TECHNOLOGY
Apple scales up encryption
Apple Inc on Wednesday said it was strengthening encryption on its iPhones to thwart police efforts to unlock handsets without legitimate authorization. The move by Apple, the latest in an ongoing clash with law enforcement, comes amid reports of growing use of a tool known as GrayKey that can enable police to bypass iPhone security features. The new features are not designed to frustrate law enforcement, but prevent any bypassing of encryption by good or bad actors, Apple said.
AUTOMAKERS
Rolls-Royce to cut UK jobs
Britain’s Rolls-Royce said it would cut 4,600 jobs primarily in the UK as part of a plan to simplify its business and save ￡400 million (US$538 million) a year by the end of 2020. The engineering company said the job cuts and overhaul of its business would cost it ￡500 million and be spread between now and the end of 2020, which would be reported as separate one-off costs, allowing it to stick to its targets for free cash flow. Rolls-Royce has 55,000 employees worldwide of which 26,000 are in Britain.
BREWING
Carlsberg plans India IPO
Carlsberg A/S is planning a initial public offering (IPO) of its Indian business, people with knowledge of the matter said, as it seeks to tap India’s growing middle class’s increasing thirst for foreign beer. The Danish brewer is interviewing potential arrangers for the share sale over the next few weeks, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the information is private.
AUTOMAKERS
Volkswagen to accept fine
Volkswagen AG on Wednesday said that it is being fined 1 billion euros (US$1.18 billion) by German authorities in connection with the diesel emissions scandal. Volkswagen said in a statement it would accept the fine imposed by prosecutors in Braunschweig. Prosecutors concluded that Volkswagen failed to properly oversee the activity of its engine development department, resulting in about 10.7 million diesel vehicles with illegal emissions-controlling software being sold worldwide.
REAL ESTATE
Swire discusses HK sale
Swire Properties Ltd is in talks to sell its stakes in two Hong Kong towers to Hengli Investments Holding Group (恆力房地產) for more than HK$14 billion (US$1.78 billion), people familiar with the matter said, adding to a spate of deals in the world’s priciest office market. Hengli is in discussion with banks on getting financing for the purchase of the buildings, known as Cityplaza Three and Cityplaza Four, the people said. Hengli is a Hong Kong-based property investment firm linked to Chen Chang Wei (陳長偉), who is listed as a director of the company, regulatory filings showed.
THAILAND
GDP estimate might improve
The World Bank might boost its projection for economic growth in the nation, where the pace of expansion hit a five-year high last quarter. A stable outlook and signs that companies are investing again domestically are among the positive factors for the second-largest economy in Southeast Asia, said Ulrich Zachau, the world bank’s director for Thailand and regional partnerships. The lender’s estimate is for a 4.1 percent climb in GDP this year. GDP rose 4.8 percent in January through March from a year earlier, exceeding all estimates in a Bloomberg survey.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, yesterday said its materials management head, Vanessa Lee (李文如), had tendered her resignation for personal reasons. The personnel adjustment takes effect tomorrow, TSMC said in a statement. The latest development came one month after Lee reportedly took leave from the middle of last month. Cliff Hou (侯永清), senior vice president and deputy cochief operating officer, is to concurrently take on the role of head of the materials management division, which has been under his supervision, TSMC said. Lee, who joined TSMC in 2022, was appointed senior director of materials management and
Gudeng Precision Industrial Co (家登精密), the sole extreme ultraviolet pod supplier to Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (台積電), yesterday said it has trimmed its revenue growth target for this year as US tariffs are likely to depress customer demand and weigh on the whole supply chain. Gudeng’s remarks came after the US on Monday notified 14 countries, including Japan and South Korea, of new tariff rates that are set to take effect on Aug. 1. Taiwan is still negotiating for a rate lower than the 32 percent “reciprocal” tariffs announced by the US in April, which it later postponed to today. The
MAJOR CONTRIBUTOR: Revenue from AI servers made up more than 50 percent of Wistron’s total server revenue in the second quarter, the company said Wistron Corp (緯創) on Tuesday reported a 135.6 percent year-on-year surge in revenue for last month, driven by strong demand for artificial intelligence (AI) servers, with the momentum expected to extend into the third quarter. Revenue last month reached NT$209.18 billion (US$7.2 billion), a record high for June, bringing second-quarter revenue to NT$551.29 billion, a 129.47 percent annual increase, the company said. Revenue in the first half of the year totaled NT$897.77 billion, up 87.36 percent from a year earlier and also a record high for the period, it said. The company remains cautiously optimistic about AI server shipments in the third quarter,
Nvidia Corp CEO Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) on Thursday met with US President Donald Trump at the White House, days before a planned trip to China by the head of the world’s most valuable chipmaker, people familiar with the matter said. Details of what the two men discussed were not immediately available, and the people familiar with the meeting declined to elaborate on the agenda. Spokespeople for the White House had no immediate comment. Nvidia declined to comment. Nvidia’s CEO has been vocal about the need for US companies to access the world’s largest semiconductor market and is a frequent visitor to China.
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