TapTechNews June 19th, according to the latest survey by TrendForce Consultancy Group, due to the 6.18 shopping festival in Chinese mainland, the clustered release of new smartphones in the second half of the year and the anticipation of the peak sales season at the end of the year, the prices of wafers of some specific processes are補漲 (rising補充職), and advanced processes are also brewing for price increases.
Due to the advancement of the localization replacement of chips in recent years, the production capacity of domestic foundries is in short supply, and the production capacity of some processes cannot meet the current consumer demand, showing a situation of full loading. In addition, as it enters the traditional stocking season in the second half of the year, the situation of tight production capacity may continue until the end of the year, causing domestic foundries to start brewing a price increase plan for specific processes.
The price increase of domestic foundries is for the processes such as image sensors (CIS) in the second half of the year, where the production capacity is relatively tight and the current price is lower than the average market price. In order to relieve the profit pressure, the requirement of補漲 (rising補充職) from customers of specific processes has been successful.
TSMC's 5nm, 4nm, and 3nm are fully loaded, and the capacity utilization rate is expected to exceed 100% in the second half of this year, and the visibility has extended to 2025. According to TapTechNews's previous report, the orders of 3nm have been scheduled until 2026. With the cost pressure such as overseas factory expansion and electricity price increase, TSMC plans to increase prices for the in-demand advanced processes.
Due to the global economic inflation pressure still existing, the terminal demand recovery in 2024 is not significant, and the demand is sometimes strong and sometimes weak. Most of the foundries use price concessions to attract customers to place wafers to increase the capacity utilization rate, resulting in a decline in the overall average selling price (ASP) trend. In 2025, there will also be a lot of new production capacity released globally, and the competition in mature processes remains relatively fierce, which may affect the future bargaining space.