TSMC asks customers to shorten payment time
It was reported some time ago that TSMC has contacted customers to inform them that it will raise its quotations for foundry orders in 2023. Different process nodes have different price increases, which are said to be between 5% and 8%. Under normal circumstances, the foundry will be notified one month in advance, up to one quarter in advance, but this time TSMC is nearly seven months earlier, which is rare.
According to UDN, TSMC asked customers to shorten the payment time. Usually, TSMC enters into agreements with customers to pay them for a period of time when they receive the product. The length of time depends on several factors, such as the financial strength of the customer, the relationship between the two parties, and the size of their order. At present, the payment time of some customers has been shortened from the past 30 days to 15 days, and some customers with a 45-day period have also been shortened to 30 days. The rumors are related to the size of the order.
Industry insiders said TSMC’s huge capital expenditures may be one reason why it has shortened customer payment times.
This year’s total investment will be between $40 billion and $44 billion, and more than $40 billion is expected to be invested in expanding production capacity and upgrading technology in 2023. TSMC is currently undergoing large-scale product expansion, building new semiconductor production facilities in many places around the world, or expanding existing product lines.
TSMC is likely to hike prices again next year as global inflation increases and related currencies depreciate. Although TSMC’s management has been very optimistic recently, it is expected that the revenue will increase by about 30% in 2022, but there are still many people who are concerned about signs of slowing chip demand in the consumer sector.
