South Korea's semiconductor inventories dwindled by the most since 2014, underscoring the pace at which demand is outstripping supply as customers rev up their purchases of devices needed to develop artificial intelligence technologies.

As Taiwan M&A and Private Equity Council (MAPECT) commemorates its 10-year anniversary with the release of the 2024 Taiwan M&A Whitepaper on May 29.

Charles Shen, Chairperson of Zhen Ding, the major PCB company, stated that the first half of 2024, as in previous years, is the off-season for operations. However, compared to the lower point in the same period of 2023, there will still be annual growth. Shen emphasized that 2024 is a year of operational recovery for Zhen Ding, and the company will continue to implement its strategy of "aiming global, aiming high."

The new head of Samsung Electronics Co.'s semiconductor division urged employees to work their way past challenges in the business, making his first remarks to staff after the surprise departure of his predecessor last week.

Google committed to making $2 billion in investments in Malaysia, including developing its first data center and a cloud facility.

Groundhog Technologies, an AI software firm specializing in the telecommunications sector, predicts that the primary growth drivers for 2024-2025 will emerge from high-population regions like Southeast Asia, as 5G adoption accelerates in Europe, the US, and various Asian markets.

Samsung Electronics has recently expanded its workforce deployment at its new packaging R&D base in Yokohama, Japan, to expedite construction and support the development of next-generation semiconductor packaging technologies.

Sony's semiconductor business division, primarily focused on CMOS Image Sensors (CIS), plans to reduce its equipment investment amount in the next three fiscal years from 2024 to 2026 (April 2024 to March 2027) by about 30% compared to the previous three-year mid-term plan.

As China's automotive market plunges into intense internal price competition, Brightek Optoelectronic Co. focuses on automotive LED products as the main driver of its operational growth.

China's panel industry is accelerating its venture into the IT OLED market.

India introduced an import management system for imported notebooks and tablets, which displeased major exporters.

The Chinese government will likely take action to retain the country's leading position in the battery sector. State-owned media reported that China may offer CNY6 billion (US$844 million) to six major battery and EV makers to facilitate all-solid-state battery R&D.

Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim announced the National Semiconductor Strategy (NSS), with the government allocating MYR25 billion (US$5.3 billion) to foster industry development.

Samsung Display (SDC) and LG Display (LGD) have reportedly received mass production approval for Apple's iPhone 16 Pro OLED panels simultaneously. This development is anticipated to assist LGD in closing the gap with SDC in the iPhone OLED supply chain.

Google announced plans to launch an affordable Android One smartphone in India, suggesting it may not partner with Reliance Jio for smartphone development. Google is expected to ramp up its made-in-India efforts to compete in this highly competitive market.