Computer Hardware

Chip crisis short-circuits Kickstarter economy

2 Jul 2021

Cheap Chinese components enabled quirky upstarts making plant synthesisers and the like to thrive on crowdfunding sites. But the semiconductor shortage has pushed them to the back of the line as heavyweights like Apple muscle in. Many won’t survive, to gadget geeks’ grief.

Tech IPO gives bad SPAC deals run for their money

15 Jun 2021

Macquarie-sponsored Nuix’s CEO and CFO resigned after poor earnings and forecast revisions within six months of taking the Australian software maker public. Blank-cheque deals like Lordstown are known for hype and under-delivery, and now this ordinary listing has managed it too.

Electronic waste unearths green China unicorn

8 Jun 2021

Used-phone retailer Aihuishou wants to go public at a $5 bln valuation. Thanks to frugal and environmentally conscious shoppers, demand for second-hand goods is booming. The company has yet to turn a profit, but backer JD's deep pockets and rare ESG credentials should appeal.

Capital Calls: Klarna, Dan Loeb, Fashion IPO

28 May 2021

Concise views on global finance: The Swedish “buy now, pay later” group’s possible $50 bln price tag may leapfrog rivals Afterpay and Affirm; the corporate agitator deserves a taste of his own medicine; About You’s mooted 3 bln euro valuation implies a discount to rivals.

Huawei gets pushed toward collision with Alibaba

26 May 2021

Founder Ren Zhengfei wants his embattled hardware company to shift focus to cloud computing and software. That will pit him against the $570 bln e-commerce giant, which is also moving into IT services. Huawei's scale and resources make it a formidable threat.

Apple App Store success has a dark side

28 Apr 2021

A 26% rise in services revenue in the first quarter helped the $2.3 trln firm’s top line grow 54%. But Match, Epic Games and others are testing its lording power. U.S. regulators forced Microsoft to give consumers more choice with products. Apple could face a similar reckoning.

Everyone’s chipmaker deftly tries to please all

15 Apr 2021

A global shortage spotlights TSMC's near-monopoly in manufacturing advanced semiconductors. It's raising capex 66% as earnings soar and foreign governments lobby it to boost output. That’s a huge spending jump but the $560 bln giant has a strong track record of managing risk.

Memory giants delay consolidation at own risk

9 Apr 2021

Selling Japan's Kioxia to a larger rival would help rationalise a sector prone to price wars and over-capacity. Regulatory risks and volatile returns may deter buyers like the $107 bln Micron. Without more scale, though, chip champions will be vulnerable to Chinese entrants.

CVC’s Toshiba bid puts a breakup on the table

7 Apr 2021

The buyout barbarians at Tokyo’s gates may be offering more than $20 bln for the conglomerate. Toshiba has been struggling amid governance issues. But its assets could collectively be worth more than double CVC’s bid. Carving up the company could give shareholders a better deal.

Chinese AI dragon confronts fiery new realities

1 Apr 2021

Megvii wants to raise over $900 mln in a Shanghai IPO after a U.S. blacklist torpedoed its 2019 Hong Kong listing. Revenue growth is slowing and losses widening, as Beijing proceeds with its own crackdowns. It also may not be the best time to have Alibaba and Ant as big backers.

Capital Calls: Airline IPO, Turkey’s central bank

18 Mar 2021

Concise views on global finance in the Covid-19 era: U.S. regional air carrier Sun Country Airlines’ IPO pop is justified by positive cash flow; Turkey shows how emerging-market policymakers face trickier choices than their rich-world peers.

Microsoft hack reveals cloud pluses, cyber minuses

8 Mar 2021

Tens of thousands of organisations’ email systems were compromised by flaws in the giant’s software. It’s the second massive security problem in a few months, this time allegedly China’s doing. Fully cloud-based services were spared, but many lessons still need to be learned.

A stripped-down BYD would run faster

17 Feb 2021

The Chinese automaker’s $3.8 bln share sale tapped a craze for electric vehicles. Yet even after a 500% rally over the last year, its Hong Kong stock looks cheap next to Nio and others. Separating battery-powered cars from other businesses could be one way to narrow the gap.

Apple’s new golden goose is at risk of plucking

27 Jan 2021

The $2.4 trln tech group made $15.8 bln in revenue from services last quarter. If growth keeps up, subscriptions and such could be more profitable than the iPhone within a few years. It's also where Apple is most vulnerable to antitrust pressure from regulators and customers.

Corona Capital: Bank of America, Halliburton, NBA

19 Jan 2021

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Bank of America’s animalistic analogies; Halliburton sees a recovery that can’t come soon enough; The New York Knicks’ valuation has its top spot to lose.

Overpayment detected in $8 bln Teledyne deal

4 Jan 2021

The $14 bln U.S. industrial conglomerate is buying rival FLIR Systems. Cost savings cover less than half of the $1.6 bln premium. Both firms sell sensors, but focus on different wavelengths, so it’s possible combining could deliver faster growth. But that’s hard to deliver.

Robots drive Hyundai from humdrum to high tech

14 Dec 2020

The South Korean carmaker is taking control of Boston Dynamics in a $1 bln deal. Seller SoftBank, which admits mechanical dogs are no cash cow, is keeping a 20% stake. That endorses Hyundai boss Euisun Chung’s ambitious vision to upgrade his autos-to-steel empire.

Baidu gets useful M&A advice from unlikely source

19 Nov 2020

Days after the Chinese search-engine operator agreed to buy a video-streaming app for $3.6 bln, short-seller Muddy Waters has accused owner Joyy of fraud. It’s a blessing in disguise. YY is losing users and lagging rivals. The allegations may give Baidu room to rethink the deal.

Microsoft can flip the antitrust script

27 Oct 2020

The software giant and the rest of Big Tech have benefited from pandemic conditions. It saw a 12% jump in revenue. But having been through the anticompetitive ringer, it’s largely escaped the current D.C. scrutiny of its rivals. That gives it an edge in focusing more on growth.

Samsung enjoys Washington gift that keeps giving

8 Oct 2020

The South Korean giant expects quarterly operating profit to jump 58% to $10.6 bln, as U.S. sanctions forced Huawei to stockpile chips. Those sales are gravy from U.S. restrictions hitting the Chinese company. Taking its telecom gear and smartphone customers is the real prize.