Business and Finance

TSMC tops Intel’s market cap at record high

The China Post
Date: May 3, 2017
By: Christine Chou

TAIPEI, Taiwan — The world’s top contract chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC, 台積電) saw shares temporarily hit NT$199, up 2.31-percent from their previous close on Friday, reaching a historic high for market capitalization among all listed companies on the Taiwan Stock Exchange.

According to local media cnYES.com, the foundry’s market value calculated based on the price of its American depositary receipts on Monday expanded to over US$171 billion — topping rival Intel’s market cap on the same day at US$165 billion.

The chipmaker’s shares gained 1.03 percent to NT$196.50 as of 12:07 a.m., off an early high of NT$199 with 34.93 million shares changing hands. Analysts said the strong intra-day performance resulted from market optimism from foreign investors, sparked by the strength of its American Depository Receipts.

TSMC projected its consolidated revenue for the second quarter to fall between NT$213 billion and NT$216 billion, down from 8-percent to 9-percent from the previous quarter. The firm attributed the drop to supply chain and inventory adjustments and lower seasonal demand for smartphones.    [FULL  STORY]

Taiwanese love social networking; 80% registered on Facebook

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2017/05/01
By: Tien Yu-pin and Lilian Wu

Taipei, May 1 (CNA) Taiwanese love social media, with more than 80 percent of them

(Picture downloaded from Pixabay)

having Facebook accounts, according to a survey on social network use by local people over 12 years old published Monday.

The results published by the Innovative DigiTech-Enabled Applications and Services Institute under the Institute for Information Industry, a non-government organization, show that Taiwanese on average have four social media accounts.

Facebook topped the ranking of social networking at 90.9 percent, followed closely by Line at 87.1 percent.

Except for those aged over 55 (only 60 percent), the ratio of Line use among all age groups is as high as over 80 percent.    [FULL  STORY]

Tsang Yow predicts 20% Q2 revenue surge

HOT MARKET:The revenue generated by its Chinese subsidiary is expected to contribute 60 percent of the firm’s total sales by the end of the year, an official said

Taipei Times
Date: May 02, 2017
By: Kuo Chia-erh / Staff reporter

Auto parts supplier Tsang Yow Industrial Co (倉佑實業) yesterday said that it expects its revenue this quarter to grow more than 20 percent year-on-year, fueled by the fast-growing vehicle market in China.

The company, which mainly makes automotive powertrain components, posted record-high sales of NT$813.8 million (US$26.93 million) in the first quarter, a surge of 29.11 percent from the same period last year, a company filing with the Taiwan Stock Exchange showed.

Tsang Yow’s sales growth momentum is likely to extend into this quarter, thanks to optimistic sentiment in China’s auto market, a company official said by telephone yesterday.

In the first quarter, vehicle sales in China grew 7 percent on an annual basis to 7 million units, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers said.
[FULL  STORY]

Tycoon’s White House visit off economics minister’s radar

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2017/05/01
By: Huang Li-yun and S.C. chang

Taipei, May 1 (CNA) Economic Affairs Minister Lee Chih-kung (李世光) said Monday he did not know in advance that Hon Hai Group Chairman Terry Gou (郭台銘) met with United States President Donald Trump at the White House last week.

At a legislative hearing Monday, lawmakers asked Lee if Gou’s reported plan to invest in the U.S. would be copied by other major Taiwanese corporations, worried that diverting investment overseas could hurt Taiwan’s own industrial and economic development.

Gou heads the world’s largest contract electronics manufacturing group, known internationally as Foxconn, and his interest in investing around the world is “known to the Ministry of Economic Affairs,” Lee said.    [FULL  STORY]

FDC acquires Splendid Banquet eatery

SAFE BET:The banquet business is less vulnerable to economic cycles and changes in the number of foreign travelers than other restaurants, FDC president David Ding said

Taipei Times
Date: May 02, 2017
By: Crystal Hsu / Staff reporter

Hotel and restaurant operator FDC International Hotels Corp (FDC, 雲品國際) yesterday announced it has acquired Splendor Banquet Restaurant (京采飯店), near New Taipei City’s Dapinglin MRT Station.

FDC said it hopes the acquisition will boost its revenue this year by 20 percent.

FDC’s revenue is also to benefit from the inclusion of the food and beverage business at Chateau de Chine’s (翰品酒店) Taoyuan outlet, as the hotelier seeks to increase its share of the banquet business.

