1. Intel Branch then revoked the news! Afterward CEO became a problem;
In the micro-message news, Intel CEO Ke Zaiqi made an office romance and violated company policy and was forced to resign. Intel's stock price was lower.
On the 21st, Intel fell 2.38% to close at 52.19 US dollars, which was the lowest since April 30. It rebounded 0.59% on the 22nd. Looking ahead, analysts believe that the sudden resignation of Ke Zaiqi will cause the Intel leadership to face an empty window period. Unfavorable expansion of wafer manufacturing business.
At the helm of the company, Intel’s original advantages gradually eroded and the King’s aura faded. The company’s 10nm chip development hits a rock, which was originally scheduled for mass production at the end of 2016 and may now be postponed until 2019. In the past, Intel had new processes every two years. Miniaturization technology, now stretched to more than five years, was left behind by opponents. AMD stepped on Intel's weaknesses, and its share price has plunged 60% since April.
In addition to the shrinking manufacturing process, Intel’s artificial intelligence is not as advanced as Nvidia. Mobile chips are inferior to Qualcomm. They have been criticized. Previously, Intel’s processors were exposed with major security holes. Kecchi got information in advance and quietly sold shares and fled. Controversy. According to Rob Enderle, principal analyst of the Enderle Group, Kodak has made erroneous mistakes since he became an Intel CEO. Perhaps it is because of this that the market is not overly alarmed. Others say this is a good opportunity for Intel's generation handover.
However, the old store's new dispensers left the parties afflicted. Enderle criticized Ke and Qi for removing all his opponents that threatened his own position and made succession a difficult problem. Acting CEO Swan lacked a chip background and was generally considered unsuitable. The highly vocal insider was Venkata Renduchintala, who had just moved from Qualcomm to Intel three years ago and was considered to be Kodaccine. This did not help to boost staff morale.
Intel's usual practice is to pull insiders as CEOs. Nowadays, there are not many candidates. Many experts call on Intel to look for external candidates. Ryan Shrout, chief analyst of Shrout Research, said that the new leader should enable Intel to restore its former glory and regain hegemony in the process. , It is best to be an engineer who is well versed in the architecture of the chip.
Analysis of the Wall Street Journal, Kecchi's flashes of light, let Intel face many challenges immediately, but also have to find suitable candidates to meet these challenges, the news is bad or bullish, are reflected in the stock price, showing that shareholders are a little worried.
However, Analyst analyst Shaw thinks that Intel needs a new CEO to meet new challenges, but the stock price “only fell 2.4%”, reflecting investor optimism that the new CEO of the future will be able to meet the challenge.
2. Intel slightly raises its fiscal second quarter to $16.9 billion;
According to the micro-network news, Intel announced a slight increase in its second-quarter financial results. The main momentum came from the accelerated revenue growth in the data center.
Intel is scheduled to hold a press conference on July 26 to announce the second quarter financial report and explain the third quarter operating outlook. By then, issues such as the increase in annual revenue, capital expenditure planning, and advanced process progress will be the focus of the industry.
The Intel Personnel Earthquake announced on the 21st that CEO Kozi Qi resigned with a member of the board of directors.
At the same time as Intel released Kordaki’s resignation, it also announced that it raised its fiscal second-quarter forecast to increase its single-quarter revenue to US$16.9 billion from its original forecast of US$16.3 billion, up by nearly 3.7%.
The main reason that Intel raised its second-quarter financial report was the acceleration of revenue from the data center. Intel said that its achievements in the first half of the year were dazzling. It is expected that revenue in 2018 will record a record high.
3. Intel server roadmap: 14nm battle for two years on the glue package;
Compared to AMD's frequent display of its desktops for many years, server processor planning roadmap, and various reports on the success of the next generation of products, Intel's side is too boring, the future of plans, and many places are uncertain .
Now foreign media has exposed the plan of an Intel Xeon server processor, but also admits that there are too many uncertainties, and with the CEO Ke Zaiqi because of Taoist news, classes, the future of Intel's overall strategy and product planning is also likely There will be major adjustments.
Cascade Lake-SP
This is officially announced and will be released later this year.
14nm++ process, the existing Skylake-SP Xeon scalable Xeon expandable family upgrade, interface is LGA3647, the biggest change is to support Optane DIMM memory.
