SUGAR
Taisugar reappoints Chen
Taiwan Sugar Corp (Taisugar, 台糖) yesterday appointed former chairman Chen Chao-yih (陳昭義) to the position after Charles Huang (黃育徵) resigned last week. Chen helped bring the company out of the red during his nearly four years at the helm from 2013 to 2016, Taisugar said in a statement. At a handover ceremony, Chen said that he would work to utilize the company’s idle land in Taiwan, as the asset is in high demand due to a growing number of Taiwanese companies returning from China and the development of solar energy accelerates. The company would make an effort to recruit and cultivate talent in the future, he said.
E-COMMERCE
PChome, HTNS sign MOU
PChome Online Inc (網路家庭), the nation’s largest e-commerce operator, yesterday signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with South Korean logistics company Hanoro TNS (HTNS) to join forces to expand marketing horizons. Through the agreement, popular South Korean products would be made available on PChome’s online platform, PChome chairman Jan Hung-tze (詹宏志) said in a statement. PChome also aims to promote Taiwanese products in South Korea through HTNS, Jan said. The move came after PChome partnered with Rakuten Inc and eBay Inc earlier this year.
AVIATION
EVA sixth-best in world: poll
EVA Airways Corp (長榮航空) has been ranked the world’s sixth-best airline in a survey released at the Paris Air Show on Tuesday by Skytrax, the UK’s leading aviation service research agency. EVA also took home the honor of having the world’s cleanest airline and was cited for having the best economy-class catering. Qatar Airways Co QCSC returned to the top spot in the Skytrax World Airline Awards, the fifth time the Persian Gulf carrier has won the award, adding to its 2011, 2012, 2015 and 2017 titles. Last year, Singapore Airlines Ltd claimed first place.
BANKING
Average lending rates rise
The nation’s five major state-run banks last month saw their average lending interest rates rise to 1.473 percent, up 0.028 percentage points from 1.445 percent a month earlier. The five lenders are Bank of Taiwan (臺灣銀行), Taiwan Cooperative Bank (合庫銀行), Land Bank of Taiwan (土地銀行), Hua Nan Commercial Bank (華南銀行) and First Commercial Bank (第一銀行). The rate increase indicates increasing loan demand by firms to increase their working capital and capital expenditure, the central bank said in a statement. Excluding government loans, interest rates averaged 1.473 percent, down 0.006 percentage points from 1.5479 percent in April, the central bank said.
FOREIGN EXCHANGE
Yuan deposits drop 2.34%
Yuan deposits in Taiwan last month totaled 268.278 billion yuan (US$38.857 billion), a 2.34 percent decrease from April and the lowest level in more than five years, the central bank said. The decline resulted from some firms’ withdrawal of their yuan deposits to purchase yuan-denominated bonds, the bank said. There were also firms that remitted the Chinese currency to meet operational needs in China, it added. Jih Sun International Commercial Bank (日盛銀行) offers the highest interest rates of 2.3 percent for one-month yuan time deposits; 2.9 percent for three-month and six-month time deposits; and 3.1 percent for one-year time deposits, central bank data showed.
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
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
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
CHEMICAL FIRE: 10 Indian employees were injured by smoke inhalation at a Tata Electronics plant in Tamil Nadu state that produces components for Apple Inc At least 10 people received medical treatment, with two hospitalized after a major fire on Saturday disrupted production at a key Tata Electronics Pvt Ltd plant in southern India that makes Apple Inc’s iPhone components. The fire occurred at the plant in the city of Hosur in Tamil Nadu state that makes some iPhone components. It broke out near another building inside the Tata complex, which was to begin producing complete iPhones in the coming months. The fire was contained to one building and has been extinguished fully, top district administrative official K.M. Sarayu said. No decision has been made on when
RSS