Steel plant nears completion
China Steel Corp (CSC, 中鋼), the nation’s only integrated steelmaker, is planning to launch commercial production at a new plant in India by the end of this year.
The company invested US$236 million in building the electrical steel plate production site, located in Gujarat Province, and the site is 95 percent completed, China Steel said.
About 100 employees, including engineers and technicians, sent by China Steel to the Indian plant are working hard to begin trial production in September, the company said.
The new production base is expected to roll out 200,000 tonnes of steel products a year and most of the production will be sold in India, with the remainder to be shipped to the Middle East and Europe, the company said.
Electrical steel plates are used in a wide range of applications, including home appliances, industrial motors, cars, power generation equipment and uninterruptible power systems.
Free trade zone enjoys benefits
Shanghai Taiwan Investors Association director Hector Yeh (葉惠德) said that as of the end of last month, a total of 114 Taiwanese investors had begun operations in Shanghai’s free trade zone, with a combined capital size of more than US$203 million.
The companies are aiming to take advantage of preferential treatment provided to investors in the trade zone, he said.
For example, importers of foreign-made medical equipment in the zone are eligible to enjoy a streamlined process without unnecessary hassles, while trading companies there are allowed to take the delivery of their foreign purchases without completing tariff payments in advance, Yeh said.
Yeh made the comments at the opening ceremony of Cathay United Bank’s (國泰世華銀行) outlet in the zone on Friday.
Biotech ties with Japan urged
Minister without Portfolio John Deng (鄧振中) on Friday said that Taiwan and Japan can work together in biotechnology.
During a Taiwan-Japan industrial cooperation forum in Taipei, Deng said that combining Japan’s medicine brands and research and development capabilities, Taiwan’s strength in telecommunication technologies could accelerate the marketing of new medical equipment and drugs to meet increasing demand in aging societies and emerging countries.
The two countries have signed several substantial cooperative agreements in terms of investment, fisheries and financial supervision, according to Deng, who forecast 4 million visitors to travel between Taiwan and Japan this year, compared with 3.77 million last year.
Analog IC growth forecast
The growth in shipments of analog integrated circuits (IC) is expected to grow at an average annual rate of 8.9 percent, beating a 7.2 percent increase expected for the broader semiconductor market between last year and 2018, IC Insights said in a report on Saturday.
IC Insights said demand for medical/health electronics, light-emitting diode lighting and green energy management for residential and commercial property would serve as an engine of analog IC growth.
This year, shipments of analog ICs are expected to grow 12.4 percent from last year’s 100 billion units to represent 53 percent of total IC shipments, IC Insights said.
The report said analog ICs are expected to make up 57 percent of total IC shipments in 2018.
Asustek debuts new phone
Asustek Computer Inc (華碩) launched its popular ZenFone smartphone series in Russia on Friday, with chairman Jonney Shih (施崇棠) demonstrating the series at a launch ceremony in Moscow.
The ZenFone models, priced as low as US$99, were unveiled in January this year as Asustek’s answer to Chinese handset maker Xiaomi Corp’s (小米) affordable Redmi (Hongmi) series.
The ZenFone series is already being sold in Taiwan, China, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand and India, and is scheduled to go on sale in Turkey and Brazil later this year, Asustek said.
In May, the company said it would sell 5 million to 10 million smartphones this year.
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