The Ministry of Economic Affairs on Thursday said it had approved capital increase plans for the Taiwanese subsidiaries of US tech giants Google and Amazon.
The Department of Investment Review approved a NT$7 billion (US$211.5 million) investment by Google Engineering UK Holdings in Google Taiwan Ltd for hardware and electronic information software development, the ministry said in a statement.
The funds would go toward research into mobile phones and wearable technology product design, it added.
Photo: Bloomberg
The department also authorized an investment of NT$2.59 billion by Amazon subsidiary A100 Row Inc in Amazon Web Services Taiwan for its data center’s personnel costs and equipment, the ministry said.
OUTBOUND INVESTMENTS
In terms of outbound investments, the department approved Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co’s (TSMC, 台積電) plan to inject an additional US$10 billion into its subsidiary TSMC Global, which is based in the British Virgin Islands, it said.
TSMC aims to use the money to help hedge foreign exchange risks by investing the money in bonds and certificates of deposit, the ministry added.
Other investments approved by the department included a US$170 million loan-based investment by CTBC Bank (中信銀行) in its subsidiary in the Philippines and US$300 million by artificial intelligence server supplier Wiwynn Corp (緯穎) in a US-based subsidiary.
Wiwynn last month said it planned to invest US$300 million to build its first US manufacturing facility in Texas.
JAPANESE ACQUISITION
Global Brands Manufacture Ltd (精成科技), a supplier of plastic circuit boards (PCB), received the department’s approval for its acquisition of Japanese PCB manufacturer Lincstech Co for ￥28.16 billion, allowing the Taiwanese company to build a stronger presence in the high-end PCB board market.
The department also gave the go-ahead to two China-bound investments, including a US$65 million capital injection by PMI Group (銀泰科技) into its Chinese subsidiary to repay debts.
Automotive lighting supplier TYC Brother Industrial Co (堤維西) was also granted approval to invest 310 million yuan to acquire the 50 percent share of its joint venture partner. TYC would gain full control of the car light manufacturing venture following the investment.
Additional reporting by Lisa Wang
Taiwan will prioritize the development of silicon photonics by taking advantage of its strength in the semiconductor industry to build another shield to protect the local economy, National Development Council (NDC) Minister Paul Liu (劉鏡清) said yesterday. Speaking at a meeting of the legislature’s Economics Committee, Liu said Taiwan already has the artificial intelligence (AI) industry as a shield, after the semiconductor industry, to safeguard the country, and is looking at new unique fields to build more economic shields. While Taiwan will further strengthen its existing shields, over the longer term, the country is determined to focus on such potential segments as
UNCERTAINTY: Innolux activated a stringent supply chain management mechanism, as it did during the COVID-19 pandemic, to ensure optimal inventory levels for customers Flat-panel display makers AUO Corp (友達) and Innolux Corp (群創) yesterday said that about 12 to 20 percent of their display business is at risk of potential US tariffs and that they would relocate production or shipment destinations to mitigate the levies’ effects. US tariffs would have a direct impact of US$200 million on AUO’s revenue, company chairman Paul Peng (彭雙浪) told reporters on the sidelines of the Touch Taiwan trade show in Taipei yesterday. That would make up about 12 percent of the company’s overall revenue. To cope with the tariff uncertainty, AUO plans to allocate its production to manufacturing facilities in
COLLABORATION: Given Taiwan’s key position in global supply chains, the US firm is discussing strategies with local partners and clients to deal with global uncertainties Advanced Micro Devices Inc (AMD) yesterday said it is meeting with local ecosystem partners, including Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), to discuss strategies, including long-term manufacturing, to navigate uncertainties such as US tariffs, as Taiwan occupies an important position in global supply chains. AMD chief executive officer Lisa Su (蘇姿丰) told reporters that Taiwan is an important part of the chip designer’s ecosystem and she is discussing with partners and customers in Taiwan to forge strong collaborations on different areas during this critical period. AMD has just become the first artificial-intelligence (AI) server chip customer of TSMC to utilize its advanced
Chizuko Kimura has become the first female sushi chef in the world to win a Michelin star, fulfilling a promise she made to her dying husband to continue his legacy. The 54-year-old Japanese chef regained the Michelin star her late husband, Shunei Kimura, won three years ago for their Sushi Shunei restaurant in Paris. For Shunei Kimura, the star was a dream come true. However, the joy was short-lived. He died from cancer just three months later in June 2022. He was 65. The following year, the restaurant in the heart of Montmartre lost its star rating. Chizuko Kimura insisted that the new star is still down
RSS