Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, invested more in fixed assets in the first half of this year than any other manufacturer listed on the local stock market, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said on Friday.
Data compiled by the ministry showed that fixed investments by TSMC during the six-month period totaled NT$207.7 billion (US$6.91 billion), up 85.9 percent from a year earlier, as the company invested heavily to develop high-end technology processes.
TSMC’s latest technology, the advanced 10-nanometer process, entered commercial production in the fourth quarter of last year, and shipments of its products using the 10-nanometer process are expected to account for 10 percent of its sales in the third quarter, up from 1 percent in the second quarter.
The company is also developing 7-nanometer, 5-nanometer and 3-nanometer processes in a bid to maintain its lead in the global semiconductor market.
United Microelectronics Corp (聯電), a smaller rival to TSMC, came in second after investing NT$26 billion in fixed assets in the first half of the year, down 47.8 percent from a year earlier, the data showed.
Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海), an assembler of iPhones and iPads for Apple Inc, ranked as the third-biggest investor in fixed assets among manufacturers during the period at NT$20.9 billion, down 15.2 percent from a year earlier.
During the period, fixed investment by all listed manufacturers in Taiwan totaled NT$672 billion, the highest level in three years and up 26.1 percent from a year earlier, the ministry said.
The electronics component sector, which includes TSMC, had fixed investment of NT$416.7 billion, up 36.2 percent from a year earlier. That accounted for 62 percent of total fixed investment by manufacturers during the period.
The manufacturing sector spent NT$297.2 billion on research and development (R&D) in the January-to-June period, up 6.7 percent from a year earlier, with the electronics component segment accounting for 50.5 percent of the total, the ministry said.
Among the listed manufacturers, TSMC was the biggest R&D spender in the first six months with investment of NT$38.5 billion, up 18.3 percent from a year earlier.
That was ahead of Hon Hai at NT$27.8 billion, up 26.2 percent annually, and integrated circuit designer MediaTek Inc (聯發科) at NT$27.1 billion, up 0.2 percent annually, the ministry said.
The ministry said it compiled the data based on financial reports from 1,070 companies in the manufacturing sector that are listed either on the Taiwan Stock Exchange or the Taipei Exchange.
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