Business and Finance

Sources: Taiwan panel maker Innolux approaches 2nd round of layoffs

Several senior executives are rumored to be fired during 2nd wave of layoffs

Taiwan News
Date: 2018/05/23
By: Sophia Yang, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – Taiwan’s leading LCD panel maker Innolux is rumored to begin a

(By Central News Agency)

second wave of layoffs soon, during which several high level executives will get fired. The company declined to comment on the rumor.

Innolux laid off 72 workers last Friday, May 18 to reportedly target poor performers after Apple Daily broke the news on Monday, May 21. Those sacked accounted for 0.2 percent of the total headcount in Taiwan, according to the company.

Sources recently told Apple Daily that another round of layoffs is about to take place and that several high-level positions will be targeted, including TV business sales manager, Hong Mao-sheng (洪茂盛), the deputy product manager, and the product development director.

The company declined to comment on the rumor when asked by an Apple Daily reporter, only stating that the company will continue to make appropriate arrangements to address industry trends and customer demands.     [FULL  STORY]

Industrial production up 8.53% in April

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2018/05/23
By: Liao Yu-yang and Frances Huang

Taipei, May 23 (CNA) Taiwan’s industrial production for April rose 8.53 percent from a year

CNA file photo

earlier as sustained global economic growth boosted demand for the products of Taiwan’s export-oriented manufacturers, the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) said.

The MOEA said the industrial production index in April was 102.94, up 8.53 percent from a year earlier, marking the 2nd time in as many months it registered a year-on-year increase.

The only month in which it fell sharply was in February, when there were fewer working days during the month than a year earlier because the Lunar New Year holiday fell in February this year rather than in late January.

The sub-index for the manufacturing sector, which accounts for more than 90 percent of the country’s total industrial production, rose 9.07 percent from a year earlier to 103.52, the MOEA said.    [FULL  STORY]

Industrial production beats estimate

PREPARATIONS: Chemical goods production gained 6.51 percent from a year earlier, as businesses began to build up inventories amid rising crude oil prices

Taipei Times
Date: May 24, 2018
By: Kuo Chia-erh  /  Staff reporter

The nation’s industrial production index last month climbed 8.53 percent year-on-year to a record high of 102.94, roundly beating the government’s forecast of 5 percent on the back of robust demand for electronic components, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said yesterday.

The index gauges output in the nation’s five main industries: manufacturing, mining and quarrying, electricity and gas supply, water supply and architectural engineering.

The manufacturing production index, which accounts for about 92 percent of total industrial production, last month rose 9.07 percent annually to set a record of 103.52, the ministry said.

“Among the manufacturing industries, electronics component suppliers made the most significant contribution,” Department of Statistics Deputy Director-General Wang Shu-chuan (王淑娟) told a news conference in Taipei.    [FULL  STORY]

Taiwan panel maker Innolux lays off 72 workers

The company says the plan targets the lowest performers

Taiwan News
Date: 2018/05/21
By: Sophia Yang, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – A leading LCD panel maker in Taiwan was said to have laid off 72

The photo shows Innolux headquarters in Hsinchu Science Park. (Image credit: Hsinchu Science Park)

workers all at once last Friday, May 18, and the company explained those being sacked are the lowest performers after the news broke out.

Founded in 2003, Innolux Corp. employees 62,000 workers worldwide, and half of them are based in Taiwan, according to its official website, but has delved into automated production in recent years. The company produces a full range of large/medium/small size of LCD panels and touch-control screens.

A group of Innolux workers reported to Apple Daily that they were informed to leave immediately upon arrival at the office on Friday. The company said that the latest layoff plan was targeting poor performers, who account only 0.2 percent of the total headcount in Taiwan.

The company added that the performance of workers is reviewed on the regular basis, and the lowest performers are asked to receive on-the-job training for six months, but those who continue to be underperformed are asked to leave. The company emphasized that the layoff process has been made according to law.    [FULL  STORY]

Last snake eatery in Huaxi night market takes its final bow

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2018/05/21
By Lee Hsin-Yin, Liu Chien-pang and Huang Li-yun

Taipei, May 21 (CNA) When a pair of scissors used to kill snakes were covered gently in red cloth Monday, it symbolized not only the closure of the last shop in the Huaxi Street Night Market that served only snake dishes but also the end of one of Taiwan’s iconic night market scenes.

“We want to take a bow proudly and beautifully, and thank everyone who has ever visited us for a bowl of snake soup, which might have cured your scalp ringworm,” said Kuo Yi-chien (郭懿堅), owner of the Asian Snake Eatery.

His remarks drew rounds of applauses from hundreds of local residents and visitors on hand to witness the closure of the diner.

