CAMERA LENSES
Genius revenue soars
Genius Electronic Optical Co (玉晶光), which supplies camera lenses for Apple Inc’s iPhones, yesterday reported stronger-than-expected revenue for last month. Consolidated revenue rose 4.96 percent month-on-month and 145 percent year-on-year to NT$1.93 billion (US$62.58 million), Genius said in a filing with the Taiwan Stock Exchange. Last month’s figure was the highest monthly revenue in the company’s history and pushed its overall revenue for the first nine months up 42.69 percent year-on-year to NT$8.26 billion, company data showed. With sales of new iPhone models exceeding market expectations, Genius might benefit from a potential boom for Apple suppliers this quarter, analysts said.
CHIPMAKERS
TSMC starts 7nm production
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) has begun mass production of chips made with its advanced 7-nanometer-plus technology. The trial production of chips made on the more advanced 6-nanometer process is scheduled for the first quarter of next year, TSMC said in a statement on Monday. In the wake of the news, TSMC shares yesterday gained 3.06 percent to close at the day’s high of NT$286.5 in Taipei trading, pushing up the firm’s market capitalization to a new high of NT$7.43 trillion. TSMC shares served as a driver to boost the broader market as the TAIEX closed up 0.75 percent at 11,017.31 points.
ELECTRONICS
Aten back on track
Aten International Co Ltd (宏正自動科技) yesterday posted revenue of NT$424.02 million for last month, a 7.83 percent increase year-on-year. Cumulative revenue from January to last month declined by 1.55 percent year-on-year to NT$3.69 billion after the company faced headwinds earlier this year due to the US-China trade dispute. Aten said sales in its IT infrastructure solutions segment increased by 12 percent year-on-year last month and sales in its audio-visual business increased by 10 percent, while those of USBs and related products declined by 1 percent.
AUTO PARTS
Tong Yang sales decline
Tong Yang Industry Co (東陽實業), which manufactures bumpers and automotive sheet metal products, yesterday posted sales of NT$1.67 billion for last month, a 10.1 percent decrease year-on-year. Cumulative sales in the first nine months fell 9.61 percent year-on-year to NT$15.77 billion, as sales generated by the aftermarket business grew 5 percent, but sales at the original equipment manufacturing (OEM) business fell by 35.16 percent, Tong Yang said in a statement. Sales at the OEM business would continue to decline this quarter, but the pace has slowed, a company official said by telephone.
FITNESS EQUIPMENT
Johnson Health bullish
Fitness equipment maker Johnson Health Technology Co Ltd (喬山健康科技) yesterday posted revenue of NT$2.13 billion for last month, a 7.65 percent increase year-on-year, lifting cumulative revenue in the first nine months by 18.62 percent year-on-year to NT$17.09 billion, a record high. The company said it expects revenue to reach its peak this quarter thanks to seasonal demand. To cope with rising demand, the company is expanding its operations in Taiwan and Vietnam. A new Vietnamese plant is expected to start mass production at the end of this year, while construction of a smart warehouse in Taiwan is to be completed in the second quarter of next year, the company said.
‘DECENT RESULTS’: The company said it is confident thanks to an improving world economy and uptakes in new wireless and AI technologies, despite US uncertainty Pegatron Corp (和碩) yesterday said it plans to build a new server manufacturing factory in the US this year to address US President Donald Trump’s new tariff policy. That would be the second server production base for Pegatron in addition to the existing facilities in Taoyuan, the iPhone assembler said. Servers are one of the new businesses Pegatron has explored in recent years to develop a more balanced product lineup. “We aim to provide our services from a location in the vicinity of our customers,” Pegatron president and chief executive officer Gary Cheng (鄭光治) told an online earnings conference yesterday. “We
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The battle for artificial intelligence supremacy hinges on microchips, but the semiconductor sector that produces them has a dirty secret: It is a major source of chemicals linked to cancer and other health problems. Global chip sales surged more than 19 percent to about US$628 billion last year, according to the Semiconductor Industry Association, which forecasts double-digit growth again this year. That is adding urgency to reducing the effects of “forever chemicals” — which are also used to make firefighting foam, nonstick pans, raincoats and other everyday items — as are regulators in the US and Europe who are beginning to
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