JAPAN
Trade surplus plummets
The trade surplus last month dropped by about 90 percent, official data showed yesterday, with exports affected by a slowdown in China’s economy as it is engaged in a trade dispute with the US. The trade surplus with the US grew 17.7 percent from a year earlier, the data showed. The overall trade surplus plummeted 90.3 percent to ￥60.4 billion (US$550 million). The decrease was chiefly due to falls in exports of chip-related products to China, the Ministry of Finance data showed.
UNITED KINGDOM
Inflation up on energy costs
Energy and transport costs pushed inflation back above target last month. Consumer prices rose 2.1 percent from a year earlier, ending a three- month spell of inflation below the Bank of England’s 2 percent goal, Office for National Statistics figures published yesterday showed. The figure was slightly below the 2.2 percent forecast by economists. The pickup, from 1.9 percent in March, was driven by the lifting of the government cap on default energy tariffs.
PHILIPPINES
Small miners get tax break
The country has passed a law exempting gold sales by small-scale miners to the central bank from excise and income taxes to beef up the country’s foreign-exchange reserves and prevent smuggling, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas said yesterday. President Rodrigo Duterte signed the law into effect on March 29, the bank said in a statement. Gold accounted for nearly 10 percent of the country’s gross international reserves of US$83.96 billion at the end of last month.
UNITED STATES
Lighthizer to meet officials
Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer is to meet with officials from the EU and Japan in Paris today regarding joint efforts to address the non market-oriented policies and practices of other countries, his office said. The meeting, which is expected to focus largely on Chinese subsidies, is to take place on the sidelines of a ministerial meeting of the 36-member Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development yesterday and today.
CHINA
Ex-liquor boss to be probed
The country is to prosecute the former deputy party secretary and chairman of luxury liquor maker Kweichow Moutai Co (貴州茅台), the Chinese Communist Party Central Commission for Discipline Inspection said yesterday. Yuan Renguo (袁仁國), a former official of the world’s largest listed alcohol firm, with market capitalization of 1.12 trillion yuan (US$162.3 billion), has been expelled from the party and removed from all posts, the commission said on its Web site.
AUTOMAKERS
Tesla price cut sparks fear
Tesla Inc has reduced the prices of its two most expensive models, raising concerns about fading interest in its vehicles and whether it can generate enough cash to pay all the bills. Tesla on Monday cut US$3,000 from the price of the Model S sedan and US$2,000 from the Model X sports utility vehicle. The company said in a statement that it periodically adjusts prices and available options like other automakers. The decreases offset price increases from a month ago when Tesla offered longer battery range and added a new drive system and suspension.
INVESTOR RESILIENCE? An analyst said that despite near-term pressures, foreign investors tend to view NT dollar strength as a positive signal for valuation multiples Morgan Stanley has flagged a potential 10 percent revenue decline for Taiwan’s tech hardware sector this year, as a sharp appreciation of the New Taiwan dollar begins to dent the earnings power of major exporters. In what appears to be the first such warning from a major foreign brokerage, the US investment bank said the currency’s strength — fueled by foreign capital inflows and expectations of US interest rate cuts — is compressing profit margins for manufacturers with heavy exposure to US dollar-denominated revenues. The local currency has surged about 10 percent against the greenback over the past quarter and yesterday breached
MARKET FACTORS: Navitas Semiconductor Inc said that Powerchip is to take over from TSMC as its supplier of high-voltage gallium nitride chips Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) yesterday in a statement said that it would phase out its compound semiconductor gallium nitride (GaN) business over the next two years, citing market dynamics. The decision would not affect its financial targets announced previously, the world’s biggest contract chipmaker said. “We are working closely with our customers to ensure a smooth transition and remain committed to meeting their needs during this period,” it said. “Our focus continues to be on delivering sustained value to our partners and the market.” TSMC’s latest move came unexpectedly, as the chipmaker had said in its annual report that it has
Rick Cassidy, the chairman of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co's (TSMC, 台積電) US subsidiary, TSMC Arizona Corp, plans to retire, but the company has yet to name a successor. After Cassidy made his intention to retire known, TSMC Arizona held a special general meeting and approved a resolution that Cassidy would not continue as chairman and would not remain as a director, TSMC said in a statement filed with the Taiwan Stock Exchange last night. The meeting also approved a plan to appoint TSMC Arizona president Rose Castanares as a director, the company said, adding that Cassidy has been named as an advisor
SECURITY WARNING: The company possesses key 3-nanometer technology, and Taiwan should prevent it from being transferred to China, a lawmaker said The Ministry of Economic Affairs yesterday said it would conduct a “strict review” of any proposed acquisition of Taiwanese tech company Source Photonics Co (索爾思光電), following media reports that a Chinese firm was planning to buy the company in the Hsinchu Science Park (新竹科學園區). Local media reported that Suzhou Dongshan Precision Manufacturing Co (東山精密), China’s largest printed circuit board manufacturer, had announced plans to acquire Source Photonics for 5.9 billion yuan (US$823.1 million). The ministry said it has not received an application from Source Photonics and has formally notified the company that any buyout would constitute a change in its ownership structure. The
RSS