FOREIGN EXCHANGE
Reserves increase US$705m
The nation’s foreign-exchange reserves were US$480.39 billion as of the end of last month, an increase of US$705 million month-on-month, the central bank said yesterday. The increase was mainly due to management returns, although they were partially offset by the depreciation of the British pound and other reserve currencies against the US dollar, the bank said. Separately, the market value of securities and New Taiwan dollar deposits held by foreign investors was US$350.5 billion at the end of last month, accounting for 73 percent of the nation’s foreign-exchange reserves, the bank said.
ELECTRONICS
Qisda posts record sales
Electronics manufacturer Qisda Corp (佳世達) yesterday posted record-high sales of NT$14.59 billion (US$483.9 million) for last month, up 33 percent month-on-month and 0.86 percent year-on-year, thanks to increased contributions from subsidiaries Sysage Technology Co Ltd (聚碩), Topview Optronics Co (勝品電通) and Ace Pillar Co (羅昇). The company returned to full production last month from disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, it said. First-quarter revenue declined 1.6 percent year-on-year to NT$39.2 billion, but Qisda said that it is seeing an increase in demand for panels due to increased telecommuting and distance learning. The company remains positive about the long-term prospects for digitalization, automation and cloud computing, it said.
ELECTRONICS
Cable orders boost Sinbon
Sinbon Electronics Co (信邦電子), which produces cables, connectors and modems, on Monday reported consolidated sales of NT$4.51 billion for last quarter, up 9.76 percent quarter-on-quarter and 11.29 percent year-on-year. It was the highest level for the first quarter in the company’s history, which it attributed to resumed production in China and a rush of orders for cables used in ventilators amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Sinbon’s shipments in the industrial control devices segment last quarter grew 7.39 percent year-on-year, while those in the green energy segment increased 39.78 percent, the company said. Shipments in the medical and healthcare segment rose 6.97 percent, it said.
TRANSPORTATION
THSRC revenue tanks
Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp (THSRC, 台灣高鐵) yesterday posted its lowest revenue in nearly 10 years, as the COVID-19 pandemic saw most people stay at home to avoid infection. Revenue fell 13.03 percent month-on-month and 40.28 percent year-on-year to NT$2.38 billion last month, compared with a decline of 31.87 percent the previous month, THSRC said on its Web site. “The COVID-19 outbreak reduced revenue and ridership in March,” the company said. Combined first-quarter revenue fell 18.38 percent year-on-year to NT$9.6 billion, from NT$11.76 billion last year, the company said.
FOOD DELIVERY
Deliveroo to exit Taiwan
UK-based food delivery company Deliveroo on Monday unexpectedly announced that it plans to stop providing services in Taiwan on Friday as it is reallocating resources to Europe from the Asia-Pacific and Middle East regions. The COVID-19 pandemic is part of the reason behind the decision to exit Taiwan 19 months after entering the market in October 2018, the company said. Deliveroo did not offer free delivery when the coronavirus outbreak began, unlike its peers Foodpanda and Uber Eats.
It was late morning and steam was rising from water tanks atop the colorful, but opaque-windowed, “soapland” sex parlors in a historic Tokyo red-light district. Walking through the narrow streets, camera in hand, was Beniko — a former sex worker who is trying to capture the spirit of the area once known as Yoshiwara through photography. “People often talk about this neighborhood having a ‘bad history,’” said Beniko, who goes by her nickname. “But the truth is that through the years people have lived here, made a life here, sometimes struggled to survive. I want to share that reality.” In its mid-17th to
‘MAKE OR BREAK’: Nvidia shares remain down more than 9 percent, but investors are hoping CEO Jensen Huang’s speech can stave off fears that the sales boom is peaking Shares in Nvidia Corp’s Taiwanese suppliers mostly closed higher yesterday on hopes that the US artificial intelligence (AI) chip designer would showcase next-generation technologies at its annual AI conference slated to open later in the day. The GPU Technology Conference (GTC) in California is to feature developers, engineers, researchers, inventors and information technology professionals, and would focus on AI, computer graphics, data science, machine learning and autonomous machines. The event comes at a make-or-break moment for the firm, as it heads into the next few quarters, with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang’s (黃仁勳) keynote speech today seen as having the ability to
NEXT GENERATION: The company also showcased automated machines, including a nursing robot called Nurabot, which is to enter service at a Taichung hospital this year Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密) expects server revenue to exceed its iPhone revenue within two years, with the possibility of achieving this goal as early as this year, chairman Young Liu (劉揚偉) said on Tuesday at Nvidia Corp’s annual technology conference in San Jose, California. AI would be the primary focus this year for the company, also known as Foxconn Technology Group (富士康科技集團), as rapidly advancing AI applications are driving up demand for AI servers, Liu said. The production and shipment of Nvidia’s GB200 chips and the anticipated launch of GB300 chips in the second half of the year would propel
State-run CPC Corp, Taiwan (CPC, 台灣中油) yesterday signed a letter of intent with Alaska Gasline Development Corp (AGDC), expressing an interest to buy liquefied natural gas (LNG) and invest in the latter’s Alaska LNG project, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said in a statement. Under the agreement, CPC is to participate in the project’s upstream gas investment to secure stable energy resources for Taiwan, the ministry said. The Alaska LNG project is jointly promoted by AGDC and major developer Glenfarne Group LLC, as Alaska plans to export up to 20 million tonnes of LNG annually from 2031. It involves constructing an 1,290km
RSS