EQUITIES
Late buying boosts TAIEX
The TAIEX yesterday closed higher on the back of late-session buying, which focused on large-cap shares in both the electronics and non-technology sectors, pushing the broader market back into positive territory. However, turnover remained thin as many investors stayed on the sidelines, waiting for the result of today’s US presidential election, dealers said. The TAIEX closed up 44.97 points, or 0.36 percent, at 12,591.31 on turnover of NT$164.592 billion (US$5.69 billion). Foreign institutional investors bought a net NT$2.91 of shares on the main board, Taiwan Stock Exchange data showed. “Judging by the movement of these large-cap stocks, I think the buying largely came from government-led funds, as buying in these big guys was the most effective way to prop up the broader market,” Mega International Investment Services Corp (兆豐國際投顧) analyst Alex Huang (黃國偉) said.
ELECTRONICS
Compal cancels banquet
Contract electronics maker Compal Electronics Inc (仁寶電腦) yesterday said that it would cancel its year-end banquets for employees, known as a wei ya (尾牙), as it is not safe to hold mass gatherings during the global COVID-19 pandemic. Other contract electronics companies such as Quanta Computer Inc (廣達), Pegatron Corp (和碩), Inventec Corp (英業達) and Wistron Corp (緯創) have yet to make a decision, saying they would continue to pay attention to the development of the pandemic and conduct evaluations, with internal discussions still ongoing. The annual event usually starts with speeches from management about the company’s performance and outlook or operational goals for next year, while featuring performing artists and prize draws to boost employee morale. There are concerns that the cancelation of the events could take a heavy toll on local catering companies, restaurants and hotels, whose businesses have already suffered from the pandemic.
CHIPMAKERS
UMC to pay bonuses
United Microelectronics Corp (UMC, 聯電), the nation’s second-largest contract chipmaker, announced on its sports and family day on Saturday that it would give a NT$10,000 bonus to each employee as part of the event. UMC has almost 20,000 employees worldwide, so the company is expected to pay about NT$200 million. Addressing the event, which was held in Hsinchu and attended by about 3,000 employees, UMC chairman Stan Hung (洪嘉聰) said that the company has grown rapidly over the past 40 years, expanding from a small pure-foundry fab with only 400 employees to owning 12 wafer fabs in Taiwan, China, Singapore and Japan. Hung said the achievements were the result of the efforts and contributions of all of the company’s employees.
AIRLINES
United reinstates flights
United Airlines Holdings Inc has resumed passenger flights between San Francisco and Taipei, after flight services on the route were suspended on March 19 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The first flight, which departed from San Francisco at 11am on Sunday, arrived at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport yesterday afternoon. The return flight is due to take off from Taoyuan at 1:10pm today. Both flights have registered a passenger load factor of more than 50 percent, the airline’s Taiwan branch said. United Airlines is to offer three weekly flights from San Francisco to Taipei on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays, while the return flights are on Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays.
DIVIDED VIEWS: Although the Fed agreed on holding rates steady, some officials see no rate cuts for this year, while 10 policymakers foresee two or more cuts There are a lot of unknowns about the outlook for the economy and interest rates, but US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell signaled at least one thing seems certain: Higher prices are coming. Fed policymakers voted unanimously to hold interest rates steady at a range of 4.25 percent to 4.50 percent for a fourth straight meeting on Wednesday, as they await clarity on whether tariffs would leave a one-time or more lasting mark on inflation. Powell said it is still unclear how much of the bill would fall on the shoulders of consumers, but he expects to learn more about tariffs
NOT JUSTIFIED: The bank’s governor said there would only be a rate cut if inflation falls below 1.5% and economic conditions deteriorate, which have not been detected The central bank yesterday kept its key interest rates unchanged for a fifth consecutive quarter, aligning with market expectations, while slightly lowering its inflation outlook amid signs of cooling price pressures. The move came after the US Federal Reserve held rates steady overnight, despite pressure from US President Donald Trump to cut borrowing costs. Central bank board members unanimously voted to maintain the discount rate at 2 percent, the secured loan rate at 2.375 percent and the overnight lending rate at 4.25 percent. “We consider the policy decision appropriate, although it suggests tightening leaning after factoring in slackening inflation and stable GDP growth,”
Meta Platforms Inc offered US$100 million bonuses to OpenAI employees in an unsuccessful bid to poach the ChatGPT maker’s talent and strengthen its own generative artificial intelligence (AI) teams, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has said. Facebook’s parent company — a competitor of OpenAI — also offered “giant” annual salaries exceeding US$100 million to OpenAI staffers, Altman said in an interview on the Uncapped with Jack Altman podcast released on Tuesday. “It is crazy,” Sam Altman told his brother Jack in the interview. “I’m really happy that at least so far none of our best people have decided to take them
PLANS: MSI is also planning to upgrade its service center in the Netherlands Micro-Star International Co (MSI, 微星) yesterday said it plans to set up a server assembly line at its Poland service center this year at the earliest. The computer and peripherals manufacturer expects that the new server assembly line would shorten transportation times in shipments to European countries, a company spokesperson told the Taipei Times by telephone. MSI manufactures motherboards, graphics cards, notebook computers, servers, optical storage devices and communication devices. The company operates plants in Taiwan and China, and runs a global network of service centers. The company is also considering upgrading its service center in the Netherlands into a
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