Aug 9, 2000

Taipei - - While international end users of notebook computers have a broad partiality for Japan branded notebook computer due to the immaculate quality image always associated with that country, actually more and more of them come from Taiwan contract manufacturers, demonstrating the rising confidence of quality-sensitive Japanese buyers in products made on this island.

To meet increasing market demand, Toshiba, NEC, Fujitsu, Sharp and Hitachi are expected to place orders from about five million notebook PCs with Taiwan manufacturers in 2001, industry source in Taiwan said Tuesday. This figure will represent about 30 percent of the 15 million units forecasted to be made in Taiwan next year.

Fujitsu, ranking No. 6 in the world in this category, has selected Quanta Computer Inc. As it's second Taiwan OEM partner, in adition to it's previous tie with Compal Electronic Inc. Quanta expects to deliver 30,000 notebook PCs to Fujitsu monthly, starting in the first quarter of 2001, while Compal will maintain monthly sales of between 10,000 and 20,000 units to Fujitsu in 2001. With this, this Japanese company's total procurement from Taiwan will double in 2001 from this year, tp 500,000 pieces.

Toshiba and NEC will also increase their notebok PC orders in Taiwan.The management of Compal confirmed it's sales to Toshiba would climb to 1.2 million pieces in 2001, up from 800.000 this year, a figure reflecting the present shortage of CPU components.

First International Computer Inc. ( FIC) plans to strenghting is existing ties woth NEC, though the company did not reveal any figures yet.

In the past two years, international notebook PC manufacturers in the U.S. such as Compaq and HP have demanded from their Taiwan supplers a so-call TDS delivery, whoch means Taiwan-direct-shipment, instead of supplying only barebone system products, excluding panels and several key components. Now Japanese buyets, especially Toshiba and NEC, are following suit, industry sources explained.