This month, Taiwanese chipmaker TSMC, which produces some of the world’s most advanced silicon, announced record profits for the past quarter—up by 76.4 percent from the year before to 237.03 billion New Taiwan dollars ($8.05 billion). It also warned that weakening consumer demand coupled with chip hoarding would put a dent in future financials.
“Our expectation is for the excessive inventory in the semiconductor supply chain to take a few quarters to rebalance to a healthier level,” C.C. Wei, TSMC’s CEO, said during the company’s earnings call.
It’s just the latest sign that the recent chipmaking boom is finally over—for some at least. But that doesn’t mean the shortage of chips that has bedeviled the global economy is about to disappear, or that the US need no longer worry about shoring up its advanced chipmaking capacity.
