TSMC raises sales and spending outlook, adding signs of continued AI demand
The substantial increase in this year's capital expenditure and revenue forecast reflects the company's confidence in global AI infrastructure demand. The company, a major chipmaker, now expects capital expenditures of $60 billion to $64 billion in 2026, up from its previous estimate of $52 billion to $56 billion. The company also expects revenue growth in U.S. dollars to be just over 40%, up from more than 30% previously. TSMC previously announced that its second-quarter net profit increased by 77.4% year-on-year, and the growth rate exceeded market expectations. The steady growth underscores TSMC's core position in producing the world's most advanced chips needed for data centers and smartphones. As Asia's most valuable company, TSMC is considered Meta Platforms Inc. These companies are likely to spend more than $725 billion this year, setting the pace for giants to build AI infrastructure around the world. However, investors are now grappling with the stock's lofty valuation and whether Meta and its rivals are building more computing power than they will need in the future. But many industry leaders, including TSMC, deny it. TSMC President Wei Zhejia said in June that even if new production capacity in the United States comes online, the company will not be able to meet corporate demand driven by American customers. SK Hynix currently expects that as data center operators continue to invest heavily, demand for traditional memory and high-bandwidth memory (HBM) required for AI systems will grow, and the shortage of memory chips will continue beyond 2030. As an important indicator for observing the supply and demand situation of semiconductors, TSMC’s capital expenditure trends have received close attention.