SAN FRANCISCO—Singaporean chip foundry Chartered Semiconductor Manufacturing Ltd. cut its guidance for the fourth quarter, saying it now expects revenue of between $343 million and $353 million and a net loss of between $76 million and $84 million. On Oct. 31, Chartered said it was expecting revenue of $362 million to $374 million and a net loss of $52 million to $62 million.
Under the revised guidance, Chartered said its revenue would be down 24 to 26 percent sequentially.
Chartered said now expects a capacity utilization rate of 58 to 62 percent for the fourth quarter, down from 85 percent in the third quarter. The company said previously it expected utilization to be 60 to 66 percent.
On Thursday (Dec. 11) FBR Capital Markets cut its estimates for leading foundries Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) and United Microelectronics Corp. (UMC), saying their capacity utilization rates could reach historic lows in the first quarter of 2009.
In a statement, George Thomas, Chartered senior vice president and chief financial officer, said customers are postponing deliveries due to weaker market conditions.
"Due to the uncertain business environment that continues to cloud our business visibility, we are aggressively identifying additional areas for cost reduction in addition to those that are being implemented currently," Thomas said.
In revising its fourth quarter guidance downward, Chartered joins a host of semiconductor and electronics companies who have cut outlooks in the midst of the downturn. SMSC and Lattice Semiconductor Corp. also lowered quarterly outlooks Thursday, while Actel Corp. stuck to its guns, affirming previously provided guidance for the fourth quarter.
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