Focus Taiwan
Date: 08/03/2020
By: Chang Hsiung-feng and Ko Lin

Taipei, Aug. 3 (CNA) The number of furloughed workers in Taiwan rose over the past week as activity in the manufacturing sector slowed due to the economic impact of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, according to the Ministry of Labor (MOL).

As the end of July, 1,122 companies had unpaid leave programs, while a total of 27,058 workers had agreed to go on furlough, up 1,877 from a week earlier, data compiled by the MOL showed.

Among the companies that have furlough programs, 372 are manufacturers, 346 retailers or wholesalers, and 80 in the service sector, the data showed.

The majority of employees on unpaid leave were in the manufacturing sector at 17,508, followed by the retail and wholesale industry with 4,891, and the transportation and warehousing sector at 1,595.    [FULL  STORY]

NERVOUS MARKET: With the infection sources still unknown for three COVID-19 cases that had departed Taiwan, investors have become uneasy, an analyst said

Taiei Times
Date: Aug 04, 2020
By: Staff writer, with CNA

Local shares yesterday came under heavy downward pressure, falling more than 1 percent as renewed fears over a possible increase in domestic COVID-19 infections hit market sentiment after the nation last week reported a case related to a Belgian national.

Selling focused on the bellwether electronics sector, led by contract chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), which pushed down the broader market as investors ignored gains posted by tech heavyweights on the US market at the end of last week, dealers said.

The TAIEX closed down 151.77 points, or 1.2 percent, at 12,513.03, on turnover of NT$231.43 billion (US$7.84 billion). Foreign institutional investors sold a net NT$30.4 billion worth of shares on the main board, Taiwan Stock Exchange data showed.

On Saturday, the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) reported seven new COVID-19 infections, including one Belgian engineer who might have been infected in Taiwan, although the CECC has not yet confirmed it as a domestic case.    [FULL  STORY]

RCR Wireless News
Date: July 31, 2020
By: Juan Pedro Tomás

Taiwan Star Telecom and Asia Pacific Telecom have been issued 5G licenses, bringing the total number of licensed local 5G operators to five, Taiwan’s National Communications Commission (NCC) said..

Chunghwa Telecom, Far EasTone Telecommunications and Taiwan Mobile had secured 5G licenses last month and launched commercial 5G services in July.

After obtaining its 5G license, Taiwan Star said that it plans to launch 5G services next week, while Asia Pacific Telecom said its commercial 5G offering would begin by the end of the third quarter, the Taipei Times reported.

Taiwan’s five mobile operators acquired 5G spectrum in an auction held in January, after paying a combined NT$138.08 billion ($4.68 billion).    [FULL  STORY]

Wuhan coronavirus to blame for losses but limited to NT$200 million per month due to government aid

Taiwan News
Date: 2020/07/31
By: Matthew Strong, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taoyuan International Airport Corporation (TIAC) will lose NT$1.3 billion (US$44.33 million) this year, the first loss in its history, because of the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, reports said Friday (July 31).

While Taiwan has not installed a blanket travel ban, many airlines have cut flights due to travel restrictions in other countries and plunging demand for tickets. In recent years, the growth in the number of international visitors to Taiwan had allowed TIAC to book rising income, CNA reported.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 07/31/2020
By Frances Huang

Taipei, July 31 (CNA) Shares in Taiwan moved lower Friday after markets in the United States tumbled due to a record economic contraction in the U.S. in the second quarter, dealers said.

The bellwether electronics sector came under pressure and dragged down the broader market, led by contract chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC), which saw its American depositary receipts fall more than 3 percent Thursday.

The weighted index on the Taiwan Stock Exchange (TWSE), the Taiex, ended down 58.12 points, or 0.46 percent, at 12,664.8, after moving between 12,635.71 and 12,733.48. Turnover was NT$207.84 billion (US$7.08 billion).

The market opened down 0.55 percent in reaction to a 0.85 percent decline by the Dow Jones Industrial Average, which fell on news that U.S. gross domestic product contracted 32.9 percent in the second quarter, dealers said.    [FULL  STORY]

TECHNICAL RECESSION: Overseas tourism, retail and dining dwindled, but strong high-tech exports and infrastructure spending eased the COVID-19 effect

Taipei Times
Date: Aug 01, 2020
By: Crystal Hsu / Staff reporter

Taiwan’s economy contracted 0.73 percent last quarter, missing the government’s May forecast by 1.23 percentage points, as private consumption took a hard hit from the COVID-19 outbreak, the Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) said yesterday.

It is the first decline since the first quarter of 2016 and the worst decline since the global financial crisis in 2009, DGBAS National Income Section head Yu Ming-chun (游敏君) said.

The statics agency earlier predicted 0.53 percent growth for the April-to-June period, but the pandemic wreaked bigger havoc than expected, Yu said.

