Aug 30, 2000

Among major motherboard manufacturers in Taiwan, Micro-Star International Co. reached the highest pretax target rate with 55% in the first half, industry sources said Wednesday. The firm registered pretax profits of NT$1.05 billion.

The company forecasts a total revenue for 2000 of NT$21.1 billion, with pretax profit accounting for NT$1.94 billion, with pretax EPS reaching NT$6.05.

Meanwhile, Micro-Star announced that its overall motherboard sales will decline somewhat in 2000, representing only 85.04% of its total revenue this year.

In related news, Asustek Computer Inc., the island's largest motherboard manufacturer, registered NT$7.7 billion worth of pretax profit in the first half, translating into EPS of NT$4.6. The firm reached 45.68% of its pretax profit target NT$10.7 set previously for the year.

In the second quarter, Asustek's sales of notebook PCs also increased considerably. This made the firm's overall profit margin drop to 22.19% in the second quarter, down from 26.34% recorded in the first quarter, however.

It is reported that Asustek had sacrificed its profit margins to strive for international OEM orders for notebook PC products. This explains why the firm's profit margin dropped somewhat in the second quarter, industry sources said.