(June 10): Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) reported a 30% rise in its monthly sales, reflecting continued strength in demand spurred by a global rush to build artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure.
Revenue in May was NT$416.98 billion (US$13.2 billion or $17.0 billion), with combined April and May sales up around 24% from a year ago, according to Bloomberg calculations. Analysts are looking for a 35% increase in second-quarter sales.
Asia’s largest company has become an essential global AI player by making cutting-edge semiconductors for the likes of Nvidia Corp and Advanced Micro Devices Inc. That’s as Alphabet Inc, Amazon.com Inc, Meta Platforms Inc and Microsoft Corp prepare to set aside US$725 billion for AI-related investments this year, significantly more than previously anticipated.
TSMC has been bullish on global AI chip demand. The company’s global chip supply will fall short of demand for years to come, chief executive officer CC Wei told shareholders earlier this month, just days after Nvidia boss Jensen Huang said his firm is still supply constrained. In April, the Taiwanese chipmaker raised its full-year sales guidance and said its capital spending should trend towards the upper end of an existing forecast range of as much as US$56 billion in 2026.
However, TSMC also supplies chips to smartphone and consumer electronics makers, which are grappling with soaring memory chip costs and customer sentiment hurt by rising costs of living.
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