Taiwan TSMC Equipment Design Plan Record High
April 16, 2021 (Friday) Clear; night may see sudden showers
・The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry and the Organization for Cross-regional Power Transmission (the Broad-area Organization) drafted a plan to increase regional transmission capacity by up to 23 million kW, doubling the current amount.
Multiple routes will be newly constructed or expanded between Hokkaido and the Kanto region, and between Kyushu and Honshu.
In order to massively deploy offshore wind power, which will become the main source of renewable energy, the development of wide-area transmission infrastructure, which had lagged behind Europe and others, is finally starting to move.
・Japan lacks a sufficiently developed system for exchanging power between regional blocks.
Major electric utilities, which have maintained regional monopolies, are avoiding competition and acting passively.
The utilization of the inter-regional transmission network was 87.4 billion kWh as of fiscal 2019, only about 8.5% of Japan's total generation (about 1 trillion kWh).
The plan to strengthen the transmission network assumes that 80% of offshore wind power will be located in suitable areas such as Hokkaido, Tohoku, and Kyushu, and
the system will be set up to smoothly deliver electricity to distant major consumption areas such as the Tokyo metropolitan area and the Kansai region.
・Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), the world’s leading semiconductor maker, announced on the 15th that it would revise its 2021 capital expenditure plan upward by 7%, reaching a record high of $30 billion (about 3.3 trillion yen).
This is a 74% increase from 2020, to meet strong demand.
The global semiconductor shortage remains severe across the industry and is expected to continue this year.
TSMC indicated that the supply-demand gap for advanced products for smartphones would be closed in 2022, and for automotive and other general products in 2023.
For the January–March 2021 quarter, profits reached a record high with a year-on-year increase of 17%, to 362.4 billion Taiwan dollars (about 1.4 trillion yen), with net profit up 19% to 139.6 billion Taiwan dollars.
・The government, on the 15th, decided to apply the “State of Emergency-like measures” (priority measures to prevent the spread) to Saitama, Kanagawa, Chiba, and Aichi.
These measures will cover ten prefectures. The period is expected to be from April 20 to May 11.
(Nikkei, front page)
・The Biden administration in the United States announced a corporate tax plan that is expected to raise about $2.5 trillion over 15 years and called on the international community to adopt a minimum tax rate.
It is also moving toward compromise on digital taxation targeting large IT (information technology) companies.
Rejecting the Trump administration and demanding fair share from the "haves," and channeling the revenue into public works for infrastructure development.
It boasts of a threefold aim—gaining support from its core base, achieving fairness in taxation, and funding infrastructure—as a single, unified policy.
・New variants of the coronavirus are spreading rapidly.
They have been detected in about 130 countries/regions worldwide, and in major European countries the share of new infections has exceeded 80% in many places.
As the variant with higher transmissibility spreads, the number of infections is increasing rapidly.
Accelerating vaccination is indispensable to curb the spread.
・Naruhiko Ninomiya, Secretary-General of the Liberal Democratic Party, on the 15th suggested that, depending on the infection situation, cancelling Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games could be an option, causing a broad reaction.
Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga on the same day at the Prime Minister's Official Residence emphasized, “We want to do everything to prevent infections in preparation for the games. This will not change.”
A government official stated that “cancellation is not possible.” Chief Cabinet Secretary Katsunobu Kato also reiterated that preparations for the Games should proceed firmly.
・On the 14th, U.S. President Joe Biden formally announced his plan to end the nearly 20-year war in Afghanistan and to withdraw U.S. troops by September 11.
This marks a shift away from the protracted, expensive “war on terrorism” toward countering China.
・Bank of Japan <8301> [Closing price 33,250 yen] April's regional economic report (Sakura Report) announced.
Of nine regions nationwide, two (Hokkaido and Tohoku) cut their assessments of the economy, while others remained unchanged from January.
While consumer spending declined in many regions due to the renewed spread of COVID-19,
production and capital investment also fell, with manufacturing and non-manufacturing sectors showing contrasting trends.
・Unpaid rent due to unemployment and income declines from COVID-19 are spreading.
U.S. authorities estimate total nationwide rent arrears at about $90 billion.
The U.S. government has implemented eviction moratoriums, but their deadline is set for the end of June.
Rent arrears could hinder landlords' loan repayments.
・Coinbase Global, the largest U.S. cryptocurrency exchange, listed on the Nasdaq on the 14th.
Its market capitalization reached 8 trillion yen, a historically high figure for a listing of a payments company.
Coinbase's first price was $381, well above the reference price of $250.
Market capitalization is $759 billion (about 8 trillion yen); when dilution is considered, it could reach $1 trillion.
Investors are hopeful because of growth in the blockchain business.
Currently, trading is the main source of revenue, but Coinbase is diversifying into cryptocurrency custody/maintenance services and non-fungible tokens (NFTs),
expanding into various cryptocurrency-related businesses with the aim of becoming the Amazon.com of the cryptocurrency and blockchain industry.
・TSMC (Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company), a leading semiconductor manufacturer, continues rapid expansion of its capital investments.
In 2021, capital expenditure rose 74% year-on-year to $30 billion, and plans to invest a total of about 11 trillion yen over the next three years.
President Biden on the 12th urged that we “reassert global leadership in semiconductors.”
However, the reality is that TSMC remains dominant.
The world is likely to further depend on TSMC, bearing the risk of excessive concentration.
・Australia's largest airline, Qantas Airways, announced on the 15th that domestic air transport capacity for April–June 2021 is expected to recover to about 90% of pre-pandemic levels.
As leisure demand rises and corporate travel returns, it is predicted to exceed pre-COVID levels by June 2022.
・Global COVID-19 infection numbers (daily new deaths) as of 4/15 4:00 PM, compiled by Johns Hopkins University: World total 1.3827 billion confirmed cases (13,417 new deaths)
United States 31,421,361 (956) India 14,074,564 (1,038) Brazil 13,673,507 (3,459) France 5,210,772 (297) Russia 4,313,646 (393) United Kingdom 4,393,330 (38)
Turkey 4,025,557 (279) Italy 3,809,193 (489) Spain 3,387,022 (131) Germany 3,085,142 (291) Poland 2,621,116 (804) Argentina 2,604,157 (368)
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