| Author | Message | ||
     Pavala Hero Username: Pavala Post Number: 12821 Registered: 02-2008 Posted From: 193.47.71.253 Rating: N/A |
scal tamud gold update ettu Pandulu ichey chettukey ralllu vestaru - Kadapanagfan | ||
| Scallion Side Hero Username: Scallion Post Number: 7554 Registered: 05-2009 Posted From: 206.123.17.17 Rating: N/A |
Manufacturing The earthquake aftermath is likely to create at least minor problems around the world for equipment makers and buyers. But long term, some big industrial companies say massive rebuilding in Japan could lead to growth. Japan-based companies, including Komatsu Ltd., Hitachi Construction Machinery Co. and Kobelco Construction Machinery Co., are the world's dominant makers of excavators and export them world-wide. At a trade show in Las Vegas last week, officials of Komatsu, Japan's biggest maker of construction equipment, said most plants in Japan were operating and others were preparing to resume operations. But Hisashi Shinozuka, president of Komatsu's U.S. unit, said 10% to 15% of Komatsu's 300 or so suppliers in Japan have earthquake-related problems that put production in doubt, at least temporarily. "We think we're OK for a while" with existing supplies, Mr. Shinozuka said. If certain key suppliers are out of action for three or four months, there may be a big impact, he said. Jai NTR, Jai Jai TDP | ||
| Scallion Side Hero Username: Scallion Post Number: 7553 Registered: 05-2009 Posted From: 206.123.17.17 Rating: N/A |
Steel In 2010, Japan surpassed China to become the world's biggest steel exporter. Despite the drop expected in Japanese steel production as a result of the earthquake, the world's steel market is unlikely to see extended volatility in prices and supply. The reason: Mills in the U.S., Europe, Asia and elsewhere, still feeling the effects of the global recession, are underutilized. Major mills in 64 countries are operating at about 82% capacity, according the World Steel Association. Those plants are raising production. Shipbuilders in the Asia region, which have relied on Japanese steelmakers, have asked South Korea's Posco, the world's third-largest steelmaker by output, to make more steel used in ship construction as a hedge against potential disruptions. And steelmakers in China and Taiwan say their mills could supply those relying on Japanese producers. Industry analysts are predicting Japan production could fall as much as 20%, or 24 million metric tons on an annual basis, within the next three months. Nippon Steel Corp. and JFE Steel Corp., Japan's two largest steelmakers, said blast furnaces temporarily closed by the earthquake are back in operation. But energy remains the big issue facing all of Japan's steel mills. Steel plants, especially electric-arc furnaces that melt recycled steel to make new product, consume huge amounts of electricity and have been affected by shortages as the nuclear crisis leaves a hole in the power grid. Jai NTR, Jai Jai TDP | ||
| Scallion Side Hero Username: Scallion Post Number: 7552 Registered: 05-2009 Posted From: 206.123.17.17 Rating: N/A |
Autos For more than two decades, Japan and its auto makers have been ascendant, grabbing share from their U.S. and European rivals, setting standards for quality and racking up huge profits. For the rest of this year, and possibly beyond, Japanese auto makers will have to focus their energies and resources on rebuilding at home, giving U.S., Korean and European rivals an opening to zoom ahead elsewhere, especially in emerging markets including China and India In the U.S., the playing field already has shifted, putting Japan's biggest auto makers on the defensive. Toyota Motor Corp., after its quality troubles last year, is losing share, mostly to Hyundai Motor Co. But Ford Motor Co. and General Motors also are reinvigorated. Together, they earned more than $10 billion last year. Jai NTR, Jai Jai TDP | ||
| Scallion Side Hero Username: Scallion Post Number: 7551 Registered: 05-2009 Posted From: 206.123.17.17 Rating: N/A |
Electronics Japan is a breadbasket for the global gadget business, where many of the key ingredients for hot electronics are produced. Yet the biggest producers of videogame consoles, television sets and other devices remain uncertain how the recent earthquake there will eventually ripple through to consumers. Electronics makers haven't yet cut production estimates because of the quake. But even companies that say they've experienced no disruptions from the disaster are careful to add the words "so far" to their assessments. Nintendo Co., for example, is preparing for the U.S. introduction on March 27 of its Nintendo 3DS hand-held game player. The company says no one from the company was injured by the disaster and its facilities in Japan weren't damaged. "Business operations, including future product shipments, have not been significantly affected so far," Nintendo said. Other hot devices, such as Apple's iPad 2, depend on parts from Japan that are likely to be in short supply. The iPad 2 contains five components sourced from Japan, including flash memory chips from Toshiba and an electronic compass from AKM