Elpida Advances as Shares Start Trading in Tokyo
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Shares of Elpida Memory Inc., Japan&#39;s sole large-scale producer of memory chips, rose on their first day of trading in Tokyo on investors&#39; expectations a focus on consumer electronics
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TOKYO - Japanese stocks rose Thursday, led by gains in communication and Internet-related stocks. Softbank and mobile carrier KDDI were among the gainers.  The benchmark Nikkei 225 index climbed 136.08 points, or 0.78 percent, to finish at 17,519.50 points on the Tokyo Stock Exchange.
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Japan's Nikkei average rose 0.37 percent in early trade on Thursday as investors bought exporters such as Canon Inc. after a fall in oil prices boosted confidence over the U.S. economy and lifted Wall Street stocks.
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(InfoWorld) - Japanese memory chip maker Elpida MemoryÂ and Taiwan's Powerchip SemiconductorÂ have announced a broad plan to invest $13.9 billion over five years to build four new DRAM factories in Taiwan. The investment, announced Thursday, will go into a new joint venture company that does not yet have an English name. The new company will open early next year in an advanced 12-inch chip factory Powerchip started building in central Taiwan earlier this year. In coming years, the joint venture company will build three more DRAM (dynamic-RAM) factories on the island, with output reaching 60,000 silicon wafers per month each, for total planned capacity of a massive 240,000 wafers. Thousands of DRAM chips can be made on each wafer. The investment means the companies are confident in the future of the DRAM industry and in their ability to compete against market leader Samsung Electronics. In fact, Elpida Chief Executive Officer Yukio SakamotoÂ pledged to surpass SamsungÂ in terms of DRAM market share within three years. The DRAM industry isÂ ripe for new factories. Most companies in the business have invested in non-DRAM production lines in recent years, mainly NAND flash memory, which is popular in digital cameras and iPods. ButÂ DRAM prices have surgedÂ recently due to strong PC sales, and the launch of Microsoft Windows Vista is expected to keep DRAM prices strong over the next several months due to strong anticipated PC demand and the greater memory content required by Vista compared to Windows XP. The two companies intend to marry Elpida's technology prowess with Powerchip's low cost manufacturing know-how, said Frank Huang, chairman of Powerchip. The companies will be even partners in the venture, each putting in their half of the value of investment, and each deriving half of the production from the new company. Elpida had beenÂ looking at four possible investment locationsÂ before deciding to partner with Powerchip in Taiwan. The company's CEO traveled to China to visit manufacturing partner Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp. (SMIC) of Shanghai, in addition to scouting locations in Japan and Singapore. Despite better incentives offered by the Chinese government, Sakamoto said his company's relationship with Powerchip and Taiwan's superior infrastructure swayed Elpida's final decision. "Yesterday, Powerchip and Elpida had a very friendly relationship, but today we became a family," said Sakamoto. The two companies have been working together for over four years. Elpida will continue to use SMIC as a manufacturing partner in China, he said. Elpida and Powerchip will initially invest NT$40 billion to get the first DRAM factory up and running. They expect to move production line equipment into the factory by May 2007 and start mass production in August. The joint venture company will begin life with the latest production technology thanks to Elpida, etching transistors and other parts on silicon at the tiny size of 70-nanometers. A nanometer is a billionth of a meter. Powerchip will take charge of daily operations and staff the factory. By the time the fourth plant is finished, Powerchip reckons it will have hired 8,000 new workers for the joint venture. Elpida and Powerchip will also co-invest in research and development, they said. Their technology pact will ensure joint development down to the 50nm level and beyond. The companies plan to sign a final agreement on the joint venture in January.
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Tokyo stocks opened higher Thursday as investors welcomed Wall Street&#39;s gains. The dollar was up against the Japanese yen. The Nikkei Stock Average of 225 issues was up 14.
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Tokyo's key Nikkei average rose 1.14  percent by midday on Thursday as gains on Wall Street  encouraged investors to scoop up bargains, including key  technology stocks, following the market's nine previous days of  losses.
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Tokyo's Nikkei share average was up 0.56  percent in early morning trade on Tuesday as another jump in  U.S. technology shares encouraged investors to step up buying  in local counterparts such as Advantest Corp.
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Tokyo's Nikkei average finished slightly higher on Monday as gains in liquid crystal display-related firms (LCD), such as Nitto Denko Corp., and in metal and oil companies offset losses in drug makers.
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Japan's Nikkei average rose more than 1  percent to a 2 1/2-month closing high on Friday, bolstered by  Wall Street gains and a growing consensus that Tokyo stocks  look cheap compared with the U.S. and other Asian markets.
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Tokyo's key Nikkei average rose 1.01  percent by mid-morning on Thursday as gains on Wall Street  encouraged investors to scoop up bargains including key  technology stocks following the market's nine days of losses.
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Japan's Nikkei average edged up 0.29 percent at the opening on Tuesday, with a second day of falls in oil prices easing fears about the global economy and prompting buying in exporters such as Sony Corp.
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Citigroup Inc  said on Monday it had received approval to list shares in Tokyo early next month, as the largest U.S. bank continues to boost its presence in the world's second-largest economy.
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Tokyo's Nikkei average opened 0.59 percent higher on Tuesday as investors sought bargains among tech firms and exporters, but gains were limited by caution ahead of a monetary policy meeting in the United States during the day.
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Japan&#39;s Nikkei average rose 0.73 percent at the opening on Thursday as investors bought exporters such as Canon Inc. after a fall in oil prices boosted confidence over the US economy and lifted Wall Street stocks.
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Japanese shares rose 1.3 percent by late  afternoon trade on Friday as a better-than-expected reading in  the Bank of Japan's corporate "tankan" survey of business  sentiment spurred buying.
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Tokyo shares were higher in morning trade, as domestic-oriented issues climbed on optimism that economic growth is set to pick up by the middle of the year.
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Japan's Nikkei average rose 0.37 percent  in early trade on Thursday as investors bought exporters such  as Canon Inc. after a fall in oil prices boosted confidence  over the U.S. economy and lifted Wall Street stocks.