GAMING
Soft-World to diversify
Soft-World International Corp (智冠科技), an online game developer, yesterday told shareholders that the company would continue to diversify its business scope, provide comprehensive service support and reach more overseas markets. The company’s non-gaming business segment — such as online advertising and marketing, and financial technology — has contributed more than 30 percent of its total sales, and the demand for related services continues to grow, the company told shareholders at its annual general meeting in Taipei. The company reported earnings per share of NT$6.84 for last year, the second-highest in the past 11 years. Shareholders yesterday approved a proposal to distribute a dividend of NT$5.2 per share, or a payout ratio of 76 percent.
SHIPPING
Shih Wei remains bullish
Dry bulk shipper Shih Wei Navigation Co (四維航業) yesterday said it remains optimistic about the prospects of the bulk shipping market this year, despite headwinds ahead. The company told shareholders at its annual general meeting in Taipei that it would be prudent in planning its fleet operations in the wake of potential challenges, such as extreme weather, labor constraints and port congestion. The company reported earnings per share of NT$7.16 for last year, the highest since 2008, and decided to distribute a cash dividend of NT$2 per share. Many countries are shifting to coexisting with COVID-19, which would add support to the bulk shipping market, Shih Wei said. However, the global economy is under pressure from geopolitical conflict, economic sanctions and monetary tightening, the company said, adding that it would strive to maximize its financial and operational resources to generate greater returns for shareholders.
ELECTRONICS
HTC shares surge 10%
Smartphone brand HTC Corp (宏達電) on Monday said that chairwoman Cher Wang (王雪紅) was named an independent nonexecutive director at the China-based Lenovo Group Ltd (聯想). HTC shares yesterday surged 10 percent, the daily maximum, to close at NT$46.3 on the Taiwan Stock Exchange, as the move sparked market speculation that Lenovo would team up with HTC in the emerging “metaverse” market, dealers said. The “metaverse” is the in-vogue name for immersive Internet technologies accessed through virtual reality and related devices. HTC said that Wang has worked in the information technology industry for more than 40 years and would continue to promote industrial innovation in the areas of virtual reality, augmented reality, 5G, artificial intelligence and blockchain technology.
TOURISM
Japan tops destinations
Japan is the top destination that Taiwanese tourists want to visit as the COVID-19 pandemic eases, a survey released on Monday by Lion Travel Service Co (雄獅旅行社) found. The top five destinations were rounded out by South Korea, Europe, Asia and Africa, and Southeast Asia, the travel agency said in a statement about the online survey that drew about 3,000 respondents. Europe surpassed Southeast Asia on Taiwanese tourists’ destination lists, which Lion Travel attributed to a lifting of pandemic-related border restrictions in European countries. Europe-bound tour packages remain more economical than packages for other destinations, despite a 30 percent increase in prices, making Taiwanese more willing to travel to that part of the world for sightseeing, the travel agency said.
MULTIFACETED: A task force has analyzed possible scenarios and created responses to assist domestic industries in dealing with US tariffs, the economics minister said The Executive Yuan is tomorrow to announce countermeasures to US President Donald Trump’s planned reciprocal tariffs, although the details of the plan would not be made public until Monday next week, Minister of Economic Affairs J.W. Kuo (郭智輝) said yesterday. The Cabinet established an economic and trade task force in November last year to deal with US trade and tariff related issues, Kuo told reporters outside the legislature in Taipei. The task force has been analyzing and evaluating all kinds of scenarios to identify suitable responses and determine how best to assist domestic industries in managing the effects of Trump’s tariffs, he
TIGHT-LIPPED: UMC said it had no merger plans at the moment, after Nikkei Asia reported that the firm and GlobalFoundries were considering restarting merger talks United Microelectronics Corp (UMC, 聯電), the world’s No. 4 contract chipmaker, yesterday launched a new US$5 billion 12-inch chip factory in Singapore as part of its latest effort to diversify its manufacturing footprint amid growing geopolitical risks. The new factory, adjacent to UMC’s existing Singapore fab in the Pasir Res Wafer Fab Park, is scheduled to enter volume production next year, utilizing mature 22-nanometer and 28-nanometer process technologies, UMC said in a statement. The company plans to invest US$5 billion during the first phase of the new fab, which would have an installed capacity of 30,000 12-inch wafers per month, it said. The
Taiwan’s official purchasing managers’ index (PMI) last month rose 0.2 percentage points to 54.2, in a second consecutive month of expansion, thanks to front-loading demand intended to avoid potential US tariff hikes, the Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research (CIER, 中華經濟研究院) said yesterday. While short-term demand appeared robust, uncertainties rose due to US President Donald Trump’s unpredictable trade policy, CIER president Lien Hsien-ming (連賢明) told a news conference in Taipei. Taiwan’s economy this year would be characterized by high-level fluctuations and the volatility would be wilder than most expect, Lien said Demand for electronics, particularly semiconductors, continues to benefit from US technology giants’ effort
‘SWASTICAR’: Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s close association with Donald Trump has prompted opponents to brand him a ‘Nazi’ and resulted in a dramatic drop in sales Demonstrators descended on Tesla Inc dealerships across the US, and in Europe and Canada on Saturday to protest company chief Elon Musk, who has amassed extraordinary power as a top adviser to US President Donald Trump. Waving signs with messages such as “Musk is stealing our money” and “Reclaim our country,” the protests largely took place peacefully following fiery episodes of vandalism on Tesla vehicles, dealerships and other facilities in recent weeks that US officials have denounced as terrorism. Hundreds rallied on Saturday outside the Tesla dealership in Manhattan. Some blasted Musk, the world’s richest man, while others demanded the shuttering of his
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