{"id":40275,"date":"2018-04-09T22:00:35","date_gmt":"2018-04-09T14:00:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/investpenang.gov.my\/tech-firms-up-prices-on-weaker-dollar\/"},"modified":"2025-11-28T17:03:01","modified_gmt":"2025-11-28T09:03:01","slug":"tech-firms-up-prices-on-weaker-dollar","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/investpenang.gov.my\/zh-hans\/tech-firms-up-prices-on-weaker-dollar\/","title":{"rendered":"Tech firms up prices on weaker dollar"},"content":{"rendered":"

[vc_row css_animation=”” row_type=”row” use_row_as_full_screen_section=”no” type=”full_width” angled_section=”no” text_align=”left” background_image_as_pattern=”without_pattern” el_class=”sec-inner-banner” css=”.vc_custom_1703741584745{background-image: url(https:\/\/investpenang.gov.my\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/contact-banner-bg.jpg?id=20253) !important;}” z_index=””][vc_column][vc_row_inner row_type=”row” type=”grid” text_align=”left” css_animation=”” el_class=”inner-banner-row”][vc_column_inner][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

Tech firms up prices on weaker dollar<\/h1>\n

[\/vc_column_text][vc_separator type=”normal” el_class=”red-separator” color=”#ee4023″ transparency=”1″ thickness=”2″ up=”15″ down=”15″][vc_column_text css=”” el_class=”white-text”]<\/p>\n

9 April 2018<\/p>\n

[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row css_animation=”” row_type=”row” use_row_as_full_screen_section=”no” type=”grid” angled_section=”no” text_align=”left” background_image_as_pattern=”without_pattern” css=”.vc_custom_1703764846254{background-color: #f3f5f8 !important;}” z_index=””][vc_column el_class=”fade-in animate”][vc_empty_space height=”120px” el_class=”height-x120″][vc_row_inner row_type=”row” type=”grid” text_align=”left” css_animation=””][vc_column_inner][vc_single_image image=”29108″ img_size=”full” qode_css_animation=”” el_class=”single-featured-image”][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_empty_space height=”60px” el_class=”height-x60″][vc_row_inner row_type=”row” type=”grid” text_align=”left” css_animation=”” el_class=”content-row”][vc_column_inner][vc_column_text]Manufacturers say demand for semiconductor equipment still on uptrend<\/strong><\/p>\n

GEORGE TOWN: At least two major semiconductor test-equipment and sensor manufacturers have raised selling prices to offset the impact of a weaker dollar.<\/p>\n

A few other tech manufacturers are maintaining their prices for now to stay competitive in the cut-throat semi-conductor industry where margins are narrow.<\/p>\n

The higher prices, they said, would not have an impact as the demand for semiconductor equipment is increasing.<\/p>\n

The manufacturers\u2019 optimism is backed by SEMI, the association representing the electronics manufacturing supply chain globally, which projected global semiconductor equipment sales to hit US$60.1bil in 2018, a 7.5% growth from 2017.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Pentamaster Corp Bhd<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0MMS Ventures Bhd<\/a>\u00a0have raised their selling prices while\u00a0Globetronics Technology Bhd<\/a>\u00a0said that their product prices would be adjusted according to the fluctuations in the US dollar.<\/p>\n

Vitrox Corp Bhd<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Elsoft Research Bhd<\/a>\u00a0are maintaining their prices to remain competitive.<\/p>\n

Pentamaster, a test-equipment manufacturer, has raised its selling price slightly because 80% of the group\u2019s sales are in US dollars.<\/p>\n

Group chairman CB Chuah told\u00a0StarBiz<\/em>\u00a0that selling prices were now between US$150,000 and US$600,000, higher than a year ago.<\/p>\n

The adjustment is necessary as the ringgit has appreciated by at least 10% compared with the same period in 2017, according to Chuah.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe price of our equipment is always about 20% below the market price, which gives us ample room to adjust our price upwards. The pricing is still very competitive after the increase,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

\u201cOn top of the RM245mil sales we have secured so far, we are also getting enquiries and orders for the second half of the year, particularly from Japanese customers. We can expect the orders to grow by a double-digit percentage this year compared with 2017,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

About 60% of Pentamaster\u2019s orders come from the smart sensor segment, while the automotive, semiconductor, medical and consumer electronic sectors make up the remainder.<\/p>\n

MMS Ventures managing director T.K. Sia said the group has also revised up its selling price by 8% from about US$250,000 to US$350,000 per unit.<\/p>\n

The test equipment that the company produces is used for checking defects in sensors and LED flash.<\/p>\n

\u201cAbout 40% of our orders are direct exports earning US dollars, while the remaining 60% are sold in ringgit to multi-national corporations in the country. This makes it necessary for us to adjust the selling price,\u201d Sia said.<\/p>\n

According to Sia, the orders for the first half of 2018 were weaker compared with the previous year\u2019s same period.<\/p>\n

