TOP 5 STOCKS TO WATCHOUT :
1. #LG : - South Korea-based LG Electronics Inc said on Wednesday it has agreed to set up a $1 billion joint venture with automotive supplier Magna International Inc.
The JV, tentatively called LG Magna e-Powertrain, will manufacture e-motors, inverters, and onboard chargers, according to LG Electronics.
2. #WALMART -The U.S. Justice Department sued Walmart Inc on Tuesday, accusing the world's biggest retailer of fueling the opioid crisis in the United States, ignoring warning signs from its pharmacists and filling thousands of invalid prescriptions.
In a civil lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Delaware, the government said Walmart failed to take its gatekeeping duties as a pharmacy seriously, allegations the company rejected.
Walmart, whose shares closed down 1.2% following the news, said in a statement that the "Justice Department’s investigation is tainted by historical ethics violations, and this lawsuit invents a legal theory that unlawfully forces pharmacists to come between patients and their doctors, and is riddled with factual inaccuracies."
3. #KROGER:-After a strong year driven by increased shopping during the pandemic, Kroger's (KR) stock has fallen 30% in the past three months. Does this make the stock a Buy? Read more to find out whether you should consider adding this to your portfolio.
Kroger (KR) has been sliding since hitting $36.60 on September 1. The stock is now down to $30.79, the same level it traded at in early April. Investors have clearly taken some of their profits off the table. Let's take a look at whether KR is worthy of your investing dollars.
4. #ARAMCO:-Saudi Aramco Development Co, a subsidiary of Aramco, has teamed up with Google Cloud to offer cloud services to customers in Saudi Arabia, Aramco said on Monday.
Saudi Arabia, under its Vision 2030 reform plans, has encouraged foreign investment particularly in the technology sector and courted Silicon Valley players.
Aramco said Saudi Arabia is being added to the global network of Google Cloud Platform regions, as part of a strategic alliance agreement signed between the company and Google Cloud this month.
Google Cloud will establish and operate a new cloud region in Saudi Arabia, while a new company will be formed after required regulatory clearances to supply cloud solutions and services to customers, Aramco said.
5. #MICROSOFT CORP:-Microsoft Corp is working on in-house processors for the servers running its cloud-computing services and Surface line of personal computers, potentially cutting its reliance on Intel Corp, a person familiar with the matter told Reuters.
The chips would use technology from Arm Ltd, the person said, which is in the midst of being acquired by Nvidia Corp for $40 billion.
Microsoft relies heavily on Intel and Advanced Micro Devices Inc to supply the chips for its Azure cloud computing services as well as its Surface PCs.
1. #LG : - South Korea-based LG Electronics Inc said on Wednesday it has agreed to set up a $1 billion joint venture with automotive supplier Magna International Inc.
The JV, tentatively called LG Magna e-Powertrain, will manufacture e-motors, inverters, and onboard chargers, according to LG Electronics.
2. #WALMART -The U.S. Justice Department sued Walmart Inc on Tuesday, accusing the world's biggest retailer of fueling the opioid crisis in the United States, ignoring warning signs from its pharmacists and filling thousands of invalid prescriptions.
In a civil lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Delaware, the government said Walmart failed to take its gatekeeping duties as a pharmacy seriously, allegations the company rejected.
Walmart, whose shares closed down 1.2% following the news, said in a statement that the "Justice Department’s investigation is tainted by historical ethics violations, and this lawsuit invents a legal theory that unlawfully forces pharmacists to come between patients and their doctors, and is riddled with factual inaccuracies."
3. #KROGER:-After a strong year driven by increased shopping during the pandemic, Kroger's (KR) stock has fallen 30% in the past three months. Does this make the stock a Buy? Read more to find out whether you should consider adding this to your portfolio.
Kroger (KR) has been sliding since hitting $36.60 on September 1. The stock is now down to $30.79, the same level it traded at in early April. Investors have clearly taken some of their profits off the table. Let's take a look at whether KR is worthy of your investing dollars.
4. #ARAMCO:-Saudi Aramco Development Co, a subsidiary of Aramco, has teamed up with Google Cloud to offer cloud services to customers in Saudi Arabia, Aramco said on Monday.
