More Taiwanese textile manufacturers are joining the trend to develop recycled products as the EU pushes the implementation of its “Strategy for Sustainable and Circular Textiles” in 2024, and the global textile sector targets a 45 percent reduction in carbon emissions by 2030.
Several local firms, which displayed environmentally friendly products at the Taipei Innovative Textile Application Show earlier this month, have followed in the footsteps of other global brands to incorporate environmental, social and corporate governance principles into their business operations in response to the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.
The companies include Far Eastern New Century Corp (FENC, 遠東新世紀), Shinkong Synthetic Fibers Corp (新光合成纖維), Lealea Enterprise Co (力麗), Zig Sheng Industrial Co (集盛實業) and Formosa Taffeta Co (福懋興業), according to the trade show’s organizer, the Taiwan Textile Federation.
Photo: Huang Hao-chen, Taipei Times
Yuanta Securities Investment and Consulting Co (元大投顧) said in a note on Thursday that recycled polyethylene terephthalate (R-PET) demand has been increasing, with prices rising three times higher than those of virgin materials, as global brands such as Nike Inc and Adidas AG have pledged to use sustainable and recycled materials for their products.
R-PET is made mainly from plastic bottles, which are then made into a resin to be used in the production of textiles. The world’s three largest R-PET suppliers are Thailand-based Indorama Ventures Holdings LP, Taiwan’s Far Eastern New Century and Mexico-listed Alpek SAB de CV, Yuanta said.
To meet strong demand, Indorama plans to expand its R-PET capacity by 94 percent to 750,000 tonnes by 2025, from 387,000 tonnes, while Far Eastern is looking to increase its capacity by 169 percent to 870,000 tonnes from 324,000 tonnes over the same period, while also launching a plastic bottle recycling project with convenience stores in Japan and Taiwan, Yuanta said.
“FENC has focused on research and development for eco-friendly materials for years. It supplies multiple PET, textile and apparel products for international brands,” Yuanta analysts led by Lisa Chen (陳玫芬) said in the note.
The Taipei-based company has been supplying R-PET for Nike’s sports jerseys for national teams for more than 10 years.
FENC also used plastic bottles retrieved from the sea to produce sports shoes for Adidas in 2015, and is to extend the collaboration to sportswear this year.
The two companies are working to provide tear-resistant sports jerseys for nine national teams at this year’s FIFA World Cup in Doha, Qatar, as the shirts are moisture-wicking and suitable for sports involving collision, Yuanta said.
Supplying Lululemon Athletica Inc and Inditex SA’s Zara brand, FENC used recycled polyester chips in their products this year, which would also be adopted for their products to be launched next year, it said.
Shinkong Synthetic, Lealea and Zig Sheng purchase PET bottle flakes to make R-PET, which is used to manufacture recycled polyester fiber.
Formosa Taffeta purchases recycled polyester fiber to make fabric, with R-PET accounting for 50 percent of its total PET shipments, while used fishing nets and oyster ropes make up 20 percent of its total nylon shipments, Yuanta said.
“Taiwanese suppliers should continue to benefit from the eco-friendly approach of apparel brands like Nike, Adidas and Lululemon,” Yuanta analysts said.
EXPANSION: The investment came as ASE in July told investors it would accelerate capacity growth to mitigate supply issues, and would boost spending by 16 percent ASE Technology Holding Co (ASE, 日月光投控), the world’s biggest chip assembly and testing service provider, yesterday said it is investing NT$17.6 billion (US$578.6 million) to build a new advanced chip packaging facility in Kaohsiung to cope with fast-growing demand from artificial intelligence (AI), high-performance-computing (HPC) and automotive applications. The new fab, called K18B, is to commence operation in the first quarter of 2028, offering chip-on-wafer-on-substrate (CoWoS) chip packaging and final testing services, ASE said in a statement. The fab is to create 2,000 new jobs upon its completion, ASE said. A wide spectrum of system-level chip packaging technologies would be available at
Taiwan’s foreign exchange reserves hit a record high at the end of last month, surpassing the US$600 billion mark for the first time, the central bank said yesterday. Last month, the country’s foreign exchange reserves rose US$5.51 billion from a month earlier to reach US$602.94 billion due to an increase in returns from the central bank’s portfolio management, the movement of other foreign currencies in the portfolio against the US dollar and the bank’s efforts to smooth the volatility of the New Taiwan dollar. Department of Foreign Exchange Director-General Eugene Tsai (蔡炯民)said a rate cut cycle launched by the US Federal Reserve
HEAVYWEIGHT: The TAIEX ended up 382.67 points, with about 280 of those points contributed by TSMC shares alone, which rose 2.56 percent to close at NT$1,400 Shares in Taiwan broke records at the end of yesterday’s session after contract chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) hit a fresh closing-high amid enthusiasm toward artificial intelligence (AI) development, dealers said. The TAIEX ended up 382.67 points, or 1.45 percent, at the day’s high of 26,761.06. Turnover totaled NT$463.09 billion (US$15.22 billion). “The local main board has repeatedly hit new closing highs in the past few sessions as investors continued to embrace high hopes about AI applications, taking cues from a strong showing in shares of US-based AI chip designer Nvidia Corp,” Hua Nan Securities Co (華南永昌證券) analyst Kevin Su
Nvidia Corp’s major server production partner Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密) reported 10.99 percent year-on-year growth in quarterly sales, signaling healthy demand for artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure. Revenue totaled NT$2.06 trillion (US$67.72 billion) in the last quarter, in line with analysts’ projections, a company statement said. On a quarterly basis, revenue was up 14.47 percent. Hon Hai’s businesses cover four primary product segments: cloud and networking, smart consumer electronics, computing, and components and other products. Last quarter, “cloud and networking products delivered strong growth, components and other products demonstrated significant growth, while smart consumer electronics and computing products slightly declined,” compared with the