EQUITIES
Virus worries impact TAIEX
The TAIEX yesterday moved lower to close below 17,000 points, as investors’ concerns over a surge in domestic COVID-19 cases continued. Selling focused on large-cap tech stocks, while cyclical old economy stocks also came under pressure later in the session as investors locked in gains posted in previous sessions, dealers said. The TAIEX ended down 109.99 points, or 0.64 percent, at 16,966.22, while turnover totaled NT$398.405 billion (US$14.348 billion), up from NT$350.72 billion the previous day. Foreign institutional investors sold a net NT$14.97 billion of shares on the market yesterday, Taiwan Stock Exchange data showed.
ELECTRONICS
Innolux profit soars 42.3%
Flat-panel maker Innolux Corp (群創) yesterday posted NT$31.38 billion in revenue for last month, the highest in about four-and-a-half years. Revenue increased 3.4 percent from April and 42.3 percent from a year earlier. Shipments of large panels for computers and TVs rose 4 percent sequentially, while shipments of small panels dropped 2 percent. During the first five months of the year, revenue surged 56.36 percent year-on-year to NT$145.56 billion.
AUTO PARTS
Hiroca’s sales rise 10.73%
Automotive components maker Hiroca Holdings Ltd (廣華控股) yesterday reported consolidated sales of NT$8441.84 million for last month, up 10.73 percent year-on-year. Hiroca, which produces interior trim parts, as well as plastic, fabric and leather decorations, said that an increase in shipments to major automakers in China boosted its sales last month. However, revenue fell 20.78 percent from April due to a shortage of chips, the firm said. Cumulative sales in the first five months of this year rose 51.61 percent to NT$2.77 billion from a year earlier.
CHIPMAKERS
Winbond buys equipment
Winbond Electronics Corp (華邦電) yesterday said that it has ordered NT$5.33 billion of manufacturing equipment from Applied Materials South East Asia Pte Ltd, after its board of directors approved a NT$378 million capital expenditure last month. Revenue last month soared 92.05 percent to NT$8.21 billion year-on-year from NT$4.27 billion last year, but edged lower 1 percent month-on-month from NT$8.3 billion in April. Cumulative revenue in the first five months totaled NT$29.63 billion from NT$15.9 billion last year.
MANUFACTURING
Value Valves demand rises
Value Valves Co (捷流閥業) yesterday reported that revenue last month rose 1.1 percent month-on-month to NT$208.1 million, the highest this year, thanks to rising demand in the electronics and petrochemical industries. However, the figure fell 0.34 percent year-on-year. In the first five months, cumulative revenue fell 8.97 percent to NT$923.91 million from last year, as major customers delayed orders over COVID-19 concerns, the firm said.
MANUFACTURING
Sheh Fung Screws revenue increases
Screw manufacturer Sheh Fung Screws Co (世豐螺絲) yesterday posted NT$244 million in revenue for last month, a spike of 71.86 percent from a year earlier on the back of selling prices hikes and strong demand from the US market. Demand for screws is gaining heat as the property market in the US market recovers and do-it-yourself home improvement projects grow increasingly popular, the Kaohsiung-based company said. Shipping clogs protracted delivery time and helped boost selling prices, it said, adding that a low base last year also lent support to the impressive showing.
ELECTRONICS
HTC VR headsets to launch
HTC Corp (宏達電) yesterday said that it would launch new virtual reality (VR) headsets in its Vive lineup tomorrow. The Vive Pro 2, a successor to the original Vive Pro, is to sell for NT$24,900. It features a 120-degree field of view, a refresh rate of 120 hertz, and “premium 5K fidelity,” with 2.5k resolution per eye, HTC said. The Vive Focus 3, the latest in the firm’s series of all-in-one business-oriented VR headsets, can be preordered from today, before its June 25 launch, for NT$32,900, it said.
ENERGY ISSUES: The TSIA urged the government to increase natural gas and helium reserves to reduce the impact of the Middle East war on semiconductor supply stability Chip testing and packaging service provider ASE Technology Holding Co (日月光投控) yesterday said it planned to invest more than NT$100 billion (US$3.15 billion) in building a new advanced chip testing facility in Kaohsiung to keep up with customer demand driven by the artificial intelligence (AI) boom. That would be included in the company’s capital expenditure budget next year, ASE said. There is also room to raise this year’s capital spending budget from a record-high US$7 billion estimated three months ago, it added. ASE would have six factories under construction this year, another record-breaking number, ASE chief operating officer Tien Wu
The EU and US are nearing an agreement to coordinate on producing and securing critical minerals, part of a push to break reliance on Chinese supplies. The potential deal would create incentives, such as minimum prices, that could advantage non-Chinese suppliers, according to a draft of an “action plan” seen by Bloomberg. The EU and US would also cooperate on standards, investments and joint projects, as well as coordinate on any supply disruptions by countries like China. The two sides are additionally seeking other “like-minded partners” to join a multicountry accord to help create these new critical mineral supply chains, which feed into
For weeks now, the global tech industry has been waiting for a major artificial intelligence (AI) launch from DeepSeek (深度求索), seen as a benchmark for China’s progress in the fast-moving field. More than a year has passed since the start-up put Chinese AI on the map in early last year with a low-cost chatbot that performed at a similar level to US rivals. However, despite reports and rumors about its imminent release, DeepSeek’s next-generation “V4” model is nowhere in sight. Speculation is also swirling over the geopolitical implications of which computer chips were chosen to train and power the new
Intel Corp is joining Elon Musk’s long-shot effort to develop semiconductors for Tesla Inc, Space Exploration Technologies Corp and xAI, marking a surprising twist in the chipmaker’s comeback bid. Intel would help the Terafab project “refactor” the technology in a chip factory, the company said on Tuesday in a post on X, Musk’s social media platform. That is a stage in the development process that typically helps make chips more powerful or reliable. The chipmaker’s shares jumped 4.2 percent to US$52.91 in New York trading on Tuesday. The Terafab project is a grand plan by Musk to eventually manufacture his own chips for
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