CHIPMAKERS
TSMC to upgrade capacity
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s biggest contract chipmaker, yesterday said its board of directors approved capital appropriations of roughly US$1.27 billion to upgrade and expand advanced technology chip capacity, as well as to convert certain logic capacity to specialty technology. The funds are also to be used to develop capital investments and sustain capital expenditures for next quarter. The board also approved a donation of NT$30 million (US$991,473) to fund the creation of the TSMC Charity Foundation.
DISPLAY MAKERS
AUO monthly revenue falls
LCD panel maker AU Optronics Corp (AUO, 友達光電) yesterday reported a 10.5 percent monthly decline in revenue for last month to NT$27.78 billion, from NT$31.05 billion in March, as shipments of TV and PC panels fell. The figure represented growth of 7.6 percent from NT$25.82 billion in the same period last year. Shipments of TV and PC panels last month fell 12 percent from 9.84 million in March to 8.66 million units. Separately, Chunghwa Picture Tubes Ltd (中華映管) yesterday said revenue shrank 6.6 percent to NT$2.23 billion last month, compared with March’s NT$2.81 billion. It attributed most of the decline to an 11.4 percent monthly reduction in TV and PC panel shipments. On an annual basis, revenue grew 1.6 percent from NT$2.35 billion, it said.
CHIPMAKERS
Vanguard revenue plummets
Vanguard International Semiconductor Corp (世界先進), which makes controller chips for LCD panels, yesterday said revenue plunged 20.11 percent from NT$2.15 billion in the same period last year to NT$1.71 billion last month, due to fewer wafer shipments. On a monthly basis, revenue sank 28.5 percent from NT$2.4 billion in March. Vanguard blamed the weakness on a strong New Taiwan dollar and weak demand for controller chips for smartphone panels. It forecast a quarterly decline of at most 6.55 percent to NT$5.85 billion for this quarter. Separately, Adata Technology Co (威剛科技), the nation’s biggest memory module maker, yesterday said revenue soared 54.28 percent annually to NT$2.53 billion as supply constraints boosted prices. Adata expects memorychip prices to further trend up in this quarter because of tight supply.
PC MAKERS
Asustek revenue falls 40%
Asustek Computer Inc (華碩) yesterday reported revenue of NT$27.11 billion for last month, its lowest monthly figure since April 2013, which it attributed to the shortening product life of its smartphones and soft demand for PC-related products. The figure represented a 6.85 percent drop annually and 40 percent monthly, a filing with the Taiwan Stock Exchange said. The firm’s cumulative revenue in the first four months of this year totaled NT$135.33 billion, an 8.78 percent decline from the same period last year, the filing showed.
PETROCHEMICALS
LCY to spin off rubber unit
LCY Chemical Corp (榮化), which manufactures petrochemical products, yesterday said its board approved a plan to spin off its rubber business. The planned spin-off would give the unit more flexibility to collaborate with other companies, LCY officials said at a news conference. The reorganization project, which is scheduled to take effect on Sept. 1, still needs to be discussed at an annual shareholders’ meeting on June 27. Shareholders’ interests would not be affected by the plan, LCY said.
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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