Cascade Lake-AP
The first time I saw it, it was released in 2019.
The suffix 'AP' means 'Advanced Processor', or 14nm++ process, adopts MCM multi-chip package, integrates two Cascade Lake-SP cores (commonly known as glue Dafa) to gain more Core, go to compete with AMD EPYC.
Intel Xeon currently has only a maximum of 28 cores. The Cascade Lake-SP family is still the most constant because of its nature. AMD EPYC already has 32 cores. The next generation is very likely to be more. Intel has to compete with the first batch of its own. Dual-core, quad-core, again out of the MCM package.
In fact, AMD EPYC is an MCM package, with four Dies inside each processor. Intel just mocked when it was first released. It has to be done now...
Cooper Lake-SP/AP
This code was also seen for the first time, and is still said to be in the 14nm++ process. It will be released later in 2019 or 2020.
It is similar to Cascade Lake-SP/AP and is also a native, an MCM package that supports six UPI buses. Other details are not available.
It also appeared to be an accident. The root cause was that 10nm could not be mass-produced at a later stage, and it had to temporarily increase the number of products to transition.
Ice Lake-SP/AP
The 10nm process has finally arrived, and the improved version is 10nm+. In other words, the current process stage may not be able to finally solve the mass production problem. It has to be rebuilt, but it has to be released as early as 2020. It may even be until 2021. year.
In addition to the new process, Ice Lake will have a new interface LGA4189, a new architecture, support for eight channels of memory, and finally comparable to AMD EPYC.
From the time point of view, AMD should release the 7nm+ process during the period 2020-2021, the third-generation EPYC Milan of the Zen 3 architecture, but according to AMD, their 7nm process, the competitor of the second-generation EPYC Rome of the Zen 2 architecture. Is Ice Lake.
According to this speed, Intel’s incomparable server field will face the embarrassing situation of both the technology and the architecture. It is no wonder that Kecchi will admit that the server and data center market may be robbed of up to 20% by AMD. Share. Fast Technology
4. Foxconn's acquisition of Toshiba PC is difficult to transform. The future is not easy;
Source: Beijing Commercial Daily
Reporter Shi Feiyue / Wen Bai Yang / tab
It is reported that Foxconn's Sharp has acquired Toshiba's PC business. Although Sharp China has not yet made an official response to this, Sharp has previously stated that it will acquire Toshiba’s personal computer (PC) business. This is Foxconn. Another cross-border acquisition in the field of consumer electronics is also an important step in the company's transformation. As the oldest brother in the foundry industry, Foxconn used the low cost of labor to gain a lot of success, but with the land With rising labor costs, the identity of OEMs is difficult to sustain. Although Foxconn has also been trying out business innovation in recent years, there has not been a business that has been able to tear down Foxconn's 'substitute factory' label.
The acquisition goes further
According to sources, Sharp's acquisition of Toshiba PC's entire transaction amounted to 40 million U.S. dollars, or approximately 260 million yuan. This is another Japanese company acquired by Foxconn in the consumer electronics field after Sharp. Earlier, Toshiba stated in a statement. The company is considering selling personal computer business and is negotiating with potential buyers, but when fashion does not have a concrete decision.
A reporter from Beijing Business Daily contacted Sharp. The company stated that it has not received any news in the country. Therefore, it does not understand the acquisition. As early as 2010, Sharp quit the computer market. The industry believes that the company is once again involved in computers. The field, just one of the transformation plans of the new owner Foxconn, Sharp will be deeply involved in the global notebook industry chain and ecosystem.
Toshiba has the title of 'Father of the Notebook' and once created the world's first notebook computer, giving up its own PC business. This scene is embarrassing. In 2011, Toshiba’s notebook shipments reached 17.5 million units, which was 8.8%. Global market share.
However, as the notebook gradually became saturated, Toshiba gradually lost in competition with competitors. In 2017, Toshiba's notebook shipments fell to less than 1 million units, and the market share fell to 0.6%. Toshiba's personal computer business as of 3 In the fiscal year of the month, sales were 167.3 billion yen and the loss was 9.6 billion yen. However, Toshiba’s notebooks have a mature brand and still have a certain influence on business computers, European markets, etc. Industry insiders believe that Foxconn sees Toshiba notebook high-quality brand image.
