Japan Chemicals Firm CEO Fights to Keep Job as Investors Revolt
Eiji Sato is facing an uphill battle to be re-appointed as president and CEO of Taiyo Holdings Co., a position he has held since 2011, after some shareholders criticized his response to various acquisition proposals as being too slow.
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CNN
18 minutes ago
- CNN
Japan's minority government likely to lose upper house control, exit polls show
Japan's ruling coalition is likely to lose its majority in the upper house, exit polls showed after Sunday's election, potentially heralding political turmoil as a tariff deadline with the United States looms. While the ballot does not directly determine whether Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's shaky minority government falls, it heaps pressure on the embattled leader who also lost control of the more powerful lower house in October. Ishiba's Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and coalition partner Komeito needed 50 seats to retain control of the 248-seat upper chamber in an election where half the seats were up for grabs. They are forecast to secure 32 to 51 seats, the exit poll by public broadcaster NHK showed. Other broadcasters forecast the ruling coalition would hold 41-43 seats. If the coalition holds less than 46 seats, it would mark its worst result since the coalition was formed in 1999. That comes on top of its worst showing in 15 years in October's lower house election, a vote which has left Ishiba's administration vulnerable to no-confidence motions and calls from within his own party for leadership change. Opposition parties advocating for tax cuts and tougher immigration policies look set to make gains, the exit polls showed, with rising consumer prices – particularly a jump in the cost of the staple rice – a key issue for voters. 'The LDP was largely playing defense in this election, being on the wrong side of a key voter issue,' said David Boling, a director at consulting firm Eurasia Group. 'Polls show that most households want a cut to the consumption tax to address inflation, something that the LDP opposes. Opposition parties seized on it and hammered that message home.' The LDP have been urging for fiscal restraint, with one eye on a very jittery government bond market, as investors worry about Japan's ability to refinance the world's largest debt pile. Adding to the anxiety around the world's fourth largest economy, Japan faces a deadline of August 1 to strike a trade deal with the United States or face punishing tariffs in its largest export market. The populist Sanseito party looked to be one of the big winners on the night, forecast to win 10-15 seats in the chamber, up from just one held previously. Sanseito's 'Japanese First' campaign and warnings about a 'silent invasion' of foreigners, have dragged once-fringe political rhetoric into the mainstream. 'I am attending graduate school but there are no Japanese around me. All of them are foreigners,' said Yu Nagai, a 25-year-old student who voted for Sanseito earlier on Sunday. 'When I look at the way compensation and money are spent on foreigners, I think that Japanese people are a bit disrespected,' Nagai said after casting his ballot at a polling station in Tokyo's Shinjuku ward.
Yahoo
43 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Prediction: Nvidia Stock Will Soar in the Second Half of 2025, Thanks to This Incredible News From Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing
Key Points Artificial intelligence (AI) has supercharged Nvidia's growth, but investors have been leery about the future of AI. Taiwan Semiconductor just reported blockbuster results, confirming that the AI revolution is alive and well. Nvidia has another catalyst that will likely boost its results in the second half. 10 stocks we like better than Nvidia › After a blistering run that spanned more than two years and stock price gains of over 1,000%, Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA) investors are taking a more measured approach. Concerns about the future growth prospects of artificial intelligence (AI), uncertainty about sales in China, and fears over the impact of tariffs have all weighed on the chipmaker in recent months. Perhaps the biggest question for investors is whether the AI revolution is sustainable. Many experts believe the widespread adoption of AI is just getting started, but investors have been looking for additional evidence. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (NYSE: TSM), commonly referred to as TSMC, reported its second-quarter results Thursday morning, providing the clearest sign yet that AI still has room to run. Foundry to the AI stars TSMC is the world's largest chip foundry, controlling an estimated 60% of the contract semiconductor manufacturing market. Perhaps more importantly, it has an estimated 90% of the market for the most advanced chips, those used for high-performance computing and AI -- and Nvidia is one of its biggest customers. As such, TSMC has its finger on the pulse of AI demand, and its recent performance is directly tied to the accelerating adoption of the technology. While TSMC investors had high hopes for the results, they got much more than they bargained for. In the second quarter, the company generated revenue of $30.1 billion, up 39% year over year and 11% quarter over quarter. This resulted in adjusted earnings per share (EPS) that surged 61% to a record high $2.47 (per American depositary receipt unit). To put the results into context with expectations, analysts' consensus estimates were calling for revenue of $30.2 billion and EPS of $2.38. The results were driven higher by TSMC's high-performance computing (HPC) division due to strong demand for AI. The company noted that its most advanced chips -- 7 nanometer and smaller -- represented 74% of total wafer sales during the quarter. If that weren't enough to get investors excited, TSMC raised its 2025 forecast and now expects full-year revenue to climb 30% in U.S. dollars. CEO C.C. Wei left no doubt about what drove the blockbuster results, which he said were "mainly due to continued robust AI and HPC-related demand." He went on to say that "recent developments are also positive to AI's long-term demand outlook." He pointed to increasing AI model usage and