Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s top contract chipmaker, yesterday posted record revenue last month amid stronger-than-usual seasonal demand this quarter.
Revenue rose 13.5 percent to NT$50.07 billion (US$1.68 billion) from NT$44.13 billion in March, according to a company statement.
The figure was 23.5 percent higher than the NT$40.54 billion it posted in April last year.
The Hsinchu-based chipmaker said last month it expected revenue would range from NT$154 billion to NT$156 billion this quarter, representing a sequential increase of 16 to 17.5 percent.
“Both [the first and second] quarters are stronger than usual as demand for mobile applications remains strong,” TSMC chairman and chief executive Morris Chang (張忠謀) told investors on April 18.
Chang also attributed the chipmaker’s strong growth to its advanced 28-nanometer technology, which has become widely adopted by mobile device makers.
In the first four months of the year, TSMC made NT$182.83 billion, up 25.1 percent from the same period last year.
Chang said TSMC’s revenue for the whole year would expand at a faster pace than the 10 percent growth rate he forecast for the foundry sector.
TSMC reported record revenue of NT$506.25 billion last year.
United Microelectronics Corp (UMC, 聯電), the world’s No. 3 contract chipmaker, yesterday said its revenue reached NT$10.28 billion last month, up 7.08 percent from the NT$9.6 billion it posted the previous month, but down 0.84 percent from NT$10.37 billion last year.
MStar Semiconductor Inc (晨星半導體), the world’s biggest supplier of chips used in flat-screen TVs, yesterday said its revenue grew 4.8 percent to NT$2.87 billion last month from March’s NT$2.74 billion. However, sales were down 7.4 percent from NT$3.11 billion a year ago.
MStar’s board also approved the distribution of a NT$6 cash dividend based on last year’s net income of NT$4.53 billion, or earnings per share of NT$8.53.
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