Reality pushes TAIEX back down
The nation’s benchmark index fell into consolidation mode yesterday, closing little changed after a 4.56 percent jump in the previous session due to technical resistance ahead of the crucial 7,000-point level, dealers said.
After Wednesday’s significant gains in share prices, many investors seemed to calm down to some extent, as the nightmare of the European debt problems returned to haunt market sentiment throughout the trading session, they added.
The TAIEX closed down 0.13 points at 6,966.35 after moving between 6,940.85 and 6,989.59, on turnover of NT$74.18 billion (US$2.45 billion). A day earlier, the index soared after the government announced that the NT$500 billion National Stabilization Fund was ready to buy stocks to bolster the market.
Following the frenzied Wednesday trading, investors’ thoughts shifted back to the ugly reality — the debt crisis in the eurozone, dealers said.
Asia Pacific inks 3.5G deal
Local wireless service provider Asia Pacific Telecom Co (亞太電信) yesterday said it signed an agreement with Alcatel-Lucent to buy 3.5G equipment for about NT$3.13 billion.
The deal would help Asia Pacific Telecom catch up with local rivals in upgrading its 3.5G network to cope with growing demand for high-speed data transmission.
The telecoms company expects to start operating the high-speed network in the second half of next year with more aggressive rate plans for smartphones and tablets.
New investments to hit goal
New major private investment in Taiwan totaled NT$1.04 trillion as of the end of last month and there should be no problem reaching this year’s goal of NT$1.1 trillion, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said on Wednesday.
With the expansion of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) and increased investment by photovoltaic, solar cell and petrochemical manufacturers, private investment has performed credibly despite an economic downturn in the third quarter, the ministry said.
About 38 percent of the new private investment projects were concentrated in Greater Taichung, Changhua and Nantou counties in central Taiwan, while 19 percent were in Greater Tainan and Yunlin and Chiayi counties in the south, the ministry said.
Meanwhile, Taiwan has achieved this year’s goal of attracting US$9 billion in foreign investment, having secured US$9.39 billion in foreign investment by last month, the ministry said.
Key rates may be cut: Investec
Investec Asset Management in Taiwan (天達投顧) said yesterday the central bank may cut the benchmark interest rate at its quarterly board meeting next week to help stimulate the economy.
The central bank may take cues from its global peers and trim borrowing costs to support GDP growth next year after major economic bellwethers showed signs of a slowdown, the South Africa-based fund manager told a media briefing.
The government will take further action to shore up the economy after announcing plans on Tuesday to intervene in the local bourse.
The US Federal Reserve would introduce a fresh round of quantitative easing in the first quarter to invigorate its economy, Investec said.
NT dollar inches down
The New Taiwan dollar edged down against the US currency yesterday, shedding NT$0.04 to close at NT$30.325.
Turnover totaled US$408 million during the trading session.
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
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, yesterday said its materials management head, Vanessa Lee (李文如), had tendered her resignation for personal reasons. The personnel adjustment takes effect tomorrow, TSMC said in a statement. The latest development came one month after Lee reportedly took leave from the middle of last month. Cliff Hou (侯永清), senior vice president and deputy cochief operating officer, is to concurrently take on the role of head of the materials management division, which has been under his supervision, TSMC said. Lee, who joined TSMC in 2022, was appointed senior director of materials management and
MAJOR CONTRIBUTOR: Revenue from AI servers made up more than 50 percent of Wistron’s total server revenue in the second quarter, the company said Wistron Corp (緯創) on Tuesday reported a 135.6 percent year-on-year surge in revenue for last month, driven by strong demand for artificial intelligence (AI) servers, with the momentum expected to extend into the third quarter. Revenue last month reached NT$209.18 billion (US$7.2 billion), a record high for June, bringing second-quarter revenue to NT$551.29 billion, a 129.47 percent annual increase, the company said. Revenue in the first half of the year totaled NT$897.77 billion, up 87.36 percent from a year earlier and also a record high for the period, it said. The company remains cautiously optimistic about AI server shipments in the third quarter,
STABLE RESULTS: Despite June’s lower consolidated revenue, second-quarter sales still reached a record high, driven by demand for chips for AI applications Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) yesterday reported consolidated sales of NT$263.71 billion (US$9.02 billion) for last month, its second-lowest monthly result this year. The world’s largest contract chipmaker said in a statement that its revenue last month only fared better than the NT$260.01 billion posted in February. Last month’s figure rose 26.9 percent from a year earlier, but slumped 17.7 percent from May, the company said. However, second-quarter revenue reached NT$933.8 billion, a record high for a single quarter, company data showed. The figure represented growth of 11.26 percent from the first quarter and 38.6 percent from a year earlier. Previously, TSMC said that
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