ECONOMY
Money supplies decrease
Annual growth of M1B and M2 money supply decreased last month because of slower growth in bank loans and investments, the central bank said yesterday. M1B, a narrow measure of the amount of money in circulation, last month rose 6.11 percent from a year earlier, while the broader M2 monetary measurement — which includes M1B, time deposits, foreign currency deposits and mutual funds — increased 5.17 percent, the bank said in its monthly report. That compares with annual growth rates of M1B and M2 in January of 6.92 percent and 5.63 percent respectively. For the first two months, the average annual growth rates of M1B and M2 were 6.51 percent and 5.4 percent respectively, the bank said.
SEMICONDUCTORS
Equipment sales fall 3%
Global semiconductor equipment sales fell 3 percent to US$36.53 billion last year from a year earlier, as falls in the US and European markets offset rises in Taiwan, Japan, South Korea and China, industry association SEMI said yesterday. In terms of number of orders, worldwide orders for new semiconductor equipment dropped 5 percent from 2014, SEMI said in a statement. Taiwanese chipmakers bought US$9.64 billion worth of semiconductor equipment last year, up 2 percent year-on-year and making Taiwan the world’s biggest market for semiconductor equipment for the fourth consecutive year, SEMI said. South Korea and Japan ranked as the world’s second-largest and third-largest semiconductor equipment markets last year, with sales of US$7.47 billion and US$5.49 billion respectively, SEMI said.
NETWORKS
D-Link names chairman
Networking equipment manufacturer D-Link Corp (友訊科技) yesterday said its board has named John Hsuan (宣明智) to serve as the company’s chairman, replacing Roger Kao (高鶴軒), who announced on Wednesday last week that he is to retire from his posts. Hsuan, a honorary deputy chairman at United Microelectronics Corp (聯電), said he would help D-Link prepare for new challenges ahead as the firm turns 30 this year.
PLASTICS
Nan Ya approves dividend
Nan Ya Plastics Corp (南亞塑膠), the nation’s largest plastics maker, yesterday said its board approved a proposal to distribute a NT$3.3 cash dividend per common share based on last year’s earnings per share of NT$4.5. The proposed cash dividend, if approved by shareholders on June 23, would be higher than the NT$2.3 it paid in the previous year. Three of its affiliates controlled by Formosa Plastics Group (台塑集團) earlier this month announced their dividend plans. Formosa Plastics Corp (台塑) said it would distribute NT$3.6 in cash per share, Formosa Petrochemical Corp (台塑石化) said it would offer NT$4 in cash per share, while Formosa Chemicals & Fibre Corp (台灣化纖) said it would pay NT$3.5 in cash per share.
INSURANCE
China Life dividend falls
China Life Insurance Co (中國人壽) yesterday said its board has approved a dividend distribution of NT$1 per share, which includes a cash dividend of NT$0.6 and a stock dividend of 4 percent. The planned dividend of NT$1 is lower than the NT$1.4 the life insurer distributed in the previous year, which was a cash dividend of NT$0.4 and a stock dividend of 10 percent. The company reported net profit of NT$9.17 billion (US$280.2 million) last year, up 41 percent from a year earlier, while earnings per share were NT$2.75, company data showed.
Three experts in the high technology industry have said that US President Donald Trump’s pledge to impose higher tariffs on Taiwanese semiconductors is part of an effort to force Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) to the negotiating table. In a speech to Republicans on Jan. 27, Trump said he intends to impose tariffs on Taiwan to bring chip production to the US. “The incentive is going to be they’re not going to want to pay a 25, 50 or even a 100 percent tax,” he said. Darson Chiu (邱達生), an economics professor at Taichung-based Tunghai University and director-general of
‘LEGACY CHIPS’: Chinese companies have dramatically increased mature chip production capacity, but the West’s drive for secure supply chains offers a lifeline for Taiwan When Powerchip Technology Corp (力晶科技) entered a deal with the eastern Chinese city of Hefei in 2015 to set up a new chip foundry, it hoped the move would help provide better access to the promising Chinese market. However, nine years later, that Chinese foundry, Nexchip Semiconductor Corp (合晶集成), has become one of its biggest rivals in the legacy chip space, leveraging steep discounts after Beijing’s localization call forced Powerchip to give up the once-lucrative business making integrated circuits for Chinese flat panels. Nexchip is among Chinese foundries quickly winning market share in the crucial US$56.3 billion industry of so-called legacy
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) yesterday held its first board of directors meeting in the US, at which it did not unveil any new US investments despite mounting tariff threats from US President Donald Trump. Trump has threatened to impose 100 percent tariffs on Taiwan-made chips, prompting market speculation that TSMC might consider boosting its chip capacity in the US or ramping up production of advanced chips such as those using a 2-nanometer technology process at its Arizona fabs ahead of schedule. Speculation also swirled that the chipmaker might consider building its own advanced packaging capacity in the US as part
A move by US President Donald Trump to slap a 25 percent tariff on all steel imports is expected to place Taiwan-made steel, which already has a 25 percent tariff, on an equal footing, the Taiwan Steel & Iron Industries Association said yesterday. Speaking with CNA, association chairman Hwang Chien-chih (黃建智) said such an equal footing is expected to boost Taiwan’s competitive edge against other countries in the US market, describing the tariffs as "positive" for Taiwanese steel exporters. On Monday, Trump signed two executive orders imposing the new metal tariffs on imported steel and aluminum with no exceptions and exemptions, effective