ENERGY
Power use rises 4.5 percent
As domestic companies expanded production to meet global demand and people gradually changed their lifestyles amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Taiwan’s energy consumption increased 4.5 percent last year from 2020, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said yesterday. Energy consumption in the industrial sector increased 8.5 percent from a year earlier due to increased economic activities; it decreased 5.2 percent in the transportation sector as people avoided going out to comply with social distancing measures; it rose 2.6 percent in the residential sector as people spent more time at home; and it fell 1.4 percent in the service sector due to the government’s COVID-19 restrictions, the ministry said in a statement.
TELECOMS
Taiwan Mobile optimistic
Telecom operator Taiwan Mobile Co (台灣大哥大) yesterday told investors that revenue this year would expand 15 to 17 percent from NT$15.61 billion (US$559.9 million) last year, mainly driven by its e-commerce subsidiary Momo.com Inc (富邦媒體). Taiwan Mobile said its mobile service revenue is projected to rise 3 to 5 percent year-on-year, after returning to growth last year, as 5G subscribers propped up the average revenue per user, helping to drive up revenue 4 percent annually. This year, Taiwan Mobile has set aside NT$11.2 billion for capital spending, with NT$6.43 billion to go toward its telecom business, it said. However, it would reduce spending on 5G-related buildup this year after it reached its peak last year, the company said. The company’s projection does not factor in its proposal to merge with local peer Taiwan Star Telecom Corp (台灣之星).
ELECTRONICS
Luxshare plans share sale
Apple Inc supplier Luxshare Precision Industry Co (立訊精密) is seeking to raise up to 13.5 billion yuan (US$2.13 billion) through a private share placement to fund a series of projects from intelligent wearable device manufacturing upgrades to electric vehicle component production. The Shenzhen, China-listed company plans to issue up to 2.1 billion shares to as many as 35 investors, including mutual funds, securities firms, trusts, finance companies, insurers and select foreign institutional investors, it said in an exchange filing. The firm aims to spend 6.2 billion yuan of the proceeds to construct or upgrade facilities and technology related to the production of intelligent wearable devices, and about 2 billion yuan on the production of electric vehicle components, the statement said. About 3.55 billion yuan of the proceeds would be used to supplement working capital, it added.
TRANSPORTATION
NDC approves light-rail plan
The National Development Council (NDC) has approved a feasibility study for the construction of a light-rail line linking Wugu (五股), Lujhou (蘆州) and Taishan (泰山) districts in New Taipei City, the city’s Department of Rapid Transit Systems (DORTS) said on Monday. The study would need to be approved by the Cabinet before New Taipei City can proceed with the next steps, which include an environmental impact assessment that would take three years, DORTS said. If construction on the 11.61km line goes ahead, it is estimated to cost NT$22.78 billion and could take about six years to complete, the department said. Construction of the project could be completed by 2030, the New Taipei City government has said, adding that it is designed to alleviate the traffic congestion that plagues the areas during rush hour.
China’s Huawei Technologies Co (華為) plans to start mass-producing its most advanced artificial intelligence (AI) chip in the first quarter of next year, even as it struggles to make enough chips due to US restrictions, two people familiar with the matter said. The telecoms conglomerate has sent samples of the Ascend 910C — its newest chip, meant to rival those made by US chipmaker Nvidia Corp — to some technology firms and started taking orders, the sources told Reuters. The 910C is being made by top Chinese contract chipmaker Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp (SMIC, 中芯) on its N+2 process, but a lack
NVIDIA PLATFORM: Hon Hai’s Mexican facility is to begin production early next year and a Taiwan site is to enter production next month, Nvidia wrote on its blog Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密), the world’s biggest electronics manufacturer, yesterday said it is expanding production capacity of artificial intelligence (AI) servers based on Nvidia Corp’s Blackwell chips in Taiwan, the US and Mexico to cope with rising demand. Hon Hai’s new AI-enabled factories are to use Nvidia’s Omnivores platform to create 3D digital twins to plan and simulate automated production lines at a factory in Hsinchu, the company said in a statement. Nvidia’s Omnivores platform is for developing industrial AI simulation applications and helps bring facilities online faster. Hon Hai’s Mexican facility is to begin production early next year and the
AVIATION BOOM: CAL is to renew its passenger and cargo fleets starting next year on record profits as aviation continues to return to pre-pandemic levels China Airlines Ltd (CAL, 中華航空) yesterday said it is optimistic about next year’s business outlook, as the airline continues to renew its fleet on expectations that global passenger traffic would maintain steady growth and air cargo demand would remain strong. From next year to 2028, the airline is to welcome a new Boeing Co 787 fleet — 18 787-9 and six 787-10 passenger aircraft — to cover regional and medium to long-haul destinations, CAL chairman Hsieh Shih-chien (謝世謙) said at an investors’ conference in Taipei. The airline would also continue to introduce Airbus SE 321neo passenger planes and Boeing 777F cargo jets,
Who would not want a social media audience that grows without new content? During the three years she paused production of her short do-it-yourself (DIY) farmer’s lifestyle videos, Chinese vlogger Li Ziqi (李子柒), 34, has seen her YouTube subscribers increase to 20.2 million from about 14 million. While YouTube is banned in China, her fan base there — although not the size of YouTube’s MrBeast, who has 330 million subscribers — is close to 100 million across the country’s social media platforms Douyin (抖音), Sina Weibo (新浪微博) and Xiaohongshu (小紅書). When Li finally released new videos last week — ending what has
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