Taiwan's TSMC, the world's largest foundry (semiconductor contract manufacturing), reported a 60% surge in net profit for the first quarter of this year. This is attributed to a surge in semiconductor orders due to concerns over tariff impacts from the United States.
TSMC stated on the 17th that its first-quarter revenue was 839.25 billion Taiwan dollars (36.65 trillion won) and net profit was 361.56 billion Taiwan dollars (15.79 trillion won).
Revenue increased by 41.6% compared to the same period last year, while net profit rose by 60.3%. In particular, net profit exceeded market expectations of 354.6 billion Taiwan dollars. TSMC's first-quarter operating profit margin was 48.5%, surpassing 42.0% recorded in the same period last year.
Amid expected global trade disruption due to the reciprocal tariff from the Trump administration, TSMC's better-than-expected performance is interpreted as a result of increased stockpiling demand for high-performance semiconductors in the United States. However, TSMC's stock price has fallen by 20% this year as uncertainty over U.S. tariff policy has increased.
TSMC provided a revenue guidance of $28.4 billion to $29.2 billion for the second quarter, which is higher than market expectation of $27.2 billion, and forecasts a 38% increase compared to the same quarter last year. The gross profit margin is also expected to remain strong at 57% to 59%.