Kuo’s shop was known as the last snake “specialty store” in the market in Wanhua District.
[FULL  STORY]

E-paper display maker slips into red

CHANGES: E Ink Holdings blamed the loss on clients shifting to larger-screen models and higher expenses, including a 26 million euro equity investment in SES-imagotag

Taipei Times
Date: May 22, 2018
By: Lisa Wang  /  Staff reporter

E Ink Holdings Co (元太科技), which holds a dominant position in the world’s electronic paper display market, yesterday posted its first operating loss in about eight quarters as e-reader sales slowed due to product transition and operating expenses rose.

The results were largely in line with the company’s expectations, as e-reader clients revamp their models and shift to screen sizes larger than 6 inches.

However, E Ink expects growth momentum to pick up later this quarter from last quarter’s NT$2.99 billion (US$99.69 million), bringing it back on track with its full-year revenue forecast.

Nearly 70 percent of the company’s total revenue last year came from e-paper displays used in e-readers.    [FULL  STORY]

Adani plans e-bus foray with SEZ production facility, Taiwan tie-up

The Economic Times
Date: May 21, 2018
By Sarita C Singh, ET Bureau

NEW DELHI: Gautam Adani-led Adani Enterprises is set to make a big-ticket entry into
electric buses manufacturing, at least three people in know of the development said.

The group, which plans to set up a manufacturing base in its special economic zone at
Mundra in Gujarat, is in talks with a Taiwanese electric bus maker for technological tieup,
these people said. Experts believe that Adani’s entry, along with a foreign player, will
change the dynamics of the Indian electric buses segment that has limited players.

Tata Motors, Ashok Leyland, JBM Group and Mahindra & Mahindra are among the other
players in the Indian e-bus market. China’s BYD has marked its presence in the newlyopened

Indian e-bus market in tie-up with Hyderabad-based Goldstone Infratech. An
Adani spokesperson said the company does not comment on market speculations.
“Adani plans to set up a manufacturing facility in its Mundra SEZ. It plans to cater to the
Indian and export markets, including Africa and the Middle East, through the facility,” a
person close to the development said. The company is closely looking at battery swapping
model, he said.    [FULL  STORY]

CPC Corporation raises fuel prices for next week

The price of domestic gasoline and diesel prices will increase on Monday

Taiwan News
Date: 2018/05/20
By: Jane Lau, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) —  CPC Corporation announces the rise of domestic gasoline and

Formosa Petrochemical to raise gasoline prices Monday. (By Central News Agency)

diesel prices by NT$0.3 and NT$0.4 per liter respectively, effective from May 21, 1A.M.

After the price adjustment, 92 unleaded fuel will be priced at NT$29 per liter, NT$30.5 for 95 unleaded per liter, NT$32.5 for 98 unleaded per liter, and NT$27.1 for super diesel per liter. This is the highest pricing point for domestic gasoline and diesel since November 10, 2014, where 95 unleaded cost NT$30.7 per liter.

CPC Corporation states that the original unadjusted price of 95 unleaded was priced at NT$30.7 per liter. The price was adjusted after taking into consideration the depreciation cost, reducing the cost to NT$30.5, with CPC Corporation absorbing the outstanding cost of NT$0.2. The cost of super diesel was also adjusted from NT$26.7 to NT$27.1.    [SOURCE]

Summer electricity rates to start June 1

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2018/05/20
By: Milly Lin and Evelyn Kao

Taipei, May 20 (CNA) Summer electricity rates in Taiwan will go into effect starting June 1 and last until Sept. 30 to encourage users to reduce power consumption during the peak summer months.

Electricity prices will be 27 percent higher this summer than the most recent non-summertime rates from October to May, depending on electricity consumption levels, according to state-run utility Taiwan Power Co. (Taipower).

Consumers who use an average of 420 kilowatt-hours of electricity per month will pay NT$115 (US$3.92) more per month during the summer period, while those who use 1,000 kWh of power a month will see their bills go up by NT$656 a month, based on Taipower estimates.

The summer electricity pricing plan is to be implemented after the average price of electricity was raised by 3 percent, from NT$2.5488 per kWh to NT$2.6253 per kWh, starting April 1, though that hike does not apply to most households because it starts at a power usage of 500 kWh per month.    [FULL  STORY]

Taiwanese firms step up M&A game

INDUSTRIAL COMPETITIVENESS: Taiwanese companies have attracted attention for their prowess in semiconductors and they aim to build a global presence through M&As

Taipei Times
Date: May 21, 2018
By: Crystal Hsu  /  Staff reporter

Taiwanese companies are stepping up their global mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity.

The US$2.63 billion they spent on overseas transactions last quarter might have been a record high, international law firm White & Case LLP said.

M&A transactions by Taiwanese firms investing abroad last year reached a record high of US$7.25 billion in 28 deals, the law firm said in a report last week.

The volume of deals is the third-highest ever, down from a peak of 38 in 2016, the report said.    [FULL  STORY]