WEEKLY NEWS UPDATE
Taiwan highlights talent gaps, high import tariffs amid India’s chip surge
在印度的半導體浪潮中，台灣點出人才短缺以及昂高進口關稅等問題
Taiwan’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Joseph Wu, highlighted several hurdles hindering Taiwanese chip companies from investing significantly in India. These include India’s cumbersome administrative structure, shortage of experienced engineers, high tariffs on electronics component imports, and inadequate infrastructure. He stressed the need for India to streamline its laws and regulations to facilitate semiconductor investors and to focus on signing a long-awaited free trade agreement with Taiwan. Moreover, Wu emphasized the importance of building a comprehensive semiconductor supply chain ecosystem in India, encompassing IC design, testing, packaging, and material supply, rather than relying solely on individual company investments.
Despite India’s $10 billion chip incentive scheme and efforts to attract investments, major Taiwanese chip companies have remained hesitant. While India has succeeded in securing some investments, such as Tata and PSMC’s foundry venture, larger players have stayed away. Taiwanese businesses have expressed reservations, particularly regarding India’s lack of adequate infrastructure to support semiconductor manufacturing. Unlike Taiwan’s well-established Hsinchu Science Park, which boasts robust infrastructure and a conducive environment for engineers, India faces challenges in providing the necessary facilities and amenities to attract semiconductor industry talent.
小編點評：台灣外交部部長吳釗燮強調，妨礙台灣晶片公司投資印度的障礙包括行政繁瑣、人才短缺、高進口關稅和基礎建設不足等。儘管印度正在努力吸引投資，但台灣晶片大廠仍因對基礎設施的擔憂和半導體製造不利環境而猶豫不決。
Europe tops buy chart and becomes a hotspot for Indian IT M&As
歐洲成為印度資訊科技併購的熱點
Indian outsourcing leaders are increasingly turning their attention towards Europe, where the pace of revenue expansion has outpaced growth rates on the other side of the Atlantic. This trend has spurred about a dozen M&A activities in the continent since the onset of the pandemic. Notably, Infosys recently announced its largest acquisition to date with the acquisition of in-tech, while Wipro’s acquisition of Capco in 2021 marked its largest-ever acquisition. HCLTech has also been active in Europe, completing three major acquisitions overseas in the last two years. Similarly, Tech Mahindra’s acquisition of CTC in 2022 ranks as the company’s second-largest acquisition, following the scandal-hit Satyam in April 2010.
Europe has emerged as a significant focus for Indian IT companies, with nearly 40% of Infosys’ acquisitions over the past six years targeting the region. Out of a total of 16 acquisitions since April 2018, Infosys made six in Europe and five in the US, according to a Kotak analyst note. The latest acquisition by Infosys, targeting in-tech, a German engineering R&D services provider, underscores the strategic importance of the European market for Indian outsourcing firms. Despite attempts to seek comment from Infosys, responses were not received at the time of publication.
Electronics: CII looks at potential partnerships with Taiwan
電子產品：CII考慮與台灣的潛在合作關係。
The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), Madurai Zone, recently organized an interactive session titled ‘Exploring cross-border opportunities: collaborative opportunities with Taiwan.’ The event brought together speakers from Taiwan and industrialists from Tamil Nadu to discuss potential collaborations and investment prospects, particularly in the automotive and electronic industries. Richard Chen, Director-General of the Taiwan Economic and Cultural Centre in Chennai, highlighted that around 50% of Taiwan’s companies are located in southern India, with Tamil Nadu hosting a significant portion of them. He emphasized Taiwan’s leading role in semiconductor manufacturing, noting that over 60% of chips used in mobile phones are produced by Taiwanese companies, with some manufacturing operations already established in Tamil Nadu.
During the session, Chen provided insights into investment plans and potential collaborations in automotive and electronic sectors. Ashwin Desai, vice-chairman of CII Madurai zone, underscored the remarkable innovation capacity of Taiwan, pointing out that despite its smaller size compared to Tamil Nadu, Taiwan procured 72,607 patents in 2023, surpassing the combined total of patents obtained by the entire country of India. This data highlights the significant potential for knowledge exchange and collaboration between Taiwan and Tamil Nadu, particularly in areas of technological innovation and intellectual property.
小編點評：印度工業聯合會（CII）馬杜賴地區舉辦了一場會議，重點討論印度與台灣在電子和汽車產業中的潛在合作夥伴關係。考慮到台灣在半導體製造上的領先地位以及在南印度，尤其是在泰米爾納德邦的重大投資，雙邊有很多合作機會，凸顯了雙邊知識交流和創新的潛力。
Musk postpones his planned trip to India
馬斯克暫緩去印度規劃。
Tesla CEO Elon Musk has postponed his planned trip to India, where he was scheduled to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi and announce Tesla’s entry into the South Asian market. Musk cited “very heavy Tesla obligations” as the reason for the delay, expressing his anticipation of visiting later in the year. Originally slated to meet Modi early the following week, Musk was also set to engage with senior officials from state governments where Tesla may establish an electric vehicle assembly unit, as well as meet with executives from space-tech startups. Musk had previously indicated his eagerness to meet PM Modi in an April 10 tweet, with reports suggesting that his visit would entail announcing an investment of $2-$3 billion for the construction of a new factory in India.
The postponement of Musk’s visit comes amid high expectations for Tesla’s potential entry into India’s burgeoning electric vehicle market. While the delay is attributed to Tesla’s pressing obligations, Musk’s expressed intention to visit later in the year suggests continued interest in exploring opportunities within the Indian market. This development underscores the significance of Musk’s visit in terms of potential investment and collaboration opportunities, both in the automotive sector and in the broader space-tech industry.
