Apple chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. is riding high. TSMC projects revenue for the quarter that is well above analysts’ estimates. TSMC projects revenue of $10.2 billion to $10.3 billion in the March quarter which surpasses analysts’ consensus estimates for $9.6 billion.
Debby Wu and Gao Yuan for Bloomberg:
Shares in the world’s largest contract chipmaker have slid two straight days on worries that Washington will tighten existing restrictions on exports to Huawei, potentially curtailing shipments from TSMC and other non-American firms. If the U.S. does move ahead, any disruption would be short-term because TSMC could replace some of the lost Huawei business with orders from other customers thanks to the 5G boom, Chairman Mark Liu said during a post-earnings conference with analysts…
TSMC spent almost $15 billion on technology and capacity in 2019 and is prepared to shell out as much as $16 billion this year, anticipating the advent of fifth-generation smartphones. The company, a barometer for the tech industry thanks to its heft and place in the supply chain, has said the advent of 5G will result in more chips in devices than before.
Apple Inc.’s main chipmaker is banking that the rollout of fifth-generation enabled smartphones in 2020 will galvanize growth. Semiconductor orders from Huawei account for 10% of its revenue, according to Bloomberg data… Chief Executive Officer C. C. Wei has expressed hopes that the emergence of 5G, the foundation of future technologies from automated factories and smart homes to faster consumer electronics, will underpin its business in coming years.
MacDailyNews Take: Apple supplier TSMC has secured orders for Apple-designed 5nm A14 SOCs destined for this year’s new iPhones and iPads, according to reports. Hopefully they can make enough!
