The short supply of Intel Corp's central processing unit (CPU) chipsets for portable computers could trim shipments of Taiwanese branded notebook vendors this year, an industry watcher said yesterday.
"There is a shortage of Intel's mobile CPU chipsets for notebooks, with a gap of over 20 percent in meeting market demand," Simon Yang (楊勝帆), a senior researcher at the Topology Research Institute (拓墣產業研究所), said in a phone interview yesterday.
Yang said the CPU shortage has resulted from robust sales of laptops in the fourth quarter, which exceeded Intel's original expectations. Intel's products power over 90 percent of laptops worldwide.
In the third quarter, Intel reportedly cut prices of its processors used in desktop computers by as much as 35 percent to help reduce inventory and stimulate buying before students returned to school in September.
But the chip giant turned conservative on the market for the last quarter, due to slow after-school sales late in the third quarter, Yang said.
The global laptop market has grown by about 17 percent so far in the fourth quarter from the previous quarter, and Taiwan's notebook market growth jumped by 30 percent over the same time, according to statistics by the Taipei-based research house.
Compared to global laptop brands, smaller local vendors, including Acer Inc and Asustek Computer Inc (華碩), which have less leverage to secure sustained chipset supply amid jitters over a deficiency in key components, are likely to see annual shipments slide by around 10 percent, Yang said.
Acer, the No. 5 player in the sector worldwide, originally hoped to ship 3.2 million notebooks this year, while Asustek, whose own-brand products make up half of its annual laptop shipment, expected to deliver around 2.8 million units, according to Topology.
Acer's president Wang Jen-tang (王振堂) told investors earlier this month that Intel's shortage could cast a shadow over the company's brisk sales in the quarter ending December.
Smaller rival Asustek, however, did not seem to be bothered by the problem.
"As we have a smaller branded laptop shipment, the shortage is not expected to affect us," said David Chang (
The company's delivery of contract-manufactured products would remain intact, as the issue will not impact clients, such as Apple Computer Inc, Chang said.
In spite of Asustek's optimism, the short supply of CPU chipsets could trim the nation's total laptop shipment for this year to 31 million units from the previous forecast of 32.4 million, Yang said.
TAKING STOCK: A Taiwanese cookware firm in Vietnam urged customers to assess inventory or place orders early so shipments can reach the US while tariffs are paused Taiwanese businesses in Vietnam are exploring alternatives after the White House imposed a 46 percent import duty on Vietnamese goods, following US President Donald Trump’s announcement of “reciprocal” tariffs on the US’ trading partners. Lo Shih-liang (羅世良), chairman of Brico Industry Co (裕茂工業), a Taiwanese company that manufactures cast iron cookware and stove components in Vietnam, said that more than 40 percent of his business was tied to the US market, describing the constant US policy shifts as an emotional roller coaster. “I work during the day and stay up all night watching the news. I’ve been following US news until 3am
UNCERTAINTY: Innolux activated a stringent supply chain management mechanism, as it did during the COVID-19 pandemic, to ensure optimal inventory levels for customers Flat-panel display makers AUO Corp (友達) and Innolux Corp (群創) yesterday said that about 12 to 20 percent of their display business is at risk of potential US tariffs and that they would relocate production or shipment destinations to mitigate the levies’ effects. US tariffs would have a direct impact of US$200 million on AUO’s revenue, company chairman Paul Peng (彭雙浪) told reporters on the sidelines of the Touch Taiwan trade show in Taipei yesterday. That would make up about 12 percent of the company’s overall revenue. To cope with the tariff uncertainty, AUO plans to allocate its production to manufacturing facilities in
Six years ago, LVMH’s billionaire CEO Bernard Arnault and US President Donald Trump cut the blue ribbon on a factory in rural Texas that would make designer handbags for Louis Vuitton, one of the world’s best-known luxury brands. However, since the high-profile opening, the factory has faced a host of problems limiting production, 11 former Louis Vuitton employees said. The site has consistently ranked among the worst-performing for Louis Vuitton globally, “significantly” underperforming other facilities, said three former Louis Vuitton workers and a senior industry source, who cited internal rankings shared with staff. The plant’s problems — which have not
TARIFF CONCERNS: The chipmaker cited global uncertainty from US tariffs and a weakening economic outlook, but said its Singapore expansion remains on track Vanguard International Semiconductor Corp (世界先進), a foundry service provider specializing in producing power management and display driver chips, yesterday withdrew its full-year revenue projection of moderate growth for this year, as escalating US tariff tensions raised uncertainty and concern about a potential economic recession. The Hsinchu-based chipmaker in February said revenues this year would grow mildly from last year based on improving supply chain inventory levels and market demand. At the time, it also anticipated gradual quarter revenue growth. However, the US’ sweeping tariff policy has upended the industry’s supply chains and weakened economic prospects for the world economy, it said. “Now