TSMC quarterly revenue hits record NT$1.49 trillion

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) generated record revenue of about NT$1.49 trillion ($46.71 billion) in the third quarter of 2026, exceeding market expectations as demand for chips used in artificial intelligence systems continued to grow.

The July-to-September result was calculated from the chipmaker’s monthly disclosures and represented a 50 percent increase from NT$989.92 billion a year earlier, Reuters reported. An LSEG SmartEstimate based on 19 analysts had projected quarterly revenue of NT$1.46 trillion.

September sales extend strong growth

TSMC’s official September revenue report, issued on October 8, showed consolidated monthly sales of NT$511.86 billion. That was 0.6 percent lower than August but 54.6 percent higher than September 2025.

Revenue for the first nine months of 2026 reached NT$3.89873 trillion, up 41.1 percent from the corresponding period in 2025, according to the company. The figures show that the year-over-year expansion remained substantial even as September revenue eased slightly from the previous month.

Reuters said the third-quarter total also topped TSMC’s earlier guidance of $44.6 billion to $45.8 billion. TSMC reports its quarterly outlook in US dollars, while its monthly revenue disclosures are denominated in New Taiwan dollars.

The October 8 statement provided revenue figures only. It did not include quarterly profit, margins, operating expenses or updated guidance, which are expected with the company’s full earnings release.

AI demand remains a key driver

TSMC is the world’s largest contract chipmaker and manufactures processors for major technology companies, including Nvidia and Apple. Its production footprint spans advanced logic chips as well as mature process technologies, while its advanced packaging operations have become increasingly important for AI accelerators and high-performance computing systems.

Reuters attributed the quarterly revenue increase to strong demand for AI applications. The sustained rise in sales also reflects the strategic role of leading-edge manufacturing capacity at a time when cloud providers and chip designers are investing heavily in computing infrastructure for generative AI and other demanding workloads.

Demand for advanced packaging is part of the same expansion cycle. AI accelerators increasingly combine multiple compute dies and high-bandwidth memory within tightly integrated packages, placing greater emphasis on packaging capacity alongside wafer fabrication. TSMC has continued to expand related capacity in Taiwan and other markets as customers seek more leading-edge chips and integrated manufacturing services.

Full earnings report will add margin detail

TSMC is scheduled to report third-quarter earnings on October 15, according to Reuters. The results will provide the first detailed view of how the revenue surge translated into profit and operating margins, as well as management’s outlook for the fourth quarter.

An LSEG SmartEstimate cited by Reuters projected third-quarter net profit of NT$740.8 billion, which would be 64 percent higher than a year earlier. That remains an analyst estimate rather than a company-reported result.

The full earnings release will also be watched for updated capital-spending plans and comments on demand across AI, smartphones, automotive chips and other end markets. For now, the monthly figures indicate that TSMC entered the final quarter with nine-month revenue growth above 40 percent, while the record third-quarter total came in ahead of both the analyst consensus and the company’s prior dollar-denominated guidance.

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