SEMICONDUCTORS
Xintec net income hits high
Wafer-level packaging service provider Xintec Inc (精材科技) yesterday reported that its net income for last year was the highest in five years at NT$181.98 million (US$6.05 million), or earnings per share of NT$0.67, compared with a net loss of NT$1.35 billion in 2018. Revenue last year fell 1.3 percent year-on-year to NT$4.65 billion from NT$4.71 billion a year earlier, but gross margin increased to 11.8 percent and operating margin to 5 percent, the company said. This year, Xintec plans to spend US$31.09 million to expand clean rooms and other facilities for testing 12-inch wafers, as customers are consigning testing equipment to the company, it said in a statement.
DISPLAYS
Giantplus’ China units open
Giantplus Technology Co (凌巨), which makes small LCD panels for vehicle displays and handsets, yesterday said that one of its Chinese subsidiaries, Shenzhen Giantplus Optoelectronics Display Co (深圳旭茂光電), obtained approval from the local government to resume operations yesterday afternoon. However, another Chinese subsidiary, Kunshan Giantplus Optronics Display Technology Co (昆山和霖光電), is waiting for permission to reopen, a company regulatory filing said. Heat dissipation module supplier Auras Technology Co (雙鴻) said that its Chinese subsidiaries in Guangzhou and Anhui reopened on Monday, but that its units in Kunshan and Chongqing remained shut.
TECHNOLOGY
Closures to hit Innolux profit
LCD panelmaker Innolux Corp (群創) yesterday said that the delayed opening of its Chinese operations would affect its revenue this month, as its factories in Ningbo, Foshan and Shanghai resumed work on Monday, while its factory in Nanjing is waiting for permission to resume operations. The company said that it has implemented a flexible work schedule to reduce the effects of the closures. Flexible printed circuit board supplier Taiflex Scientific Co (台虹科技) said that its Chinese subsidiaries in Kunshan and Jiangsu are waiting for a notice from the local government to resume work, but a factory in Shenzhen reopened on Monday. Handset keypad supplier Silitech Technology Corp (閎暉) said its Shenzhen subsidiary is scheduled to resume operation on Monday next week.
ELECTRONICS
Holiday affects TPK revenue
Touch module and sensor supplier TPK Holding Co (宸鴻) yesterday reported that revenue last month fell monthly and annually, as the Lunar New Year holiday reduced the number of working days. TPK’s revenue fell 8.3 percent month-on-month and 32.2 percent year-on-year to NT$9.53 billion, a company regulatory filing said. TPK has yet to announce whether its factories in Xiamen and Pingtan, China, have resumed operations since the holiday was extended due to the coronavirus outbreak.
SOFTWARE
Appier board adds director
Appier Inc (沛星互動科技) yesterday said that it has appointed former Google Taiwan managing director Chien Lee-feng (簡立峰) to its board of directors. Having supervised growth and operations at Google’s local unit for 14 years, Chien would be an important contributor to Appier’s business discussions and decisions, the company said in a statement. The company would leverage Chien’s significant industry know-how as well as his experience and expertise in artificial intelligence and the high-tech business, Appier CEO and cofounder Yu Chih-han (游直翰) said.
The domestic unit of the Chinese-owned, Dutch-headquartered chipmaker Nexperia BV will soon be able to produce semiconductors locally within China, according to two company sources. Nexperia is at the center of a global tug-of-war over critical semiconductor technology, with a Dutch court in February ordering a probe into alleged mismanagement at the company. The geopolitical tussle has disrupted supply chains, with some carmakers reportedly forced to cut production due to chip shortages. Local production would allow Nexperia’s domestic arm, Nexperia Semiconductors (China) Ltd (安世半導體中國), to bypass restrictions in place since October on the supply of silicon wafers — etched with tiny components to
Singapore-based ride-hailing and delivery giant Grab Holdings Ltd has applied for regulatory approval to acquire the Taiwan operations of Germany-based Delivery Hero SE's Foodpanda in a deal valued at about US$600 million. Grab submitted the filing to the Fair Trade Commission on Friday last week, with the transaction subject to regulatory review and approval, the company said in a statement yesterday. Its independent governance structure would help foster a healthy and competitive market in Taiwan if the deal is approved, Grab said. Grab, which is listed on the NASDAQ, said in the filing that US-based Uber Technologies Inc holds about 13 percent of
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) yesterday received government approval to deploy its advanced 3-nanometer (3nm) process at its second fab currently under construction in Japan, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said in a news release. The ministry green-lit the plan for the facility in Kumamoto, which is scheduled to start installing equipment and come online in 2028 with a monthly production capacity of 15,000 12-inch wafers, the ministry said. The Department of Investment Review in June 2024 authorized a US$5.26 billion investment for the facility, slated to manufacture 6- to 12nm chips, significantly less advanced than 3nm process. At a meeting with
Taiwan’s food delivery market could undergo a major shift if Singapore-based Grab Holdings Ltd completes its planned acquisition of Delivery Hero SE’s Foodpanda business in Taiwan, industry experts said. Grab on Monday last week announced it would acquire Foodpanda’s Taiwan operations for US$600 million. The deal is expected to be finalized in the second half of this year, with Grab aiming to complete user migration to its platform by the first half of next year. A duopoly between Uber Eats and Foodpanda dominates Taiwan’s delivery market, a structure that has remained intact since the Fair Trade Commission (FTC) blocked Uber Technologies Inc’s
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