13/11/2026

BIZ & FINANCE FRIDAY | NOV 13, 2026

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Taiwan union ends bonus talks with Micron after ‘defeat’ TAIPEI: A union representing workers at a Micron Technology plant in Taiwan said yesterday it will pull out of further talks with the US chip giant after “our defeat” in trying to secure a new profit-sharing deal. Surging global demand for chips used in AI data centres has sent revenues soaring for firms like Micron, and as their earnings skyrocket, workers are calling for a bigger cut of profits. Micron, which makes around 50-60 per cent of its memory chips in Taiwan, has been locked in weeks of talks over remuneration with a union representing hundreds of workers at its Taoyuan plant. More than 2,000 employees had threatened to strike as they pushed for a bigger share of the company’s earnings. In the end, only a handful of employees stopped working for one day. “We formally acknowledge that our campaign to secure a profit sharing system has not been successful, and we must continue our efforts in the future,“ the union representing the Taoyuan workers said in a statement, acknowledging “our defeat”. The union said its members could go ahead with the company’s requirement to sign an agreement “waiving the right to future disputes” in order to receive “bonuses and other new employment benefits”. It added it will “no longer participate” in negotiations scheduled for Nov 17. Micron denied that it had required employees to “sign individual agreements or to waive any rights”. “Micron respects team members’ lawful rights to organise a union and to engage in collective bargaining,“ the company said in a statement, adding that it will “continue to seek constructive dialogue with the Taoyuan Union”. At Micron’s larger plant in Taichung, the union representing thousands of workers there signed an agreement with the company last month after they “reached consensus on a number of matters”, a joint statement said at the time. – AFP

Foxconn beats forecasts, bullish on outlook

NT$70.3 billion in a Bloomberg survey of analysts. Revenue for the three months was up 39 percent at NT$7.7 trillion. Chief financial officer David Huang said Foxconn’s “third-quarter revenue, operating income, net income, and earnings per share all reached record quarterly highs”. “AI servers have become Foxconn’s most important growth driver,” chairman Young Liu told a briefing. Looking ahead, he said “we remain very confident in next year’s operations and believe growth will continue”. But he warned of stubborn bottlenecks in the AI and consumer electronics supply chains, with overall demand “still expected to

outpace supply heading into next year”. That will mean “tight supply-demand conditions may persist for some time”, he said. Foxconn has a longstanding partnership with Nvidia. In one of their collaborations, the companies are working to build an “AI factory supercomputer” in Taiwan. Governments and tech giants have been pouring huge sums into building data centres that can train and run AI tools such as chatbots, image generators and agents that can execute tasks. The buildout has turbocharged business for Foxconn – which makes the servers used in the centres – but any slowdown could potentially hurt the company’s bottom line. – AFP

o Record Q3 net profit as global buildout of data centres fuels demand for AI servers

TAIPEI: Taiwanese tech giant Foxconn yesterday reported a record net profit for the third quarter, as the global buildout of data centres fuels demand for the AI servers needed to operate them. The world’s largest electronics contract manufacturer has gone beyond making low-margin iPhones to producing AI servers for US tech titan Nvidia, as well as electric vehicles and robots. Its shares and those of other tech firms plunged last week after the Democrats’s sweep of Congress in the

US midterms would allow them to ramp up AI regulation and slow the data centre expansion. Foxconn partner Nvidia has also weighed on sentiment, with US media reporting the company’s board is preparing to oust CEO Jensen Huang after revelations of his extramarital affairs, including with an alleged Chinese spy. Foxconn said net profit for July-September hit NT$77.5 billion (RM9.8 billion), up 34 per cent on year. The result beat estimates of

A Foxconn logo on a building in Tucheng district, New Taipei City. – AFPPIC

India to ban private equity firms from controlling multiple non-bank lenders MUMBAI: India’s central bank is working on proposals that would prevent private equity firms from holding a controlling stake in more than one non-bank lender, two people with knowledge of the plans said. Under Indian law, control is defined as a large stake – 25% in the case of listed firms – though ownership can be smaller and still be considered a controlling stake if the investor has the right to appoint a majority of the directors or can control a firm’s management or policy decisions. loan delinquencies remain low. About $5.4 billion in private equity investments flowed into India’s financial sector last year, up 6% from 2024 and 17% higher than levels for 2023, according to data from Grant Thornton. Another $3.6 billion has come in this year through to end-September. non-private equity firms. Japan’s Mizuho Financial Group has majority stakes in two non-bank lenders, Mizuho Capsave and Credit Saison India, and has said it plans to acquire KKR-backed financial services firm Avendus. stakes of more than 20% in multiple non-banking financial companies.

Siddarth M Pai, co-chairman of the association’s regulatory affairs committee and founder of venture capital firm 3one4 Capital, said that many private equity firms and venture capital funds want to include fintech and financial services across their various funds, but face issues due to ownership thresholds. This week saw two large private equity transactions in non-bank lenders. Blackstone agreed to buy 16% of IIFL Finance for US$535 million, while Singapore’s Temasek will invest roughly US$265 million in Godrej Capital. – Reuters

The central bank has asked Mizuho to submit a comprehensive plan to integrate or consolidate its existing Indian non-bank financial firms, media have reported. Mizuho Securities did not immediately reply to a Reuters request for comment. The Indian Venture and Alternate Capital Association has lobbied the RBI, seeking permission for different entities within a group to acquire

It is concerned that financial stress at a global private equity firm or its affiliates could have a contagion effect across several non-bank lenders in which it has significant investments, they said. Authorities, however, hope to encourage smaller financial investments that will be subject to lesser scrutiny, the people added, declining to be identified as the discussions are private.

The RBI has at times moved to prevent controlling investments in multiple non-bank lenders. US private equity firm Bain Capital’s purchase of 41.7% of Manappuram Finance last year was approved on condition that it divest its 93% ownership in another non-bank lender Tyger Capital, formerly Adani Capital. The principle has also applied to

Holdings of 15% or less will be considered a financial investment and attract less scrutiny, according to one of the people. A draft of the rules will be finalised after public consultation and they could be formally issued early next year, the person said. Indian banks and non-bank lenders have seen a rush of foreign investor interest as demand for credit in the economy remains strong and