Nvidia isn’t the only tech firm reaping massive benefits from the AI boom, as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), the world’s leading contract maker of semiconductors, has also experienced a significant market surge.
TSMC’s market capitalization briefly exceeded $1 trillion recently, driven by unprecedented global demand for advanced processors. This milestone could be further solidified later this month when TSMC reports its quarterly earnings.
TSMC manufactures processors for all major global chip designers, such as Apple, Intel, Nvidia, AMD, and Qualcomm. These processors are critically sought after, often leaving TSMC without any real competition.
Expectations are high
Coming as no surprise to anyone, the recent boost in TSMC’s market value is primarily down to the growing demand for AI semiconductors, a market that TSMC says is expected to grow by 250% this year.
It’s fair to say the chip firm is having quite the year in 2024. Back in April it was forced to evacuate workers and suspend operations after Taiwan was hit by the strongest earthquake in a quarter of a century, and then a few days later it was granted $6.6 billion as part of the CHIPS and Science act to fund the domestic manufacturing of semiconductors on US soil.
Although TSMC’s market capitalization has since dropped to $982.37 billion, it achieved landmark status by becoming the first Asian company to reach a market capitalization of one trillion dollars. It’s currently in eighth place on the list of the largest companies globally, behind Meta in seventh with $1,348 trillion. Interestingly, Intel has a market cap of “only” $145.98 billion, which puts it way back in 97th place.
Expectations are high that TSMC’s stock and market capitalization will rise following the announcement of its Q2 2024 financial results. The company is expected to enjoy even higher revenues in the second half of the year because, as Tom’s Hardware says, “companies like Apple, AMD, and Intel ramp up production of their latest processors starting in the second quarter.”