Saudi Arabia, under its Vision 2030 reform plans, has encouraged foreign investment particularly in the technology sector and courted Silicon Valley players.
Aramco said Saudi Arabia is being added to the global network of Google Cloud Platform regions, as part of a strategic alliance agreement signed between the company and Google Cloud this month.
Google Cloud will establish and operate a new cloud region in Saudi Arabia, while a new company will be formed after required regulatory clearances to supply cloud solutions and services to customers, Aramco said.
5. #MICROSOFT CORP:-Microsoft Corp is working on in-house processors for the servers running its cloud-computing services and Surface line of personal computers, potentially cutting its reliance on Intel Corp, a person familiar with the matter told Reuters.
The chips would use technology from Arm Ltd, the person said, which is in the midst of being acquired by Nvidia Corp for $40 billion.
Microsoft relies heavily on Intel and Advanced Micro Devices Inc to supply the chips for its Azure cloud computing services as well as its Surface PCs.
TOP 5 STOCKS TO WATCHOUT:-
1.#Facebook:- Facebook Inc chief of advertising integrity, who handled the company's ad products around sensitive subjects such as politics and coronavirus misinformation, departed this week, according to an internal company post viewed by Reuters on Friday.
Rob Leathern, director of product management, said earlier this month on Facebook's internal network that he would be leaving the company on Dec. 30. His exit had not been previously reported.
Facebook could not immediately be reached for comment.
Leathern said in the post that he was "leaving Facebook to work on consumer privacy beyond just ads and social media," without disclosing where he was headed.
Leathern was often the public face of the company's controversial political advertising policies. Prior to the Nov. 3 U.S. election, Facebook was heavily criticized for allowing misleading claims and conspiracy theories to spread widely on its platforms.
2. #Sony :-Sony Corp said on Friday its PlayStation 5 (PS5) console will be launched in India in coming weeks as it tries to capitalise on the pandemic-driven boom in gaming.
"We are happy to announce that PS5 shall be launched in India on 2nd of February 2021," the Japanese firm tweeted from its PlayStation India Twitter handle.
Preorders for PS5 will begin on Jan 12 and will be available for orders at major retailers, including Amazon and Flipkart, the tech firm said.
Microsoft Corp launched two models of its Xbox gaming console in November, seven years after the debut of the previous version, while Sony launched its PS5 in core markets two days later
3.#Tencent:-Tencent's online games were removed and then reinstated on Huawei's app store on Friday in a dispute over revenue sharing by the Chinese companies.
Huawei was insisting on a 50% cut of Tencent's game sales on the app store and the Tencent games were removed because the companies had been unable to agree a deal, a Tencent source said.
Tencent sells some of the top-ranked online games worldwide while Huawei has a 41.4% share of the China mobile phone market and 14.9% of the global market, data from market researchers IDC and Canalys shows.
The games were reinstated on the app store after further negotiations, Tencent said, adding that "both sides will continue to work together to bring better experiences and services to consumers".
4. #AMAZON:-Amazon.com Inc said on Wednesday it would acquire podcast startup Wondery, aiming to beef up non-musical content on its Amazon Music app.
Earlier this month, the Wall Street Journal reported that the firms were in deal talks, pegging Wondery at a valuation of more than $300 million.
Amazon is relatiTechnology, which has been investing in big names in an effort to become the Netflix of audio content.
5.#LG:- Indonesia and a unit of South Korean firm LG Group have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on a $9.8 billion electric vehicle (EV) battery investment deal, the head of Indonesia's Investment Coordinating Board said on Wednesday.
The deal was signed on Dec. 18 and includes investments across the EV supply chain.
An official at LG Energy Solution, a unit of LG Group, South Korea's fourth-largest conglomerate, confirmed it had agreed an MOU but could not provide details or the deal's value. LG Group in Seoul referred Reuters to its affiliate.
1.#Facebook:- Facebook Inc chief of advertising integrity, who handled the company's ad products around sensitive subjects such as politics and coronavirus misinformation, departed this week, according to an internal company post viewed by Reuters on Friday.
Rob Leathern, director of product management, said earlier this month on Facebook's internal network that he would be leaving the company on Dec. 30. His exit had not been previously reported.
Facebook could not immediately be reached for comment.
