Taiwan's Foxconn reports forecast-beating 19% jump in Q1 profit on AI demand

[TAIPEI] Taiwan’s Foxconn, the world’s largest contract electronics maker, reported on Thursday (May 14) a 19 per cent rise in first-quarter profit versus the same period a year earlier, beating expectations due to strong global demand for AI products.

Net profit for January-March for Nvidia’s biggest server maker and Apple’s top iPhone assembler was NT$49.92 billion (S$2.01 billion), versus a LSEG consensus estimate of NT$48.88 billion.

In an earnings release, it stuck to its previous forecast of “strong” growth for revenue this year and said it also saw strong demand for AI servers. The company does not give numeric forecasts.

Foxconn, formally called Hon Hai Precision Industry, in April reported a 30 per cent on-year jump in first-quarter revenue.

Most of the iPhones Foxconn makes for Apple are assembled in China, but it now produces the bulk of those sold in the United States in India. The company is also building factories in Mexico and Texas to make AI servers for Nvidia.

Foxconn has also been looking to expand its footprint in electric vehicles, which the company sees as a major future growth generator, though that has not always gone smoothly.

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In August, Foxconn said it had struck a deal to sell a former car factory in Lordstown, Ohio, for US$375 million, including its machinery. It had purchased the plant in 2022 to manufacture EVs.

The company’s shares have risen 6 per cent so far this year, underperforming the broader Taiwan index’s 44 per cent gain.

Foxconn shares closed 2.6 per cent lower on Thursday ahead of the earnings release. REUTERS