MCU specialist Nuvoton Technology has seen the synergies from its 2019 acquisition of Panasonic Semiconductor Solutions (PSCS) start paying off, given its sharp revenue and profit gains in the first half of the year, according to company chairman Yuan-Mou Su.

Taiwan-based LCD panel makers continue to feel the impact of chip shortages, which will likely persist for the next 2-3 years, according to industry sources.

Taiwan-based Nan Ya PCB expects its revenues to grow quarter by quarter in the second half of the year along with gradual capacity expansions at its plants in Taiwan and China, after posting impressive business results in second-quarter 2021.

Innolux has disclosed it will sign a 12-year (2021-2033) contract with SDP Global (China) for the latter to supply 10.5G panels during 2021-2033, and will pay CNY4 billion (US$618 million) in installment for the deal.

Taiwan's shipments of small- to medium-size LCD panels are expected to edge down 1.1% sequentially in the third quarter of 2021 after growing 11.7% in the second quarter, according to Digitimes Research.

Taiwan-based Coretronic, dedicated to LCD backlight solutions and digital projectors, has projected its shipments for TV and commercial-use notebook applications to grow significantly in the third quarter of 2021 and those for education-use Chromebooks will stay flat.

Electric vehicles (EV) are changing the ecosystems of the carmaking industry. Many companies with different backgrounds, such as in ICT or even the smartphone industry, are entering this market. More and more startups are also expected to join this game in the future. MIH Alliance, a Foxconn (Hon Hai)-led initiative for developing EVs, has built an open platform to connect the carmaking companies and components suppliers. MIH even aims to electrify all buses in Taiwan in the next five years, according to Jack Cheng, CEO of MIH Alliance.

Tata Motors' EV model Nexon EV sold 26 million cars in 2020 in India, two times more than MG Motors' ZS, according to RushLane.

Spain-based Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy has kicked off assembly of nacelles for offshore wind turbines at its factory near Taichung Harbor, central Taiwan, and has completed the first nacelle, according to the company's Taiwan office.

Device assembler Pegatron has expressed optimism about its consolidated sales outlook for the second half of 2021, as the ongoing shortage of upstream chips and components is expected to increasingly improve along with suppliers ramping up their production scales.

Vietnam has emerged as a major production hub for the global supply chain, with manufacturing equipment upgrades promising huge business opportunities.

Optical lens maker Calin Technology sees brisk order visibility for camera lens for use in security control, video conferencing and automotive applications, but has expressed concerns that a resurgence of the COVID-19 outbreak in Southeast Asia may disrupt the supply chain.

China-based vendors shipped a total of 160 million smartphones worldwide in the second quarter of 2021, down 16.4% sequentially and 3.2% on year. But shipments will rebound to a 14% sequential increase in the third quarter, according to Digitimes Research.

India-based Reliance has been encouraging local consumers to swtich from feature phones to smartphones, but several other brands such as Realme and HMD Global are instead releasing more new feature phones in the country to expand their local presence.

Apple is expected to significantly increase its pull-ins of components shipments for new iPhones in the second half of the year, driven by its impressive growth in market share in China for high-end 5G models, according to industry sources.