Leathern said in the post that he was "leaving Facebook to work on consumer privacy beyond just ads and social media," without disclosing where he was headed.
Leathern was often the public face of the company's controversial political advertising policies. Prior to the Nov. 3 U.S. election, Facebook was heavily criticized for allowing misleading claims and conspiracy theories to spread widely on its platforms.
2. #Sony :-Sony Corp said on Friday its PlayStation 5 (PS5) console will be launched in India in coming weeks as it tries to capitalise on the pandemic-driven boom in gaming.
"We are happy to announce that PS5 shall be launched in India on 2nd of February 2021," the Japanese firm tweeted from its PlayStation India Twitter handle.
Preorders for PS5 will begin on Jan 12 and will be available for orders at major retailers, including Amazon and Flipkart, the tech firm said.
Microsoft Corp launched two models of its Xbox gaming console in November, seven years after the debut of the previous version, while Sony launched its PS5 in core markets two days later
3.#Tencent:-Tencent's online games were removed and then reinstated on Huawei's app store on Friday in a dispute over revenue sharing by the Chinese companies.
Huawei was insisting on a 50% cut of Tencent's game sales on the app store and the Tencent games were removed because the companies had been unable to agree a deal, a Tencent source said.
Tencent sells some of the top-ranked online games worldwide while Huawei has a 41.4% share of the China mobile phone market and 14.9% of the global market, data from market researchers IDC and Canalys shows.
The games were reinstated on the app store after further negotiations, Tencent said, adding that "both sides will continue to work together to bring better experiences and services to consumers".
4. #AMAZON:-Amazon.com Inc said on Wednesday it would acquire podcast startup Wondery, aiming to beef up non-musical content on its Amazon Music app.
Earlier this month, the Wall Street Journal reported that the firms were in deal talks, pegging Wondery at a valuation of more than $300 million.
Amazon is relatiTechnology, which has been investing in big names in an effort to become the Netflix of audio content.
5.#LG:- Indonesia and a unit of South Korean firm LG Group have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on a $9.8 billion electric vehicle (EV) battery investment deal, the head of Indonesia's Investment Coordinating Board said on Wednesday.
The deal was signed on Dec. 18 and includes investments across the EV supply chain.
An official at LG Energy Solution, a unit of LG Group, South Korea's fourth-largest conglomerate, confirmed it had agreed an MOU but could not provide details or the deal's value. LG Group in Seoul referred Reuters to its affiliate.
TOP 5 STOCKS TO WATCHOUT:-
1.#Facebook:- Facebook Inc chief of advertising integrity, who handled the company's ad products around sensitive subjects such as politics and coronavirus misinformation, departed this week, according to an internal company post viewed by Reuters on Friday.
Rob Leathern, director of product management, said earlier this month on Facebook's internal network that he would be leaving the company on Dec. 30. His exit had not been previously reported.
Facebook could not immediately be reached for comment.
Leathern said in the post that he was "leaving Facebook to work on consumer privacy beyond just ads and social media," without disclosing where he was headed.
Leathern was often the public face of the company's controversial political advertising policies. Prior to the Nov. 3 U.S. election, Facebook was heavily criticized for allowing misleading claims and conspiracy theories to spread widely on its platforms.
2. #Sony :-Sony Corp said on Friday its PlayStation 5 (PS5) console will be launched in India in coming weeks as it tries to capitalise on the pandemic-driven boom in gaming.
"We are happy to announce that PS5 shall be launched in India on 2nd of February 2021," the Japanese firm tweeted from its PlayStation India Twitter handle.
Preorders for PS5 will begin on Jan 12 and will be available for orders at major retailers, including Amazon and Flipkart, the tech firm said.
Microsoft Corp launched two models of its Xbox gaming console in November, seven years after the debut of the previous version, while Sony launched its PS5 in core markets two days later
3.#Tencent:-Tencent's online games were removed and then reinstated on Huawei's app store on Friday in a dispute over revenue sharing by the Chinese companies.
Huawei was insisting on a 50% cut of Tencent's game sales on the app store and the Tencent games were removed because the companies had been unable to agree a deal, a Tencent source said.
Tencent sells some of the top-ranked online games worldwide while Huawei has a 41.4% share of the China mobile phone market and 14.9% of the global market, data from market researchers IDC and Canalys shows.
