Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) posted sales of more than NT$150 billion (US$5.36 billion) in September for the first time in its history, a milestone that analysts attributed to the debut of the latest iPhone 13 lineup.
In a statement released Friday, TSMC said it posted consolidated sales of NT$152.69 billion in September, up 11.1 percent from a month earlier and up 19.7 percent from a year earlier.
TSMC is believed to be the sole supplier of the A15 processor for the production of the iPhone 13 series, which went on sale globally in September, and analysts said an increase in orders from Apple Inc. was the major driver to the chipmaker’s shipments during the month.
Including the strong showing in September, TSMC’s consolidated sales for the third quarter of the year rose 11.42 percent from the previous quarter to NT$414.67 billion.
The third quarter sales ended within the US$14.6 billion to US$14.9 billion range provided by the company in its guidance at an investor conference in mid-July.
In the first nine months of the year, TSMC generated about NT$1.15 trillion in consolidated sales, up 17.5 percent from a year earlier, according to the company.
Analysts said TSMC is expected to continue to benefit from its efforts to develop the advanced 5 nanometer process, the latest technology for which TSMC has launched mass production, to boost sales in the fourth quarter.
In addition to the iPhone 13’s A15 processor that uses TSMC’s 5nm process, several other major clients such as Qualcomm Inc., Advanced Micro Devices Inc., and MediaTek Inc. have also adopted 5nm chips for products in the October-December period, analysts said.
TSMC has scheduled an investor conference for Oct. 14 to detail its third quarter results and give guidance for the fourth quarter as well as its global expansion plans and capital expenditure, analysts added.
The company released its September sales data after the stock market closed Friday. The stock closed down 0.86 percent at NT$575.00, dropping its market capitalization by NT$129.65 billion from a session earlier to NT$14.9 trillion.
Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel