EQUITIES
TAIEX dips on Ukraine fears
The TAIEX closed slightly lower yesterday as market sentiment continued to be haunted by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which battered global equity markets overnight. Losses focused on the bellwether electronics sector, but rotational buying in old-economy stocks in a market awash in ample liquidity helped to limit the broader market’s downturn, dealers said. The TAIEX closed down 30.65 points, or 0.17 percent, at 17,867.60. Turnover totaled NT$293.357 billion (US$10.45 billion), with foreign institutional investors selling a net NT$19.27 billion of shares on the main board, Taiwan Stock Exchange data showed.
SEMICONDUCTORS
Mosel Vitelic net profit up
Foundry company Mosel Vitelic Inc (茂矽) yesterday reported that net profit grew 11.4 percent year-on-year to NT$245.24 million last year, the highest in 14 years, with earnings per share of NT$1.58. Revenue rose 5.76 percent annually to NT$1.95 billion, the highest in 10 years, the company said in a regulatory filing. The firm attributed the results to increased shipments of automotive electronic diodes and metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistors, as well as rising prices for foundry orders. Its board of directors has approved a plan to distribute a cash dividend of NT$0.5 per share on Aug. 26, the company said.
APPAREL
February record for Makalot
Makalot Industrial Co (聚陽) yesterday reported consolidated revenue of NT$2.56 billion for last month, up 41.56 percent from a year earlier, but down 10.5 percent from January. The figure is the highest in the company’s history for the month of February, underlining robust demand from its brand customers in the US, as the global COVID-19 situation is gradually being brought under control, Makalot said. Combined revenue in the first two months of this year reached NT$5.42 billion, up 29.3 percent year-on-year, the company said in a regulatory filing.
MANUFACTURING
CFTC predicts rising sales
China Fineblanking Technology Co (CFTC, 和勤精機), a manufacturer of metal stamping products, yesterday forecast that sales for this year are expected to increase every quarter in light of a steady recovery in the Chinese auto market and launches of new products by the firm later this year. The Changhua County-based firm reported that revenue last month was the highest for February. It grew 12.42 percent from a year earlier to NT$189.69 million, but declined 30.2 percent from January. Auto parts accounted for 68.76 percent of the company’s total revenue, while voice coil motor plates for hard-disk drive applications contributed 27.63 percent, it said. Cumulative revenue in the first two months expanded 9.37 percent to NT$461.63 million, a record for the period.
ENTERTAINMENT
Sea shares fall on forecast
Sea Ltd (冬海) gave a muted forecast for its digital entertainment unit and its shares fell 13 percent in US trading on Monday. Investors balked as the Singapore-based mobile gaming company forecast US$2.9 billion to US$3.1 billion in bookings at its digital gaming arm, set to be its first decline ever. That compares with bookings last year of US$4.6 billion. The company sought to assuage investors by focusing on e-commerce revenue growth, which it expects to continue unabated as it focuses on the key markets of Taiwan, Brazil and Southeast Asia. It expects e-commerce sales to rise to between US$8.9 billion and US$9.1 billion this year from US$5.1 billion last year.
UNPRECEDENTED PACE: Micron Technology has announced plans to expand manufacturing capabilities with the acquisition of a new chip plant in Miaoli Micron Technology Inc unveiled a newly acquired chip plant in Miaoli County yesterday, as the company expands capacity to meet growing demand for advanced DRAM chips, including high-bandwidth memory chips amid the artificial intelligence boom. The plant in Miaoli County’s Tongluo Township (銅鑼), which Micron acquired from Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp (力積電) for US$1.8 billion, is expected to make a sizeable capacity contribution to the company from fiscal 2028, the company said in a statement. It would be an extended production site of Micron’s large-scale manufacturing hub in Taichung, the company said. As the global semiconductor industry is racing to reach US$1 trillion
Singapore-based ride-hailing and delivery giant Grab Holdings Ltd has applied for regulatory approval to acquire the Taiwan operations of Germany-based Delivery Hero SE's Foodpanda in a deal valued at about US$600 million. Grab submitted the filing to the Fair Trade Commission on Friday last week, with the transaction subject to regulatory review and approval, the company said in a statement yesterday. Its independent governance structure would help foster a healthy and competitive market in Taiwan if the deal is approved, Grab said. Grab, which is listed on the NASDAQ, said in the filing that US-based Uber Technologies Inc holds about 13 percent of
Taiwan’s food delivery market could undergo a major shift if Singapore-based Grab Holdings Ltd completes its planned acquisition of Delivery Hero SE’s Foodpanda business in Taiwan, industry experts said. Grab on Monday last week announced it would acquire Foodpanda’s Taiwan operations for US$600 million. The deal is expected to be finalized in the second half of this year, with Grab aiming to complete user migration to its platform by the first half of next year. A duopoly between Uber Eats and Foodpanda dominates Taiwan’s delivery market, a structure that has remained intact since the Fair Trade Commission (FTC) blocked Uber Technologies Inc’s
Memory chip stocks extended their losses yesterday after Alphabet Inc’s Google publicized research that could allow more efficient use of the storage needed for artificial intelligence (AI) development. SK Hynix Inc and Samsung Electronics Co, South Korean leaders in the market, fell more than 6 percent and about 5 percent respectively in Seoul. In the US, Micron Technology Inc, Western Digital Corp and Sandisk Corp slid more than 2 percent in pre-market trading, after they all closed lower on Wednesday. Memory companies have been on a tear in recent months as the rapid development of AI infrastructure triggered a spike in chip
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