NO LACK OF DEMAND:The firm has changed its sales strategy, as average selling prices of key notebook components, like panels and DRAM, have cut into its margin

Taipei Times
Date: Nov 12, 2016
By: Lauly Li / Staff reporter

Asustek Computer Inc (華碩) yesterday forecast that its revenue would drop as much as 24.65 percent this quarter from last year, as the company has changed its sales strategy, cutting shipments of mid to low-end notebook computers to maintain its profitability amid rising cost pressures.

The company forecast that its revenue would drop to between NT$100 billion and NT$110 billion (US$3.14 billion and US$3.46 billion) this quarter, compared with last year’s NT$132.72 billion.

The forecast represents little or no growth in sales from last quarter’s NT$107.5 billion.

Asustek chief financial officer Nick Wu (吳長榮) said the decision was made in response to the increasing average selling prices of key notebook components, such as panels and DRAM, rather than because of market demand.    [FULL  STORY]

The China Post
Date: November 12, 2016
By: CNA

TAIPEI — The U.S. dollar rose against the Taiwan dollar Friday, gaining NT$0.212 to close at NT$31.801 as foreign investors moved their funds out of the region, sparking selling in the local currency, dealers said.

Massive foreign institutional selling in local equities added downward pressure on the Taiwan dollar and gave an additional boost to the U.S. dollar throughout the session, they said.

Friday’s closing level for the U.S. dollar was the highest since Aug. 29, when the currency also ended at NT$31.801.

The greenback opened at NT$31.370, and moved between NT$31.720 and NT$31.807 before the close. Turnover totaled US$1.02 billion during the trading session.     [FULL  STORY]

APPLE:Quanta expects its notebook shipments to be flat or to decline mildly next year, with IDC attributing it to reduced MacBook order allocation

Taipei Times
Date: Nov 11, 2016
By: Lauly Li / Staff reporter

Quanta Computer Inc (廣達), which assembles Apple Inc’s MacBooks and Apple Watch, yesterday said that net profit fell 14 percent annually last quarter due to foreign-exchange losses of NT$1.12 billion (US$35.46 million) .

Net income was NT$3.95 billion last quarter, compared with NT$5.83 billion a year earlier, but expanded 13 percent from the previous quarter’s NT$3.5 billion, company data showed.

“The appreciation of the New Taiwan dollar against the US dollar eroded the company’s profitability last quarter,” Quanta chief financial officer Elton Yang (楊俊烈) told a press conference at the company’s headquarters in Linkou District (林口), New Taipei City.    [FULL  STORY]

CAUTIOUS INCREASE:Trump’s pledge to take jobs back from Asia to the US could temper export growth, while stagnant wages could limit private consumption growth

Taipei Times
Date: Nov 11, 2016
By: Crystal Hsu / Staff reporter

The economy is forecast to grow 1.65 percent annually next year, mildly better than an estimated 1.17 percent for this year, as the world embarks on a bumpy and fragile recovery amid increasing protectionism, the Taiwan Institute of Economic Research (TIER, 台灣經濟研究院) said yesterday.

“Donald Trump’s victory [in Tuesday’s US presidential election] adds uncertainty to global trade and Taiwan would be lucky to fare steady given its heavy dependence on the US,” TIER Economic Forecasting Center director Gordon Sun (孫明德) told a news briefing.

Trump has pledged to take jobs back from Asian countries — including Taiwan — by making US firms manufacture products at home.

Taiwan is a leading supplier of chips, camera lenses, batteries, casings and other electronic components for smartphones, tablets and notebook computers.    [FULL  STORY]

Taipei Times
Date: Wed, Nov 09, 2016
By: Lisa Wang / Staff reporter

Novatek Microelectronics Corp (聯詠), the nation’s biggest supplier of driver ICs for LCD panels, yesterday reported a 5.59 percent sequential decline in net profit for last quarter due to a lower gross margin.

Net profit fell to NT$1.23 billion (US$39.04 million) in the quarter ending Sept. 30, compared with the previous quarter’s NT$1.3 billion, the company said.

Earnings per share dropped to NT$2.02 over the period, from the previous quarter’s NT$2.14, while gross margin shrank to 27.71 percent from the second quarter’s 28.05 percent, the company’s financial statement showed.

Novatek president Steve Wang (王守仁) blamed the fall on an increase in shipments of lower-margin driver ICs for high-definition handset panels.    [FULL  STORY]

Taipei Times
Date: Nov 08, 2016
By: Kuo Chia-erh / Staff reporter

Three major units of Formosa Plastics Group (FPG, 台塑集團), the nation’s largest industrial conglomerate, yesterday reported monthly revenue increases amid rising sales volume.

Formosa Plastics Corp (台塑), the group’s flagship company, reported revenue of NT$15.13 billion (US$480 million) for last month, a 15.6 percent increase from September, but an 8.8 percent decline from the same period last year.

“Most of our factories completed annual maintenance last month, which helped lift overall sales volume during the period,” Formosa Plastics Corp president Jason Lin (林健男) told a news conference.

The company is upbeat about its sales outlook for the end of this year, as the utilization rate is expected to be higher than previous months.    [FULL  STORY]