House panel approves bill increasing H-1B limits

A U.S. House of Representatives committee has approved legislation that would more than double the current skilled immigration H-1B cap with the focus on science and technology workers.

 

The House Judiciary Committee approved the Supplying Knowledge Based Immigrants and Lifting Levels of STEM Visa Act, or the SKILLS Visa Act, by a vote of 20-14 late Thursday.

 

The bill would set aside 55,000 green cards each year for employers to hire foreign graduates of U.S. universities with advanced degrees in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) fields.

 

The SKILLS Visa Act would also increase the annual H-1B visa cap to 155,000, from the current 65,000, and increase the additional H-1Bs set aside for foreign graduates of U.S. universities from 20,000 to 40,000.

 

The committee approval will help benefit the U.S. economy and aid the “creation of American jobs,” Representative Darrell Issa, a California Republican and main sponsor of the bill, said in a statement. The bill “allows immigrants who graduate from American universities with advanced degrees in STEM fields to remain here and use their talents to make this country a better place.”

 

The bill next moves to the floor of the full House of Representatives. The House action comes in the same day that the Senate passed a comprehensive immigration bill that includes high-skill immigration provisions. The Senate bill faces an uphill fight in the House.

 

Some tech workers groups have denounced proposals to raise the H-1B visa cap, saying there are plenty of U.S. tech workers still looking for jobs.

 

The Issa bill changes the calculation of prevailing wages that companies need to give foreign workers who receive visas. That provision is an effort to protection U.S. workers, Issa said in a press release.

 

The bill would also allocate up to 10,000 green cards a year for alien entrepreneurs who can attract investment from venture-capital firms to establish businesses creating at least five jobs.

 

Several tech trade groups praised the House bill. For years, several large tech companies have called on Congress to increase the H-1B visa cap, saying they can’t find enough skilled workers in the U.S. to fill thousands of jobs.

 

The Consumer Electronics Association, in a statement, called high-skilled immigration a “key priority for the nation.”

 

“For America to remain the world’s leading innovator, we must embrace immigration policy reforms that allow the United States to remain a magnet for the best and brightest to work and build their businesses, create new jobs and contribute to the overall success of our economy,” Gary Shapiro, CEA’s president and CEO, said in a statement.

 

 

Japan's Sharp to tie with Chinese firm, build LCD panel factory

Japan's Sharp said Thursday it will team with a large Chinese manufacturer to build a factory in Nanjing and mass-produce LCD screens for TVs, computers and tablets.

 

Sharp said it will form a joint venture with China Electronics Corp. (CEC) to manage the project, and aims to begin production in June 2015. The plant will eventually handle 60,000 LCD panels per month, each measuring 2.2 x 2.5 meters, which can then be divided into smaller sizes for consumer products.

 

Although Sharp is struggling with massive losses and going through a major restructuring to rebuild its finances, the company is still one of the largest LCD display makers in the world and possesses cutting-edge technology. Japan's Nikkei newspaper reported that as part of the deal, Sharp will transfer its technology for producing IGZO (Indium Gallium Zinc Oxide) screens to the venture and will receive payment in the "tens of billions of yen" in return, part of which it will use to fund the new investment.

 

IGZO allows for higher resolutions and lower power drain than traditional LCD screens, and devices that use the technology are beginning to appear on the market. Sharp has launched smartphones and tablets with IGZO screens, and Samsung Electronics, Asustek Computer and Fujitsu are all releasing laptops that use the technology.

 

Rumors have long circulated that Samsung and Apple are looking to build smartphones using IGZO screens. A second factory that can produce the technology would help allay fears of being dependent on a single supplier.

 

The new venture will be called Nanjing CEC-Panda LCD Technology and will be funded by a 17.5 billion yuan (US$2.8 billion) investment, 92 percent from CEC Group and 8 percent from Sharp. It will be officially established in March of next year.

 

Sharp said the Chinese plant will allow production at lower costs than its current factories, and it will retain the right to buy the panels produced at the new facility.

 

Sharp has been aggressively pursuing deals with foreign partners to shore up its finances as it looks to recover from deep losses. Since last year it has signed deals with Samsung, Foxconn and Qualcomm for joint production and research.

 

As a result of a deal announced in August 2009, Sharp and CEC already operate a Chinese joint venture producing smaller LCD panels, to which Sharp transferred some of its older technology. They said at the time they would negotiate a deal to build larger panels in the future.

 

Sharp booked a ¥545 billion loss last fiscal year but forecasts it can rebound to a ¥5 billion profit during the current period. It said Thursday that the finances of the new deal are already factored into its current forecast.

 

Follow me on Twitter @sajilpl

Japan's Sharp to tie with Chinese firm, build LCD panel factory

Japan’s Sharp said Thursday it will team with a large Chinese manufacturer to build a factory in Nanjing and mass-produce LCD screens for TVs, computers and tablets.

Sharp said it will form a joint venture with China Electronics Corp. (CEC) to manage the project, and aims to begin production in June 2015. The plant will eventually handle 60,000 LCD panels per month, each measuring 2.2 x 2.5 meters, which can then be divided into smaller sizes for consumer products.

Although Sharp is struggling with massive losses and going through a major restructuring to rebuild its finances, the company is still one of the largest LCD display makers in the world and possesses cutting-edge technology. Japan’s Nikkei newspaper reported that as part of the deal, Sharp will transfer its technology for producing IGZO (Indium Gallium Zinc Oxide) screens to the venture and will receive payment in the “tens of billions of yen” in return, part of which it will use to fund the new investment.

IGZO allows for higher resolutions and lower power drain than traditional LCD screens, and devices that use the technology are beginning to appear on the market. Sharp has launched smartphones and tablets with IGZO screens, and Samsung Electronics, Asustek Computer and Fujitsu are all releasing laptops that use the technology.

Rumors have long circulated that Samsung and Apple are looking to build smartphones using IGZO screens. A second factory that can produce the technology would help allay fears of being dependent on a single supplier.

The new venture will be called Nanjing CEC-Panda LCD Technology and will be funded by a 17.5 billion yuan ($2.8 billion) investment, 92 percent from CEC Group and 8 percent from Sharp. It will be officially established in March of next year.

Sharp said the Chinese plant will allow production at lower costs than its current factories, and it will retain the right to buy the panels produced at the new facility.

Sharp has been aggressively pursuing deals with foreign partners to shore up its finances as it looks to recover from deep losses. Since last year it has signed deals with Samsung, Foxconn and Qualcomm for joint production and research.

As a result of a deal announced in August 2009, Sharp and CEC already operate a Chinese joint venture producing smaller LCD panels, to which Sharp transferred some of its older technology. They said at the time they would negotiate a deal to build larger panels in the future.

Sharp booked a ¥545 billion loss last fiscal year but forecasts it can rebound to a ¥5 billion profit during the current period. It said Thursday that the finances of the new deal are already factored into its current forecast.

Follow me on Twitter @sajilpl