TAIEX closes down
The TAIEX closed marginally down yesterday on thin turnover in consolidation mode after a surge during the previous trading day.
The benchmark index fell to a low of 7,674.18 points during trading session, but was boosted by a rise in financial, optoelectronics and automobile shares, to reach a high of 7,739.37 points.
The broader index closed down 7.95 points, or 0.1 percent, at 7,724.92, on turnover of NT$53.13 billion (US$1.83 billion), following a 116 point surge on Saturday, when turnover reached nearly NT$70 billion.
CCP expected to drop this year
The nation’s city consumption power (CCP) expected to drop slightly this year in terms of year-on-year growth, but the total volume is forecast to increase by about NT$76 billion to NT$5.6 trillion, according to the results of a study released yesterday.
Growth rate of CPP is predicted to decline to 1.36 percent this year from 1.38 percent last year, according to a report conducted by Fu Jen Catholic University.
The study showed that Taipei topped the nation’s cities with the highest assessed per capita city consumption power index at NT$392,434 per person this year, followed by Hsinchu City’s NT$327,815.
Taipei’s real estate profitable
Taipei is the top ninth city in the Asia-Pacific region for this year in terms of real estate investment profitability, according to a recent survey published by Pricewaterhouse Coopers Taiwan.
According to the Emerging Trends in Real Estate Asia-Pacific 2013, Taipei moved from 12th place last year to 8th place this year in terms of development.
Jakarta, Indonesia, topped the rankings for both investment and development for the first time, while Shanghai and Singapore took second and third places in investment and fourth and third in development respectively, the survey showed.
Lite-on aims to boost revenue
Local electronic component maker Lite-On Technology Corp (光寶科技) aims to increase its revenue by a single-digit percentage this year, backed by robust demand for its cloud-computing servers, camera lens modules used in tablets and smartphones, and LED lighting.
Last year, Lite-On’s revenue rose 2 percent to NT$121.45 billion from NT$102.29 billion in 2011.
“We hope the company can have a better growth than last year’s single digit rate [in revenue],” chairman Raymond Soong (宋恭源) said at the company’s year-end party on Friday.
He added that the company plans to allocate 15 percent of its net profits from last year for employee bonuses.
CyberAgent plans investment
Japanese venture capital firm CyberAgent Ventures Inc said yesterday that it plans to invest in FashionGuide, Taiwan’s largest cosmetics-centered online social networking Web site.
CyberAgent Ventures said it forecast FashionGuide has the potential to achieve a high sales growth rate in Taiwan’s female-oriented online social networking industry, according to a company statement.
CyberAgent added it will help FashionGuide expand its market to Japan, China, Southeast Asian countries and South Korea.
Founded in 1997 by Vincent Hsieh (謝攸升) and Allen Chang (張倫維), FashionGuide broadcasts TV programs, conducts surveys and also hosts online forums.
NT down against greenback
The New Taiwan dollar closed lower against the US dollar yesterday, declining NT$0.01 to close at NT$29.070.
Turnover totaled US$438 million during the trading session.
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
Rick Cassidy, the chairman of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co's (TSMC, 台積電) US subsidiary, TSMC Arizona Corp, plans to retire, but the company has yet to name a successor. After Cassidy made his intention to retire known, TSMC Arizona held a special general meeting and approved a resolution that Cassidy would not continue as chairman and would not remain as a director, TSMC said in a statement filed with the Taiwan Stock Exchange last night. The meeting also approved a plan to appoint TSMC Arizona president Rose Castanares as a director, the company said, adding that Cassidy has been named as an advisor
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
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