Asia stocks follow Wall St lower over rate hike fearsAP, BEIJINGAsian stocks on Friday followed Wall Street lower as fears spread that US interest rate hikes to fight inflation might stall economic growth. Traders were briefly encouraged by Fed chairman Jerome Powell’s comment that the Fed was not considering even bigger increases. “Clearly, investors had second thoughts about the so-called ‘dovish hike’ from the Fed,” Rob Carnell, head of Asia-Pacific research at ING, wrote in a report. The likelihood is “rate hikes coming thick and fast, but little if any prospect of a turn in inflation any time soon,” he wrote. The index lost 1.11 percent over the week to post its second straight week of declines.

Youth wing of Irish party calls on leaders to press for Taiwan WHO observer statusBy Yang Cheng-yu and Jake Chung / Staff reporter, with staff writerYoung Fine Gael (YFG), the youth wing of the Irish Fine Gael party, on Friday urged the Irish government to support Taiwan’s bid to obtain observer status at the WHO, adding that it was also drafting a statement regarding the party’s stance on Irish-Chinese relations. Representative to Ireland Yang Tzu-pao, left, and two members of Young Fine Gael pose for a picture in an undated photograph. Photo: Screenshot from Young Fine Gael’s official Web siteTaiwan is a world leader in its handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, and it should be allowed to share its experiences, O’Mahony said. International support for Taiwan obtaining observer status at the WHO has been growing over the years, he said. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Friday listed the people supporting such a bid, citing US Deputy Secretary of State Brian McKeon, who publicly asked WHO Secretary-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus to allow Taiwan observer participation.

China orders government to dump foreign computersBloombergChina has ordered central government agencies and state-backed corporations to replace foreign-branded personal computers with domestic alternatives within two years, marking one of Beijing’s most aggressive efforts to eradicate key overseas technology from within sensitive institutions. The exercise, which was mandated by central government authorities, is eventually to replace about 50 million computers within the government, and more in state-connected firms, the sources said. Inspur Software Co (浪潮信息) and China National Software & Service Co (中國軟件與技術服務有限公司) soared to their daily 10 percent limits. The push to replace foreign suppliers is part of a longstanding effort to wean China off its reliance on US technology, a vulnerability that was exposed after US sanctions against companies such as Huawei Technologies Co (華為) hammered local firms and businesses. The PC replacement project also reflects Beijing’s growing concerns about information security, as well as its confidence in homegrown hardware.

Meta launches Asia’s first XR hub in TaipeiStaff writer, with CNAMeta Platforms Inc yesterday launched Asia’s first physical hub for extended reality (XR) research in Taiwan, as Facebook’s parent company seeks to promote the immersive technologies. At the “Meta XR Hub Taiwan” launch ceremony in Taipei, Meta head of agency for greater China Stephanie Chu (朱怡靜) described Taiwanese partners as an important cornerstone of technological development. People participate in a motion capture session in Taipei yesterday at the opening of the Meta XR Hub Taiwan, jointly launched by Meta Platforms, the parent company of Facebook, and the Institute for Information Industry. Photo: Fang Pin-chao, Taipei TimesTaiwan is to play a huge part in the metaverse, Meta chief product officer Chris Cox said in a video presentation at the event. As augmented reality and virtual reality flourish, Taiwan would not only become an important stronghold for the metaverse team, but also a key hub for driving global innovations, he added.

Turnover totaled NT$250.848 billion (US$8.5 billion), with foreign institutional investors buying a net NT$3.83 billion of shares on the main board, Taiwan Stock Exchange data showed. “The 50 basis point rate hike at the May meeting had been widely anticipated by the markets worldwide. The transportation and steel sectors also rose 0.95 percent and 1.16 percent respectively, but the financial sector underperformed the TAIEX, closing down 1.02 percent. “Judging from today’s movement, I suggest investors to stay alert over the weakness in the financial sector. The interest rate hike leads had been largely reflected in financial stocks’ recent gains,” Lu said.

