ECONOMY
Brazil inflation hits 6.41%
Inflation in Brazil hit 6.41 percent last year, marginally below a government ceiling of 6.5 percent, but still the highest annual figure since 2011, the National Statistical Institute (IBGE) said on Friday. Prices rose last month by 0.78 percent, above November’s 0.51 percent, but below the 0.92 percent rise in December 2013, IBGE said. The official annual target is 4.5 percent, but the central target has been missed several times in recent years. The 2013 annual figure was 5.91 percent.
CENTRAL BANKS
US Fed reports record profit
The US Federal Reserve on Friday said it had paid a record US$98.7 billion in profit to the US Treasury last year, most of it earned from its stimulus for the US economy. Under Fed policy, its 12 regional banks must pay to the federal government what is left of earnings after certain items, such as operating expenses and dividend payments, are deducted. Last year’s payment widely eclipsed the central bank’s previous record of US$88.4 billion in 2012.
CENTRAL BANKS
SNB expects record profit
The Swiss National Bank (SNB) on Friday said it expected a record profit of 38 billion Swiss francs (US$37.5 billion) last year on the back of gains from its foreign currency holding. The bank said it would make a profit of SF34 billion from its foreign currency holdings and SF4 billion from its gold holdings, according to provisional estimates. Earlier this week, data from the bank showed the total value of its foreign currency reserves had swelled to a record SF495.1 billion by the end of last month.
AVIATION
Aer Lingus rejects IAG bid
International Airlines Group (IAG), the parent company of British Airways and Iberia, said on Friday it had made a fresh attempt to bid for Irish carrier Aer Lingus, which was rejected. It said it submitted a second takeover approach last month, offering 2.40 euros per share, up from 2.30 euros which it offered earlier in the month. IAG, which was formed in 2011, has made several acquisitions since, including Spanish low-cost airline Vueling and Britain’s BMI.
AUTOMAKERS
China new car sales slow
Passenger-vehicle sales rose at a slower pace in China last year as economic growth moderated and more cities imposed purchase restrictions in the world’s largest auto market. Retail deliveries climbed 10 percent to 18.9 million vehicles last year, slowing from the 17 percent gain in 2013, the China Passenger Car Association said on Friday on its Web site. Minivans and SUVs remained the fastest-growing segments, while sedan sales growth fell to 5 percent from 13 percent.
AUTOMAKERS
Nissan, NASA ink R&D deal
Japanese automaker Nissan Motor Co and NASA’s Ames Research Center at Moffett Field, California, on Thursday announced a five-year research and development partnership for autonomous vehicle systems so they can eventually be applied to commercially sold cars. Automakers besides Nissan are working on the technology, including Toyota Motor Corp, General Motors Co and Ford Motor Co.
FALLING BEHIND: Samsung shares have declined more than 20 percent this year, as the world’s largest chipmaker struggles in key markets and plays catch-up to rival SK Hynix Samsung Electronics Co is laying off workers in Southeast Asia, Australia and New Zealand as part of a plan to reduce its global headcount by thousands of jobs, sources familiar with the situation said. The layoffs could affect about 10 percent of its workforces in those markets, although the numbers for each subsidiary might vary, said one of the sources, who asked not to be named because the matter is private. Job cuts are planned for other overseas subsidiaries and could reach 10 percent in certain markets, the source said. The South Korean company has about 147,000 in staff overseas, more than half
TECH PARTNERSHIP: The deal with Arizona-based Amkor would provide TSMC with advanced packing and test capacities, a requirement to serve US customers Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) is collaborating with Amkor Technology Inc to provide local advanced packaging and test capacities in Arizona to address customer requirements for geographical flexibility in chip manufacturing. As part of the agreement, TSMC, the world’s biggest contract chipmaker, would contract turnkey advanced packaging and test services from Amkor at their planned facility in Peoria, Arizona, a joint statement released yesterday said. TSMC would leverage these services to support its customers, particularly those using TSMC’s advanced wafer fabrication facilities in Phoenix, Arizona, it said. The companies would jointly define the specific packaging technologies, such as TSMC’s Integrated
An Indian factory producing iPhone components resumed work yesterday after a fire that halted production — the third blaze to disrupt Apple Inc’s local supply chain since the start of last year. Local industrial behemoth Tata Group’s plant in Tamil Nadu, which was shut down by the unexplained fire on Saturday, is a key linchpin of Apple’s nascent supply chain in the country. A spokesperson for subsidiary Tata Electronics Pvt yesterday said that the company would restart work in “many areas of the facility today.” “We’ve been working diligently since Saturday to support our team and to identify the cause of the fire,”
Sales RecORD: Hon Hai’s consolidated sales rose by about 20 percent last quarter, while Largan, another Apple supplier, saw quarterly sales increase by 17 percent IPhone assembler Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密) on Saturday reported its highest-ever quarterly sales for the third quarter on the back of solid global demand for artificial intelligence (AI) servers. Hon Hai, also known as Foxconn Technology Group (富士康科技集團) globally, said it posted NT$1.85 trillion (US$57.93 billion) in consolidated sales in the July-to-September quarter, up 19.46 percent from the previous quarter and up 20.15 percent from a year earlier. The figure beat the previous third-quarter high of NT$1.74 trillion recorded in 2022, company data showed. Due to rising demand for AI, Hon Hai said its cloud and networking division enjoyed strong sales
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