COSMETICS
Thai Ho to build Japan plant
Cosmetics supplier Thai Ho Group Inc (太和生技集團) yesterday announced plans to build a factory in Okinawa, Japan, with a local partner. The company is to provide an initial investment of about US$3 million to construct a cosmetics plant with Japan’s Point Pyuru. The plant is expected to begin mass production in the first quarter of next year, Thai Ho said, adding that it would take a 51 percent controlling stake in the facility. The company said that establishing a local manufacturing base would aid in tapping into Japan’s massive cosmetics market, which is valued at about ￥2 trillion (US$17.4 billion) annually, and that the “Made in Japan” distinction would help promote sales in North America and Europe.
SOLAR ENERGY
TSEC to build Pingtung plant
Taiwan Solar Energy Corp’s (TSEC, 元晶) board yesterday approved a NT$1.66 billion (US$53.61 million) investment plan to build a manufacturing plant in Pingtung County to expand production capacity for solar modules, the company said in a filing with the Taiwan Stock Exchange. The company is to inject capital by issuing 70 million new shares at a face value of NT$10 per share, TSEC said in a separate filing. The capacity expansion plan accompanied the firm’s release of financial results for last year, which showed that it generated net income of NT$12.92 million, a plunge from NT$171.89 million a year earlier. TSEC will not pay a dividend this year, the filing said.
RESTAURANTS
Wowprime dividend surges
Restaurant operator Wowprime Corp (王品集團) yesterday said its board has approved the distribution of a cash dividend of NT$3.5 per share, compared with NT$1 a year earlier, a filing with the Taiwan Stock Exchange showed. Last year, the company saw its earnings per share skyrocket from NT$0.45 to NT$4.2, due to increasing sales contribution from China and the company’s ongoing restructuring plans. Wowprime, which runs 14 restaurant chains in Taiwan, is to launch two brands and open more than 30 outlets this year, the company said in a statement.
TEXTILES
Everest halves dividend
Everest Textile Co (宏遠興業), which makes fabrics and garments, yesterday said its board approved the distribution of a cash dividend of NT$0.4 per share, compared with NT$0.8 a year earlier, a filing with the Taiwan Stock Exchange showed. The board also approved the issuance of 18,847,566 new shares through capitalization of last year’s earnings. Everest, a subsidiary of Far Eastern Group (遠東集團), is to hold an annual shareholders’ meeting on June 7 to discuss the proposals. Separately, the company said its two new plants in Ethiopia and the US are to start operations in the first half of this year.
AIRLINES
Emirates exec optimistic
Emirates, based in Dubai, is optimistic about Taiwan’s business potential, the airline’s local area manager said yesterday, citing an increase in passenger capacity since it introduced Airbus SAS A380 on its Taiwan route in 2015. Jaber Mohamed said that Emirates opened its Dubai-Taiwan route in February 2014 using the Boeing 777-300ER. Due to constant growth in demand, in July 2015 it replaced the 354-seat Boeing with the 491-seat A380, Jaber said. Passenger capacity has since grown by 42 percent, he said, adding that he is optimistic about the local market’s potential.
The domestic unit of the Chinese-owned, Dutch-headquartered chipmaker Nexperia BV will soon be able to produce semiconductors locally within China, according to two company sources. Nexperia is at the center of a global tug-of-war over critical semiconductor technology, with a Dutch court in February ordering a probe into alleged mismanagement at the company. The geopolitical tussle has disrupted supply chains, with some carmakers reportedly forced to cut production due to chip shortages. Local production would allow Nexperia’s domestic arm, Nexperia Semiconductors (China) Ltd (安世半導體中國), to bypass restrictions in place since October on the supply of silicon wafers — etched with tiny components to
Singapore-based ride-hailing and delivery giant Grab Holdings Ltd has applied for regulatory approval to acquire the Taiwan operations of Germany-based Delivery Hero SE's Foodpanda in a deal valued at about US$600 million. Grab submitted the filing to the Fair Trade Commission on Friday last week, with the transaction subject to regulatory review and approval, the company said in a statement yesterday. Its independent governance structure would help foster a healthy and competitive market in Taiwan if the deal is approved, Grab said. Grab, which is listed on the NASDAQ, said in the filing that US-based Uber Technologies Inc holds about 13 percent of
Taiwan is open to joining a global liquefied natural gas (LNG) program if one is created, but on the condition that countries provide delivery even in a scenario where there is a conflict with China, an energy department official said yesterday. While Taiwan’s priority is to have enough LNG at home, the nation is open to exploring potential strategic reserves in other countries such as Japan or South Korea, Energy Administration Deputy Director-General Chen Chung-hsien (陳崇憲) said. While the LNG market does not have a global reserve for emergencies like that of oil, the concept has been raised a few times —
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) yesterday received government approval to deploy its advanced 3-nanometer (3nm) process at its second fab currently under construction in Japan, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said in a news release. The ministry green-lit the plan for the facility in Kumamoto, which is scheduled to start installing equipment and come online in 2028 with a monthly production capacity of 15,000 12-inch wafers, the ministry said. The Department of Investment Review in June 2024 authorized a US$5.26 billion investment for the facility, slated to manufacture 6- to 12nm chips, significantly less advanced than 3nm process. At a meeting with
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