The games were reinstated on the app store after further negotiations, Tencent said, adding that "both sides will continue to work together to bring better experiences and services to consumers".
4. #AMAZON:-Amazon.com Inc said on Wednesday it would acquire podcast startup Wondery, aiming to beef up non-musical content on its Amazon Music app.
Earlier this month, the Wall Street Journal reported that the firms were in deal talks, pegging Wondery at a valuation of more than $300 million.
Amazon is relatiTechnology, which has been investing in big names in an effort to become the Netflix of audio content.
5.#LG:- Indonesia and a unit of South Korean firm LG Group have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on a $9.8 billion electric vehicle (EV) battery investment deal, the head of Indonesia's Investment Coordinating Board said on Wednesday.
The deal was signed on Dec. 18 and includes investments across the EV supply chain.
An official at LG Energy Solution, a unit of LG Group, South Korea's fourth-largest conglomerate, confirmed it had agreed an MOU but could not provide details or the deal's value. LG Group in Seoul referred Reuters to its affiliate.
1.#Facebook:- Facebook Inc chief of advertising integrity, who handled the company's ad products around sensitive subjects such as politics and coronavirus misinformation, departed this week, according to an internal company post viewed by Reuters on Friday.
Rob Leathern, director of product management, said earlier this month on Facebook's internal network that he would be leaving the company on Dec. 30. His exit had not been previously reported.
Facebook could not immediately be reached for comment.
Leathern said in the post that he was "leaving Facebook to work on consumer privacy beyond just ads and social media," without disclosing where he was headed.
Leathern was often the public face of the company's controversial political advertising policies. Prior to the Nov. 3 U.S. election, Facebook was heavily criticized for allowing misleading claims and conspiracy theories to spread widely on its platforms.
2. #Sony :-Sony Corp said on Friday its PlayStation 5 (PS5) console will be launched in India in coming weeks as it tries to capitalise on the pandemic-driven boom in gaming.
"We are happy to announce that PS5 shall be launched in India on 2nd of February 2021," the Japanese firm tweeted from its PlayStation India Twitter handle.
Preorders for PS5 will begin on Jan 12 and will be available for orders at major retailers, including Amazon and Flipkart, the tech firm said.
Microsoft Corp launched two models of its Xbox gaming console in November, seven years after the debut of the previous version, while Sony launched its PS5 in core markets two days later
3.#Tencent:-Tencent's online games were removed and then reinstated on Huawei's app store on Friday in a dispute over revenue sharing by the Chinese companies.
Huawei was insisting on a 50% cut of Tencent's game sales on the app store and the Tencent games were removed because the companies had been unable to agree a deal, a Tencent source said.
Tencent sells some of the top-ranked online games worldwide while Huawei has a 41.4% share of the China mobile phone market and 14.9% of the global market, data from market researchers IDC and Canalys shows.
The games were reinstated on the app store after further negotiations, Tencent said, adding that "both sides will continue to work together to bring better experiences and services to consumers".
4. #AMAZON:-Amazon.com Inc said on Wednesday it would acquire podcast startup Wondery, aiming to beef up non-musical content on its Amazon Music app.
Earlier this month, the Wall Street Journal reported that the firms were in deal talks, pegging Wondery at a valuation of more than $300 million.
Amazon is relatiTechnology, which has been investing in big names in an effort to become the Netflix of audio content.
5.#LG:- Indonesia and a unit of South Korean firm LG Group have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on a $9.8 billion electric vehicle (EV) battery investment deal, the head of Indonesia's Investment Coordinating Board said on Wednesday.
The deal was signed on Dec. 18 and includes investments across the EV supply chain.
An official at LG Energy Solution, a unit of LG Group, South Korea's fourth-largest conglomerate, confirmed it had agreed an MOU but could not provide details or the deal's value. LG Group in Seoul referred Reuters to its affiliate.
TOP 5 STOCKS TO WATCHOUT:-
1.#GOOGLE- EU antitrust regulators have sought information from advertisers regarding Google advertising technology practices, a European Commission document seen by Reuters shows.
Alphabet-owned Google, the world's largest online search engine, has been hit with fines totalling 8.25 billion euros ($10 billion) in the last three years for blocking rivals in online shopping, Android smartphones and online advertising.
