Business sentiment improved noticeably across sectors last month as local firms gained better order visibility after major economies lifted pandemic-induced lockdowns and enabled a phased return to normalcy, the Taiwan Institute of Economic Research (TIER, 台經院) said yesterday.
The confidence gauge for local manufacturers came in at 85.73, an increase of 4.22 points from a month earlier, the monthly survey by the Taipei-based institute showed.
The survey showed that 38.1 percent of companies expect business to pick up in the next six months, a solid increase from 23 percent in April, while those with a dim view of prospects fell from 36.5 percent to 22 percent.
“The uplifting sentiment lent force to expectations that the nation’s economy is bottoming out and would start to recover from next quarter,” TIER research fellow Darson Chiu (邱達生) told a media briefing in Taipei.
As the US and Europe reopen their economies, local firms have reported better order visibility, Chiu said.
While the COVID-19 pandemic would no doubt weigh on sales of consumer electronics, companies are less pessimistic, but would likely remain cautious before the crisis settles, he said.
Last week, the Ministry of Economic Affairs reported that export orders, a critical gauge of actual exports one to three months ahead, for last month grew modestly for a second straight month, backed by demand for electronic components.
Suppliers of auto parts, bicycles and home appliances also expect business to gain traction in the coming six months, but makers of plastic and petrochemical products are not yet out of the woods, the survey showed.
The sentiment reading for service-oriented firms gained 6.87 points to 89.68, as Taiwanese regained confidence in domestic tours, shopping and dining as the outbreak is contained, Chiu said, adding that consumer activity might grow stronger in the coming months with new stimulus measures.
The government is to distribute Triple Stimulus Vouchers of NT$3,000 per person from July 15 to shore up domestic demand.
The confidence measure for the civil engineering and building sectors added 9.99 points to 94.26, ending four months of decline, the survey showed.
Prospective buyers are expected to start searching for homes after staying on the sidelines during the outbreak, the institute said.
Netherlands-based semiconductor equipment supplier ASML Holding NV yesterday said that it is planning to hire an additional 1,000 people in Taiwan this year in response to growing demand from clients. ASML had previously planned to recruit 600 people this year, but that the plan has been adjusted upward, ASML vice president and ASML Taiwan general manager Grace Wang (汪佳慧) told reporters. ASML has a workforce of more than 4,500 in Taiwan, accounting for about 10 percent of its global total, Wang said. This year’s recruitment campaign would focus on adding people in the customer support, manufacturing and supply chain domains to assist ASML
UNDER MICROSCOPE: Taiwan detained three people who allegedly conspired to buy servers in Taiwan and export them using fraudulent documentation, prosecutors said Nvidia Corp chief executive officer Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) on Saturday urged Super Micro Computer Inc to tighten up on compliance after Taiwan detained three people this week for allegedly making fraudulent declarations about artificial intelligence (AI) servers made by its US partner. The development marked the nation’s first crackdown on semiconductor smuggling, which grew after the US slapped restrictions on exports of high-end chips such as Nvidia AI accelerators to China. Nvidia is “rigorous” in explaining regulations to all of its partners, Huang told reporters after arriving in Taipei. “Ultimately Super Micro has to run their own company,” he said in response to
Nvidia Corp yesterday announced that CEO Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) would attend an employee meeting in Taipei tomorrow to celebrate the launch of the company’s Taiwan headquarters project. Huang would attend a gathering at the site of Nvidia’s planned headquarters in Beitou Shilin Technology Park (北投士林科技園區), the company said in a statement. After arriving in Taiwan on Saturday last week, Huang told reporters that he plans to meet with Quanta Computer Inc (廣達) chairman Barry Lam (林百里) and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) chairman C.C. Wei (魏哲家), and would attend the groundbreaking ceremony for Nvidia’s Taiwan headquarters tomorrow. Nvidia has not yet applied
Huawei Technologies Co (華為) said it has come up with a new pathway to shorten its gap with industry leader Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), potentially achieving a breakthrough in making advanced semiconductors without cutting-edge equipment. Right now there is about a five-year gap between what TSMC is capable of and what Huawei, together with its manufacturing partner Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp (中芯), can produce. Huawei is to start making 1.4-nanometer chips by 2031 with its own “LogicFolding” technology, Huawei semiconductor chief He Tingbo (何庭波) said in a rare public appearance during a chip conference yesterday, while TSMC has
RSS