ELECTRONICS
Hon Hai toils to reopen plant
Apple Inc supplier Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密) is likely to reopen its shuttered south Indian iPhone factory on Friday at the earliest, a senior government official familiar with the matter said. The plant, located in the southern state of Tamil Nadu, was closed on Dec. 18, following protests when 250 of its workers were treated for food poisoning. Apple has since placed the factory on probation after discovering that some dormitories and dining rooms did not meet standards. Hon Hai told the Tamil Nadu State Government that it was still working to address Apple’s concerns over workers’ living conditions, the official said.
ENERGY
Taipower to hire 857 workers
Taiwan Power Co (Taipower, 台電) yesterday said it plans to recruit 857 new employees this year to begin filling 3,000 jobs to open up over the next three years. About one-third of the new job openings are for outdoor tower technicians, the state-run utility said in a statement. Taipower said that it would pay a starting monthly salary of NT$31,487 (US$1,139) to qualified applicants after a year of training. Applications are to be accepted from Tuesday next week until Jan. 24, Taipower said, adding that written examinations would be held in May.
WATER
Major reservoirs 70% full
Water levels at the nation’s major reservoirs are about 70 percent to nearly full, the Water Resources Agency said in a statement yesterday, as Taiwan enters its dry season. Last year, the nation had a severe drought, but water conditions are normal at present, the agency said, adding that there is adequate water for household and industrial use. Irrigation for the first harvest would start as scheduled, it added. The agency said that it would continue monitoring water conditions to ensure a stable supply of water for household, industrial and agricultural users. The agency added that it would cooperate with agricultural authorities to prioritize the use of surface water and pond water, as well as increase the efficient use of water in irrigation.
MANUFACTURING
Yeong Guan signs bank loan
Yeong Guan Energy Technology Group Co (YGG, 永冠能源), one of the nation’s leading advanced casting components suppliers, yesterday said that it has signed a syndicated loan agreement with state-owned Land Bank of Taiwan (土地銀行) and five other banks to boost its working capital and repay debt. The five-year syndicated loan, composed of US$130 million and NT$2.145 billion, is also intended to help finance the purchase of equipment for a new plant in Taichung, which is to start mass production in the third quarter, it said in a statement.
TECHNOLOGY
Auto market boosts CFTC
China Fineblanking Technology Co (CFTC, 和勤精機), a manufacturer of metal stamping products, yesterday reported that revenue last month increased from November due to a steady recovery in the Chinese auto market. Consolidated revenue rose 4.94 percent to NT$249 million last month, the company said in a statement, adding that on an annual basis, revenue fell 2.37 percent, while total revenue for last year expanded 14.54 percent to NT$2.64 billion, from NT$2.31 billion in 2020. The company makes auto parts, which last month accounted for 69.65 percent of total revenue, and voice coil motor plates for hard-disk drive applications, which contributed 27.13 percent.
Semiconductor business between Taiwan and the US is a “win-win” model for both sides given the high level of complementarity, the government said yesterday responding to tariff threats from US President Donald Trump. Home to the world’s largest contract chipmaker, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), Taiwan is a key link in the global technology supply chain for companies such as Apple Inc and Nvidia Corp. Trump said on Monday he plans to impose tariffs on imported chips, pharmaceuticals and steel in an effort to get the producers to make them in the US. “Taiwan and the US semiconductor and other technology industries
SMALL AND EFFICIENT: The Chinese AI app’s initial success has spurred worries in the US that its tech giants’ massive AI spending needs re-evaluation, a market strategist said Chinese artificial intelligence (AI) start-up DeepSeek’s (深度求索) eponymous AI assistant rocketed to the top of Apple Inc’s iPhone download charts, stirring doubts in Silicon Valley about the strength of the US’ technological dominance. The app’s underlying AI model is widely seen as competitive with OpenAI and Meta Platforms Inc’s latest. Its claim that it cost much less to train and develop triggered share moves across Asia’s supply chain. Chinese tech firms linked to DeepSeek, such as Iflytek Co (科大訊飛), surged yesterday, while chipmaking tool makers like Advantest Corp slumped on the potential threat to demand for Nvidia Corp’s AI accelerators. US stock
The US Federal Reserve is expected to announce a pause in rate cuts on Wednesday, as policymakers look to continue tackling inflation under close and vocal scrutiny from US President Donald Trump. The Fed cut its key lending rate by a full percentage point in the final four months of last year and indicated it would move more cautiously going forward amid an uptick in inflation away from its long-term target of 2 percent. “I think they will do nothing, and I think they should do nothing,” Federal Reserve Bank of St Louis former president Jim Bullard said. “I think the
SUBSIDIES: The nominee for commerce secretary indicated the Trump administration wants to put its stamp on the plan, but not unravel it entirely US President Donald Trump’s pick to lead the agency in charge of a US$52 billion semiconductor subsidy program declined to give it unqualified support, raising questions about the disbursement of funds to companies like Intel Corp and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (台積電). “I can’t say that I can honor something I haven’t read,” Howard Lutnick, Trump’s nominee for commerce secretary, said of the binding CHIPS and Science Act awards in a confirmation hearing on Wednesday. “To the extent monies have been disbursed, I would commit to rigorously enforcing documents that have been signed by those companies to make sure we get
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