It now faces two European Union investigations into its advertising practices, focused on technology and data.
Google and Facebook together capture over half of the internet ad sales market globally. Both companies are currently the target of a U.S. lawsuit over their 2018 deal which gives Facebook's advertiser clients the option to place ads within Google's network of publishing partners
2.#LG :-South Korea's LG Electronics said on Wednesday it was considering all options for its loss-making mobile division, which analysts said could include shutting its smartphone business or selling off parts of the unit.
LG said in a statement that 23 consecutive quarters of losses in its mobile business had totalled around 5 trillion won ($4.5 billion) amid stiff competition.
Shares in LG closed up 12.8%, against a rise of 0.7% in the broader KOSPI index.
"In the global market, competition in the mobile business including smartphones has gotten fiercer," LG said in the clearest sign yet that it could be considering a winding down of the troubled business.
"LG Electronics believes we have reached the point where we need to make the best decision about our mobile phone business, considering current and future competitiveness."
Chief Executive Brian Kwon said the company planned to retain employees regardless of what happened to the mobile unit.
3.#AMAZON:- Amazon is suing EU antitrust regulators for allowing the Italian competition watchdog to pursue its own case against the U.S. online retail giant over the way it selects sellers, arguing that this should be wrapped into an EU investigation.
Amazon took its case to the Luxembourg-based General Court, Europe's second-highest, on Tuesday, asking it to annul the EU's decision to exclude Italy from the wider investigation, a court filing shows.
The move came two months after the European Commission opened an investigation into the criteria the company uses to select winners of its "buy box", which allows customers to add items from a specific retailer directly into their shopping carts.
The probe will also examine whether the company gives preferential treatment to its own retail offers and marketplace sellers that use its logistics and delivery services.
The Italian case was launched in 2019 over the same issue but focuses on the Italian logistics markets.
Amazon said the EU should absorb the Italian case for the sake of consistency and efficiency.
4. #TWITTER:-Twitter has locked the account of China's U.S. embassy for a tweet that defended China's policies in the Xinjiang region, which the U.S. social media platform said violated the firm's policy against "dehumanization".
The Chinese Embassy account, @ChineseEmbinUS, posted a tweet this month that said that Uighur women were no longer "baby making machines," citing a study reported by state-backed newspaper China Daily.
The tweet was removed by Twitter and replaced by a label stating that it was no longer available. Although Twitter hides tweets that violate its policies, it requires account owners to manually delete such posts. The Chinese embassy's account has not posted any new tweets since Jan. 9.
Twitter's suspension of the embassy's account came a day after the Trump administration, in its final hours, accused China of committing genocide in Xinjiang, a finding endorsed by the incoming Biden administration.
The Biden administration did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Twitter's move.
1.#GOOGLE- EU antitrust regulators have sought information from advertisers regarding Google advertising technology practices, a European Commission document seen by Reuters shows.
Alphabet-owned Google, the world's largest online search engine, has been hit with fines totalling 8.25 billion euros ($10 billion) in the last three years for blocking rivals in online shopping, Android smartphones and online advertising.
It now faces two European Union investigations into its advertising practices, focused on technology and data.
Google and Facebook together capture over half of the internet ad sales market globally. Both companies are currently the target of a U.S. lawsuit over their 2018 deal which gives Facebook's advertiser clients the option to place ads within Google's network of publishing partners
2.#LG :-South Korea's LG Electronics said on Wednesday it was considering all options for its loss-making mobile division, which analysts said could include shutting its smartphone business or selling off parts of the unit.
LG said in a statement that 23 consecutive quarters of losses in its mobile business had totalled around 5 trillion won ($4.5 billion) amid stiff competition.
Shares in LG closed up 12.8%, against a rise of 0.7% in the broader KOSPI index.
"In the global market, competition in the mobile business including smartphones has gotten fiercer," LG said in the clearest sign yet that it could be considering a winding down of the troubled business.
"LG Electronics believes we have reached the point where we need to make the best decision about our mobile phone business, considering current and future competitiveness."
Chief Executive Brian Kwon said the company planned to retain employees regardless of what happened to the mobile unit.
