What kind of world will it be in 2030? The era of 5G with low latency, high speed and ultra-connectivity is maturing, and people are waiting for 6G that will leverage low orbit satellites to achieve decentralized bandwidth, opening yet another a new chapter of human life. By that time, at least 30% of the cars on the market will be electric vehicles (EV), and Level 5 self-driving cars combined with smart poles will bring about obvious changes in transportation, and smart cities will take shape. Under the ESG framework, efforts to improve information security using quantum technology will be rewarded; more efficient energy mechanisms will be connected to the super grid; the greenhouse effect will see improvements; people will be dreaming of a more stylish smart city; and we'll have new audio-visual experiences. These we can foresee and observe from the market side.
China's smartphone demand failed to gain as much momentum as expected during the Labor Day holidays, resulting in declines in smartphone component shipments in the second quarter, but related orders from Apple will begin to increase in the second half, according to sources from IC distributors.
Taiwan-based integrated LED solution provider Ennostar is poised to enhance its presence in China's mini/microLED market thanks to robust sales experienced by its joint venture in the country.
Backend house ShunSin Technology, a subsidiary of Foxconn Technology (Hon Hai Precision) specializing in system-in-package (SiP) modules, is poised to reap handsome income by rendering packaging services for 400G optical transceiver models in the second half of 2021, according to industry sources.
Sales of smartphones in the China market remained lackluster in May, with related shipments declining 31% from a year earlier to 22.6 million units in the month, according to data from the China Academy of Information and Technology (CAICT).
Taiwan-based PCB maker Apex International, with main manufacturing operations in Thailand, plans to invest NT$3.74 billion (US$135.1 million) to build new production lines at its factory site in the Southeast Asian country this year, according to industry sources.
China brand vendors such as Xiaomi and Anker have rolled out their GaN-based fast charging devices for consumer technology products, which will be stimulating demand for GaN-on-Si chips, according to industry sources.
Bloomberg has warned that the world is "dangerously dependent" on supply of semiconductors from Taiwan - an assertion echoed by attempts that many governments have made to avoid placing all eggs in one basket. The US has already made moves towards boosting semiconductor manufacturing on American soil - a significant example being TSMC's project to build an advanced-node fab in Arizona. But this project highlights the fact the US is still "depending" on Taiwan - in one way or another - for semiconductor supply, at least in the foreseeable future.
Countries in Southeast Asia and South Asia stand a chance of becoming rising stars in the midst of supply chain shifts and the move toward shorter supply chains and localization. Four Indian firms and one Indonesian firm entered Digitimes' Asia Supply Chain 100 (ASC100). By region, Tata Motors at No. 22 in ASC100 is the champion in Southeast Asia and South Asia, followed by Indonesia's Astra International (No. 68) and India's Mahindra & Mahindra (No. 69), Maruti Suzuki (No. 74) and Motherson Sumi (No. 89). ASC 100 is a study based on the companies' revenues, profit and market cap that will be renewed annually.
Companies in the "tech products and equipment" and "automotive manufacturing" sectors account for half of the Digitimes' Asia Supply Chain 100 (ASC 100) list, but semiconductor firms well lead the list in both average profit and average market value. ASC 100 is a newly released reseach on Asia's top 100 tech firms. ASC 100 is a study based on the companies' revenues, profit and market cap that will be renewed annually.
Benefiting from the US-China tech war and sharp chip shortages following the pandemic outbreak, and with automotive clients competing for foundry capacity support, the entire semiconductor industry is poised to enjoy robust order momentum through 2022, allowing semiconductor stocks to gain traction in the market. TSMC and Samsung Electronics, now the world's only two companies able to commercialize sub-7 nm foundry nodes, have been in a two-horse race for grabbing the crown in the Digitimes' Asia Supply Chain 100 (ASC 100) research, ranking first and second, respectively, by market capitalization in 2020. ASC 100 is a study based on the companies' revenues, profit and market cap that will be renewed annually.
Of the companies in Digitimes' Asia Supply Chain 100 (ASC 100), Samsung Electronics had the highest net income US$22.1 billion in 2020. But TSMC - in third place in overall net income - had the highest net profit margin of 38.7%, way higher than Samsung's 11%. ASC 100 is a new released research on Asia's top 100 tech firms - a study based on the companies' revenues, profit and market cap that will be renewed annually.
Digitimes, an Asia-based premium source of tech supply chain information, undertook a six-month study on the financial reports of 4,725 publicly listed corporations across 11 countries in Asia and compiled its first annual report on the top 100 Asian suppliers - Asia Supply Chain 100 (ASC100) in 2021. Released on June 15, the report contains the rankings among Asia's top 100 suppliers along with a look into supply chain trends and an analysis on the competitiveness of Asian countries. Digitimes plans to release updated statistics on an annual basis going forward and keep track of the changes in the rankings among Asia's high-tech suppliers in the long run.
In the first five months of 2021, 25 new industrial parks were established in Vietnam, a significant increase from the first-half 2020's six, according to research by US-based CBRE.
The Apple supply chain's shift of operation to India, in line with the incentives provided by the Indian government, has reportedly created around 20,000 job opportunities so far in the South Asian country.
With Asia Pacific countries such as Taiwan and Malaysia witnessing COVID-19 infections surging, sources from the upstream supply chain believe shortages of notebook components could worsen.
