Revenues soar at TSMC as AI spending mounts

(Sharecast News) - Taiwan's TSMC posted a surge in revenues on Tuesday, as the artificial intelligence boom continued to fuel demand for its high-end semiconductors. Net revenues were NT$401.3bn (£9.3bn) in January, a near 37% hike on the same month a year previously, and 20% improvement on December. TSMC has predicted revenue growth of 30% for the whole year.

In Taipei, the stock closed up 4% following the announcement, while TSMC's New York-listed shares had put on 3% in pre-market trading by 1000 GMT.

TSMC is the world's largest contract chip maker, supplying clients including Apple, Nvidia, Broadcom and Qualcomm, and a leader in the advanced chips required to power AI.

Tech stocks have boomed over the last year as demand for AI surges. Some market watchers have warned of a potential bubble as valuations have continued to soar despite wider macroeconomic or geopolitical issues, but so far both demand and valuations remain buoyant.

TSMC's New York stock has put on more than 70% over the last year, and 157% over the last five years.

Matt Britzman, senior equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, called TSMC's January sales figures "strikingly strong, pointing to accelerating momentum in the AI hardware buildout and offering a clear positive read-across for Nvidia.

"First-quarter sales [are] now tracking ahead of market expectations. That strength is consistent with robust demand for AI servers and faster build rates, reinforcing confidence in Nvidia's near-term outlook ahead of its late-February results."

Nvidia was up nearly 1% in pre-market trading as at 1000 GMT.