UNITED STATES
Biden latches onto S&P 500
US President Joe Biden touted the S&P 500 index’s record high as a sign of US economic strength, making a rare comment on the stock market after a tough week in his re-election bid that focused attention on his age and mental acuity. The S&P 500 topped 5,000 for the first time on Friday, spurred by big-tech stocks and speculation that the US Federal Reserve will cut interest rates soon. By contrast, Biden’s week included gaffes in which he mixed up the names of world leaders — and a special counsel’s report said the 81-year-old president showed “diminished faculties and faulty memory.”
ENERGY
Tax savings help ONGC
Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC), India’s largest oil and gas explorer, posted better-than-expected quarterly profit as lower windfall tax helped offset impact of the decline in oil and gas prices. Still, net income fell 14 percent to 95.4 billion rupees (US$1.1 billion) for the quarter ended Dec. 31, compared with 110.4 billion rupees a year-ago, according to an exchange filing on Saturday. Revenue fell 9.8 percent to 347.9 billion rupees, according to the state-owned explorer, which accounts for 67 percent of India’s oil and 54 percent its gas production.
ITALY
Bonds pitched in TV show
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s plan to shift the burden of Italy’s debt to her voters reached a new milestone when a pitch for government bond sales ran during the nation’s most iconic song contest. The advertisement, which appeared during a public TV broadcast from the annual Sanremo Music Festival on Friday night, promoted an issuance of the BTP Valore bond later this month as offering an “advantageous return exclusively dedicated to small savers.” Getting ordinary savers to buy debt, along with taking measures to avoid any worsening of public finances, are now key pillars of Rome’s strategy to stay sustainably afloat.
AUTOMAKERS
Ford working on cheap EVs
Ford Motor Co is working on inexpensive, small electric vehicles (EVs) to stem its electric vehicle losses and take on Tesla Inc and Chinese automakers. Chief executive officer Jim Farley revealed the plans to analysts on Tuesday after the automaker announced adjusted earnings per share of US$0.29 for the fourth quarter of last year, more than double the US$0.13 analysts expected on average. Fourth-quarter revenue of US$46 billion surpassed the US$40.3 billion analysts expected. The small team is being led by Alan Clarke, executive director of advanced EV development, who came to Ford two years ago after more than 12 years developing models for Tesla.
BANKING
Barclays to tamp fossil fuels
British bank Barclays PLC said on Friday it would stop directly financing its energy clients’ new oil and gas projects. As part of its updated climate strategy, the bank added it would scale back lending for existing fossil fuel projects as the sector faces intense pressure from activist investors to help tackle climate change. Additional curbs will be introduced on unconventional oil and gas, including extra heavy oil, Barclays said. The bank also expects “energy clients to produce transition plans or decarbonization strategies” by next year, it said, adding that it would require energy clients to commit to other targets, including the reduction of methane and carbon emissions from operations.
INVESTOR RESILIENCE? An analyst said that despite near-term pressures, foreign investors tend to view NT dollar strength as a positive signal for valuation multiples Morgan Stanley has flagged a potential 10 percent revenue decline for Taiwan’s tech hardware sector this year, as a sharp appreciation of the New Taiwan dollar begins to dent the earnings power of major exporters. In what appears to be the first such warning from a major foreign brokerage, the US investment bank said the currency’s strength — fueled by foreign capital inflows and expectations of US interest rate cuts — is compressing profit margins for manufacturers with heavy exposure to US dollar-denominated revenues. The local currency has surged about 10 percent against the greenback over the past quarter and yesterday breached
MARKET FACTORS: Navitas Semiconductor Inc said that Powerchip is to take over from TSMC as its supplier of high-voltage gallium nitride chips Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) yesterday in a statement said that it would phase out its compound semiconductor gallium nitride (GaN) business over the next two years, citing market dynamics. The decision would not affect its financial targets announced previously, the world’s biggest contract chipmaker said. “We are working closely with our customers to ensure a smooth transition and remain committed to meeting their needs during this period,” it said. “Our focus continues to be on delivering sustained value to our partners and the market.” TSMC’s latest move came unexpectedly, as the chipmaker had said in its annual report that it has
Rick Cassidy, the chairman of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co's (TSMC, 台積電) US subsidiary, TSMC Arizona Corp, plans to retire, but the company has yet to name a successor. After Cassidy made his intention to retire known, TSMC Arizona held a special general meeting and approved a resolution that Cassidy would not continue as chairman and would not remain as a director, TSMC said in a statement filed with the Taiwan Stock Exchange last night. The meeting also approved a plan to appoint TSMC Arizona president Rose Castanares as a director, the company said, adding that Cassidy has been named as an advisor
SECURITY WARNING: The company possesses key 3-nanometer technology, and Taiwan should prevent it from being transferred to China, a lawmaker said The Ministry of Economic Affairs yesterday said it would conduct a “strict review” of any proposed acquisition of Taiwanese tech company Source Photonics Co (索爾思光電), following media reports that a Chinese firm was planning to buy the company in the Hsinchu Science Park (新竹科學園區). Local media reported that Suzhou Dongshan Precision Manufacturing Co (東山精密), China’s largest printed circuit board manufacturer, had announced plans to acquire Source Photonics for 5.9 billion yuan (US$823.1 million). The ministry said it has not received an application from Source Photonics and has formally notified the company that any buyout would constitute a change in its ownership structure. The
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