TSMC's Q4 Profit To Slide 23%, Company Admits

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd. is expected to report a 23% drop in fourth-quarter profit on Thursday, but analysts predict better growth this year on the back of rebounding demand, Ben Blanchard reported for Reuters.

TSMC's revenue in the final three months of last year came in at T$625.5 billion ($20.10 billion). I Photo: Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company

The likely decline in profit also reflects a strong performance in 2022 when the company, whose customers include Apple and Nvidia, was still riding high on pent-up post-pandemic demand.

The world's largest contract chipmaker is set to report a net profit of T$226.4 billion ($7.21 billion) for the October to December period - its third straight quarter of profit decline, according to an LSEG SmartEstimate drawn from 20 analysts.

That compares to the year-earlier net profit of T$295.9 billion.

Revenue in the final three months of last year came in at T$625.5 billion ($20.10 billion), according to Reuters calculations from TSMC data released last week, compared with $19.93 billion in the year-earlier period, but that still beat both the company's and market's expectations.

Global demand for semiconductors began to weaken in the second half of 2022, but analysts say inventories at smartphone and computer makers are running down and restocking demand is expected to pick up.

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