EXHIBITIONS
Smart technology on show
Computex Taipei will focus this year on smart living technologies and applications, from 3D printers to wearable devices, according to one of the organizers. About 1,700 exhibitors will present the newest advancements in hardware, as well as applications to make life more convenient from June 3 to 7, the Taipei Computer Association (台北市電腦公會) said.
COMPUTERS
Notebook sales to fall
Morgan Stanley forecast notebook computer shipments from the top five original design manufacturers during the second quarter would drop 5 percent year-on-year to 32.3 million units, following the disappointing shipments of 11.3 million units last month. “June will be key to monitor for notebook momentum in the second quarter, as PC brands will launch new products by the end of the second quarter,” Jasmine Lu (呂智穎), head of Taiwan research at Morgan Stanley, said last week.
AVIATION
Carrier to launch new route
Vietnamese low-cost carrier VietJet Air is scheduled to launch a new Taipei-Ho Chi Minh City route in mid-June, the Civil Aeronautics Administration said on Thursday last week. VietJet Air will be the fourth airline to run passenger services between Taiwan and Vietnam after China Airlines Ltd (中華航空), EVA Airways Corp (長榮航空) and Vietnam Airlines. It will be the 14th foreign budget carrier to fly to Taiwan.
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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