Hong Kong Stock Concept Tracking | Taiwan Semiconductor will raise prices for 3nm, 5nm advanced processes and advanced packaging. Full production at foundries will bring price increase elasticity (with concept stocks)

According to related media reports, in a situation where production capacity falls short of demand, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) will raise prices for its advanced 3nm and 5nm processes and advanced packaging. The price increase for TSMC's 3nm foundry services may be above 5%, while the annual price increase for advanced packaging next year is expected to be between 10% and 20%.

It is worth noting that this wave of price hikes is beginning to transmit downstream to the industry chain. According to the supply chain sources, Qualcomm's Snapdragon 8Gen4, manufactured by TSMC's N3E process, has seen a significant 25% increase in pricing compared to the previous generation, potentially triggering a trend of subsequent price hikes. Additionally, according to wccftech, not only Qualcomm but also NVIDIA and AMD are planning to raise prices for popular AI hardware.

Institutional tracking shows that the adjustment of wafer foundry prices has spread to power semiconductor manufacturers, who have experienced a wave of price increases this year. For example, Sanan Integrated Circuit has raised prices by 10%-20% across its product line, Blue Arrow Electronics by 10%-18%, High Great Microelectronics by 10%-20%, and Jiejie Micro TrenchMOS by 5%-10%.

"In the second half of the year, it may not be a situation of supply shortage, but at least it will be in a good supply-demand state," said Zhao Qi, CEO of Chipbond Technology, in a recent interview with reporters.

The long-dormant semiconductor industry has recently become lively, with news of price increases for TSMC's advanced 3nm and 5nm processes and advanced packaging. Some institutions predict that Huahong Semiconductor may raise prices by 10% in the second half of the year, ending a two-year decline.

It is important to note that there are signs of convergence in the "internal competition" among wafer foundries.

Although the price increase of wafer foundries has not yet become a definite fact, the capacity utilization rates of major wafer foundries have significantly increased, with many manufacturers operating at full capacity or even exceeding 100%. Industry insiders believe that the continuous improvement in the capacity utilization rate of wafer foundries and the full capacity of some foundries will bring elasticity to price increases in the future.

Guotai Junan Securities released a research report stating that the semiconductor cycle has reached its bottom, demand is gradually recovering, various hot products are emerging, Apple's AI edge is taking the lead in opening up new growth space, China's semiconductor industry is accelerating technological innovation, and high investment in research and development is gradually paying off, with the potential to deeply benefit from the new wave of technological cycle.

Leading companies in the semiconductor-related industry chain:

Huahong Semiconductor (01347), SMIC (00981), Shanghai Fudan Microelectronics Group (01385), and Naura Technology Group (03898)