adoption, saying the company sees "AI demand continuing to be strong." What this means for Nvidia There's no denying that Nvidia has been one of the primary beneficiaries of the broad adoption of AI. In the past, the company was primarily known as a gaming company, supplying the graphics processing units (GPUs) that create lifelike images in video games -- but those days are long gone. In Nvidia's fiscal 2026 first quarter, revenue of $44 billion jumped 69% year over year, but drilling down into the results tells a story. Data center revenue, including AI chips, soared 69% to a record $39 billion. At the same time, gaming and PC revenue jumped 42% to $3.8 billion. Put another way, Nvidia's data center sales accounted for 89% of the company's considerable revenue. That's why investors are watching so closely for any sign of weakening demand for AI, as it's so central to Nvidia's success over the past few years. Looking ahead, Nvidia is guiding for second-quarter revenue of roughly $45 billion, which would represent year-over-year growth of 50%. It's worth noting that Nvidia incurred a $4.5 billion charge in the first quarter, the result of export controls on its H20 chips destined for China. Just this week, CEO Jensen Huang revealed in a blog post that Nvidia has applied for a license to resume sales of these chips and had received assurances from the Trump administration that its application will be approved. Analysts estimate that the additional sales could be worth as much as $15 billion in the second half of the year. The available evidence suggests the AI revolution is alive and well. That, combined with the resumption of chip sales to China, suggests Nvidia has a long runway for growth ahead. And since it's selling for just 29 times next year's expected earnings, it's still attractively priced. And that's why I predict Nvidia stock will likely soar for the rest of 2025. Do the experts think Nvidia is a buy right now? The Motley Fool's expert analyst team, drawing on years of investing experience and deep analysis of thousands of stocks, leverages our proprietary Moneyball AI investing database to uncover top opportunities. They've just revealed their to buy now — did Nvidia make the list? When our Stock Advisor analyst team has a stock recommendation, it can pay to listen. After all, Stock Advisor's total average return is up 1,048% vs. just 180% for the S&P — that is beating the market by 867.59%!* Imagine if you were a Stock Advisor member when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $652,133!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $1,056,790!* The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor. See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of July 15, 2025 Danny Vena has positions in Nvidia. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Nvidia and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Prediction: Nvidia Stock Will Soar in the Second Half of 2025, Thanks to This Incredible News From Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing was originally published by The Motley Fool
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Exit polls show Japan's ruling coalition likely to lose key election
TOKYO — Exit polls show Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba 's ruling coalition is likely to lose a majority in the smaller of Japan's two parliamentary houses in a key election Sunday, worsening the country's political instability. Voters were deciding half of the 248 seats in the upper house, the less powerful of the two chambers in Japan's Diet. Ishiba has set the bar low, wanting a simple majority of 125 seats, which means his LDP and Komeito Liberal Democratic Party and its Buddhist-backed junior coalition partner Komeito need to win 50 to add to the 75 seats they already have. That is a big retreat from the 141 seats they had pre-election, but media surveys predict big setbacks for Ishiba. Exit poll results released seconds after the ballots closed Sunday night mostly showed a major setback for Ishiba's coalition. Japan's NHK television projected a range of 32-51 seats for the prime minister's coalition, while other networks projected it would win just over 40 seats. A poor performance in the election would not immediately trigger a change of government because the upper house lacks the power to file a no-confidence motion against a leader, but it would certainly deepen uncertainty over his fate and Japan's political stability. Ishiba would face calls from within the LDP party to step down or find another coalition partner. Soaring prices, lagging incomes and burdensome social security payments are the top issues for frustrated, cash-strapped voters. Stricter measures targeting foreign residents and visitors have also emerged as a key issue, with a surging right-wing populist party leading the campaign. Sunday's vote comes after Ishiba's coalition lost a majority in the October lower house election, stung by past corruption scandals, and his unpopular government has since been forced into making concessions to the opposition to get legislation through parliament. It has been unable to quickly deliver effective measures to mitigate rising prices, including Japan's traditional staple of rice, and dwindling wages. President Donald Trump has added to the pressure, complaining about a lack of progress in trade negotiations and the lack of sales of U.S. autos and American-grown rice to Japan despite a shortfall in domestic stocks of the grain. A 25% tariff due to take effect Aug. 1 has been another blow for Ishiba. Ishiba has resisted any compromise before the election, but the prospect for a breakthrough after the election is just as unclear because the minority government would have difficulty forming a consensus with the opposition. Frustrated voters are rapidly turning to emerging populist parties. The eight main opposition groups, however, are too fractured to forge a common platform as a united front and gain voter support as a viable alternative. The emerging populist party Sanseito stands out with the toughest anti-foreigner stance, with its 'Japanese First' platform that proposes a new agency to handle policies related to foreigners. The party's populist platform also includes anti-vaccine, anti-globalism and favors traditional gender the daily Crossword
