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☆ Japan's Advantest lowers profit outlook as smartphone softness lingers
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

TOKYO, Oct 31 (Reuters) - Japanese chip testing equipment company Advantest Corp (6857.T) on Tuesday downgraded its full-year operating profit forecast by 24% compared to July as recovery in the smartphone market takes longer than expected. Advantest sees operating profit of 80 billion yen ($532 million) in the year ending in March, down 52%, pointing to softer demand for leading-edge test systems and higher costs. The company said it expects investment in generative artificial intelligence to boost tester demand over the medium term. "We will sustain our investment to address future technologies," CEO Yoshiaki Yoshida told an earnings briefing. Industry bright spots include demand for high bandwidth memory (HBM) chips which has boosted South Korea's SK Hynix (000660.KS) with rivals circling.

Persons: Advantest, Yoshiaki Yoshida, Douglas Lefever, Sam Nussey, Jason Neely Organizations: Advantest Corp, South Korea's SK Hynix, Thomson Locations: TOKYO, HBM

There's no need to identify the country, all you need to do is control the item," a Japanese industry ministry official told Reuters. Two of them, deposition machinery maker Kokusai Electric and Japan's leading chip tool maker Tokyo Electron (8035.T), said they expect Japan's controls to have a limited business impact. COORDINATIONDovetailing Japan's controls with those of the U.S. and the Netherlands will require close coordination. He has met with Japanese trade officials and believes Tokyo is committed to curbing certain exports. Tokyo remains worried that targeting China will provoke damaging retaliation, such as a ban on Japanese electric cars, a third Japanese industry official said.

Persons: Emily Benson, Kevin Wolf, Jim Lewis, Lewis, Joe Biden's administrationis, Tim Kelly Karen Freifeld, Kentaro Sugiyama, Toby Sterling, Yoshifumi, Lincoln Organizations: TOKYO, Reuters, Center, Strategic, International Studies, Tokyo, Advantest Corp, Nikon Corp, Canon Inc, Screen Holdings, U.S . State Department and Commerce Department, Center for Strategic, U.S, U.S . Commerce Department, Thomson Locations: Tokyo, Beijing, Japan, U.S, China, backdown, Washington, Netherlands, Amsterdam

TOKYO, June 13 - Japan's benchmark Nikkei gauge surged on Tuesday, closing over 33,000 for the first time in 33 years, led by technology shares on expectations of a flood of investment in chip-related companies. The Nikkei (.N225) climbed for a third-straight session, adding 1.8% to 33,018.65, closing above the key psychological level for the first time since July 1990. Global shares climbed on Monday ahead of closely watched U.S. inflation data on and policy decisions from the Federal Reserve, Bank of Japan, and other central banks. Toyota's EV strategy "was well received by the market, and also last night the U.S. market was strong, so we have a strong market today," said Daiwa Securities strategist Kenji Abe. The auto sector (.TEWP.T) rose 3.4% to become the best performer among the Tokyo Stock Exchange's 33 industry sub-indexes.

Persons: Kenji Abe, Drugmaker Eisai, Rocky Swift, Sonia Cheema Organizations: Nikkei, SoftBank Group Corp, Intel Corp, Advantest Corp, Toyota Motor Corp, Global, Federal Reserve, Bank of Japan, Daiwa, Tokyo Stock, Thomson Locations: TOKYO, U.S

☆ SoftBank shares swept up in AI chip frenzy ahead of Arm IPO
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-02 | by ( Sam Nussey | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

TOKYO, June 2 (Reuters) - SoftBank Group Corp (9984.T) shares jumped 5% in early Friday trade as the technology investor - which is preparing an initial public offering of chip designer Arm - was caught up in a frenzy for semiconductor and artificial intelligence-related stocks. The Japanese conglomerate, which has been hit by the slumping value of its tech portfolio, has seen its shares gain 17% since last week's close. On Friday, SoftBank passed the psychological level of 6,000 yen for the first time since February. "We expressed a view that SBG stock will rally ahead of the ARM IPO later in the year... "He feels that 'finally my time has come'," SoftBank Chief Financial Officer Yoshimitsu Goto told reporters at an earnings briefing last month.

