TSMC smashes forecasts with record profit, flags more US factories

TSMC, the world's main producer of advanced AI chips, on Thursday (January 15) posted a forecast-smashing 35% jump in fourth-quarter profit to a record high, predicted robust annual growth and flagged more U.S. manufacturing capacity was in the works.

Revenue increased 1.9% sequentially to $33.7 billion, TSMC Chief Financial Officer Wendell Huang told investors about the the fourth-quarter revenue during the earnings results conference.

Riding high on what it calls the "AI mega trend," TSMC said its customers, and their customers, were "providing strong signals" and requesting capacity, forecasting 2026 revenue would rise nearly 30% in U.S. dollar terms.

The Taiwanese company, which counts Nvidia and Apple as major customers, announced plans last year to invest $100 billion in the U.S., on top of $65 billion pledged for three plants in the state of Arizona, one of which is up and running.

The boom in artificial intelligence has helped TSMC, Asia's most valuable listed company, outshine its rivals. It now boasts a market capitalisation of around $1.4 trillion - more than twice that of South Korea's Samsung Electronics.

Production: Yi-Chin Lee/Reuters