The seasonally adjusted annual rate contracted for the second consecutive quarter by 8.82 percent, widening from a 3.57 percent fall three months earlier, and pushed Taiwan into a technical recession.    [FULL  STORY]

Deccan Herald
Date: Jul 30 2020
By: Mahesh Kulkarni, DHNS, Bengaluru

Taiwan-based electronics giant Wistron Corp, one of Apple’s key manufacturers, is all set to start manufacture of a select iPhone models at their brand-new facility at Narasapura in Kolar district, on the outskirts of Bengaluru, highly-placed sources in the state government confirmed to DH.

The company, which is investing close to Rs 3,000 crore in phases on the new plant spread over 43 acres, has kicked off a social media campaign to recruit ITI and Diploma holders in electricals and electronics disciplines to handle soft electronics components. It plans to hire around 2,000 women workers immediately. “The company has already begun the trial production of iPhone models and the full-fledged production will commence sometime in August. They have started recruiting for the manufacturing operations,” a senior state government official said.

However, Wistron official declined to comment on the development.

Confirming the recruitment drive, which will commence on Friday, staffing company TeamLease Services Ltd said they are recruiting around 5,000 Diploma and ITI certificate holders, of which 70% will be women workers for Wistron. “We are looking for Diploma or ITI certificate holders in electronics, and electricals. We are looking for both freshers and with one-year experience,” Sudeep Kumar Sen, Business Head, TeamLease Services Limited said.    [FULL  STORY]

Taiwan accounts for 63% of electric bicycle manufacturing in Europe

Taiwan News
Date: 2020/07/30
By: Ching-Tse Cheng, Taiwan News, Staff Writer\

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan is expected to continue its reign in the global bicycle industry after it manufactured 63 percent of the electric bikes currently on the European market.

According to Business Weekly, Taiwan's bicycle industry will shine even more brightly as it slowly enters the "electric era." The magazine said the country has been known as the "bicycle kingdom" since it was ranked as the world's largest exporter of high-end bicycles and the second largest of overall bicycle products in 2016.

The magazine pointed out that the internationally acclaimed Bosch eBike Systems, which is said to supply its techniques to more than 30 popular bicycle brands across the Asia Pacific region, inaugurated its Asia headquarter in Taichung in June. This shows the importance of Taiwan in the industry, according to the magazine.

During the opening of the Taiwan Cycling Culture Museum in July, former Giant chairman Tony Lo (羅祥安) said that he predicted Taiwan will continue its leading status in global bicycle manufacturing for another decade. Meanwhile, the country's assemblers and frame manufacturers have officially replaced their Chinese competitors in Europe, accounting for 63 percent of the manufacturing of electric bicycles on the market.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 07/30/2020
By: Pan Tzu-yu and Evelyn Kao

Taipei, July 30 (CNA) The local manufacturing sector remained weak in June with its recovery uncertain amid the global resurgence of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Taiwan Institute of Economic Research (TIER) said Thursday.

The composite index for the local manufacturing sector edged up 0.09 points in June from a month earlier to 10.09, flashing another blue light, which indicates contraction, for the fourth consecutive month, according to data compiled by TIER.

However, the June index also rose for the second consecutive month, pointing to a gradual rebound in domestic manufacturing sector, on expectations that economic reopening around the world after COVID-19 initially appeared to ease will boost foreign demand.

TIER, one of Taiwan's leading think tanks, uses a five-color coded system to describe economic activity, with red indicating overheating, yellow-red showing fast growth, green representing stable growth, yellow-blue signaling sluggish growth and blue reflecting a contraction.    [FULL  STORY]

MISCONDUCT? Liao quit as chairman of First Financial Holding after he was charged with pressuring his subordinates to approve a loan to Far Eastern Air Transport in 2009

Taipei Times
Date: Jul 31, 2020
By: Crystal Hsu / Staff reporter

The Ministry of Finance yesterday said that it has approved the resignation of state-run First Financial Holding Co (第一金控) chairman Jason Liao (廖燦昌) and is seeking a better understanding of the charges implicating several other high-ranking banking officials over alleged irregular lending to cash-strained Far Eastern Air Transport Corp (遠東航空).

Liao offered to step down earlier yesterday after the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office indicted 10 people, including Liao, Land Bank of Taiwan (土地銀行) chairman Hwang Bor-chang (黃柏川) and Taiwan Cooperative Bank (合庫銀行) president Chen Shih-ching (陳世卿).

Deputy Minister of Finance Frank Juan (阮清華) told reporters that the ministry respected Liao’s wish to separate his legal suits from First Financial’s operation.

Liao has been released from all positions and duties at the bank-focused conglomerate and its subsidiaries, the ministry said.    [FULL  STORY]