Hewlett-Packard Co (HP), the world’s top PC vendor, plans to expand its orders from Taiwanese electronics suppliers, including Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密) and Quanta Computer Inc (廣達電腦), to US$30 billion this year, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said yesterday.
Last year, HP procured US$24 billion in goods from Taiwan, making the US company the biggest buyer of Taiwan-made electronics products for the 10th year in a row, the ministry said in a statement.
That was a significant increase from US$5 billion in 2000, the ministry said.
R&D
Additionally, HP plans to spend NT$3.6 billion on research and development over the next three years, according to the statement.
Notebook computer manufacturers Compal Electronics Inc (仁寶電腦) and Wistron Corp (緯創), as well as TPV Technology Ltd (冠捷), the world’s biggest LCD monitor maker, are also HP partners.
NO PRICE HIKE
Separately, HP and South Korea’s Samsung Electronics Co will not adjust their notebook computer prices in the near term, despite a likely price hike in memory chips, the companies said on Thursday.
Japan’s Elpida Memory Inc announced on Feb. 27 that it had filed for bankruptcy protection with the Tokyo District Court with debts of about ￥448 billion (US$5.56 billion).
The world’s No. 3 DRAM maker accounts for about 15 percent of the global monthly DRAM capacity of 1 million wafers, with 80,000 coming from its plant in Hiroshima, Japan, and 70,000 from its Taiwanese subsidiary, Rexchip Electronics Inc (瑞晶電子).
Tony Chou (周信宏), vice president and general manager of HP Taiwan’s personal systems group, said he could not comment on Elpida’s filing, but added that HP “has no plans at present to raise notebook prices.”
“We will keep an eye on the situation. It’s a short-term issue after all,” he said on the sidelines of a company event.
“We have DRAM contracts with suppliers, but I can’t comment on the duration of the contracts,” he said.
IN-HOUSE COMPONENTS
Meanwhile, Samsung said its notebook prices would not be affected even if DRAM prices go up, citing in-house component supplies.
“We will not act with the market. We have our own positioning,” said Hands Ben, senior manager of Samsung Taiwan’s information technology group, at a launch event for its latest notebook line.
This is because more than 75 percent of the components that go into Samsung’s notebooks — including displays and DRAM — are produced in-house, which helps secure its component supply, Ben said.
Taiwan would remain in the same international network for carrying out cross-border payments and would not be marginalized on the world stage, despite jostling among international powers, central bank Governor Yang Chin-long (楊金龍) said yesterday. Yang made the remarks during a speech at an annual event organized by Financial Information Service Co (財金資訊), which oversees Taiwan’s banking, payment and settlement systems. “The US dollar will remain the world’s major cross-border payment tool, given its high liquidity, legality and safe-haven status,” Yang said. Russia is pushing for a new cross-border payment system and highlighted the issue during a BRICS summit in October. The existing system
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) is expected to grow its revenue by about 25 percent to a new record high next year, driven by robust demand for advanced technologies used in artificial intelligence (AI) applications and crypto mining, International Data Corp (IDC) said yesterday. That would see TSMC secure a 67 percent share of the world’s foundry market next year, from 64 percent this year, IDC senior semiconductor research manager Galen Zeng (曾冠瑋) predicted. In the broader foundry definition, TSMC would see its market share rise to 36 percent next year from 33 percent this year, he said. To address concerns
Intel Corp chief financial officer Dave Zinsner said that a formal separation of the company’s factory and product development divisions is an open question that would be decided by the chipmaker’s next leader. Zinsner, who is serving as interim co-CEO following this month’s ouster of Pat Gelsinger, made the remarks on Thursday at the Barclays technology conference in San Francisco alongside co-CEO Michelle Johnston Holthaus. Intel’s struggles to keep pace with rivals — along with its deteriorating financial condition — have spurred speculation that the next CEO would make dramatic changes. That has included talk of a split of the company’s manufacturing
PROTECTIONISM: The tariffs would go into effect on Jan. 1 and are meant to protect the US’ clean energy sector from unfair Chinese practices, the US trade chief said US President Joe Biden’s administration plans to raise tariffs on solar wafers, polysilicon and some tungsten products from China to protect US clean energy businesses. The notice from the Office of US Trade Representative (USTR) said tariffs on Chinese-made solar wafers and polysilicon would rise to 50 percent from 25 percent and duties on certain tungsten products would increase from zero to 25 percent, effective on Jan. 1, following a review of Chinese trade practices under Section 301 of the US Trade Act of 1974. The decision followed a public comment period after the USTR said in September that it was considering
RSS