Foxconn is the world’s largest OEM manufacturer. Apart from supplying products for Apple, it also assembles personal computers for other global brands. However, Foxconn’s position is not prominent in the notebook OEM industry. In 2017, Foxconn’s notebooks were manufactured. The number of computers is 4.69 million units, which only accounts for 2.8% of the global notebook OEM.
Some research institutions pointed out that with the mastery of Toshiba and the Sharp brand, Foxconn will gain a fast track to expand its influence in the notebook computer market. 'In the field of LCD panels, Foxconn has more abundant production capacity. However, Foxconn has difficulty using the advantages of LCD panels. To boost Toshiba’s notebook business. In the current cost structure of notebook computers, LCD screens only account for 10%-15% (far below the 60%-70% of LCD TVs).
OEM Golden Age has elapsed
As a well-known owner of a well-known foundry company, Gou Ting-ming should have the best understanding of what the so-called 'international OEM' means in creating profits and job opportunities.
It is reported that for every iPhone assembled, Foxconn's production line has a meager margin of less than US$4.5. Foxconn’s revenue in 2016 was NT$4.356 trillion (US$136.38 billion), which was a decrease of 2.81% year-on-year. This is also the company’s revenue since 1991. For the first time since the listing of the annual revenue decline.
In addition, the relationship between Foxconn and its employees seems to be not handled properly. A few days ago, it was reported that Foxconn Group's factory in Hengyang, Hunan Province produced a smart speaker for Amazon. The labor rights organization conducted a nine-month investigation and found that The factory has a long working time, low wages, insufficient training, etc. In addition, dispatch workers or temporary workers are also used in violation of Chinese labor laws.
Recently, Foxconn employees posted an “Open Letter to Foxconn employees” in the Shenzhen Foxconn Factory Area, stating that Foxconn had only paid 5% of the employee’s basic salary as a housing provident fund, resulting in an employee losing at least RMB 1,000 a year. The rent has skyrocketed and wages have stagnated.
In 1988, Gou founded a company called Foxconn Marine Precision Computer Plug-in Plant in Shenzhen. For more than 20 years, Foxconn quickly grew into the world's largest electronics manufacturer. In 2012, Foxconn’s total import and export volume was US$244.6 billion, accounting for China. The Mainland's 4.6%; 15 of its companies were selected as Top 200 Chinese Exporters. Ranked 43rd among Fortune 500 companies in the “Fortune” selection. Foxconn inherited high-tech companies from preferential policies and low labor costs. Wave after wave of orders, from laptops to Apple phones, from digital cameras to LED lighting.
However, the economic environment in China has changed, land and labor costs have continued to rise, and the pressure from foreign-oriented companies that rely on low-cost money has doubled. In the second half of 2008, Foxconn turned losses into profits, resulting in a post-tax loss of US$20.86 million. From 2010, Foxconn has accelerated the pace of investment in the Mainland. Plants in Chongqing, Chengdu, Ordos, Zhengzhou, and Langfang have either been put into use or started to be funded. At the same time, Foxconn plans to reduce the size of its employees in Shenzhen.
According to industry insiders, it can be said that Foxconn's achievements are cheap labor and there is no cheap labor. Foxconn will not develop to this day. From coastal to inland, every Foxconn shift is to cope with rising labor costs. However, Foxconn must face The reality is that the labor costs in the Mainland are increasing, and the cheap labor force has been hard to find.
The future is not easy
In recent years, Foxconn has been trying to innovate business, diversified its transformation, and even participated in the round of financing of Xiaopeng Automobile. In general, it is the transition from upstream to downstream. Up to now, there is not yet a business that can tear down Foxconn’s 'generation factory' label.
In the consumer electronics business, in May 2016, Microsoft sold the mobile phone division acquired from Nokia to Foxconn for US$350 million, and released a number of new machines in the past two years. At present, although Nokia’s quality technology is advanced, there is no Amazing performance.
The most impressive acquisition was the acquisition of Sharp in August 2016. Foxconn made a series of bold reforms after the acquisition. According to the plan, Aquos, Sharp, InFocus built high, medium and low-end brand platforms. Integral, with 'nobility not expensive' as the appeal, for different customers, different markets to make different segments, from strengthening the design, the use of manufacturing advantages, price promotions and other marketing methods, to expand the global market share of Sharp brand, which Foxconn brings its own brand bargaining power and additional benefits.
