Catcher Technology Co (可成) yesterday said business would be better this quarter and the momentum would sustain into the second half, referencing the company’s typical business cycle.
“We maintain our view that the first quarter of this year will be a low point, and that business will grow quarter-by-quarter for the rest of the year,” Catcher spokesman James Wu (巫俊毅) said by telephone.
Wu’s remarks came after the metal casing supplier posted revenue of NT$16.84 billion (US$520.11 million) for the first quarter, representing a 3.2 percent year-on-year decline and below the company’s forecast of NT$17.4 billion.
The figure represents a 28.27 percent decline from the prior quarter’s NT$23.48 billion, according to a Catcher filing with the Taiwan Stock Exchange.
Wu said last month was the beginning of a rebound, after monthly sales expanded 54.8 percent to NT$6.44 billion from February because of new smartphone launches by clients and more working days.
“The second quarter is expected to be better than the first quarter,” he said, adding that overall client demand remains weak in the first half compared with last year.
Catcher chairman Allen Hung (洪水樹) in January told investors that the market had been volatile since the end of the final quarter of last year and that orders would grow in the second half on the back of new product launches by clients.
JPMorgan Securities Ltd on Monday last week forecast Catcher’s revenue this quarter would reach NT$20.69 billion, up 2.83 percent from a year earlier.
JPMorgan said it believes Catcher would gain market share from the release of Apple Inc’s next-generation 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch iPhones this year, adding that the iPhone metal-casing business would contribute 49 percent to Catcher’s total revenue this year.
Catcher’s smartphone segment, including its iPhone business, accounted for 57 percent of the firm’s revenue of NT$82.41 billion last year.
The company’s notebook computer segment accounted for 32 percent of its revenue last year, while consumer electronics products contributed 10 percent.
SEMICONDUCTORS: The firm has already completed one fab, which is to begin mass producing 2-nanomater chips next year, while two others are under construction Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, plans to begin construction of its fourth and fifth wafer fabs in Kaohsiung next year, targeting the development of high-end processes. The two facilities — P4 and P5 — are part of TSMC’s production expansion program, which aims to build five fabs in Kaohsiung. TSMC facility division vice president Arthur Chuang (莊子壽) on Thursday said that the five facilities are expected to create 8,000 jobs. To respond to the fast-changing global semiconductor industry and escalating international competition, TSMC said it has to keep growing by expanding its production footprints. The P4 and P5
DOWNFALL: The Singapore-based oil magnate Lim Oon Kuin was accused of hiding US$800 million in losses and leaving 20 banks with substantial liabilities Former tycoon Lim Oon Kuin (林恩強) has been declared bankrupt in Singapore, following the collapse of his oil trading empire. The name of the founder of Hin Leong Trading Pte Ltd (興隆貿易) and his children Lim Huey Ching (林慧清) and Lim Chee Meng (林志朋) were listed as having been issued a bankruptcy order on Dec. 19, the government gazette showed. The younger Lims were directors at the company. Leow Quek Shiong and Seah Roh Lin of BDO Advisory Pte Ltd are the trustees, according to the gazette. At its peak, Hin Leong traded a range of oil products, made lubricants and operated loading
The growing popularity of Chinese sport utility vehicles and pickup trucks has shaken up Mexico’s luxury car market, hitting sales of traditionally dominant brands such as Mercedes-Benz and BMW. Mexicans are increasingly switching from traditionally dominant sedans to Chinese vehicles due to a combination of comfort, technology and price, industry experts say. It is no small feat in a country home to factories of foreign brands such as Audi and BMW, and where until a few years ago imported Chinese cars were stigmatized, as in other parts of the world. The high-end segment of the market registered a sales drop
Citigroup Inc and Bank of America Corp said they are leaving a global climate-banking group, becoming the latest Wall Street lenders to exit the coalition in the past month. In a statement, Citigroup said while it remains committed to achieving net zero emissions, it is exiting the Net-Zero Banking Alliance (NZBA). Bank of America said separately on Tuesday that it is also leaving NZBA, adding that it would continue to work with clients on reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The banks’ departure from NZBA follows Goldman Sachs Group Inc and Wells Fargo & Co. The largest US financial institutions are under increasing pressure
RSS