The company posted revenue of NT$374 million (US$12.38 million) in the first quarter, representing a 4.6 percent year-on-year increase.    [FULL  STORY]

Innolux becomes world’s No. 2 TV panel supplier

RISING THROUGH THE RANKS:Global shipments of TV panels reached 60.16 million in the first quarter, with Innolux shipping 9.94 million, according to TrendForce Corp

Taipei Times
Date: May 01, 2017
By: Staff writer, with CNA

Flat-panel maker Innolux Corp (群創) became the second-largest TV panel supplier in the world in the first quarter of this year, according to market advisory firm TrendForce Corp (集邦科技).

Innolux shipped 9.94 million TV panels globally in the first quarter, down 9.3 percent from the previous quarter, due to slowing demand for some high-priced TV panels, including 39.5-inch models, TrendForce said on Monday last week.

Another factor was the company’s failure to increase its yield rates for high-end TV panel production, it said.

South Korea’s LG Display Co maintained its No. 1 ranking, shipping 12.63 million TV panels in the first quarter, down 7 percent from the previous quarter as part of its TV panel production capacity was allocated to other types of screens, TrendForce said.
[FULL  STORY]

Fuel prices at CPC pumps to drop this week

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2017/04/30
By: Yang Shu-min and Elizabeth Hsu

Taipei, April 30 (CNA) State-owned oil refiner CPC Corp. Taiwan announced Sunday

CNA file photo

that it will cut gasoline and diesel prices by NT$0.5 (US$0.017) per liter, starting at midnight, in reflection of lower international crude oil prices.

After the adjustment, prices at CPC gas stations will fall to NT$21.3 per liter for super diesel, NT$23.7 per liter for 92 octane unleaded, NT$25.2 per liter for 95 octane unleaded and NT$27.2 per liter for 98 octane unleaded, the company said.

It will be CPC’s second consecutive weekly price cut as international crude oil prices continued to fall.    [FULL  STORY]

Over 50 firms’ raises match, top TSMC’s

BUCKING THE TREND:Numerous listed companies have announced their plans to hike salaries between 1 and 15 percent, in contrast to the nation’s stagnating wages

Taipei Times
Date: May 01, 2017
By: Staff writer, with CNA

More than 50 firms listed on the local main board and the over-the-counter market plan to give their employees a pay raise matching or beating a raise announced by contract chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), data showed on Saturday.

TSMC, the world’s largest pure foundry operator, last week announced that it would raise its employees’ salaries by between 3 and 5 percent this year, the same as last year, making the chipmaker an exception in the nation, where wages have stagnated for years.

TSMC has been dubbed one of the “happy enterprises,” because it raises wages every year.

Numerous listed companies are planning to follow TSMC’s example, according to their filings to the Taiwan Stock Exchange (TWSE).    [FULL  STORY]

Innolux ranked as 2nd largest TV panel supplier globally in Q1

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2017/04/29
By: Frances Huang

Taipei, April 29 (CNA) Innolux Corp. (群創), one of the leading flat panel makers in Taiwan, was the second largest TV panel supplier in the world in the first quarter of the year, according to market advisory firm TrendForce Corp.

In the first three months of the year, Innolux’s global shipments of TV screens totaled 9.94 million, the second-highest number worldwide, TrendForce said, citing data from panel researcher WitsView.

However, Innolux’s first-quarter shipments were 9.3 percent lower than in the previous three months due to slower demand for some high priced TV panels, including 39.5-inch models, TrendForce said.    [FULL  STORY]

Taiwan records almost 40% rise in memory chip exports in Q1

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2017/04/29
By: Huang Ya-chuan and Frances Huang

Taipei, April 29 (CNA) Outbound sales of Taiwan-made memory chips soared almost 40 percent year-on-year in the first quarter on demand in emerging applications in the Internet of Things and automotive electronics, according to the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA).

In the January to March period, Taiwan’s exports of memory chips totaled US$2.37 billion, up 39.1 percent from a year earlier, the ministry said.

The increase was driven by higher demand in a wider range of applications and high-tech , devices as the global economy showed signs of a recovery, the MOEA said.

Another factor was a relatively low comparison base in the same period of last year, when inventory adjustments were in progress, the ministry said.    [FULL  STORY]