Shell profit soars, as high oil prices offset Russia hitAFP, LONDONBritish energy giant Shell PLC yesterday said its net profit soared 26 percent in the first quarter of the year as soaring oil prices offset a sizeable charge linked to its Russia exit. Profit after tax leapt to US$7.1 billion compared with a year earlier, Shell said in a statement. While the group took a US$3.9 billion charge on its exit from Russia after Moscow invaded Ukraine, it saw lower costs elsewhere. Oil prices have surged in the past few months on concerns over tight supplies following the invasion of Ukraine by major oil and gas producer Russia. Shell added yesterday that it has begun the second tranche of its US$8.5 billion share buyback program that was unveiled in February.

“This is one truckload of marine trash picked up during a single day of beach cleanup activity last year at a ‘protected marine area’ near Keelung,” Greenpeace Taiwan “Project Ocean” director Tommy Chung (鍾孟勳) said. Two Greenpeace members hold up a sign beside a large exhibit made up of ocean waste outside the Legislative Yuan in Taipei yesterday. Photo: CNA“We did not see any fish or signs of marine life” during offshore dives to collect debris, Chung said. “Only the seabed full of garbage.”“Taiwan has clearly reached a crisis point in coastal pollution and the death of the marine environment,” Chung said. Please, we must approve the ‘ocean conservation’ bill now,” Chung said.

HTC continues losses in first quarter, but gross margin improves to 37.8%Staff writer, with CNASmartphone brand HTC Corp (宏達電) on Tuesday reported a net loss of NT$760 million (US$25.74 million) in the first quarter, marking the 16th consecutive quarter of losses. Losses per share stood at NT$0.92, compared with NT$0.89 a quarter earlier and NT$1.25 a year earlier, HTC said. National Taichung University of Education personnel use HTC Corp’s virtual reality (VR) equipment at a demonstration of immersive VR classrooms in Taichung on March 10. Photo courtesy of HTC Corp via CNAHowever, HTC’s gross margin in the first quarter rose to 37.8 percent from 33.7 percent in the previous quarter, with analysts attributing the improvement to a better product portfolio. The figure was the company’s highest quarterly gross margin since 2018, when its quarterly gross profit turned positive.

Energy security must be improvedBy Huynh Tam Sang, Lucia Gragnani 黃心光，葛露晞Energy security has emerged as a grave concern among Taiwanese. Even more nerve-racking for the government’s energy strategy is that sources of renewable energy, especially new solar and offshore wind capacity, are negligible. The US’ Indo-Pacific Strategic Energy Initiative Act underlines Washington’s willingness to support its Indo-Pacific partners to “achieve energy security through diversification of their energy sources and supply routes.”In October last year, Australian Minister for Trade Dan Tehan underscored “the energy partnership” and expressed Canberra’s interest in helping Taiwan decarbonize. As Washington and Canberra seem determined to assist Taiwan with its energy transition, Taipei should reach out to these partners for concrete schemes to launch trilateral collaboration on energy security. The Tsai administration has been ambitious in seeking to address energy security with its energy planning.

S Korea inflation rises at fastest pace since 2008BloombergSouth Korea’s inflation last month accelerated to the fastest pace since 2008, prompting the central bank to issue a statement as pressure intensifies for it to raise interest rates further at this month’s policy meeting. Compared with the previous month, consumer prices advanced 0.7 percent, while core inflation accelerated to 3.6 percent from a year earlier, the fastest pace since December 2011. Eo Woon-seon, a senior official at Statistics Korea, announces at a news conference in Seoul yesterday that consumer prices last month spiked 4.8 percent from a year earlier. At this pace, we may even see an inflation number beginning with ‘5.’”Rhee last week said that inflation remains a bigger concern than threats to the outlook for economic growth. Inflationary pressures that drive up wages to create a vicious circle of price rises is another potential risk facing monetary policy makers.

