Chartered Semiconductor Manufacturing Ltd, which is seeking cash from its investors for the fourth time in three years, will miss its fourth-quarter sales target because of weak demand for computer chips.
The world's No. 3 provider of custom-built chips said two weeks ago, when it announced its latest share sale, that it would meet a previous target that sales would double to US$168 million in the quarter. That is no longer the case, the company said in a regulatory filing.
"People may question why they didn't mention it when they announced the fund raising," said Tan Gee-chee, a money manager with OUB Optimix Funds, which manages about US$100 million, including shares of Chartered Semiconductor. "They're not doing a good job in investor relations."
The Singapore-based company, which expects a US$87 million loss this quarter, is one of many chipmakers throughout the world confronting slack demand for the brains behind personal computers, mobile phones and other electronic gadgets. It needs more cash to keep investing in new products to stay competitive with bigger rivals like Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (
The share sale has already raised questions from regulators, who are investigating trading in the company's shares, which shed almost a fifth of their value before it was announced.
Chartered Semiconductor disclosed the sales shortfall in a regulatory filing outlining plans to raise US$626 million for a new factory by selling shares. It's offering shares at a 52 percent discount to the closing price preceding the Sept. 2 offer to existing shareholders, including government-owned Singapore Technologies Group, which owns about 60 percent of the company.
Chartered Semiconductor spokeswoman Maggie Tan wasn't available for comment and didn't immediately return a voice mail.
A rebound in chip sales has faltered as demand for computers and communications equipment lagged expectations.
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The Central Weather Administration (CWA) is set to issue sea and land warnings for Tropical Storm Krathon as projections showed that the tropical storm could strengthen into a typhoon as it approaches Taiwan proper, the CWA said yesterday. The sea warning is scheduled to take effect this morning and the land warning this evening, it said. The storm formed yesterday morning and in the evening reached a point 620 nautical miles (1,148km) southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan proper’s southernmost point, moving west-southwest at 4 kph as it strengthened, the CWA said. Its radius measured between 220km and 250km, it added. Krathon is projected
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