AUTOMAKERS
Toyota supplier issues alert
The supplier behind Toyota Motor Corp’s shutdown of all its Japanese assembly plants for at least one week withdrew its earnings forecasts, as another one of the carmaker’s group of companies warned of a bigger disruption than the nation’s 2011 earthquake. Aichi Steel Corp said the Jan. 8 blast at its Chita plant, which supplies specialty steel for engine, transmission and chassis components, might reduce pre-tax profit by about ￥8 billion (US$67 million) this fiscal year. Toyota earlier this week said it was halting all assembly lines from Monday next week through Feb. 13.
WATCHMAKERS
Swatch earnings decline
Swatch Group Ltd, the maker of Tissot and Omega timepieces, reported earnings declines last year because sales fell for the first time in six years, hurt by slumping demand in Hong Kong and the strength of the Swiss franc. Operating profit declined 17 percent to SF1.45 billion (US$1.43 billion), the Biel, Switzerland-based company said in a statement yesterday. The outlook for the Swiss watch industry has soured after Chinese economic growth slowed to the weakest pace in more than two decades and as stock markets and oil prices tumbled. Swatch forecast a sales increase of “well over” 5 percent in local currencies this year, supported by a rebound of demand in China and growth last month.
HOTELS
Minor forecasts record profit
Minor International PLC, which just completed the purchase of a Portuguese hotel chain, expects a record first-quarter profit, bolstered by a strong flow of visitors to countries where it has a presence, chief operating officer Dillip Rajakarier said. The Bangkok-based company plans to add new hotels to its existing 145 properties spread across 22 countries through organic growth and acquisitions, according to Rajakarier. On Tuesday, it finalized the acquisition of Tivoli Hotels & Resorts’ 14 hotels in Portugal and Brazil for 294 million euros (US$321 million).
BANKING
Barclays cutting staff: source
Barclays PLC is to dismiss an extra 150 staff in Dubai as it restructures its Middle East corporate banking business, a person with knowledge of the matter said. The bank is to close its offices at Emaar Square and relocate bankers and support staff to its office at Dubai International Financial Centre, the person said, asking not to be identified as the dismissals are not public. Barclays is to keep its corporate branch in Abu Dhabi and wholesale banking license with UAE Central Bank, the person said. Barclays plans to eliminate 1,200 jobs worldwide and shut securities operations across Asia.
PHARMACEUTICALS
Novo Nordisk sees sales fall
Novo Nordisk AS, the world’s largest maker of insulin, reported poor fourth-quarter earnings as sales of its key diabetes drug Victoza rose less than expected. Profit rose to 8.26 billion kroner (US$1.21 billion), the Bagsvaerd, Denmark-based company said in a statement. A slowdown in the US, where a new generation of drugs that can be swallowed rather than injected is delaying the need for insulin, and a challenge for the six-year-old injection Victoza damped earnings. Victoza, injected daily to mimic the activity of a hormone called GLP-1 that stimulates insulin production, showed the first signs of suffering from the introduction of a rival product called Trulicity by Eli Lilly & Co that only requires a weekly injection.
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 Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) yesterday received government approval to deploy its advanced 3-nanometer (3nm) process at its second fab currently under construction in Japan, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said in a news release. The ministry green-lit the plan for the facility in Kumamoto, which is scheduled to start installing equipment and come online in 2028 with a monthly production capacity of 15,000 12-inch wafers, the ministry said. The Department of Investment Review in June 2024 authorized a US$5.26 billion investment for the facility, slated to manufacture 6- to 12nm chips, significantly less advanced than 3nm process. At a meeting with
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
The domestic unit of the Chinese-owned, Dutch-headquartered chipmaker Nexperia BV will soon be able to produce semiconductors locally within China, according to two company sources. Nexperia is at the center of a global tug-of-war over critical semiconductor technology, with a Dutch court in February ordering a probe into alleged mismanagement at the company. The geopolitical tussle has disrupted supply chains, with some carmakers reportedly forced to cut production due to chip shortages. Local production would allow Nexperia’s domestic arm, Nexperia Semiconductors (China) Ltd (安世半導體中國), to bypass restrictions in place since October on the supply of silicon wafers — etched with tiny components to
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