TECHNOLOGY
Acer strategy pays off
Acer Inc (宏碁) yesterday reported net income of NT$173 million (US$5.62 million) for the first quarter of the year, with earnings per share of NT$0.06. Gross profit grew 4.5 percent year-on-year to NT$6.66 billion and operating income jumped nearly 140 percent to NT$304 million, despite an 11.4 percent annual decline in consolidated revenue to NT$67.95 billion, the company said. Acer said the results reflected the company’s strategy of tailoring its mix of products to meet market needs, lower operating expenses and inventory management.
CHIPMAKERS
Epistar profits on bonds
Epistar Corp (晶元光電), the nation’s biggest LED chipmaker, yesterday posted net income for the first quarter of NT$710 million, with earnings per share of NT$0.74. The results included a large European convertible bond-related non-operating gain of NT$670 million. That offset the impact of declining margins, which decreased to 11.8 percent in the first quarter from 15.2 percent recorded in the previous quarter. Consolidated revenue in the first quarter was NT$6.65 billion, up 6.5 percent year-on-year and 16.3 percent quarter-on-quarter.
MEDICAL EQUIPMENT
Cowealth sees flat growth
Medical equipment supplier Cowealth Medical Co (合富醫療) yesterday said sales for this quarter would likely remain flat from last quarter’s record earnings of NT$896 million. The company said rising sales in test reagents and contributions from other joint ventures and business partnerships this quarter could offset declining sales of Accuray Inc’s Cyberknife system for treating cancer. Last quarter, the company’s net income was NT$93.15 million, with earnings per share of NT$1.66, and a gross margin of 36 percent.
MANUFACTURING
Yeong Guan profits rise
Yeong Guan Energy Technology Group Co (永冠能源), which produces advanced casting components for specialized applications, yesterday reported net income of NT$233 million for the first quarter, up 12.01 percent from a year earlier, with earnings per share of NT$2.22, the best first-quarter earnings in the company’s history. Sales in the first quarter increased 13.8 percent year-on-year to NT$1.86 billion and Yeong Guan is confident it can maintain sales momentum this year, it said.
OPTICS
St Shine’s profits disappoint
St Shine Optical Co Ltd (精華光學) shares dropped 6.91 percent to NT$539 per share yesterday after the company reported disappointing earnings in the first quarter. The contact lens manufacturer reported net income fell 42.62 percent from the same period a year ago to NT$287 million in the first quarter, or NT$5.7 per share, which the company attributed to a non-operating foreign exchange loss of NT$81 million due to the fall in the yen and the euro against the US dollar. Gross margin also declined to 39.1 percent from 41.3 percent in the previous quarter, the company said.
TELECOMS
Asia Pacific merger delayed
Ambit Microsystems Corp (國碁電子), a unit of Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密), yesterday said its board had approved the postponement of its planned merger with Asia Pacific Telecom Co (亞太電信) to the end of this year, given the prolonged review of the deal by the National Communications Commission. The deal had originally been scheduled for June 30.
NEW IDENTITY: Known for its software, India has expanded into hardware, with its semiconductor industry growing from US$38bn in 2023 to US$45bn to US$50bn India on Saturday inaugurated its first semiconductor assembly and test facility, a milestone in the government’s push to reduce dependence on foreign chipmakers and stake a claim in a sector dominated by China. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi opened US firm Micron Technology Inc’s semiconductor assembly, test and packaging unit in his home state of Gujarat, hailing the “dawn of a new era” for India’s technology ambitions. “When young Indians look back in the future, they will see this decade as the turning point in our tech future,” Modi told the event, which was broadcast on his YouTube channel. The plant would convert
‘SEISMIC SHIFT’: The researcher forecast there would be about 1.1 billion mobile shipments this year, down from 1.26 billion the prior year and erasing years of gains The global smartphone market is expected to contract 12.9 percent this year due to the unprecedented memorychip shortage, marking “a crisis like no other,” researcher International Data Corp (IDC) said. The new forecast, a dramatic revision down from earlier estimates, gives the latest accounting of the ongoing memory crunch that is affecting every corner of the electronics industry. The demand for advanced memory to power artificial intelligence (AI) tasks has drained global supply until well into next year and jeopardizes the business model of many smartphone makers. IDC forecast about 1.1 billion mobile shipments this year, down from 1.26 billion the prior
People stand in a Pokemon store in Tokyo on Thursday. One of the world highest-grossing franchises is celebrated its 30th anniversary yesterday.
Zimbabwe’s ban on raw lithium exports is forcing Chinese miners to rethink their strategy, speeding up plans to process the metal locally instead of shipping it to China’s vast rechargeable battery industry. The country is Africa’s largest lithium producer and has one of the world’s largest reserves, according to the US Geological Survey (USGS). Zimbabwe already banned the export of lithium ore in 2022 and last year announced it would halt exports of lithium concentrates from January next year. However, on Wednesday it imposed the ban with immediate effect, leaving unclear what the lithium mining sector would do in the
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