EQUITIES
TAIEX edges higher
The TAIEX yesterday closed slightly higher after retreating from an early high, with market sentiment reacting to lingering concerns over COVID-19 in the US and China, where spikes in confirmed cases have been reported. Buying in the bellwether electronics sector moved to select 5G concept shares, component suppliers and PC makers, while some construction companies attracted interest on the back of their large property assets, dealers said. The TAIEX closed up 23.07 points, or 0.20 percent, at 11,572.93, on turnover of NT$182.069 billion (US$6.14 billion). Foreign institutional investors bought a net NT$2.36 billion of shares, Taiwan Stock Exchange data showed.
CHIP DESIGNERS
MediaTek shares surge
Shares of handset chip designer MediaTek Inc (聯發科) yesterday rose 5.49 percent to close at NT$576 in Taipei trading, the highest level in 10 years, on hopes that demand for 5G devices would boost demand for its chips. The shares closed at NT$576, giving MediaTek a market capitalization of NT$915.18 billion, exceeding Chunghwa Telecom Co’s (中華電信) NT$880.47 billion to become the third-largest listed company in the nation in terms of capitalization. Based on Taiwan Stock Exchange data, contract chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (台積電) remains the largest listed company with a market capitalization of NT$8.09 trillion, followed by Hon Hai Precision Industry Co’s (鴻海精密) NT$1.09 trillion.
SEMICONDUCTORS
Foxsemicon outlook bullish
Foxsemicon Integrated Technology Inc (京鼎精密), a semiconductor manufacturing and inspection equipment maker, yesterday posted a net profit of NT$236.39 million for the first quarter, a 174.16 percent year-on-year increase as semiconductor companies continue to expand their capacity. Earnings per share rose to NT$2.74 from NT$1.02 a year earlier, the company said in a financial statement submitted to the Taiwan Stock Exchange. Revenue grew 30.46 percent year-on-year to NT$2.09 billion. Revenue this quarter could grow by more than 10 percent compared with the first quarter, analysts said.
CONSTRUCTION
Buyback program begins
King’s Town Construction Co (京城建設), one of the largest land developers in southern Taiwan, yesterday began a share buyback program in a bid to safeguard its shareholders’ interests. The company said that it aims to buy back up to 5 million — or 1.3 percent of its outstanding shares — on the open market until Aug. 21 at NT$26 to NT$38 per share, a regulatory filing said on Friday last week. Buoyed by the buyback, the shares yesterday rose 9.91 percent to close at NT$36.05 in Taipei trading. King’s Town Construction posted a net profit of NT$413.36 million for the first quarter, down from NT$471.95 million in the same period last year.
RESTAURANTS
MOS Burger to hire 600
An Shin Food Services Co (安心食品), the operator of the nation’s second-largest fast-food chain, MOS Burger, plans to hire up to 600 people in its latest recruitment drive as it continues to expand its number of outlets. The company said that it would provide a monthly salary of between NT$31,000 and NT$33,000 to the new hires, excluding bonuses, and about NT$50,000 for those who pass its exam to become an outlet manager. The company operates 281 MOS Burger outlets in Taiwan and is looking to increase that to 300.
China has claimed a breakthrough in developing homegrown chipmaking equipment, an important step in overcoming US sanctions designed to thwart Beijing’s semiconductor goals. State-linked organizations are advised to use a new laser-based immersion lithography machine with a resolution of 65 nanometers or better, the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) said in an announcement this month. Although the note does not specify the supplier, the spec marks a significant step up from the previous most advanced indigenous equipment — developed by Shanghai Micro Electronics Equipment Group Co (SMEE, 上海微電子) — which stood at about 90 nanometers. MIIT’s claimed advances last
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) has appointed Rose Castanares, executive vice president of TSMC Arizona, as president of the subsidiary, which is responsible for carrying out massive investments by the Taiwanese tech giant in the US state, the company said in a statement yesterday. Castanares will succeed Brian Harrison as president of the Arizona subsidiary on Oct. 1 after the incumbent president steps down from the position with a transfer to the Arizona CEO office to serve as an advisor to TSMC Arizona’s chairman, the statement said. According to TSMC, Harrison is scheduled to retire on Dec. 31. Castanares joined TSMC in
EUROPE ON HOLD: Among a flurry of announcements, Intel said it would postpone new factories in Germany and Poland, but remains committed to its US expansion Intel Corp chief executive officer Pat Gelsinger has landed Amazon.com Inc’s Amazon Web Services (AWS) as a customer for the company’s manufacturing business, potentially bringing work to new plants under construction in the US and boosting his efforts to turn around the embattled chipmaker. Intel and AWS are to coinvest in a custom semiconductor for artificial intelligence computing — what is known as a fabric chip — in a “multiyear, multibillion-dollar framework,” Intel said in a statement on Monday. The work would rely on Intel’s 18A process, an advanced chipmaking technology. Intel shares rose more than 8 percent in late trading after the
FACTORY SHIFT: While Taiwan produces most of the world’s AI servers, firms are under pressure to move manufacturing amid geopolitical tensions Lenovo Group Ltd (聯想) started building artificial intelligence (AI) servers in India’s south, the latest boon for the rapidly growing country’s push to become a high-tech powerhouse. The company yesterday said it has started making the large, powerful computers in Pondicherry, southeastern India, moving beyond products such as laptops and smartphones. The Chinese company would also build out its facilities in the Bangalore region, including a research lab with a focus on AI. Lenovo’s plans mark another win for Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who tries to attract more technology investment into the country. While India’s tense relationship with China has suffered setbacks