TSMC Q2 Net Income Rises; Issues Q3 Outlook – Quick Facts

TSMC (TSM) reported second quarter net income of NT$120.82 billion, and earnings per share of NT$4.66 (US$0.78 per ADR unit). Net income and earnings per share both rose 81.0% year-on-year. Gross margin was 53.0%, operating margin was 42.2%, and net profit margin was 38.9%, for the quarter.

Second quarter consolidated revenue was NT$310.70 billion, up 28.9% from last year. In US dollars, revenue was $10.38 billion, up 34.1% year-over-year.

For third quarter 2020, the company projects: revenue to be between US$11.2 billion and US$11.5 billion; gross profit margin to be between 50% and 52%; and operating profit margin to be between 39% and 41%.

The company anticipates 2020 capital budget to be between US$16 billion and US$17 billion.

Trump Ends Special Privileges For Hong Kong

President Donald Trump signed an executive order Tuesday ending U.S. preferential treatment for Hong Kong in retaliation for China enacting a repressive new security law in the self-administered region.

Hong Kong will now be treated the same as mainland China, which does not enjoy any special privileges or special economic treatment such as the export of sensitive technologies.

Hong Kong was conferred the special status under the United States-Hong Kong Policy Act of 1992.

As Hong Kong loses its special status, mainland Chinese companies will lose the advantage of exporting their goods to other parts of the world through the self-administered region.

Trump said he also signed legislation to hold China accountable for its oppressive actions against the people of Hong Kong.

The Hong Kong Autonomy Act “gives my administration powerful new tools to hold responsible the individuals and the entities involved in extinguishing Hong Kong’s freedom,” he told reporters.

In the press conference, Trump also blamed China for “concealing the virus and unleashing it upon the world.”

Edwards Announces FDA Approval For KONECT RESILIA Aortic Valved Conduit – Quick Facts

Edwards Lifesciences Corp. (EW) has received approval from the U.S. FDA for the KONECT RESILIA aortic valved conduit, the first ready-to-implant solution for bio-Bentall procedures. The KONECT device comes with the advanced RESILIA tissue, which incorporates integrity-preservation technology that may help improve valve durability.

Daveen Chopra, Edwards’ corporate vice president, surgical structural heart, said: “Because the typical patient is under the age of 60, advanced technologies such as the KONECT device with the RESILIA tissue might provide extended valve durability for a more active patient population.”

The COVID-19 ‘experiment’ – have we got virus under control?

On this edition of the Sky News Daily podcast with Jonathan Samuels, we examine what more we now know about the way the virus is transmitted and its impact on the human body.

We are joined by professor Peter Openshaw, from Imperial College London and professor Nicola Stonehouse, at the University of Leeds.

Listen to the Daily podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Spreaker

Credits:
Producer – Annie Joyce
Assistant producer – Sabah Choudhry
Interviews producer – Tatiana Alderson

Gold Futures Settle Slightly Higher As Dollar Drifts Lower

Gold prices advanced on Wednesday as the dollar weakened. However, the precious metal’s gains were just modest as riskier assets such as equities rose sharply, reacting to upbeat news on the coronavirus vaccine front.

The dollar index dropped to a low of 95.78 around mid-morning but recovered well to move past 96 subsequently. It was last seen at 96.07, down nearly 0.2% from the previous close.

Gold futures for August ended up $0.40 at $1,813.80 an ounce.

Silver futures for September ended higher by $0.231 at $19.761 an ounce, while Copper futures for September settled at $2.8850 per pound, down $0.0475 from the previous close.

Biotech firm Moderna said its experimental vaccine for Covid-19, mRNA-1273, showed it was safe and produced strong immune responses in all 45 patients in an ongoing early-stage human trial.

Traders were also looking ahead to the European Union leaders meeting, due later this week. During the extraordinary summit, the leaders are expected to agree on a recovery fund of 750 billion euros for pandemic-hammered economies.

The uptick by gold also came amid rising tensions between the U.S. and China and uncertainty about the pace of global economic recovery.

After U.S. President Donald Trump ordered an end to Hong Kong’s special status under U.S. law, Beijing vowed retaliatory sanctions against U.S. individuals and entities.

“Hong Kong affairs are purely China’s internal affairs and no foreign country has the right to interfere,” China’s foreign ministry said.

China reports 1 new coronavirus case, none in Beijing

BEIJING (REUTERS) – China reported one new confirmed Covid-19 case for the mainland as of the end of July 15, down from six a day earlier, the country’s national health authority said on Thursday (July 16).

The new case was an imported infection involving a traveller from overseas. All six cases reported a day earlier were also imported infections.

Beijing reported no new cases for the tenth consecutive day.

The total number of confirmed Covid-19 infections in mainland China to date is 83,612. The death toll remains unchanged at 4,634.

Lebanon central bank sets up committee to restructure banks, central bank memo says

BEIRUT, July 16 (Reuters) – The Lebanese central bank has set up a committee to restructure the country’s financially hit commercial banks and study their performance, a memo by the bank seen by Reuters on Thursday said.

The committee’s task will be to restructure the banks, study their performance and propose measures to preserve banking sector, the memo said. (Writing by Tom Perry; Editing by Alison Williams)