EQUITIES
TAIEX rises due to TSMC
The TAIEX closed higher yesterday as contract chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) rose for a third consecutive session. Dealers attributed the main board’s rally from an initial low to investors’ positive response to the US markets rebounding from earlier overnight losses. The TAIEX closed up 87.19 points, or 0.48 percent, at 18,375.40. Turnover totaled NT$284.890 billion (US$10.3 billion), with foreign institutional investors buying a net NT$12.75 billion of shares on the main board. TSMC rose 1.38 percent to close at NT$660. Due to its heavy weighting of about 30 percent of the main board, TSMC’s gains contributed 75 points to the TAIEX’s rise.
STEELMAKERS
Feng Hsin revenue up 52%
Steelmaker Feng Hsin Steel Co (豐興) yesterday posted NT$553 million in pretax income for last month, surging 52 percent from NT$364 million the previous year, the company said in a filing with the Taiwan Stock Exchange. That represented a monthly increase of 11.49 percent from NT$496 million, the company said. For the full year last year, pretax income jumped 56 percent to NT$5.04 billion, from NT$3.24 billion in 2020, it said. Consolidated revenue totaled NT$38.36 billion last year, up 40.52 percent from NT$27.3 billion a year earlier, it added.
ELECTRONICS
Sercomm station approved
Telecom equipment supplier Sercomm Corp (中磊) said its new 5G millimeter-wave (mmWave) small cell base station has obtained certification from the National Communications Commission, paving the way the product to be shipped to local telecoms. Sercomm beat local rivals in securing the certification, it said on Tuesday. Last year, the company obtained similar certification from the Federal Communications Commission for its 5G mmWave small cell base station, helping it to tap into the US market.
CHINA
Lending lower than forecast
New bank lending last month fell more than expected from the previous month, but lending for the whole of last year set a record, as the central bank maintained policy support to cushion the slowing economy. Banks last month extended 1.13 trillion yuan (US$177.51 billion) in new yuan loans, down from 1.27 trillion yuan in November and short of analysts’ expectations, data released yesterday by the People’s Bank of China showed. However, new bank lending hit a record 19.95 trillion yuan for the year, up 1.6 percent from 19.63 trillion yuan in 2020, the previous record.
FOREIGN EXCHANGE
Asian currencies could dip
Goldman Sachs Group Inc has warned that the New Taiwan dollar, South Korean won and Malaysian ringgit could weaken if growth stocks continue to slide. The underperformance of growth stocks coincides with weaker tech-centric emerging market currencies when risk sentiment is less favorable, Karen Reichgott Fishman, Goldman Sachs’ New York-based strategist, wrote in a note. The outlook for tighter monetary policy in the US and higher US Treasury yields have been weighing on technology shares globally, prompting a rotation from growth to value stocks. Asian currencies are under pressure as prospects of quicker rate hikes in the US bolster the greenback. The ringgit is Asia’s second worst-performing currency so far this year, with a loss of 0.4 percent, while the won is down 0.1 percent and the NT dollar is up 0.1 percent.
PROTECTION: The investigation, which takes aim at exporters such as Canada, Germany and Brazil, came days after Trump unveiled tariff hikes on steel and aluminum products US President Donald Trump on Saturday ordered a probe into potential tariffs on lumber imports — a move threatening to stoke trade tensions — while also pushing for a domestic supply boost. Trump signed an executive order instructing US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick to begin an investigation “to determine the effects on the national security of imports of timber, lumber and their derivative products.” The study might result in new tariffs being imposed, which would pile on top of existing levies. The investigation takes aim at exporters like Canada, Germany and Brazil, with White House officials earlier accusing these economies of
EARLY TALKS: Measures under consideration include convincing allies to match US curbs, further restricting exports of AI chips or GPUs, and blocking Chinese investments US President Donald Trump’s administration is sketching out tougher versions of US semiconductor curbs and pressuring key allies to escalate their restrictions on China’s chip industry, an early indication the new US president plans to expand efforts that began under former US president Joe Biden to limit Beijing’s technological prowess. Trump officials recently met with their Japanese and Dutch counterparts about restricting Tokyo Electron Ltd and ASML Holding NV engineers from maintaining semiconductor gear in China, people familiar with the matter said. The aim, which was also a priority for Biden, is to see key allies match China curbs the US
Teleperformance SE, the largest call-center operator in the world, is rolling out an artificial intelligence (AI) system that softens English-speaking Indian workers’ accents in real time in a move the company claims would make them more understandable. The technology, called accent translation, coupled with background noise cancelation, is being deployed in call centers in India, where workers provide customer support to some of Teleperformance’s international clients. The company provides outsourced customer support and content moderation to global companies including Apple Inc, ByteDance Ltd’s (字節跳動) TikTok and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd. “When you have an Indian agent on the line, sometimes it’s hard
‘SACRED MOUNTAIN’: The chipmaker can form joint ventures abroad, except in China, but like other firms, it needs government approval for large investments Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) needs government permission for any overseas joint ventures (JVs), but there are no restrictions on making the most advanced chips overseas other than for China, Minister of Economic Affairs J.W. Kuo (郭智輝) said yesterday. US media have said that TSMC, the world’s largest contract chipmaker and a major supplier to companies such as Apple Inc and Nvidia Corp, has been in talks for a stake in Intel Corp. Neither company has confirmed the talks, but US President Donald Trump has accused Taiwan of taking away the US’ semiconductor business and said he wants the industry back
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