EQUITIES
Semiconductors boost TAIEX
The TAIEX closed higher yesterday as large-cap semiconductor shares attracted buying sparked by an overnight rally in semiconductor shares on US markets caused by an acquisition deal. However, turnover remained thin, as market sentiment was hurt by concerns over possible technical resistance ahead of 13,000 points. Many investors were also waiting for comments on the US economy from the US Federal Reserve during a two-day policymaking meeting that was due to start later in the day, dealers said. The TAIEX ended up 57.83 points, or 0.45 percent, at 12,845.65, on turnover of NT$185.726 billion (US$6.32 billion). Foreign institutional investors bought a net NT$5.90 billion of shares on the main board, Taiwan Stock Exchange data showed.
CURRENCY
New Taiwan dollar soars
The New Taiwan dollar yesterday rose to its highest level against the US dollar in almost two-and-a-half years in the wake of continued fund inflows, dealers said. The local currency ended up NT$0.106, or 0.36 percent, at NT$29.380 against the US dollar, central bank data showed. The closing level was the highest since April 19, 2018, when the NT dollar ended at NT$29.340 against the greenback. A strong Chinese yuan also encouraged traders to pocket more of other regional currencies, including the NT dollar, dealers said. Taiwan Association of Machinery Industry chairman Alex Ko (柯拔希) urged the central bank to take action to keep the currency weak, or Taiwanese machinery exporters would lose their global competitive edge. The central bank is to hold its quarterly policymaking meeting tomorrow and the market has been awaiting comments on the foreign exchange market from Governor Yang Chin-long (楊金龍).
SEMICONDUCTORS
Local alliance formed
Local semiconductor equipment suppliers C Sung Manufacturing Ltd (志聖工業), Gallant Precision Machining Co (均豪精密) and Gallant Micro Machining Co (均華精密) yesterday said that they have formed an alliance to provide one-stop shop services and integrated solutions for customers. The alliance has set up its first office in Kaohsiung to cope with growing demand from chip testers and packagers, Gallant Precision said in a joint statement. The alliance also plans to build a new laboratory, or a new platform, to speed up product qualification, the statement said.
BUSINESS
Fewer firms plan bonuses
Fewer companies in Taiwan are willing to pay their employees mid-autumn bonuses this year, because of the economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, a survey released yesterday showed. Only 55.5 percent of employers said that they would distribute bonuses, compared with 60.2 percent last year, the online job bank yes123 said, citing its online polls. Among the companies planning to pay bonuses, the average amount would be 5 percent less from last year, at about NT$1,460, because of the adverse economic effects of the pandemic, the job bank said. Of those planning to issue bonuses, 35.9 percent would pay NT$800 to NT$1,200, 22.4 percent would pay NT$500 to NT$800 and 10 percent NT$1,500 to NT$2,000, the poll found. The survey was conducted from Aug. 26 to Tuesday last week and collected 933 valid responses.
RECYCLE: Taiwan would aid manufacturers in refining rare earths from discarded appliances, which would fit the nation’s circular economy goals, minister Kung said Taiwan would work with the US and Japan on a proposed cooperation initiative in response to Beijing’s newly announced rare earth export curbs, Minister of Economic Affairs Kung Ming-hsin (龔明鑫) said yesterday. China last week announced new restrictions requiring companies to obtain export licenses if their products contain more than 0.1 percent of Chinese-origin rare earths by value. US Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent on Wednesday responded by saying that Beijing was “unreliable” in its rare earths exports, adding that the US would “neither be commanded, nor controlled” by China, several media outlets reported. Japanese Minister of Finance Katsunobu Kato yesterday also
Taiwan’s rapidly aging population is fueling a sharp increase in homes occupied solely by elderly people, a trend that is reshaping the nation’s housing market and social fabric, real-estate brokers said yesterday. About 850,000 residences were occupied by elderly people in the first quarter, including 655,000 that housed only one resident, the Ministry of the Interior said. The figures have nearly doubled from a decade earlier, Great Home Realty Co (大家房屋) said, as people aged 65 and older now make up 20.8 percent of the population. “The so-called silver tsunami represents more than just a demographic shift — it could fundamentally redefine the
China Airlines Ltd (CAL, 中華航空) said it expects peak season effects in the fourth quarter to continue to boost demand for passenger flights and cargo services, after reporting its second-highest-ever September sales on Monday. The carrier said it posted NT$15.88 billion (US$517 million) in consolidated sales last month, trailing only September last year’s NT$16.01 billion. Last month, CAL generated NT$8.77 billion from its passenger flights and NT$5.37 billion from cargo services, it said. In the first nine months of this year, the carrier posted NT$154.93 billion in cumulative sales, up 2.62 percent from a year earlier, marking the second-highest level for the January-September
Businesses across the global semiconductor supply chain are bracing themselves for disruptions from an escalating trade war, after China imposed curbs on rare earth mineral exports and the US responded with additional tariffs and restrictions on software sales to the Asian nation. China’s restrictions, the most targeted move yet to limit supplies of rare earth materials, represent the first major attempt by Beijing to exercise long-arm jurisdiction over foreign companies to target the semiconductor industry, threatening to stall the chips powering the artificial intelligence (AI) boom. They prompted US President Donald Trump on Friday to announce that he would impose an additional
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