Quick overview

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TSMC (TSM) is expected to report record earnings for the fourth consecutive quarter, with a 50% increase in net profit from January to March amid a surge in demand for AI infrastructure.

Analysts claim that demand for Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.’s sophisticated packaging technology and 3-nanometer technology to create AI chips continues to exceed the company’s current production capacity.

This has propelled Asia’s most valuable company—a vital supplier to Apple and Nvidia—to unprecedented heights. At about $1.68 trillion, its market capitalization is now almost twice that of its South Korean competitor, Samsung Electronics.

TSMC is anticipated to report a net profit of T$543.3 billion ($17.23 billion) for the first quarter on Thursday. Forecasts from analysts who are more consistently accurate are given more weight by SmartEstimates.

An earnings call will provide updated full-year guidance and is scheduled for 0600 GMT. A profit above T$505.7 billion ​would ​mark the company’s highest-ever quarterly net income and ​its ninth consecutive quarter of profit ‌growth.

Last week, it posted a 35% year-on-year rise in first-quarter revenue, ahead of market forecasts.

The war in the Middle East threatens to disrupt the supply of production materials for semiconductors such as helium and neon, but TSMC is as well-placed to weather the crisis.

One area of focus will be whether TSMC maintains or raises its 2026 ‌capital spending plans, as that will reflect management’s confidence ​in long-term AI demand, analysts said.

At its last ​earnings call in January, the company said ​capital spending this year would hit between $52 billion and $56 billion, up ‌as much as 37% compared with 2025’s $40.9 ​billion.