INVESTMENT
FDI gets green boost
The green energy and offshore wind power industries have continued to support foreign direct investment (FDI) in Taiwan this year after US$11.14 billion was approved in the first nine months, up 152.19 percent from the same period last year, the Investment Commission said in a statement yesterday. FDI is measured based on the investment activity of foreign firms, such as the incorporation of a subsidiary or a joint venture, a cash injection into a local unit, or mergers or acquisitions of domestic firms. Approved investment in the first nine months from countries that are part of the government’s New Southbound Policy rose 224.27 percent to US$1.91 billion, boosted by increased investment from Australia, Singapore and Thailand, the commission said. Meanwhile, US$19.25 million of Chinese investments was approved in the first nine months, an annual decrease of 34.69 percent from a year earlier, it said.
TECHNOLOGY
ITRI partnership extended
The Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI, 工業技術研究院) yesterday said it is continuing its partnership with Wilmington, Delaware-based Ganvix Inc to develop new laser technology. Ganvix is an industry leader specializing in the development of gallium nitride (GaN) vertical cavity surface emitting lasers. The two parties completed development of the first blue GaN lasers and signed a phase two agreement to extend their collaboration to expand the wavelength range from blue to green, conduct testing and complete packaging of discreet lasers and laser arrays, the release said. ITRI said the target markets include consumer electronics, industrial, medical and life sciences, communications and metaverse applications.
ENERGY
Orsted touts initiative
Danish energy company Orsted A/S and Taiwan’s Metal Industries Research and Development Center (MIRDC, 金屬工業研究發展中心) on Wednesday announced that an initiative, backed by a NT$60 million (US$1.87 million) industrial development fund, has enabled more than 60 local companies to ramp up capabilities required to tap into the offshore wind supply chain. The fund provides resources and knowledge sharing to enhance the technological capabilities of local sub-suppliers, close the skills gap and nurture talent to sustain the healthy development of the offshore wind supply chain in Taiwan, Orsted said in a statement. The fund is fully sponsored by Orsted and has been executed by the center over the past 18 months. It has enabled 108 people to receive certification for Global Wind Organization safety training, and 82 welders have obtained high-level certificates, the statement said.
FOOTWEAR
Fulgent profit rises 35.8%
Fulgent Sun International Holding Co (鈺齊國際), which supplies sports shoes and functional outdoor shoes to global brands, yesterday posted net profit of NT$1.296 billion for last quarter, up 35.8 percent quarterly and 279.3 percent annually, or earnings per share of NT$6.85. Net profit in the first three quarters rose to NT$2.794 billion, an annual increase of 250.6 percent, or earnings per share of NT$14.94, exceeding the results for the whole of last year. The company said that order visibility for the spring and summer remains high, and its order scale is better than in the same seasons this year.
POWERING UP: PSUs for AI servers made up about 50% of Delta’s total server PSU revenue during the first three quarters of last year, the company said Power supply and electronic components maker Delta Electronics Inc (台達電) reported record-high revenue of NT$161.61 billion (US$5.11 billion) for last quarter and said it remains positive about this quarter. Last quarter’s figure was up 7.6 percent from the previous quarter and 41.51 percent higher than a year earlier, and largely in line with Yuanta Securities Investment Consulting Co’s (元大投顧) forecast of NT$160 billion. Delta’s annual revenue last year rose 31.76 percent year-on-year to NT$554.89 billion, also a record high for the company. Its strong performance reflected continued demand for high-performance power solutions and advanced liquid-cooling products used in artificial intelligence (AI) data centers,
SIZE MATTERS: TSMC started phasing out 8-inch wafer production last year, while Samsung is more aggressively retiring 8-inch capacity, TrendForce said Chipmakers are expected to raise prices of 8-inch wafers by up to 20 percent this year on concern over supply constraints as major contract chipmakers Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) and Samsung Electronics Co gradually retire less advanced wafer capacity, TrendForce Corp (集邦科技) said yesterday. It is the first significant across-the-board price hike since a global semiconductor correction in 2023, the Taipei-based market researcher said in a report. Global 8-inch wafer capacity slid 0.3 percent year-on-year last year, although 8-inch wafer prices still hovered at relatively stable levels throughout the year, TrendForce said. The downward trend is expected to continue this year,
Vincent Wei led fellow Singaporean farmers around an empty Malaysian plot, laying out plans for a greenhouse and rows of leafy vegetables. What he pitched was not just space for crops, but a lifeline for growers struggling to make ends meet in a city-state with high prices and little vacant land. The future agriculture hub is part of a joint special economic zone launched last year by the two neighbors, expected to cost US$123 million and produce 10,000 tonnes of fresh produce annually. It is attracting Singaporean farmers with promises of cheaper land, labor and energy just over the border.
A proposed billionaires’ tax in California has ignited a political uproar in Silicon Valley, with tech titans threatening to leave the state while California Governor Gavin Newsom of the Democratic Party maneuvers to defeat a levy that he fears would lead to an exodus of wealth. A technology mecca, California has more billionaires than any other US state — a few hundred, by some estimates. About half its personal income tax revenue, a financial backbone in the nearly US$350 billion budget, comes from the top 1 percent of earners. A large healthcare union is attempting to place a proposal before
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