TSMC posts record quarter, supply risks grow

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. posted a record first quarter as artificial intelligence chip orders kept climbing, even as supply risks spread beyond silicon. (tsmc.com) (reuters.com) The company said first-quarter 2026 revenue reached NT$1.134 trillion, or about $35.7 billion, up 35.1% from a year earlier. March revenue alone rose 45.2% year over year to NT$415.19 billion. (tsmc.com) (reuters.com) Reuters reported analysts expect an even stronger second quarter when Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. reports full earnings on April 16, 2026, with demand tied to artificial intelligence servers and high-end chips. The company is the main contract manufacturer for Nvidia and Apple. (reuters.com 1) (reuters.com 2) A foundry is a chip factory that builds processors designed by other companies, and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. sits at the center of that model. Its quarterly sales are a readout on whether spending on artificial intelligence hardware is still accelerating. (reuters.com 1) (reuters.com 2) The new strain is not customer demand but inputs. Bloomberg reported Taiwan has roughly 11 days of liquefied natural gas reserves onshore, and about one-third of its liquefied natural gas came from Qatar last year. (bloomberg.com) (heygotrade.com) Chipmaking also depends on industrial gases that do not show up in consumer electronics ads. Air Products says semiconductor plants use ultra-high-purity gases to keep manufacturing lines stable, and Linde says helium is a critical material in advanced semiconductor production. (airproducts.com) (linde.com) That is why helium prices have drawn attention in April. Forbes reported a tightening helium market was threatening semiconductor production, while CNBC quoted EFM Asset Management’s Daniel Heyler saying Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. had inventory buffers and recycling capacity to manage a short-term squeeze. (forbes.com) (cnbc.com) Heyler told CNBC that higher material costs were less important than energy risk in Taiwan. That view lines up with the broader concern that a disruption in fuel shipments would hit power-intensive chip plants before helium costs alone damaged margins. (cnbc.com) (bloomberg.com) For now, the quarter shows the artificial intelligence buildout is still overpowering near-term fears. The next test comes on April 16, when Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. reports full first-quarter earnings and investors look for signs that record sales can survive a more fragile supply chain. (reuters.com 1) (reuters.com 2)