The Ministry of Economic Affairs yesterday approved Yageo Corp’s (國巨) application to increase its investment in the nation by NT$14.7 billion (US$487.53 million), as part of a program to encourage Taiwanese companies to invest back home.
The company’s decision to almost double the investment to a total of NT$31.2 billion, from the NT$16.5 billion announced last year, is aimed at diversifying its operational risks following disruptions in Chinese production during the COVID-19 outbreak, the ministry said.
As COVID-19 broke out during the Lunar New Year holiday, Yageo, the world’s third-largest manufacturer of multilayer ceramic capacitors, saw utilization rates at its facilities in China’s Suzhou and Dongguan drop from 50 percent to 30 percent, as local authorities imposed strict containment measures.
The company said that it would relocate part of its Chinese production back to Taiwan, as it looks to satisfy clients’ orders and to capture market demand from 5G-related applications and automotive electronics, a company statement said.
Yageo said it would expand production capacity at its plants in Kaohsiung’s Dashe (大社) and Nanzih (楠梓) districts.
Aside from setting up a research and development center, the company said it has started construction of a new plant at the Dafa Industrial Park (大發工業區), which would create about 1,900 job opportunities.
The ministry yesterday also approved an application from Taiwan Lamination Industries Inc (台灣積層工業) as part of another government program that also seeks to boost investments.
The company, which specializes in flexible packaging and multicompound materials, last year applied to invest NT$500 million to set up a new manufacturing facility in Taoyuan’s Jhongli Industrial Park (中壢工業區) to improve production efficiency, it said.
Taiwan Lamination now plans to invest nearly NT$1 billion to install solar panels and industrial clean rooms at its Jhongli plant to create a more environmentally friendly manufacturing process, it said, adding that it would generate more than 20 job opportunities.
Shares in Taiwan closed at a new high yesterday, the first trading day of the new year, as contract chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) continued to break records amid an artificial intelligence (AI) boom, dealers said. The TAIEX closed up 386.21 points, or 1.33 percent, at 29,349.81, with turnover totaling NT$648.844 billion (US$20.65 billion). “Judging from a stronger Taiwan dollar against the US dollar, I think foreign institutional investors returned from the holidays and brought funds into the local market,” Concord Securities Co (康和證券) analyst Kerry Huang (黃志祺) said. “Foreign investors just rebuilt their positions with TSMC as their top target,
REVENUE PERFORMANCE: Cloud and network products, and electronic components saw strong increases, while smart consumer electronics and computing products fell Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密) yesterday posted 26.51 percent quarterly growth in revenue for last quarter to NT$2.6 trillion (US$82.44 billion), the strongest on record for the period and above expectations, but the company forecast a slight revenue dip this quarter due to seasonal factors. On an annual basis, revenue last quarter grew 22.07 percent, the company said. Analysts on average estimated about NT$2.4 trillion increase. Hon Hai, which assembles servers for Nvidia Corp and iPhones for Apple Inc, is expanding its capacity in the US, adding artificial intelligence (AI) server production in Wisconsin and Texas, where it operates established campuses. This
US President Donald Trump on Friday blocked US photonics firm HieFo Corp’s US$3 million acquisition of assets in New Jersey-based aerospace and defense specialist Emcore Corp, citing national security and China-related concerns. In an order released by the White House, Trump said HieFo was “controlled by a citizen of the People’s Republic of China” and that its 2024 acquisition of Emcore’s businesses led the US president to believe that it might “take action that threatens to impair the national security of the United States.” The order did not name the person or detail Trump’s concerns. “The Transaction is hereby prohibited,”
Garment maker Makalot Industrial Co (聚陽) yesterday reported lower-than-expected fourth-quarter revenue of NT$7.93 billion (US$251.44 million), down 9.48 percent from NT$8.76 billion a year earlier. On a quarterly basis, revenue fell 10.83 percent from NT$8.89 billion, company data showed. The figure was also lower than market expectations of NT$8.05 billion, according to data compiled by Yuanta Securities Investment and Consulting Co (元大投顧), which had projected NT$8.22 billion. Makalot’s revenue this quarter would likely increase by a mid-teens percentage as the industry is entering its high season, Yuanta said. Overall, Makalot’s revenue last year totaled NT$34.43 billion, down 3.08 percent from its record NT$35.52
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