小編點評：伊隆·馬斯克推遲了他計劃前往印度的行程，原計劃他將會見印度總理納倫德拉·莫迪，並宣布特斯拉進入該市場。 儘管他以「特斯拉的非常重要職責」為延期的原因，但馬斯克表達的意願將在今年稍後訪問印度，突顯了他對探索印度電動車和太空科技領域機會的持續興趣。
GPU access: Govt may strike a deal with Nvidia
GPU 存取權：政府可能與 Nvidia 達成協議
India is exploring the possibility of striking a deal with Nvidia to source graphics processing units (GPUs) for its ₹10,000 crore Artificial Intelligence Mission. Under this initiative, the GPUs would be offered at subsidized rates to local startups, researchers, academic institutions, and other users. The plan is in its early stages, with a decision expected after the elections, according to sources familiar with the matter. Given Nvidia’s dominant position in the GPU market, it is seen as the natural choice for the Indian government to fulfill its AI compute infrastructure needs.
Globally, the establishment of AI compute infrastructure has become a strategic priority for countries, with significant investments being made to secure compute capacity for both commercial and national security purposes. China and the US have already begun acquiring Nvidia’s GPUs, including the powerful H100 chips. To address the scarcity and high cost of GPUs, India is considering two approaches: a “rent-and-sublet” model where the government acquires GPUs from Nvidia and leases them out, and a marketplace model where companies themselves strike rental deals with the supplier, with incentives provided based on incremental productivity achieved through the use of these GPUs under schemes like production-linked incentives (PLI).
小編點評：印度正在考慮與 Nvidia 達成協議，以為其人工智慧任務供應 GPU，目標是向本地新創企業和學術機構提供補貼單位。考慮到 Nvidia 在 GPU 市場的主導地位以及人工智慧計算基礎設施的戰略重要性，此舉與確保印度的計算資源無論是用於商業還是國家安全目的，都與全球趨勢相符。
India’s smartphone market recovered in Q1, rising 15% year over year: Canalys
印度手機市場買氣在第一季復甦，年增率15%：Canalys
The Indian smartphone market demonstrated robust performance in Q1 2024, reaching 35.3 million units, marking a 15% year-on-year growth. Samsung retained its leading position with a 19% share and 6.7 million units shipped, followed by Xiaomi and vivo securing the second and third spots with 6.4 million and 6.2 million units shipped, respectively. OPPO and realme completed the top five vendors with shipments of 3.7 million and 3.4 million units, respectively. While most brands experienced double-digit growth in Q1, competition from brands outside the top five continued to challenge market share. Republic Day sales in January and promotional strategies towards the end of Q4 2023 accelerated momentum, with Samsung’s flagship Galaxy S24 and Xiaomi’s Redmi 13C 5G series contributing to the market’s resurgence.
Mass-market brands are prioritizing value-driven strategies amidst sluggish demand growth in the volume-driven segment. In response, brands like Xiaomi, vivo, and OPPO introduced their latest models at higher prices compared to previous generations, capitalizing on the premiumization trend. However, operational pressures from higher component costs and import duty reductions are expected to drive price hikes. Brands are focusing on justifying incremental pricing beyond 5G capabilities through design language, user experience, and integrated smartphone AIoT offerings. Emphasis on localization in the Indian smartphone ecosystem has become essential, with growth catalysts limited to 5G device upgrades and premiumization in 2024. Vendors must prioritize long-term strategies for share sustainability, including restructuring local distribution, leveraging local manufacturing partners, appointing Indian leadership, enhancing user experience, and expanding into smaller cities to bolster mainline retail and build channel confidence.
https://canalys.com/newsroom/india-smartphone-shipments-Q1-2024
小編點評： 2024年第一季度，印度智能手機市場強勁反彈，年增長率達到15％，出貨量達到3530萬部。三星保持其領先地位，而各大品牌之間的競爭加劇，促使它們專注於價值驅動的策略、高價位型號和本地化努力，以在營運挑戰和消費者需求變化的情況下維持增長。
Apple bonanza: iPhones propel India’s cellular phone sales to a historic $15 billion
蘋果大放異彩：iPhone 推動印度手機銷售，創下歷史性的 150 億美元銷售額
India’s mobile phone exports soared to over $15 billion in FY24, marking a significant increase from $11.1 billion the previous year. Apple played a pivotal role in this surge, contributing approximately 65% of the total exports, amounting to about $10 billion. This marks a doubling of Apple’s contribution compared to FY23 when it became the first smartphone brand to achieve $5 billion in exports from India. Overall, electronics exports saw a nearly 24% increase to $29.12 billion in FY24, according to provisional data released by the commerce ministry, despite a 3.11% drop in merchandise exports.
India’s mobile electronics manufacturing ecosystem has experienced substantial growth, creating over 1.2 million jobs and producing goods worth $50 billion in FY24. The rise in exports and manufacturing has been attributed to increased local value addition, with components being manufactured within India. Furthermore, Apple’s success in the Indian market was evident in the March quarter, with a nearly 40% surge in iPhone shipments. This growth defied the global trend of a nearly 10% decline in shipments, driven by losses in China and other mature markets. iPhone shipments in India, the world’s second-largest smartphone market, rose to 2.5 million units in the March quarter, up from 1.8 million units a year earlier, according to industry estimates.