Semiconductor Inc., according to an analysis of the product by IHS iSuppli, though the firm says Apple could find some of the parts from manufacturers outside the country. Apple declined to say whether it has seen any impact from the situation in Japan. Apple's online store is showing a shipment delay of four to five weeks for the device. Sony Corp. said operations at nine of its 25 plants in Japan, which manufacture products such as batteries, chips and home audio equipment, had been temporarily or partially suspended because of quake damage or power issues. Three have resumed some operations, but Sony is temporarily suspending operations at six other sites because of parts and component shortages. It aims to restart those operations as early as April 1. Jai NTR, Jai Jai TDP | ||
| Scallion Side Hero Username: Scallion Post Number: 7550 Registered: 05-2009 Posted From: 206.123.17.17 Rating: N/A |
Chips Makers of computer chips confront several problems. Assuming those in the quake zone can restart their factories and keep them running -- far from a given, amid power-supply problems -- they face potential shortages of raw materials and customers, whose factories may themselves be shut down or hard to reach. One of the biggest wild cards is the supply of silicon wafers, disks the size of dinner plates that are the foundation of chip fabrication. Research firm IHS iSuppli estimates that Japan accounts for about 60% of the world's supply; two factories accounting for about 25% of wafer shipments were shut down after the quake. "That is a long-term type challenge," said Paul Reilly, executive vice president and chief financial officer of Arrow Electronics Inc., one of the largest chip distributors. "We are watching it very closely." Most chip makers keep multiple weeks of inventory of wafers on hand. The potential impact on these companies depends on when wafer makers return to full production and how quickly alternative wafer factories can gear up. Toshiba Corp. and partner SanDisk Corp. largely escaped problems at their factories for making flash-memory chips used in popular products like Apple Inc.'s iPhone and iPad. But another Toshiba chip factory was damaged, along with another for making liquid-crystal-display panels. Texas Instruments Inc. has given one of the most detailed breakdowns of quake impact, saying a factory in Miho that accounted for about 10% of its 2010 revenue isn't likely to be shipping again in full volume until September. Jai NTR, Jai Jai TDP | ||
| Scallion Side Hero Username: Scallion Post Number: 7549 Registered: 05-2009 Posted From: 206.123.17.17 Rating: N/A |
Japan's devastating combination of earthquake, tsunami and nuclear accident was a wake-up call reminding companies across the world just how much they rely on the island nation. On the demand side, the country accounts for nearly 9% of the world's economic output and has been an important entry point in Asia for companies from banks to retailers. The destruction disrupted sales, dislocated employees and will likely produce lingering caution among consumers. But it is the supply side that has been the biggest source of surprises. Economists who thought they had a handle on the likely impact found, on closer inspection, that Japan was an important source of all manner of advanced components used heavily in Asia and elsewhere to assemble final goods. Japan makes 60% of the world's silicon wafers -- the building blocks of computer chips. The shutdown of two factories by the earthquake took out a quarter of the world's supply. Credit Suisse says the country also makes 90% of a substance called BT resin used to make printed circuit boards. Inventories of each seem to be holding up, but other disruptions had a more immediate impact. The world's auto makers, for instance, had trouble coping with the shutdown of a Hitachi Ltd. factory north of Tokyo that makes airflow sensors used to measure the amount of air coming into engines. Hitachi makes 60% of the world's supply. Last week, in a modern "for lack of a nail" story, General Motors Co. was forced to shut a plant in Louisiana, and Peugeot-Citroen had to cut back production at most of its European plants. Producers in a variety of industries are still sorting out the possible effects to their supply chains and scrambling for alternative parts or suppliers. Many understand the impact on their own supplies, but it's trickier trying to get a grip on disruptions to their suppliers' suppliers. Ultimately, the pace of recovery in Japan will determine the severity of any shortages and the scale of the damage to businesses around the world. Japan is the world's fourth-largest exporter, and companies such as Caterpillar Inc. use the country as a platform for manufacturing equipment that they then sell to China and elsewhere. Some companies that make construction machinery could get a boost as the country gets deeper into the hard work of rebuilding. Some estimate the tab could run to $200 billion. The Japanese government will pay much of it, but insurance companies might be on the hook for as much as a fifth of the total, by some estimates. Jai NTR, Jai Jai TDP |
