Demand for smartphones and PCs is starting to decline around the globe, especially in China, claims TSMC’s chairman Mark Liu. The executive blames this downturn on geopolitical uncertainties and new COVID-related lockdowns.
The report comes from the tech blog Nikkei Asia.
TSMC, short for Taiwanese Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, is the biggest chipmaker in the hardware industry. It is one of the main suppliers to Apple for its M series and A-series chips that go into iPhones and MacBooks.
Liu says that customer interest in smartphones and PCs is dropping, specifically in China. He also warns about a possible increase in component and material costs for electronic devices. This will lead to increased production costs for chipmakers and the executive believes that the pressure will eventually pass on to consumers.
This will impact the declining demand even further.
Everyone in the industry is worried about rising costs across the overall supply chain. The semiconductor industry has already and directly experienced that cost increase. The industry is also concerned about macroeconomic uncertainties this year.
Liu says that his company is still unable to meet customer demands due to the limited production capacity. However, TSMC plans to reorganize and prioritize orders for areas with rich demand.
Apple also recently showed signs of declining demand. Rumor has it that Apple is planning to cut iPhone SE production due to weak demand. These reports also claim that Apple told its suppliers that it wants to cut back on the iPhone SE’s production by two to three million.
