Home
Mobiles
Mobiles News
TSMC posts 21 percent jump in Q1 profit on growing mobile SoC demand

TSMC posts 21 percent jump in Q1 profit on growing mobile SoC demand

By Agence France-Presse | Updated: 17 April 2014 20:33 IST

Click Here to Add Gadgets360 As A Trusted Source

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co said Thursday its first-quarter net profit rose 21 percent year-on-year, boosted by stronger than expected demand for chips used in smartphones and tablets.

The world's biggest contract chip maker said net profit rose to Tw$47.87 billion ($1.6 billion) in the January-March period, while revenue grew 11.6 percent to Tw$148.22 billion from a year earlier.

Net profit and revenue rose 6.8 percent and 1.7 percent, respectively, from the fourth quarter last year, the company said in a statement.

(Also see: TSMC raises Q1 expectations on strong demand for mobile processors)

The figures exceeded a forecast TSMC made last month when raising its first-quarter guidance on robust demand for sophisticated chips used in mobile devices. The company had expected first-quarter revenue of around Tw$147 billion.

"In the first quarter, we saw much stronger demand for our wafers across all segments but more pronounced in mobile-related applications than we had initially predicted," said chief financial officer Lora Ho.

TSMC said mobile device makers have turned more positive in their outlook this year, driven by better-than-expected business in the last quarter of 2013.

They were actively restocking inventory before new product launches.

The company expects a strong rebound in demand to continue in the second quarter, with estimated revenue of around Tw$180-Tw$183 billion while gross profit margin is expected at 47.5-49.5 percent and operating profit margin at 36.5-38.5 percent.

TSMC is also expected to get a boost from supplying the "A8" chips to be used in Apple's next iPhone starting in the second or third quarter, according to Dow Jones Newswires.

(Also see: TSMC making Apple A8 processor for iPhone 6: Report)

Comments

For details of the latest launches and news from Samsung, Xiaomi, Realme, OnePlus, Oppo and other companies at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, visit our MWC 2026 hub.

Further reading: TSMC, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co