Persons: SoftBank, Jefferies, Atul Goyal, Masayoshi Son, Yoshimitsu Goto, Sam Nussey, Jacqueline Wong, Christopher Cushing Organizations: SoftBank Group Corp, U.S, Nvidia Corp, Semiconductor, ARM, Advantest Corp, Tokyo Electron, Thomson Locations: TOKYO, Philadelphia

☆ Japan to restrict chipmaking equipment exports as it aligns with US China curbs
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Japan, home to major global chip equipment makers such as Nikon Corp (7731.T) and Tokyo Electron Ltd (8035.T), did not specify China as the target of those measures, saying equipment makers will need to seek export permission for all regions. Japan and the Netherlands in January agreed join the U.S. in restrict chipmaking equipment exports to China that could be used to manufacture sub-14 nanometre chips, but did not announce the pact to avoid provoking Beijing, sources earlier said. The Netherlands' government in a letter to parliament this month said it plans to restrict chipmaking equipment exports. The ministry said it will impose export controls on six categories of equipment used in chip manufacturing, including cleaning, deposition, lithography and etching. Tokyo Electron and Screen were little changed.

☆ Factbox: The Japanese chipmaking equipment manufacturers navigating export curbs
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Here are some of Japan's leading manufacturers of tools used to make semiconductors. In October-December, its chip equipment sales in China fell 22.3% from a year earlier to 102.7 billion yen, accounting for 22.4% of its total chip equipment sales in the quarter. SCREEN HOLDINGS CO LTD (7735.T)Screen is the world's largest manufacturer of equipment used to clean silicon wafers. The company expects shipments to China to make up 20% of chipmaking equipment sales of 375 billion yen for the year to March. About 40% of sales from its lithography machines business, which combines semiconductor lithography and flat panel display lithography equipment, is generated in China.

☆ Japan to restrict chipmaking equipment exports as it aligns with U.S. China curbs
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

It did not specify China as the target of those measures, saying equipment makers will need to seek export permission for all regions. Japan and the Netherlands in January agreed join the U.S. in restrict chipmaking equipment exports to China that could be used to manufacture sub-14 nanometre chips, but did not announce the pact to avoid provoking Beijing, sources earlier said. A nanometre, or one-billionth of a meter, refers to a specific semiconductor industry technology, with fewer nanometres generally meaning the chip is more advanced. The Netherlands' government in a letter to the country's parliament this month also said it plans to restrict chipmaking equipment exports. China, which has accused the U.S. of being a "tech hegemony" because of its export restrictions, urged the Netherlands "not to follow export control measure by certain countries".

☆ Japan to restrict chipmaking equipment exports as it aligns with U.S.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Employees move semiconductor testers on the assembly line of the Advantest Corp. plant in Ora, Japan on Aug. 10, 2012. Japan's government on Friday said it plans to restrict exports of 23 types of semiconductor manufacturing equipment, aligning its technology trade controls with a U.S. push to curb China's ability to make advanced chips. The trade and industry minister in a press release said it will impose export controls on six categories of equipment used in chip manufacturing, including cleaning, deposition, lithography and etching. The export restrictions, which will come into force in July, are likely to affect equipment manufactured by a dozen Japanese companies, such as Nikon , Tokyo Electron , Screen Holdings and Advantest . Washington, however, needs Japan and the Netherlands, which are key suppliers of such equipment, to join it to make those restrictions effective.

☆ Japan's chip equipment makers in the dark about new China export restrictions
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

TOKYO, Jan 30 (Reuters) - Japanese makers of semiconductor manufacturing machinery and materials used to make chips said on Monday they had yet to hear from Japan's government about export restrictions that could directly or indirectly affect their business in China. Without knowing the details of any new restrictions it is impossible to know their impact, he said. Its statement followed a Bloomberg report that the United States had secured a deal with the Netherlands and Japan. Among them was Tokyo Electron Ltd (8035.T), Japan's biggest semiconductor manufacturing machinery maker. Shares of Japanese semiconductor equipment makers were mostly flat on Monday, with Tokyo Electron up 0.68% while Advantest Corp (6857.T) fell 0.32%.

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