3.#AMAZON:- Amazon is suing EU antitrust regulators for allowing the Italian competition watchdog to pursue its own case against the U.S. online retail giant over the way it selects sellers, arguing that this should be wrapped into an EU investigation.
Amazon took its case to the Luxembourg-based General Court, Europe's second-highest, on Tuesday, asking it to annul the EU's decision to exclude Italy from the wider investigation, a court filing shows.
The move came two months after the European Commission opened an investigation into the criteria the company uses to select winners of its "buy box", which allows customers to add items from a specific retailer directly into their shopping carts.
The probe will also examine whether the company gives preferential treatment to its own retail offers and marketplace sellers that use its logistics and delivery services.
The Italian case was launched in 2019 over the same issue but focuses on the Italian logistics markets.
Amazon said the EU should absorb the Italian case for the sake of consistency and efficiency.
4. #TWITTER:-Twitter has locked the account of China's U.S. embassy for a tweet that defended China's policies in the Xinjiang region, which the U.S. social media platform said violated the firm's policy against "dehumanization".
The Chinese Embassy account, @ChineseEmbinUS, posted a tweet this month that said that Uighur women were no longer "baby making machines," citing a study reported by state-backed newspaper China Daily.
The tweet was removed by Twitter and replaced by a label stating that it was no longer available. Although Twitter hides tweets that violate its policies, it requires account owners to manually delete such posts. The Chinese embassy's account has not posted any new tweets since Jan. 9.
Twitter's suspension of the embassy's account came a day after the Trump administration, in its final hours, accused China of committing genocide in Xinjiang, a finding endorsed by the incoming Biden administration.
The Biden administration did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Twitter's move.
TOP 5 STOCKS TO WATCHOUT:-
1.#BYTE DANCE - An Indian court on Tuesday dealt a blow to China's ByteDance by dismissing its plea to unblock its bank accounts which have been frozen by federal authorities investigating alleged tax evasion.
An Indian tax intelligence agency in mid-March ordered HSBC and Citibank in Mumbai to freeze accounts of ByteDance India as it probed some of the firm's financial dealings. ByteDance challenged the move in court saying the freeze amounts to harassment and was done illegally.
After a government counsel said ByteDance owed the authorities about 790 million rupees ($11 million), the High Court in Mumbai said the company will need to keep that amount blocked in a state-run bank.
That "account will be frozen", the two-judge bench said.
2.#LG ELECTRONICS:- LG Electronics' move to exit its loss-making mobile business is expected to create more opportunities for Samsung than its other rivals in the lucrative North American smartphone market, analysts said.
LG's U.S. market share currently stands at about 10%, research firms Gartner and Counterpoint estimated, adding it was stronger in markets where it partnered with telecom companies to include its devices as part of a mobile plan.
"Apple tends to cater to the higher end of the (U.S.) market; so it might grab a small portion of LG's sales," Gartner analyst Tuong Nguyen said. "It's more likely that Samsung inherits a lot of it because both vendors compete across similar markets."
Globally, LG's market share shrank to 2% in 2020, a massive drop from its status as the world's third-largest smartphone maker behind Samsung Electronics and Apple Incduring its peak in 2013.
The company shipped 23 million phones last year, compared with Samsung's 256 million, according to Counterpoint.
Counterpoint analyst Tarun Pathak said LG was mostly competing in the mid-tier, as its flagship phones received a tepid market response.
"So it will be mostly the Chinese and mid-tier brands benefiting through the LG exit. In its key market like USA – Samsung, Motorola, HMD mostly, Alcatel to a lesser extent) will benefit, while Xiaomi Motorola will benefit in LATAM and Samsung in Korea," Pathak added.
Tech enthusiasts on Twitter lamented the exit of the once-ubiquitous name in the smartphone industry, with many crediting LG for pioneering the now-familiar features such as ultra-wide-angle camera and capacitive touchscreen in mobile devices.
"They didn't always ace every phone, but losing them means losing a competitor that was willing to try new things, even when they didn't work," popular YouTuber Marques Brownlee said in a tweet.
3.#ACER:-A global shortage of chips for mid-end consumer products is starting to ease and will be much better come the second half of the year, a senior executive at Taiwan's Acer Inc, the world's No. 5 PC vendor by shipments, said on Tuesday.
