TELECOMS
Huawei to buy out venture
Chinese telecoms giant Huawei Technologies (華為) will buy out a joint venture with US security software maker Symantec by acquiring its 49 percent stake for US$530 million, the firms said yesterday. The venture, Hong Kong-based Huawei Symantec (華為賽門鐵), was set up in 2008 to provide security, storage and systems management solutions. The companies decided that having a single owner would help the Hong Kong firm to grow, Huawei and Symantec said in a statement. Enrique Salem, Symantec president and chief executive, was quoted as saying that China was one of Symantec’s fastest-growing markets and that it had exited the joint venture with a “good return.”
APPLIANCES
Electrolux to cut costs
Swedish appliance maker Electrolux AB said it plans to cut costs by about 5.1 billion kronor (US$770 million) a year and will review staffing levels in all regions. Electrolux said yesterday it has been “tangibly affected” by a decline in consumer confidence in Europe and North America, while increased costs for raw materials have also weighed on earnings. It says the savings plan is estimated to provide 2.6 billion kronor more in savings than its previous plan. Measures include adapting manufacturing capacity, speeding up synergy savings, improving purchasing and reducing costs through a review of employment levels. The company said it expects the measures to cost 5 billion kronor.
BANKING
UBS names Ermotti CEO
UBS AG said its board has appointed interim chief Sergio Ermotti as the Swiss bank’s new chief executive. Ermotti had been tipped to succeed Oswald Gruebel following the German’s premature departure over a US$2 billion rogue trading loss. The 51-year-old Swiss took over on an interim basis on Sept. 24 and has since announced several reforms to the bank’s operations. Zurich-based UBS also said yesterday that board chairman Kaspar Villiger would make way for his successor Axel Weber at the bank’s shareholder meeting in May next year.
EMPLOYMENT
Google tops US students’ list
Google tops the list when it comes to where US students want to work after graduating, according to a survey released on Monday by brand specialty firm Universum. The California-based Internet firm placed among the top 10 “ideal employers” for college students in an array of majors, including liberal arts, natural sciences and information technology. Google, Apple and the Walt Disney Co, in that order, were considered the best places for business majors to work, based on the survey of 61,726 students at 345 universities.
COMMODITIES
No wrongdoing: Sino-Forest
Sino-Forest Corp (嘉漢林業), a Chinese timber firm listed in Toronto, said an independent committee found no evidence of fraud at the company, whose share price has been savaged this year following allegations by short-seller Muddy Waters. “We can categorically say Sino-Forest is not the ‘near total fraud’ and ‘Ponzi scheme’ as alleged by Muddy Waters,” Sino-Forest chief executive Judson Martin said in a statement. Sino-Forest was the largest forestry company listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange until its shares collapsed in June after the fraud allegations surfaced. In the statement, Martin, a Canadian, said the committee verified the company’s cash balances, timber assets, book values and revenues. A final report by the committee should be completed by the year-end.
Intel Corp chief executive officer Lip-Bu Tan (陳立武) is expected to meet with Taiwanese suppliers next month in conjunction with the opening of the Computex Taipei trade show, supply chain sources said on Monday. The visit, the first for Tan to Taiwan since assuming his new post last month, would be aimed at enhancing Intel’s ties with suppliers in Taiwan as he attempts to help turn around the struggling US chipmaker, the sources said. Tan is to hold a banquet to celebrate Intel’s 40-year presence in Taiwan before Computex opens on May 20 and invite dozens of Taiwanese suppliers to exchange views
Application-specific integrated circuit designer Faraday Technology Corp (智原) yesterday said that although revenue this quarter would decline 30 percent from last quarter, it retained its full-year forecast of revenue growth of 100 percent. The company attributed the quarterly drop to a slowdown in customers’ production of chips using Faraday’s advanced packaging technology. The company is still confident about its revenue growth this year, given its strong “design-win” — or the projects it won to help customers design their chips, Faraday president Steve Wang (王國雍) told an online earnings conference. “The design-win this year is better than we expected. We believe we will win
Quanta Computer Inc (廣達) chairman Barry Lam (林百里) is expected to share his views about the artificial intelligence (AI) industry’s prospects during his speech at the company’s 37th anniversary ceremony, as AI servers have become a new growth engine for the equipment manufacturing service provider. Lam’s speech is much anticipated, as Quanta has risen as one of the world’s major AI server suppliers. The company reported a 30 percent year-on-year growth in consolidated revenue to NT$1.41 trillion (US$43.35 billion) last year, thanks to fast-growing demand for servers, especially those with AI capabilities. The company told investors in November last year that
Power supply and electronic components maker Delta Electronics Inc (台達電) yesterday said it plans to ship its new 1 megawatt charging systems for electric trucks and buses in the first half of next year at the earliest. The new charging piles, which deliver up to 1 megawatt of charging power, are designed for heavy-duty electric vehicles, and support a maximum current of 1,500 amperes and output of 1,250 volts, Delta said in a news release. “If everything goes smoothly, we could begin shipping those new charging systems as early as in the first half of next year,” a company official said. The new
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