Indian heat pushes power demand to record highReuters, NEW DELHIIndia’s electricity demand touched a record high last month as its northern states reeled under the hottest pre-summer months in decades, with a surge in the use of air-conditioning triggering the worst power crisis in more than six years. Power demand grew 13.2 percent to 135.4 billion kilowatt-hours, as the electricity requirement in the north grew between 16 percent and 75 percent, government data showed. The unprecedented electricity use resulted in widespread power cuts last month, as utilities scrambled to manage demand as coal supplies dwindled. Power supply fell short of demand by 2.41 billion units, or 1.8 percent, the worst since October 2015. Demand for power in Delhi rose 42 percent last month, with northern states such as Punjab and Rajasthan seeing electricity demand grow 36 percent and 28 percent respectively, the data showed.

First group from Mariupol gain safetyAP, ZAPORIZHZHIA, UkrainePeople fleeing besieged Mariupol described weeks of bombardments and deprivations as they arrived yesterday in Ukrainian-held territory, where relief workers awaited the first group of civilians freed from a steel plant that is last redoubt of Ukrainian fighters in the devastated port city. More than 100 civilians from the plant were yesterday expected to arrive in Zaporizhzhia, 230km northwest of Mariupol, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said. Photo: EPA-EFEThe evacuation, if successful, would represent rare progress in easing the human cost of the war, which has caused particular suffering in Mariupol. A Ukrainian woman from Mariupol cries after arriving at an evacuation center in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine, yesterday. Many people have managed to flee Mariupol under their own steam in the past few weeks, but others have been unable to escape.

Trade surplus to pass US$70bnStaff writer, with CNATaiwan’s trade surplus should hit a new high above US$70 billion this year, largely because of ongoing robust global demand for semiconductors, the Ministry of Finance said on Tuesday. Taiwan’s largest trade surplus to date was recorded last year at US$64.9 billion from growth in the electronic component industry, including semiconductor suppliers, the ministry said in a report. The uptrend seen in the industry is expected to continue this year and push the trade surplus to another new high, the ministry said. Taiwan’s trade surplus with the Chinese market has surged in the past few years, reaching a high of US$104.7 billion last year, the ministry said. The US was the largest source of Taiwan’s trade surplus in information and communications technology, as well as audio and video devices, the ministry said.

Construction of TSMC’s fab to begin next monthStaff writer, with CNAThe construction of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co’s (TSMC) new wafer plant in Kaohsiung is to begin next month, the Kaohsiung City government said on Saturday. The plant would be built in an industrial park in Nanzih District (楠梓) after the city releases the site to TSMC this month, the city government said in a statement. Photo courtesy of Kaohsiung City Government Economic Development BureauKaohsiung Mayor Chen Chi-mai (陳其邁) said his administration also on Saturday approved a plan establishing the Nanzih Industrial Park. Chen said development of the industrial park would proceed alongside construction of TSMC’s plant. The plant would use TSMC’s advanced 7-nanometer process and its mature 28-nanometer process to manufacture chips.

India confiscates US$725m from Xiaomi accountsAFP, NEW DELHIIndia seized US$725 million from the local bank accounts of Xiaomi Corp (小米) after a probe found the Chinese smartphone giant unlawfully sent money abroad in the guise of royalty payments, authorities said on Saturday. Xiaomi India has denied the allegations, saying late on Saturday that its “operations are firmly compliant with local laws and regulations.”“We believe our royalty payments and statements to the bank are all legit and truthful,” Xiaomi India wrote on Twitter. Other Chinese smartphone makers, including Huawei Technologies Co (華為), also had their Indian offices searched at the time. Anti-China sentiment has grown in India since the fatal 2020 troop clash, sparking calls for consumer boycotts of Chinese goods. China continues to be a key economic partner for India, with more than US$125 billion reported in bilateral trade last year.