UNITED STATES
Defaults hit seven-year high
The total debt shouldered by residents has hit another record high, rising to US$13.5 trillion in the last quarter, while an unusual jump in student-loan delinquencies could provide another signal that the economic expansion is growing old. Flows of student debt into serious delinquency — 90 or more days — increased from 8.6 percent in the second quarter to 9.1 percent in the third quarter, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York reported on Friday. That propelled the biggest jump in the overall delinquency rate in seven years.
CHINA
US bond holdings hit low
Holdings of US Treasuries fell to a more than one-year low as the world’s second-largest economy takes steps to stabilize the yuan, which is under pressure from the trade war. Holdings of US bonds, bills and notes declined for a fourth month to US$1.15 trillion in September, from US$1.17 trillion in August, the US Department of the Treasury said in a statement on Friday. The country remained the biggest foreign creditor to the US, followed by Japan, whose Treasury holdings were little changed at US$1.03 trillion.
FRANCE
Roadblocks protest fuel tax
Drivers were planning to block roads across the country to protest rising fuel taxes, in a new challenge to embattled President Emmanuel Macron. Protesters pledged to target tollbooths, roundabouts and the bypass that rings Paris yesterday. The government prepared to send police to remove protesters and threatened fines. The taxes are part of Macron’s strategy of weaning France off fossil fuels. Many drivers see them as emblematic of a presidency considered to be disconnected from day-to-day economic difficulties.
PHARMACEUTICALS
Tesaro interested in buyout
Tesaro Inc, a drugmaker whose shares tumbled this month after disclosing disappointing clinical trial results, is exploring a sale, people familiar with the matter said. The company is working with financial advisers after receiving takeover interest, the people said, adding that advisers have also begun contacting other potential suitors.
INTERNET
Gett seeks cash to beat rivals
Gett Inc, the ride-hailing app valued at more than US$1 billion and backed by Volkswagen AG, is looking for buyers in a bid to compete with larger rivals, people familiar with the matter said. The Israeli tech company has approached potential bidders including other car-hire firms, the people said. Gett might sell its entire business or offload regional operations outside of its home market, the people said.
ENTERTAINMENT
Minority head to step down
Channing Dungey, the first African-American executive to lead a major broadcast network, is stepping down. Walt Disney Co-owned ABC on Friday said Dungey has decided to exit as ABC Entertainment president. She would be replaced by Karey Burke, a programming development executive at ABC sibling channel Freeform. Dungey’s departure comes as Disney reorganizes in preparation for buying 21st Century Fox Inc.
China’s economic planning agency yesterday outlined details of measures aimed at boosting the economy, but refrained from major spending initiatives. The piecemeal nature of the plans announced yesterday appeared to disappoint investors who were hoping for bolder moves, and the Shanghai Composite Index gave up a 10 percent initial gain as markets reopened after a weeklong holiday to end 4.59 percent higher, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index dived 9.41 percent. Chinese National Development and Reform Commission Chairman Zheng Shanjie (鄭珊潔) said the government would frontload 100 billion yuan (US$14.2 billion) in spending from the government’s budget for next year in addition
Advanced Micro Devices Inc (AMD) suffered its biggest stock decline in more than a month after the company unveiled new artificial intelligence (AI) chips, but did not provide hoped-for information on customers or financial performance. The stock slid 4 percent to US$164.18 on Thursday, the biggest single-day drop since Sept. 3. Shares of the company remain up 11 percent this year. AMD has emerged as the biggest contender to Nvidia Corp in the lucrative market of AI processors. The company’s latest chips would exceed some capabilities of its rival, AMD chief executive officer Lisa Su (蘇姿丰) said at an event hosted by
Sales RecORD: Hon Hai’s consolidated sales rose by about 20 percent last quarter, while Largan, another Apple supplier, saw quarterly sales increase by 17 percent IPhone assembler Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密) on Saturday reported its highest-ever quarterly sales for the third quarter on the back of solid global demand for artificial intelligence (AI) servers. Hon Hai, also known as Foxconn Technology Group (富士康科技集團) globally, said it posted NT$1.85 trillion (US$57.93 billion) in consolidated sales in the July-to-September quarter, up 19.46 percent from the previous quarter and up 20.15 percent from a year earlier. The figure beat the previous third-quarter high of NT$1.74 trillion recorded in 2022, company data showed. Due to rising demand for AI, Hon Hai said its cloud and networking division enjoyed strong sales
TECH JUGGERNAUT: TSMC shares have more than doubled since ChatGPT’s launch in late 2022, as demand for cutting-edge artificial intelligence chips remains high Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) yesterday posted a better-than-expected 39 percent rise in quarterly revenue, assuaging concerns that artificial intelligence (AI) hardware spending is beginning to taper off. The main chipmaker for Nvidia Corp and Apple Inc reported third-quarter sales of NT$759.69 billion (US$23.6 billion), compared with the average analyst projection of NT$748 billion. For last month alone, TSMC reported revenue jumped 39.6 percent year-on-year to NT$251.87 billion. Taiwan’s largest company is to disclose its full third-quarter earnings on Thursday next week and update its outlook. Hsinchu-based TSMC produces the cutting-edge chips needed to train AI. The company now makes more
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