TSMC's October Revenue Rises 59.7% to NT$586.89 Billion on AI Chip Demand

The figure, about $17.88 billion, is TSMC's first monthly sales number since last week's sell-off in AI-related stocks. That makes it one of the first hard readings on whether demand for advanced chips is holding up while investors question how long big technology companies can keep raising spending on data centres. TSMC's shares closed 2.24% higher on Tuesday.

In its monthly report, the company said revenue for January through October totalled NT$4,485.62 billion, 43.3% more than in the same period of 2025. When it reported third-quarter results in October, TSMC forecast full-year revenue growth of about 44% in US dollar terms, up from an earlier forecast of more than 40%. The two figures are in different currencies, so they cannot be compared exactly, but the year-to-date pace is close to the company's own target.

A Strong Start to the Quarter

TSMC expects fourth-quarter revenue of between US$52.3 billion and US$54.3 billion, assuming an exchange rate of 31.8 New Taiwan dollars to the US dollar. It forecast a gross margin of 65% to 67% and an operating margin of 56.5% to 58.5%. At the company's assumed exchange rate, the revenue range works out to roughly NT$1.66 trillion to NT$1.73 trillion. That means October alone delivered about 35% of the bottom of the range, ahead of an even one-third split across the quarter's three months.

Monthly sales do not always rise in a straight line. TSMC's September revenue of about NT$511.86 billion was 0.6% lower than in August, even though it was 54.6% higher than a year earlier.

The third quarter set records. TSMC reported net income of NT$763.06 billion on revenue of NT$1,494.24 billion, or US$46.72 billion, with a gross margin of 66.4%. Its operating margin of 58.7% was above the top of its 58% guidance. Three-nanometre technology made up 33% of wafer revenue in the quarter and 5-nanometre made up 28%, according to the company's results release. These advanced nodes are used for the processors in AI servers.

The company has also said it expects capital spending from 2026 to 2028 to be significantly higher than in the previous three years, as it adds capacity to meet customer demand.

Taiwan's Export Boom

TSMC's numbers match the wider data from Taiwan's economy. Government figures released on Monday showed exports up 58.9% from a year earlier in October to a record $96.76 billion. According to the finance ministry, exports of electronic components rose 61.4%.

The share price gain came during volatile trading in Taipei. Taiwan's financial regulator announced tighter short-selling restrictions last week that took effect on Monday, cutting the daily limit on intraday short-selling orders from 30% to 3%.

TSMC's next test is November. With the fourth-quarter guidance already in place, investors will watch November and December sales to see whether the company finishes near the top of its US$52.3 billion to US$54.3 billion range.