Fortunately, in the fiscal year ending in March of this year, Sharp achieved its first annual profit in four years. Industry watcher Hong Shibin believes that Foxconn’s resource advantages help Sharp reduce production costs, which in turn makes Sharp a cost advantage, and Foxconn in China. The sales network also played an active role in the sales of Sharp TV.
However, the above analysis pointed out that in the upstream supply chain of notebooks (including processors, memory chips, solid state drives, and traditional mechanical hard disks), Foxconn has few resources, so Foxconn would like to duplicate and integrate Sharp's computer business in Toshiba's computer business. Experience, will face enormous cost challenges.
Another important transformation direction of Foxconn is the Industrial Internet. At this year's 2nd World Conference on Smart Technology, Gou claimed a high-profile announcement that industrial Internet will be the outlet for Chinese industry and also the opportunity for the entire real economy. Foxconn Industrial Internet, a related company of Foxconn Group The joint stock company also officially listed in the domestic market this month.
For the Industrial Internet, one of the most popular current views is to use robots instead of manual labor. Currently, the annual cost of a Foxconn worker is about 50,000 yuan, while the acquisition cost of an ordinary robot arm is only about 100,000 yuan. Robot arms can generally replace 3-4 workers. On the surface, robotic applications are more cost-effective than workers. However, insiders pointed out that although the installation and general procedures of some precision parts can be replaced by robots, A large number of ordinary assembly jobs, the cost of the robot is obviously too high.
According to industry economic observer Liang Zhenpeng, the so-called industrial Internet, including the research and development of cutting-edge technologies, is still largely dependent on the foundry manufacturing industry. In this case, Foxconn cannot shake off the OEM label. Not only Foxconn. All foundry companies are under the banner of IPO financing, but in many cases, the industrial Internet is just a concept. No matter what kind of smart terminals are produced, it is still mainly manufacturing. “The biggest problem with Foxconn is that there are no independent brands. Although there is Sharp support now, Sharp's main influence is television, and the influence of other products is very limited.
5. Semiconductor Industry: Spears and Shields for 8-inch Wafer Lines
The ethnic group with the most up-to-date logic
We recently explained the delivery date and supply-demand relationship of global 8-inch wafers/simulation discrete components, and we believe that current components (simulation/discrete devices) will enter the upward trend of the economy and the trend of tight supply and demand in the short term will continue. Fermentation, the 8-inch group deserves continuous attention. With the continuous evolution of cross-domain technology integration, the 8-inch wafer fab will perform better than the 12-inch production line, and it further confirms the cross-annual investment mainline since the beginning of the year - equipment and simulation are Optimization of semiconductor stocks.
Supply and demand analysis of 8-inch wafer line
Analyze the shortage situation of this round of 8-inch wafer line. We noticed that the upper and middle reaches of the 8-inch wafer industry chain are fully loaded. Limited supply and strong demand for diversification have greatly increased the value chain in the industry, allowing The market began to revisit the investment and value of 8-inch wafer lines.
Supply and demand show the following characteristics:
There is no clear plan for the expansion of the supply-side 8-inch silicon wafer supplier. The 8-inch second-hand equipment is expensive and low-volume; there is no significant increase in the production capacity of the 8-inch midstream plant. The IDM and Foundry have been The dynamic balance has been broken since; the fragmented demand for downstream fragmentation continues to grow, especially in automotive semiconductors/cloud computing/IOTs.
Optimistic about the core logic of the industry's upstream and downstream
The strong demand for 8-inch wafer foundry firstly directly boosted the relevant performance of the foundry of the wafer production line, and also profoundly affected the sales share of 8-inch product manufacturers such as power management ICs, image sensors, fingerprint identification chips and driver ICs. The downstream chip applications accounted for the proportion of silicon chips required. Simulated/discrete devices can continue to benefit from the current high economic cycle. After analyzing the upstream and downstream industries, we are optimistic about the OEM logic, focusing on Hua Hong Semiconductor and SMIC. Patterns/downstream applications/market competition and other variables are taken into consideration. The performance elasticity of the discrete/analog device industry under price increases may bring substantial returns to the relevant players. We recommend Shengbang, Yangjie Technology, and North Huachuang.
Risk Warning: The shortage of wafer production capacity is less than expected, and the downstream demand is less than expected.