TSMC’s Profit Beat Estimates In Sign Of Pre-Tariffs Order Rush
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. posted better-than-anticipated quarterly earnings after customers scrambled to stock up on advanced chips in anticipation of global trade ructions spurred by US tariffs.
The main chipmaker for Nvidia Corp. and Apple Inc. reported March-quarter net income of NT$361.6 billion ($11.1 billion), versus the average analyst estimate for NT$346.8 billion. TSMC reported a better-than-expected 42% revenue rise for that period last week, propelled in part by stockpiling of smartphones, laptops and other electronics in the US ahead of a potential trade war.
Investors are focusing more on TSMC's 2025 outlook for revenue and spending, which its executives will outline later Thursday. The global tech sector is particularly nervous after a turbulent few days, when US restrictions on the export of Nvidia chips to China and a disappointing report from ASML Holding NV dimmed the outlook for semiconductors. Those two industry linchpins shed $200 billion in market value Wednesday.
For 2025, the market remains nervous about the impact of tariffs on the global economy and a sector that supplies critical components to just about every industry on the planet. Trump's trade war is prompting economists to scale back their forecasts for GDP growth worldwide, casting doubt over the outlook for everything from iPhone demand to computing.
Even before Washington slapped additional tariffs on much of the world — only to roll them back shortly after — analysts had questioned whether big tech firms from Microsoft Corp. to Meta Platforms Inc. will continue to buy Nvidia chips at the same pace in 2025. The US chipmaker is TSMC's largest customer after Apple.
Investors will also be looking for any change in spending plans following TSMC's surprise announcement of an additional $100 billion US investment.
What Bloomberg Intelligence Says
TSMC's growth trajectory remains clouded despite ASML's €1.2 billion in EUV (extreme ultraviolet) system orders in 1Q (an 83% rise year over year), likely fueled by TSMC's capacity expansion and a low comparison base. US export restrictions impacting specific AI chips (e.g. the Nvidia H20) and potential semiconductor import tariffs are creating significant demand uncertainty for key TSMC customers like Nvidia and Apple, and these headwinds can still slow TSMC's revenue growth and capacity-expansion plans. Charles Shum and Steven Tseng, analystsClick here for the research.
All the uncertainty has analysts wondering if TSMC will adjust its 2025 sales growth outlook of mid-20%. JPMorgan says the firm could pare that slightly to a low- to mid-20% expansion. Deutsche Bank AG said it may also just withdraw its guidance as customers adjust to tariffs. Many analysts have recently lowered their share-price targets on the company as well.
Semiconductor firms, which are highly sensitive to economic cycles, have borne the brunt of the market selloff this year. The benchmark chipmaker index has plunged more than 22% in 2025, compared with the S&P 500's 10% slide.
The Taiwanese giant wasn't spared. Its stock is down about 20% for 2025. It's trading at roughly 14 times estimated earnings for the 12 months, below its three-year average of 16 times and lower than the multiple for the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index.
-
Talking Points This Week: Tech Nerves, FII Buying, And A Faraway Banking Shock
The global markets are not shining this Diwali. The exception in the large markets is, India.
-
Midterm Rally Lasted A Day. The Hard Reality Of A Divided US May Last Two Years | Opinion
Between a contested AI boom, a debt ceiling that arrives in 2027 and a president with every incentive to act alone, the next two years may prove more volatile than the first day's rally suggests.
-
Blue Wave Will Derail the AI Trade but Won't Dismantle the AI Era | Unhedged Position
The Democrats' sweep of the US Congress will see politics collide with economic forces both over the long and short term.
-
It's Time To Take The GST Council's Bet On Trust Global
Payment records can prove India's services exports, and clear, proportionate rules can bring foreign digital sellers into the tax net.
-
Opinion | India at 38: From Innovation Overperformer to Innovation Powerhouse
India now has 453 VC-backed deep science startups, 18 of them late-stage, after 117 percent growth since 2020. Laurus Labs, at USD 9.3 billion, is the most valuable deep science company in any middle-income economy outside China.
-
Navigating Energy Crossroads: S Jaishankar's Call For Diversified Supply Chains At G20 Ministerial Meeting
As geopolitical fault lines continue to test maritime trade routes and commodity flows, Jaishankar's message remains pertinent: true economic resilience requires open markets, protected transit lines, and a genuine commitment to multilateral cooperation rather than coercion.
-
Indians Are Travelling, But Not Every Journey Is A Holiday | The Week In Whys
Pilgrims, patients and working women are the real travellers, and the system hasn't quite caught up with them.
-
Getting To Work Costs Women More | The Reason Why
It is not just about women paying more than men. It is about women paying much more in cities than in villages.
-
AI Bias In Investing Cannot Be Eliminated, But It Can Be Governed
Framing is a particularly important example as identical financial information presented in terms of gains rather than losses can lead an LLM to reach a different assessment.