\u201cHowever, we expect business to pick up in June and July when orders for the third quarter start to come in,\u201d Sia said.<\/p>\n

Globetronics Technology chief executive officer Datuk Heng Huck Lee said the group had an agreement with its customers that the unit price would be automatically adjusted according to the fluctuations in the foreign exchange.<\/p>\n

The company, which produces integrated circuit boards, optoelectronic products and sensors for electronic industry, said 60% of its sales are denominated in US dollars.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur margin is dependent on the product mix rather than the US currency alone.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the first half of 2018, we are experiencing slower sales. Moving ahead, the projection for the second half remains strong, as our customer from the sensor segment has informed us to increase our capital expenditure.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere should be new projects in the second half of 2018 that should generate excitement,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Vitrox Corp chief executive officer Chu Jenn Weng said the group was maintaining its selling price to stay competitive, although 75% of its sales are in US dollars.<\/p>\n

The average selling price of Vitrox\u2019s vision inspection equipment is priced at US$50,000 and US$500,000.<\/p>\n

\u201cA higher volume of sales expected for this year and strong backlog orders will offset the margin erosion, a consequence of a stronger ringgit. As about 30% of the raw imported materials used are in US dollars, we will benefit from a stronger ringgit. We are positive about our performance for 2018,\u201d Chu added.<\/p>\n

Elsoft Research chief executive C.E. Tan, said the group\u2019s sales were mostly in ringgit, as its customers comprised largely MNCs in the country. \u201cSome 75% of our sales are quoted in the local currency, so we are not badly affected. To maintain the competitive edge, we have yet to raise the selling price of the test equipment sold in US dollars.\u201d<\/p>\n

Elsoft\u2019s test equipment is used for checking the brightness and distribution of colours.<\/p>\n

\u201cA stronger ringgit has actually helped us in importation cost, as we buy about 40% of the raw materials in the United States,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Tan said the group was getting very good orders for the second and third quarters.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe can expect a double-digit percentage growth in 2018,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, SEMI is projecting the revenue of the global semiconductor equipment market to hit US$60.1bil in 2018, a 7.5% growth from the US$55.9bil achieved in 2017.<\/p>\n

SEMI forecast that in 2018, equipment sales in China will climb the most, 49.3%, to US$11.3bil following a 17.5% growth in 2017.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn 2018, South Korea, China and Taiwan are forecast to remain the top-three markets, with South Korea maintaining the top spot at US$16.9bil.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cChina is forecast to become the second-largest market at US$11.3bil, while equipment sales to Taiwan are expected to approach US$11.3bil,\u201d the SEMI report said.<\/p>\n

On the poor performance of technology stocks, Heng said the reasons could be related to the lack of interest shown by consumers for the new smartphones and smart devices, which don\u2019t have new features.<\/p>\n

\u201cConsumers, therefore, are not in a hurry to buy them. There is competition from the more affordable range of China-made smartphones,\u201d Heng said.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Chuah said US consumers were anticipating inflation due to the trade war between the United States and China.<\/p>\n

\u201cWith protective tariffs, the prices of imported essential goods from China would go up, turning consumers into more cautious spenders for trendy consumer electronic goods. This definitely has an impact on the stock market as a whole and not just on technology stocks,\u201d Chuah said.<\/p>\n

Chuah added that if importers from the United States and China looked elsewhere to source their supplies, Malaysia would be one of the Asean countries that could benefit from the\u00a0demand for machinery and medical device products<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Source:\u00a0The Star<\/a><\/p>\n

Photo Credit: CNBC[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_empty_space height=”120px” el_class=”height-x120″][\/vc_column][\/vc_row]<\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\n

09<\/h2>\n
\n

Mon<\/p>\n

April \u201818<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":29108,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[316],"tags":[],"news_year":[272],"news_month":[222],"local_insights_alphabet":[],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/investpenang.gov.my\/zh-hans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40275"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/investpenang.gov.my\/zh-hans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/investpenang.gov.my\/zh-hans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/investpenang.gov.my\/zh-hans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/investpenang.gov.my\/zh-hans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=40275"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/investpenang.gov.my\/zh-hans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40275\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":40277,"href":"https:\/\/investpenang.gov.my\/zh-hans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40275\/revisions\/40277"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/investpenang.gov.my\/zh-hans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/29108"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/investpenang.gov.my\/zh-hans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=40275"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/investpenang.gov.my\/zh-hans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=40275"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/investpenang.gov.my\/zh-hans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=40275"},{"taxonomy":"news_year","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/investpenang.gov.my\/zh-hans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news_year?post=40275"},{"taxonomy":"news_month","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/investpenang.gov.my\/zh-hans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news_month?post=40275"},{"taxonomy":"local_insights_alphabet","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/investpenang.gov.my\/zh-hans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/local_insights_alphabet?post=40275"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}