Kim Forest Enterprise Co (金萬林), which focuses on molecular testing, yesterday said it has applied to receive marketing approval for its non-invasive polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test products, hoping to meet rising demand for COVID-19 test kits as cases in Taiwan rise.
The company’s reagents that obtained regulatory approval in June 2020 test material from a person’s nasal cavity and pharynx, while its latest reagents test saliva, allowing pain-free sample collection, Kim Forest Enterprise said in a statement.
“We hope that this new product, if approved, can ease the pain and the pressure on paramedics, and also help speed up examinations,” the company said.
Photo: CNA
Kim Forest Enterprise said that it is confident its products can detect the latest virus variants, as its products are examined regularly by the US Food and Drug Administration after it became the first Taiwanese company to obtain emergency use authorization in the US for its COVID-19 test kits, reagents and machines.
Revenue for last month increased 54 percent annually to NT$39 million (US$1.31 million), the New Taipei City-based firm said, adding that cumulative revenue in the first four months of this year expanded 46.8 percent to NT$161 million as demand for its testing machines and services increased significantly amid a surge in local COVID-19 cases.
Established to assist hospitals in Taipei with COVID-19 testing, its laboratory last month partnered with more clinics and hospitals to total 30 as of the end of last month, Kim Forest Enterprise said, adding that it expects to collaborate with more after the Central Epidemic Command Center added 190 clinics to those approved to offer PCR testing.
Overall, it has an upbeat outlook for its business in the second quarter, Kim Forest Enterprise added.
Real estate agent and property developer JSL Construction & Development Co (愛山林) led the average compensation rankings among companies listed on the Taiwan Stock Exchange (TWSE) last year, while contract chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) finished 14th. JSL Construction paid its employees total average compensation of NT$4.78 million (US$159,701), down 13.5 percent from a year earlier, but still ahead of the most profitable listed tech giants, including TSMC, TWSE data showed. Last year, the average compensation (which includes salary, overtime, bonuses and allowances) paid by TSMC rose 21.6 percent to reach about NT$3.33 million, lifting its ranking by 10 notches
SEASONAL WEAKNESS: The combined revenue of the top 10 foundries fell 5.4%, but rush orders and China’s subsidies partially offset slowing demand Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) further solidified its dominance in the global wafer foundry business in the first quarter of this year, remaining far ahead of its closest rival, Samsung Electronics Co, TrendForce Corp (集邦科技) said yesterday. TSMC posted US$25.52 billion in sales in the January-to-March period, down 5 percent from the previous quarter, but its market share rose from 67.1 percent the previous quarter to 67.6 percent, TrendForce said in a report. While smartphone-related wafer shipments declined in the first quarter due to seasonal factors, solid demand for artificial intelligence (AI) and high-performance computing (HPC) devices and urgent TV-related orders
Prices of gasoline and diesel products at domestic fuel stations are this week to rise NT$0.2 and NT$0.3 per liter respectively, after international crude oil prices increased last week, CPC Corp, Taiwan (台灣中油) and Formosa Petrochemical Corp (台塑石化) said yesterday. International crude oil prices last week snapped a two-week losing streak as the geopolitical situation between Russia and Ukraine turned increasingly tense, CPC said in a statement. News that some oil production facilities in Alberta, Canada, were shut down due to wildfires and that US-Iran nuclear talks made no progress also helped push oil prices to a significant weekly gain, Formosa said
MINERAL DIPLOMACY: The Chinese commerce ministry said it approved applications for the export of rare earths in a move that could help ease US-China trade tensions Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng (何立峰) is today to meet a US delegation for talks in the UK, Beijing announced on Saturday amid a fragile truce in the trade dispute between the two powers. He is to visit the UK from yesterday to Friday at the invitation of the British government, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement. He and US representatives are to cochair the first meeting of the US-China economic and trade consultation mechanism, it said. US President Donald Trump on Friday announced that a new round of trade talks with China would start in London beginning today,
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