HSINCHU, Taiwan — Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd. (TSMC) here today (March 7, 2003) raised its forecast for the first quarter of 2003, while also indicating it will see monthly sequential increases in the second quarter of this year.
The Hsinchu-based silicon foundry giant also posted sales of $356 million (NT$12.435 billion) for the month of February, a 6 percent decline from January but a 7.6 percent increase over the like period a year ago.
Unit sales fell in February as compared to January due to the short month and Chinese New Year, said Harvey Chang, senior vice president of TSMC.
Chang also noted that TSMC's sales are expected to hit the bottom in the first quarter, although the figures are expected to be "better than forecasted."
The company's fab utilization rate is expected to be a few percentage points higher than the 60 percent range previously forecasted, showing what it said was a clear sign of stabilization. Monthly sales for the second quarter are expected to increase sequentially, according to TSMC.
TSMC did not elaborate on its forecast for the first and second quarter of 2003. In the fourth quarter of 2002, TSMC posted sales of $1.18 billion, up 3% over the previous quarter and 24% in the like period a year ago. It also reported a profit of $73 million in the quarter, down 19.2% sequentially and a 43.2% decline from a year ago.
It reported net sales of $1.0 billion and a net income of $190 million in the first quarter of 2002.
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