ACQUISITIONS
Germany approves ASE bid
Advanced Semiconductor Engineering Inc (ASE, 日月光半導體), the world’s biggest chip packager and tester, yesterday said that it has received approval from Germany’s competition watchdog to proceed with its acquisition of smaller rival Siliconware Precision Industry Co (SPIL, 矽品精密). “The notified concentration does not fulfill the conditions of prohibition… It can be implemented,” a notification from the German agency said. “The implementation of the notification needs to be announced immediately.” ASE postponed its tender offer to buy SPIL from Feb. 16 to March 16, as the case is still under review by the Fair Trade Commission.
COMPONENTS
SPIL eyes Unimicron sale
Siliconware Precision Industries Co (SPIL, 矽品精密), the world’s third-largest chip packager and tester, yesterday said that it planned to sell 35 million shares of printed circuit board maker Unimicron Technology Corp (欣興電子). The sale is expected to result in a NT$3.63 million (US$107,811) loss for the company, according to SPIL’s filing with the Taiwan Stock Exchange. SPIL has booked NT$3.28 billion in asset impairments, partly from its holdings of Unimicron Technology, for the final quarter last year.
MANUFACTURING
Kinsus approves dividends
Kinsus Interconnect Technology Corp (景碩), a silicon substrate maker, yesterday said that its board has approved a plan to distribute cash dividends of NT$3.5 for each common share. That represents a payout ratio of about 54 percent based on the company’s net profit of NT$2.9 billion, or NT$6.51 per share. The distribution delivers 5.03 percent in cash dividend yields, as Kinsus shares rose 0.43 percent to NT$69.5 yesterday. The company made NT$23.06 billion in revenue last year, down 7.55 percent from the NT$24.94 billion it made in 2014.
AVIATION
Fuel surcharges set to be cut
The aviation fuel surcharges on flights operated by Taiwanese carriers are to be reduced because of the steady fall in international crude oil prices, the Civil Aeronautics Administration said yesterday. Beginning on Feb. 7, the fuel surcharge for short-distance flights will be cut by US$2.50 per flight to US$5 and for long-haul flights by US$6.5 per leg to US$13, the agency announced. State-run oil refiner CPC Corp, Taiwan (CPC, 中油) announced earlier in the day that international aviation fuel prices for this month would be lowered from US$56.03 per barrel to US$46.27 per barrel. CPC also announced price cuts for liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and liquefied natural gas this month. Effective today, prices for household LPG are to drop by NT$3 per kilogram and NT$1.02 per liter for LPG used in cars, CPC said.
STOCK MARKET
TAIEX rises despite swings
The TAIEX yesterday rose 11.75 points, or 0.14 percent, to close at 8,156.96 on turnover of NT$83.23 billion. Stocks in the local market experienced price oscillations during the day’s trading, which continued to reflect the impact of Japan’s negative interest rate policy and rises in international stock markets. Apple-concept shares weakened compared with their strong showing last week. Meanwhile, the financial and biotech sectors were in correction declines. The electronics sector rose 0.25 percent, while the financial sector registered a 0.67 percent drop.
PROTECTIONISM: China hopes to help domestic chipmakers gain more market share while preparing local tech companies for the possibility of more US sanctions Beijing is stepping up pressure on Chinese companies to buy locally produced artificial intelligence (AI) chips instead of Nvidia Corp products, part of the nation’s effort to expand its semiconductor industry and counter US sanctions. Chinese regulators have been discouraging companies from purchasing Nvidia’s H20 chips, which are used to develop and run AI models, sources familiar with the matter said. The policy has taken the form of guidance rather than an outright ban, as Beijing wants to avoid handicapping its own AI start-ups and escalating tensions with the US, said the sources, who asked not to be identified because the
Taipei is today suspending its US$2.5 trillion stock market as Super Typhoon Krathon approaches Taiwan with strong winds and heavy rain. The nation is not conducting securities, currency or fixed-income trading, statements from its stock and currency exchanges said. Yesterday, schools and offices were closed in several cities and counties in southern and eastern Taiwan, including in the key industrial port city of Kaohsiung. Taiwan, which started canceling flights, ship sailings and some train services earlier this week, has wind and rain advisories in place for much of the island. It regularly experiences typhoons, and in July shut offices and schools as
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
Her white-gloved, waistcoated uniform impeccable, 22-year-old Hazuki Okuno boards a bullet train replica to rehearse the strict protocols behind the smooth operation of a Japanese institution turning 60 Tuesday. High-speed Shinkansen trains began running between Tokyo and Osaka on Oct. 1, 1964, heralding a new era for rail travel as Japan grew into an economic superpower after World War II. The service remains integral to the nation’s economy and way of life — so keeping it dazzlingly clean, punctual and accident-free is a serious job. At a 10-story, state-of-the-art staff training center, Okuno shouted from the window and signaled to imaginary colleagues, keeping
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