Evertrust Rehouse Co (永慶房屋), the nation’s largest real-estate agency by number of outlets, aims to increase its revenues by 20 percent next year, driven by the commercial property business as the housing sector stalls, a senior executive said yesterday.
“The company’s 10 percent year-on-year revenue decline to NT$6.3 billion [US$207.84 million] is attributable to the implementation of the special sales levy [in June],” Evertrust president Benson Liao (廖本勝) told reporters prior to the company’s year-end dinner for employees.
Commercial property and land transactions have emerged unscathed by the tax thus far, thanks to ample liquidity and low interest rates, Liao said.
According to Liao, the agency is seeking to take advantage of the ongoing economic slowdown and expand its number of outlets by 16 percent to 1,000 next year.
The increase in outlets is -expected to help boost the company’s sales by 20 percent next year and its market share from 12 percent to 16 percent, Liao said.
“Sluggish housing transactions are pushing some peers out of the market,” he said. “To me, the trend spells opportunity for personnel recruitment and business expansion.”
Evertrust employees nationwide have been told to keep an eye on rival offices in prime locations that might be buyout targets, Liao said, adding that acquisition costs would be higher in boom times.
Liao expects home transfers to fall an extra 10 percent to 330,000 units next year after seeing a 10 percent correction to 360,000 units this year from last year.
More people will stay on the sidelines until the economy shows clear signs of stabilization, Liao said.
The presidential election on Jan. 14 is adding to the cautious sentiment, he said. The upscale home segment, in particular, is more sensitive to potential changes in cross-strait policy, he added.
“Luxury homes might see a significant pricing correction if Taiwan reverses its trade ties with China, scaring away foreign -capital,” Liao said.
Typical homes nationwide are likely to see a 10 percent price correction next year as a result of unfavorable government policies, he said.
While the recently passed housing transaction registration rule is harmless, it might cause serious damage if the government uses the data for tax purposes, Liao said.
The situation is worse in Shanghai, China, where Evertrust remains unprofitable after a series of tightening measures saw sales plunge to 6,000 units a month in the second half of this year, down 40 percent from 10,000 units in the first half, he said.
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
Nvidia Corp CEO Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) on Thursday met with US President Donald Trump at the White House, days before a planned trip to China by the head of the world’s most valuable chipmaker, people familiar with the matter said. Details of what the two men discussed were not immediately available, and the people familiar with the meeting declined to elaborate on the agenda. Spokespeople for the White House had no immediate comment. Nvidia declined to comment. Nvidia’s CEO has been vocal about the need for US companies to access the world’s largest semiconductor market and is a frequent visitor to China.
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,
Hypermarket chain Carrefour Taiwan and upscale supermarket chain Mia C’bon on Saturday announced the suspension of their partnership with Jkopay Co (街口支付), one of Taiwan’s largest digital payment providers, amid a lawsuit involving its parent company. Carrefour and Mia C’bon said they would notify customers once Jkopay services are reinstated. The two retailers joined an array of other firms in suspending their partnerships with Jkopay. On Friday night, popular beverage chain TP Tea (茶湯會) also suspended its use of the platform, urging customers to opt for alternative payment methods. Another drinks brand, Guiji (龜記), on Friday said that it is up to individual
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