The nation’s listed companies reported combined Chinese investment gains of NT$154.3 billion (US$5.23 billion) in the first half of the year, up 37 percent year-on-year, and the highest for the period, Financial Supervisory Commission data released on Tuesday showed, as some companies recovered from the COVID-19 pandemic and benefited from rising demand for devices used for remote working.
Chinese investment gains plunged 36 percent annually to NT$23.3 billion in the first quarter due to the COVID-19 outbreak, but increased 72 percent to NT$131 billion in the second quarter, the data showed.
“Demand for remote-working devices and consumer electronics rose, as people needed to work from home while under lockdown, which benefited our electronic providers,” Securities and Futures Bureau Deputy Director-General Tsai Li-ling (蔡麗玲) said.
Listed companies trimmed their investments in China by NT$4 billion in the second quarter, despite investment gains, data showed.
As of the end of June, listed firms’ accumulated investment in China totaled NT$2.524 trillion, up NT$13.4 billion from the end of last year, while the number of listed firms with investments in China dropped to 1,191, seven fewer than the end of last year, data showed.
Tsai said that the number of listed companies investing in China tends to fluctuate, so it was uncertain whether the pandemic could be blamed for firms leaving the market.
“While some firms left the market, other companies continued expanding production there or set up new subsidiaries,” Tsai said. “Computer firms and electronic component providers particularly increased their investment.”
Listed companies repatriated NT$18.1 billion of investment gains to Taiwan during the first half of this year, accounting for 20.15 percent of their total investment in China, data showed.
That raised accumulated repatriated funds to NT$508.7 billion, data showed.
Total overseas investment gains by listed firms increased 5 percent annually to NT$209.3 billion in the first half, thanks to a 41 percent increase in gains in the second quarter of NT$171.6 billion boosted by an increase in orders for devices used for remote working, Tsai said.
Shiina Ito has had fewer Chinese customers at her Tokyo jewelry shop since Beijing issued a travel warning in the wake of a diplomatic spat, but she said she was not concerned. A souring of Tokyo-Beijing relations this month, following remarks by Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi about Taiwan, has fueled concerns about the impact on the ritzy boutiques, noodle joints and hotels where holidaymakers spend their cash. However, businesses in Tokyo largely shrugged off any anxiety. “Since there are fewer Chinese customers, it’s become a bit easier for Japanese shoppers to visit, so our sales haven’t really dropped,” Ito
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Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) Chairman C.C. Wei (魏哲家) and the company’s former chairman, Mark Liu (劉德音), both received the Robert N. Noyce Award -- the semiconductor industry’s highest honor -- in San Jose, California, on Thursday (local time). Speaking at the award event, Liu, who retired last year, expressed gratitude to his wife, his dissertation advisor at the University of California, Berkeley, his supervisors at AT&T Bell Laboratories -- where he worked on optical fiber communication systems before joining TSMC, TSMC partners, and industry colleagues. Liu said that working alongside TSMC