HONG KONG
GDP turns corner, up 7.8%
The economy finally turned the corner after posting its fastest growth since 2010 yesterday, as the territory makes a stronger recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic and social unrest before that. After declining for a record six quarters, GDP surged 7.8 percent in the first quarter from a year earlier, data showed, beating all estimates in a Bloomberg survey of economists. While that is partly distorted by the low base a year ago when the economy was in lockdown, the quarter-on-quarter expansion, a better reflection of growth momentum, also outperformed, reaching 5.3 percent, well above an estimate of 0.7 percent. Financial Secretary Paul Chan (陳茂波) said that the economy would expand 3.5 percent to 5.5 percent this year.
HEALTH
Siemens raises outlook
Siemens Healthineers AG yesterday raised its full-year guidance amid strong sales of COVID-19 testing equipment and rebounding demand for hospital treatment. The company said it expects 2021 revenue growth of 14 percent to 17 percent, up from a previous projection for an 8 percent to 12 percent increase. The company also lifted its adjusted earnings per share outlook to 1.90 euros to 2.05 euros, compared with 1.63 euros to 1.82 euros. The company’s stock has gained 13 percent since the start of the year.
SOUTH KOREA
Short selling returns
Short selling resumed yesterday on 351 stocks on the KOSPI 200 and KOSDAQ 150. That came after a 13-month ban that was imposed during the market crash in March last year. Investors rushed to sell shares of some Korean biopharmaceutical companies which surged 67 percent last year. The healthcare sector slumped 4.9 percent, the biggest loser among KOSPI 200’s sub-gauges. Foreign investors shorted 738 billion won (US$658 million) worth of KOSPI stocks during regular trading hours yesterday, while local institutional investors shorted 63 billion won of shares, according to Korea Exchange.
HONG KONG
Forty stocks still suspended
More than 40 stocks worth a combined HK$140.9 billion (US$18.14 billion) remain suspended from trading after failing to release their earnings for last year, the highest number of such halts in at least five years. The group is part of 51 companies that missed an initial reporting deadline for preliminary results by the end of March and were forced to suspend trading on April 1. Ten companies have since reported earnings and have resumed trading, including Hainan Meilan International Airport Co (海南美蘭國際機場), an airport operator in China’s southern province of Hainan.
INDIA
IPOs surge despite virus
A sharp surge in COVID-19 cases would not prevent the country’s markets from setting a record for initial public offerings (IPOs) this year, as a cohort of technology companies make their much-anticipated debuts later in the year, according to UBS Group AG. Last year companies amassed US$4.6 billion from IPOs, according to data compiled by Bloomberg, and Anuj Kapoor, head of investment banking at UBS India, said that the figure would be easily eclipsed. “I would say we will surpass twice the money we raised in 2020 through IPOs,” Kapoor said. So far this year, IPOs have raised nearly US$3 billion, the best start to the year since 2018, the data show.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, yesterday said its materials management head, Vanessa Lee (李文如), had tendered her resignation for personal reasons. The personnel adjustment takes effect tomorrow, TSMC said in a statement. The latest development came one month after Lee reportedly took leave from the middle of last month. Cliff Hou (侯永清), senior vice president and deputy cochief operating officer, is to concurrently take on the role of head of the materials management division, which has been under his supervision, TSMC said. Lee, who joined TSMC in 2022, was appointed senior director of materials management and
Nvidia Corp CEO Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) on Thursday met with US President Donald Trump at the White House, days before a planned trip to China by the head of the world’s most valuable chipmaker, people familiar with the matter said. Details of what the two men discussed were not immediately available, and the people familiar with the meeting declined to elaborate on the agenda. Spokespeople for the White House had no immediate comment. Nvidia declined to comment. Nvidia’s CEO has been vocal about the need for US companies to access the world’s largest semiconductor market and is a frequent visitor to China.
Hypermarket chain Carrefour Taiwan and upscale supermarket chain Mia C’bon on Saturday announced the suspension of their partnership with Jkopay Co (街口支付), one of Taiwan’s largest digital payment providers, amid a lawsuit involving its parent company. Carrefour and Mia C’bon said they would notify customers once Jkopay services are reinstated. The two retailers joined an array of other firms in suspending their partnerships with Jkopay. On Friday night, popular beverage chain TP Tea (茶湯會) also suspended its use of the platform, urging customers to opt for alternative payment methods. Another drinks brand, Guiji (龜記), on Friday said that it is up to individual
MAJOR CONTRIBUTOR: Revenue from AI servers made up more than 50 percent of Wistron’s total server revenue in the second quarter, the company said Wistron Corp (緯創) on Tuesday reported a 135.6 percent year-on-year surge in revenue for last month, driven by strong demand for artificial intelligence (AI) servers, with the momentum expected to extend into the third quarter. Revenue last month reached NT$209.18 billion (US$7.2 billion), a record high for June, bringing second-quarter revenue to NT$551.29 billion, a 129.47 percent annual increase, the company said. Revenue in the first half of the year totaled NT$897.77 billion, up 87.36 percent from a year earlier and also a record high for the period, it said. The company remains cautiously optimistic about AI server shipments in the third quarter,
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