Govt Tech Controls & Chip Slowdown

G. Dan Hutcheson

The Chip Insider®

TSMC’s Extraordinary Growth: What’s the problem?
TSMC had another extraordinary month in August: Year-over-Year sales growth of 47%. This was up from 41% in July. But down from 56% in May. And that’s in U.S. dollars, which has been unusually strong and has muted the growth in Taiwan dollars, which was 59%, 50%, and 65%, respectively, for August, July, and May. The strength of the U.S. dollar really isn’t a problem, since TSMC conducts its business in American currency. Turning back to U.S. dollars, TSMC’s average monthly growth this year has averaged 39%. This is well over two times the 16% average achieved for ICs. This is where two problems lie: One short-term and the other long-term. One is tactical and the other is strategic. The short-term tactical problem lies in inventory build… The long-term strategic problem lies in TSMC’s scale…

“The only thing we have to fear is...fear itself — nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance” — Franklin D. Roosevelt’s 1933 inaugural address

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