KIMD Expo will also focus on offshore wind energy and green oceans
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Taiwan News
Date: 2018/05/04
By: Matthew Strong, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – Taiwan’s plans to build a domestic submarine is likely to attract

attention at the second edition of the Kaohsiung International Maritime and Defense Expo scheduled for September 27-30.

Offshore wind energy and green energy from the ocean will also feature prominently, the Liberty Times reported.

As reliance on domestic production has become a centerpiece of the nation’s defense procurement policies, the project to design and build a domestic submarine is expected to produce major business deals, leading to interest from overseas, according to the Liberty Times.

In addition to prominent Taiwanese business group and corporations, the Ministry of National Defense and foreign companies such as Raytheon, Lockheed Martin and General Electric Company GE are also expected to show up in full force, organizers said.
[FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2018/05/04
By: Yeh Su-ping, Tien Yu-pin and Frances Huang

Taipei, May 4 (CNA) President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) said Friday that Cisco System Inc.,

a U.S.-based information technology and networking giant, will set up an innovation center in Taoyuan in the second half of this year, a move that echoes Taiwan’s efforts to transform itself into an “Asian Silicon Valley.”

Cisco’s investment plan shows that Taiwan’s Asian Silicon Valley development project is not an empty promise but a concrete plan to accommodate international IT firms, Tsai said during a visit to the Taoyuan office of the Cabinet’s Asia Silicon Valley Development Agency (ASVDA).

The visit to the ASVDA’s Taoyuan office was part of a trip by the president to show Taiwan’s efforts to develop the government’s “5+2 Industrial Innovation Program” aimed at boosting Taiwan’s competitiveness.    [FULL  STORY]

Taiwan’s economy stays on a positive course: CIER

Taiwan News 
Date: 2018/05/03
By: Matthew Strong, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – April was the 25th consecutive month to see an expansion of

Taiwan’s manufacturing activity, according to prominent think tank the Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research (CIER, 中華經濟研究院).

Increased orders for Taiwanese companies, higher production and improvements in the job markets all contributed to the expansion, the Central News Agency reported.

The main indicator of manufacturing activity, the Purchasing Managers’ Index, added 0.5 points in April to reach 58.0, according to CIER. Figures above 50 indicate expansion, below 50 contraction.

In addition to manufacturing, the service sector also performed well, with the Non-Manufacturing Index rising by 1.2 points to 55.6, the 14th consecutive month of expansion.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2018/05/03
By: Lee Hsin-Yin 

Taipei, May 3 (CNA) Australia-based Macquarie Capital said Thursday that it plans to set up a joint venture with a Taiwanese driverless car company by the end of this year to tap into the green energy market.

The banking service company will work with 7Starlake Co., the Taiwanese agent of France-based driverless shuttle manufacturer EasyMile, to provide financial and technical assistance, said Ryan Chua (蔡毅霆), director of Macquarie Capital’s Taiwan office.

“Considering that the Taiwanese government is moving in the direction of renewable energy development, we think it is the right time to partner with a local company that has the right vision and capability,” Chua said.

7Starlake Co. President Martin Ting (丁彥允) said his company has been pushing for driverless buses on Taiwan’s streets, using an exclusive lane.    [FULL  STORY]

TRANSITION: The touchpanel manufacturer expects a significant rebound in the second half of the year as customers begin shipping new products in August

Taipei Times
Date: May 04, 2018
By: Lisa Wang  /  Staff reporter

Touchpanel supplier TPK Holding Co (宸鴻) yesterday said it expects to post its first

operating loss in two years this quarter, as customers are reducing shipments of older-generation products ahead of new product launches in the second half of this year.

Revenue is projected to plunge about 20 percent this quarter, compared with NT$20.85 billion (US$701 million) during the first three months of this year.

“The second quarter will be the trough this year. Our clients have released their outlook for the next two quarters and we are basically following their business pattern,” TPK chief strategist Freddie Liu (劉詩亮) told investors. “Clients are adjusting [downward] during the product transition period… There have been drastic changes in [client] orders lately.”

TPK now expects its factory utilization to trend down further from last quarter and anticipates an operating loss this quarter, he said.    [FULL  STORY]

Radio Taiwan International
Date: 2018-05-02

Chiu Hui-li, an executive director at the Taiwan External Trade Development Council

(TAITRA) has spoken of the government’s goals to make Taiwan a market leader in electric vehicle manufacturing. Chiu was speaking to Radio Taiwan International on Wednesday.

Chiu said an alliance of electric vehicle producers established in February is setting its sights on the global market, with a particular focus on India. He said Indian manufacturers of electric vehicles will be invited to Taiwan to talk one-on-one with local counterparts.

Chiu said India is the world’s third-largest market for vehicles but Taiwan has struggled to make headway in this market in the past.    [FULL  STORY]

10,000 workers marched for 10% pay hike and increase of minimum monthly wage to NT$28,000 in Taipei on Labor Day

Taiwan News 
Date: 2018/05/02
By: Keoni Everington, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Over 10,000 workers marched on the streets of Taipei to mark

Labor Day yesterday (May 1) and to make six demands, including a 10 percent salary raise, reported CNA.

Organized by the May 1 Action Coalition, the march departed at 2 p.m. yesterday from in front of the Presidential Office on Ketagalan Boulevard and wound its way along Gongyuan Road, Xiangyang Road, Guanqian Road, Kaifeng Street, Boai Road, Zhongxiao West Road, Qingdao West Road, and Zhongshan Road, before eventually reaching the Legislative Yuan.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2018/05/02
By: Rita Cheng, Wei Shu and Frances Huang

Washington, May 1 (CNA) The U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC) said Tuesday that it has determined in a preliminary ruling that polyethylene terephthalate (PET) resin suppliers from Taiwan and four other countries sold their products at unfairly low prices in the U.S. market.

According to the preliminary decision, the DOC said PET resin exporters from Taiwan, Brazil, Indonesia, Pakistan and South Korea violated U.S. anti-dumping regulation and face the imposition of preliminary tariffs ranging from 7.75-226.91 percent.

“The Department will use every tool at our disposal to defend U.S. industry against unfair trade practices,” U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said in a statement.

“Today’s decision allows U.S. producers of PET resin to receive relief from the market-distorting effects of potential dumping while the open and transparent process of investigating this matter continues,” Ross added.    [FULL  STORY]