HONG KONG
Growth forecast upgraded
Hong Kong’s trade-reliant economy posted slower growth in the third quarter, but strong consumption and rebounding exports led the government to nudge up its growth outlook for this year. Government data released on Friday showed that the economy grew a seasonally adjusted 0.5 percent in the third quarter, compared with upwardly revised 1.1 percent growth previously. From a year earlier, the economy expanded 3.6 percent. Economists had forecast an expansion of 3.5 percent. Now, the government revised its full-year estimate of 3.7 percent growth for this year, compared with a previous forecast of 3 to 4 percent.
UNITED KINGDOM
Industrial output rebounds
Britain’s industrial output rebounded in September despite gloom over Brexit, official data showed on Friday. Industrial output rose 0.7 percent compared with activity in August, with a solid contribution from manufacturing, the Office for National Statistics said in a statement. It was a sixth successive month of expanding industrial production for the first time in 23 years, and outpaced market expectations for 0.3 percent growth. Manufacturing output, which excludes mining and quarrying, electricity, gas and water supply, also grew 0.7 percent in September from August.
STEEL
Kobe releases scandal report
Kobe Steel Ltd is pointing to a zealous pursuit of profit, unrealistic targets and an insular corporate culture as the causes of massive faked inspection data at the Japanese metals maker. The company on Friday released a 27-page report of its findings on what led to the scandal and measures to prevent a recurrence. It said safety has been confirmed at 474 companies so far. The report calls for shaping a corporate culture that values quality controls, not just profit, so that the company can try to win back trust from society. The company plans to release findings of another report by third-party officials next month.
PHARMACEUTICALS
Pfizer drops China venture
Pfizer Inc has sold its stake in a joint venture with China’s Zhejiang Hisun Pharmaceuticals Co (浙江海正藥業). New York-based Pfizer said its 49 percent equity stake was sold to Sapphire Holdings Ltd. Pfizer spokesman Steve Danehy declined to say how much Pfizer is to get. The US$295 million partnership was announced in 2011 and formalized a year later, and was meant to develop, manufacture and commercialize pharmaceutical products in China and throughout the world. The sale would allow Pfizer and Hisun to focus on “their core strengths,” the companies said in a statement.
DATA SECURITY
Equifax breach costs to rise
A massive security breach that hit Equifax Inc has cost the US credit bureau nearly US$90 million so far, a figure that is set to rise further, chief financial officer John Gamble said on Thursday. Equifax is forecasting between US$60 and US$75 million in spending that is to include information technology security in the fourth quarter, Gamble said. The group’s earnings have also been affected, particularly due to customer dissatisfaction, Equifax said. Its net income fell 27 percent to US$96.3 million in the third quarter.
SEASONAL WEAKNESS: The combined revenue of the top 10 foundries fell 5.4%, but rush orders and China’s subsidies partially offset slowing demand Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) further solidified its dominance in the global wafer foundry business in the first quarter of this year, remaining far ahead of its closest rival, Samsung Electronics Co, TrendForce Corp (集邦科技) said yesterday. TSMC posted US$25.52 billion in sales in the January-to-March period, down 5 percent from the previous quarter, but its market share rose from 67.1 percent the previous quarter to 67.6 percent, TrendForce said in a report. While smartphone-related wafer shipments declined in the first quarter due to seasonal factors, solid demand for artificial intelligence (AI) and high-performance computing (HPC) devices and urgent TV-related orders
BYPASSING CHINA TARIFFS: In the first five months of this year, Foxconn sent US$4.4bn of iPhones to the US from India, compared with US$3.7bn in the whole of last year Nearly all the iPhones exported by Foxconn Technology Group (富士康科技集團) from India went to the US between March and last month, customs data showed, far above last year’s average of 50 percent and a clear sign of Apple Inc’s efforts to bypass high US tariffs imposed on China. The numbers, being reported by Reuters for the first time, show that Apple has realigned its India exports to almost exclusively serve the US market, when previously the devices were more widely distributed to nations including the Netherlands and the Czech Republic. During March to last month, Foxconn, known as Hon Hai Precision Industry
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) and the University of Tokyo (UTokyo) yesterday announced the launch of the TSMC-UTokyo Lab to promote advanced semiconductor research, education and talent development. The lab is TSMC’s first laboratory collaboration with a university outside Taiwan, the company said in a statement. The lab would leverage “the extensive knowledge, experience, and creativity” of both institutions, the company said. It is located in the Asano Section of UTokyo’s Hongo, Tokyo, campus and would be managed by UTokyo faculty, guided by directors from UTokyo and TSMC, the company said. TSMC began working with UTokyo in 2019, resulting in 21 research projects,
Quanta Computer Inc (廣達) chairman Barry Lam (林百里) yesterday expressed a downbeat view about the prospects of humanoid robots, given high manufacturing costs and a lack of target customers. Despite rising demand and high expectations for humanoid robots, high research-and-development costs and uncertain profitability remain major concerns, Lam told reporters following the company’s annual shareholders’ meeting in Taoyuan. “Since it seems a bit unworthy to use such high-cost robots to do household chores, I believe robots designed for specific purposes would be more valuable and present a better business opportunity,” Lam said Instead of investing in humanoid robots, Quanta has opted to invest
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