financial targets announced previously, the world’s biggest contract chipmaker said. “We are working closely with our customers to ensure a smooth transition and remain committed to meeting their needs during this period,” it said. “Our focus continues to be on delivering sustained value to our partners and the market.” TSMC’s latest move came unexpectedly, as the chipmaker had said in its annual report that it has
Gudeng Precision Industrial Co (家登精密), the sole extreme ultraviolet pod supplier to Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (台積電), yesterday said it has trimmed its revenue growth target for this year as US tariffs are likely to depress customer demand and weigh on the whole supply chain. Gudeng’s remarks came after the US on Monday notified 14 countries, including Japan and South Korea, of new tariff rates that are set to take effect on Aug. 1. Taiwan is still negotiating for a rate lower than the 32 percent “reciprocal” tariffs announced by the US in April, which it later postponed to today. The
SECURITY WARNING: The company possesses key 3-nanometer technology, and Taiwan should prevent it from being transferred to China, a lawmaker said The Ministry of Economic Affairs yesterday said it would conduct a “strict review” of any proposed acquisition of Taiwanese tech company Source Photonics Co (索爾思光電), following media reports that a Chinese firm was planning to buy the company in the Hsinchu Science Park (新竹科學園區). Local media reported that Suzhou Dongshan Precision Manufacturing Co (東山精密), China’s largest printed circuit board manufacturer, had announced plans to acquire Source Photonics for 5.9 billion yuan (US$823.1 million). The ministry said it has not received an application from Source Photonics and has formally notified the company that any buyout would constitute a change in its ownership structure. The
RSS