UMC March Revenue Surges: NT$18.167B Growth

On April 8th, United Microelectronics Corporation (UMC), a prominent semiconductor foundry based in Taiwan, unveiled its latest financial report. The report highlights a notable upswing in revenue for March, reaching NT$18.167 billion, marking a 4.1% increase from the previous month and a 2.7% uptick from the same period last year. This figure stands as one of the company's highest March revenues to date. Additionally, UMC's revenue for the first quarter of this year totaled NT$54.632 billion, showing a marginal decline of 0.6% from the previous quarter but a commendable increase of 0.8% from the same period last year, surpassing market expectations.

During the fourth quarter of 2023, UMC recorded a net profit attributable to the parent company of NT$13.195 billion, representing a 17.4% decrease from the previous quarter. The total revenue for the fiscal year 2023 amounted to NT$222.533 billion, down by 20.2% year-on-year, with a net profit attributable to the parent company of NT$60.99 billion, marking a decline of 30.1% from the previous year.

UMC noted that the decrease in capacity utilization rate to 66% in the fourth quarter of 2023 was primarily influenced by prolonged adjustments in industry inventory levels. Concurrently, the expansion of production capacity at the 12A P6 plant in Tainan led to a notable rise in the revenue share of 22nm and 28nm processes, reaching 36% in the fourth quarter of 2023, a record high. For the full year of 2023, the revenue share of 22nm and 28nm processes accounted for approximately 31% of total revenue.

Looking ahead, UMC anticipates a 2% to 3% increase in wafer shipments during the first quarter of 2024, with a projected capacity utilization rate of approximately 61% to 63%. However, it foresees a modest decline of approximately 5% in the average selling price, resulting in a gross margin of around 30%.