Chip firms seen steeped in red ink in Q3
By Jennifer Tan
sg.news.yahoo.com
Wednesday October 23, 1:08 PM
SINGAPORE (Reuters) - The continued slump in the global chip market is likely to keep Singapore's leading semiconductor companies firmly in the red when they unveil third-quarter results beginning on Friday.
As inventory restocking by customers tapers off after the June quarter and fresh demand remains largely absent, Chartered Semiconductor Manufacturing and ST Assembly Test Services are expected to join a swelling chorus of chip companies announcing lacklustre results.
"The momentum began to slow down in Q3 after a big surge in inventory build-up in Q2, as end-demand remained absent," said Kim Eng Ong Asia Securities analyst Dharmo Soejanto.
On Tuesday, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC), the world's largest contract microchip maker, reported third-quarter net profits below expectations and down sharply from the previous quarter on worse-than-predicted demand.
Texas Instruments, the world's largest maker of semiconductor chips for cellular phones, slashed its fourth quarter outlook on Monday on a stagnant personal computer market, and said it would cut 500 jobs.
Contract chipmaker Chartered, which ranks a distant third behind TSMC, is expected to post a net loss of about US$82.7 million to US$93.7 million for the three months to September 30 when it reports results on Friday, according to a Reuters poll of five analysts.
Sister company ST Assembly, which provides chip testing and packaging services, could see losses of $20.9 million to $22.9 million in the same quarter when it releases earnings next Wednesday.
State-controlled Chartered, which raised $620 million in a poorly subscribed rights issue earlier this month, lost $90.7 million in the second quarter and $118.3 million in the previous third quarter. The Singapore-based company said in September it expected third-quarter net losses of $87 million to $90 million.
ST Assembly, Asia's sixth-largest chip tester by revenue, lost $21.6 million in the second quarter and $32.3 million in the third quarter a year ago. Last month, it affirmed its third-quarter guidance of five to 10 percent revenue growth. |
