The sharp appreciation of the New Taiwan dollar has affected Arbor Technology Co’s (磐儀科技) profit, as the local currency’s rise against the US dollar is too rapid for the company to respond, the industrial computer maker said yesterday.
“If the currency’s appreciation is gradual, we can still make adjustments, such as negotiating with clients, but if it rises too quickly, we really cannot handle it and end up with exchange losses,” Arbor chairman Eric Lee (李明) said after an annual shareholders’ meeting in Taipei.
Lee did not disclose the amount of foreign exchange losses. The company reported a loss per share of NT$0.21 in the first quarter.
Photo: Meryl Kao, Taipei Times
Arbor’s products mainly comprise industrial computers and motherboards, embedded systems, in-vehicle computers, touch-screen PCs, medical computers and retail automation equipment, the company’s Web site showed.
The company is 46 percent owned by Ennoconn Corp (樺漢科技), a leading industrial computer maker in Taiwan that is a subsidiary of electronics giant Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密).
Arbor has been expanding its operations in Malaysia, where it has set up printed circuit board assembly lines, which had mass-produced six types of customized products and four full-rack industrial computers by the end of last year.
As Ennoconn also operates a plant in Malaysia, Arbor can leverage the facility as an extension of its manufacturing capacity, Lee said, adding that if geopolitical tensions worsen, the plant could serve as an alternative production site.
Asked about the effects of potential US tariffs on Taiwanese industrial computer makers, Lee said the effect would likely be limited, as Taiwanese products remain competitive globally and all manufacturers face the same challenges regardless of the final levy.
If countries such as those in Southeast Asia or China receive lower tariff rates, it could have some effect, but it would not undermine the competitiveness of Taiwanese makers, as industrial computing is a long-term industry and market demand would not vanish overnight, he said.
However, uncertainties surrounding the US tariffs have led to a wait-and-see attitude among companies, affecting investment decisions and dampening market sentiment, he said, adding that the company has not yet considered expanding production to the US.
The company expects closer cooperation with MediaTek Inc (聯發科), following their joint venture’s successful development of second-generation edge artificial intelligence system-on-modules products, Genio 520 and Genio 720, Lee said.
Shareholders yesterday approved the company’s proposal to distribute a cash dividend of NT$0.8 per share, up 33 percent from last year.
Revenue last year decreased 6.27 percent year-on-year to NT$1.57 billion (US$53.83 million), but net profit rose 22.31 percent to NT$152.08 million, with earnings per share increasing to NT$1.36 from NT$1.3 the previous year.
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