SERVICES
Sentiment index gains
The service sector showed signs of improvement in March, with an index gauging industry sentiment indicating accelerated momentum, according to a survey conducted by the Commerce Development Research Institute. The survey showed that the index rose to 104, up 1 point from a month earlier, the Taipei-based think tank said in a statement on Friday. The institute said the index could show steady growth for last month as the sector continues to benefit from rising consumption resulting from continued outbound sales growth.
SMARTPHONES
HTC revenue down
HTC Corp (宏達電) on Friday reported consolidated revenue of NT$4.71 billion (US$156 million) for last month, down 18.03 percent year-on-year and 9.4 percent month-on-month as demand for its smartphones remained weak. During the first four months of the year, HTC’s revenue totaled NT$19.24 billion, down 6.5 percent from a year earlier, the company’s filing with the Taiwan Stock Exchange said. HTC is forecast to remain in the red for the first quarter. It is to release its financial results tomorrow. Net losses for last year totaled NT$10.56 billion.
FREIGHT
T3EX income up by 367.1%
Freight forwarder and logistics operator T3EX Global Holdings Corp (台驊國際投資控股) reported its net income surged 367.1 percent year-on-year to NT$29.59 million in the first quarter, with earnings per share of NT$0.27. It attributed the increase to rising air and sea freight sales amid a gradual global economic recovery, as well as a better customer mix and improving operational efficiency. T3EX said it is upbeat about sales, as global trade is expected to continue to improve from last year.
POWERING UP: PSUs for AI servers made up about 50% of Delta’s total server PSU revenue during the first three quarters of last year, the company said Power supply and electronic components maker Delta Electronics Inc (台達電) reported record-high revenue of NT$161.61 billion (US$5.11 billion) for last quarter and said it remains positive about this quarter. Last quarter’s figure was up 7.6 percent from the previous quarter and 41.51 percent higher than a year earlier, and largely in line with Yuanta Securities Investment Consulting Co’s (元大投顧) forecast of NT$160 billion. Delta’s annual revenue last year rose 31.76 percent year-on-year to NT$554.89 billion, also a record high for the company. Its strong performance reflected continued demand for high-performance power solutions and advanced liquid-cooling products used in artificial intelligence (AI) data centers,
SIZE MATTERS: TSMC started phasing out 8-inch wafer production last year, while Samsung is more aggressively retiring 8-inch capacity, TrendForce said Chipmakers are expected to raise prices of 8-inch wafers by up to 20 percent this year on concern over supply constraints as major contract chipmakers Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) and Samsung Electronics Co gradually retire less advanced wafer capacity, TrendForce Corp (集邦科技) said yesterday. It is the first significant across-the-board price hike since a global semiconductor correction in 2023, the Taipei-based market researcher said in a report. Global 8-inch wafer capacity slid 0.3 percent year-on-year last year, although 8-inch wafer prices still hovered at relatively stable levels throughout the year, TrendForce said. The downward trend is expected to continue this year,
Vincent Wei led fellow Singaporean farmers around an empty Malaysian plot, laying out plans for a greenhouse and rows of leafy vegetables. What he pitched was not just space for crops, but a lifeline for growers struggling to make ends meet in a city-state with high prices and little vacant land. The future agriculture hub is part of a joint special economic zone launched last year by the two neighbors, expected to cost US$123 million and produce 10,000 tonnes of fresh produce annually. It is attracting Singaporean farmers with promises of cheaper land, labor and energy just over the border.
US actor Matthew McConaughey has filed recordings of his image and voice with US patent authorities to protect them from unauthorized usage by artificial intelligence (AI) platforms, a representative said earlier this week. Several video clips and audio recordings were registered by the commercial arm of the Just Keep Livin’ Foundation, a non-profit created by the Oscar-winning actor and his wife, Camila, according to the US Patent and Trademark Office database. Many artists are increasingly concerned about the uncontrolled use of their image via generative AI since the rollout of ChatGPT and other AI-powered tools. Several US states have adopted
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