On Thursday, August 10, chip manufacturer Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation (SMIC) released its financial results for the second quarter, ending June 30.
According to the report, SMIC's Q2 revenue totaled $1.56 billion, slightly beating market expectations of $1.553 billion but marking an 18% decline compared to the $1.903 billion in the same period last year. Net profit stood at $402.8 million, far exceeding market projections of $184 million, but showing a 21.7% dip from the $514 million reported the previous year.
In terms of revenue sources, regional contributions remained relatively stable. Revenues from the China region grew by 4.1%, accounting for 79.6% of the total, while revenues from the U.S. and Euro-Asian regions experienced some contraction. Wafer sales remained the primary revenue source for SMIC, making up 90.5% of the total, a slight decrease from 92.1% in the previous quarter and 94.1% year over year.
On the capacity front, SMIC's monthly output rose from 732,000 8-inch equivalent wafers in Q1 2023 to 754,000. The utilization rate also increased from 68.1% in the previous quarter to 78.3%, though still considerably lower than the 97.1% in the same period last year.
Looking ahead to Q3, the management mentioned:
For Q2 2023, the company's sales revenue sequentially increased by 6.7% to $1.56 billion, with a 0.5 percentage point decline in the gross margin to 20.3%. The demand for 12-inch capacity remained robust, while the demand for 8-inch wafers lagged, resulting in a utilization rate lower than that of 12-inch wafers, but still above the industry average.
Sales revenue for Q3 is anticipated to grow sequentially by 3% to 5%, with gross margins ranging between 18% and 20%. Shipment volumes for the third quarter are also expected to continue rising, yet concurrently, depreciation will keep increasing. The company forecasts H2 sales revenue to outperform H1.
SMIC intends to continue enhancing its technological research and development, accelerate product validation, and promptly allocate the supporting capacity, laying a strong foundation for the next growth cycle.