From delayed car deliveries to a supply shortfall in home appliances to costlier smartphones, businesses and consumers across the globe are facing the brunt of an unprecedented shortage in semiconductor microchips.
Originally concentrated in the auto industry, the shortage has now spread to a range of other consumer electronics, including smartphones, refrigerators and microwaves.
Andrew Hou, Acer's president for Pan-Asia Pacific Operations, told reporters in Taipei that since the problem first became apparent in the fourth quarter of last year, the supply chain has "jumped into action" as suppliers worked to address the situation.
Hou said he expected better supplies in the second quarter compared with the first quarter of this year, and that the situation in the second half will be better than the second quarter.
"That's what we are seeing at the moment," he added.
The shortage stems from a confluence of factors as carmakers, which shut plants during the COVID-19 pandemic last year, compete against the sprawling consumer electronics industry for chip supplies.
1.#BYTE DANCE - An Indian court on Tuesday dealt a blow to China's ByteDance by dismissing its plea to unblock its bank accounts which have been frozen by federal authorities investigating alleged tax evasion.
An Indian tax intelligence agency in mid-March ordered HSBC and Citibank in Mumbai to freeze accounts of ByteDance India as it probed some of the firm's financial dealings. ByteDance challenged the move in court saying the freeze amounts to harassment and was done illegally.
After a government counsel said ByteDance owed the authorities about 790 million rupees ($11 million), the High Court in Mumbai said the company will need to keep that amount blocked in a state-run bank.
That "account will be frozen", the two-judge bench said.
2.#LG ELECTRONICS:- LG Electronics' move to exit its loss-making mobile business is expected to create more opportunities for Samsung than its other rivals in the lucrative North American smartphone market, analysts said.
LG's U.S. market share currently stands at about 10%, research firms Gartner and Counterpoint estimated, adding it was stronger in markets where it partnered with telecom companies to include its devices as part of a mobile plan.
"Apple tends to cater to the higher end of the (U.S.) market; so it might grab a small portion of LG's sales," Gartner analyst Tuong Nguyen said. "It's more likely that Samsung inherits a lot of it because both vendors compete across similar markets."
Globally, LG's market share shrank to 2% in 2020, a massive drop from its status as the world's third-largest smartphone maker behind Samsung Electronics and Apple Incduring its peak in 2013.
The company shipped 23 million phones last year, compared with Samsung's 256 million, according to Counterpoint.
Counterpoint analyst Tarun Pathak said LG was mostly competing in the mid-tier, as its flagship phones received a tepid market response.
"So it will be mostly the Chinese and mid-tier brands benefiting through the LG exit. In its key market like USA – Samsung, Motorola, HMD mostly, Alcatel to a lesser extent) will benefit, while Xiaomi Motorola will benefit in LATAM and Samsung in Korea," Pathak added.
Tech enthusiasts on Twitter lamented the exit of the once-ubiquitous name in the smartphone industry, with many crediting LG for pioneering the now-familiar features such as ultra-wide-angle camera and capacitive touchscreen in mobile devices.
"They didn't always ace every phone, but losing them means losing a competitor that was willing to try new things, even when they didn't work," popular YouTuber Marques Brownlee said in a tweet.
3.#ACER:-A global shortage of chips for mid-end consumer products is starting to ease and will be much better come the second half of the year, a senior executive at Taiwan's Acer Inc, the world's No. 5 PC vendor by shipments, said on Tuesday.
From delayed car deliveries to a supply shortfall in home appliances to costlier smartphones, businesses and consumers across the globe are facing the brunt of an unprecedented shortage in semiconductor microchips.
Originally concentrated in the auto industry, the shortage has now spread to a range of other consumer electronics, including smartphones, refrigerators and microwaves.
Andrew Hou, Acer's president for Pan-Asia Pacific Operations, told reporters in Taipei that since the problem first became apparent in the fourth quarter of last year, the supply chain has "jumped into action" as suppliers worked to address the situation.
Hou said he expected better supplies in the second quarter compared with the first quarter of this year, and that the situation in the second half will be better than the second quarter.
"That's what we are seeing at the moment," he added.
The shortage stems from a confluence of factors as carmakers, which shut plants during the COVID-19 pandemic last year, compete against the sprawling consumer electronics industry for chip supplies.