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Taiwan Semiconductor (TSM) sees slowing demand for PCs & smartphones

Taiwan Semiconductor's (TSM) chairman cites the war in Ukraine and COVID lockdowns amid drop in demand.

Donovan Erskine

March 31, 2022 8:05 AM

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The semiconductor business has been interesting over the past couple of years, to say the least. The pandemic had caused major issues for chip production, limiting supply for just about every sought-after consumer electronic in recent history. Now, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is causing more issues for the business. In a recent industry event, Taiwan Semiconductor (TSM) chairman Mark Liu shared that demand for electronics has started to slow down as of late.

It was earlier this week that Taiwan Semiconductor Chairman Mark Liu weighed in on the current state of affairs in relation to the semiconductor industry, as reported by Nikkei Asia. It’s here that he mentions the ongoing war in Ukraine, as well as new COVID-19 lockdowns in China as a result of the recent decrease in demand for products like PCs and smartphones. He went on to say that "Such pressure could eventually be passed on to consumers." Foreshadowing even bigger woes in the near future if conditions don’t improve.

Liu also explained that Taiwan Semiconductor "Still cannot meet our customers' demand with our current capacity. We will reorganize and prioritize orders for those areas that still see healthy demand."

Taiwan Semiconductor’s (TSM) stock fell from its week high of $109.62 per share on Tuesday to $105.38 at 10 a.m. ET this morning on the comments from Chairman Liu. Interestingly enough, TSM did not alter its financial guidance for the upcoming financial quarters following Liu’s comments about demand decrease. Instead, the company will lean on other sectors of its business, such as its automotive branch, to make up the difference.

Just weeks ago we began to hear that several neon producers in Ukraine had closed their doors amidst Russia’s invasion, meaning more global chip shortages. Now, one of the world’s major Semiconductor houses has revealed a slowed demand as of late. As we continue to monitor the semiconductor business and all the factors impacting it, stick with Shacknews.

Donovan Erskine

News Editor

Donovan is a young journalist from Maryland, who likes to game. His oldest gaming memory is playing Pajama Sam on his mom's desktop during weekends. Pokémon Emerald, Halo 2, and the original Star Wars Battlefront 2 were some of the most influential titles in awakening his love for video games. After interning for Shacknews throughout college, Donovan graduated from Bowie State University in 2020 with a major in broadcast journalism and joined the team full-time. He is a huge Scream nerd and film fanatic that will talk with you about movies and games all day. You can follow him on twitter @Donimals_