Let the good times roll

Taiwanese electronics firms have reported aggregate sales data for the first quarter of the year, with several setting new records.

However, many are facing increasing pressure on profit margins, analysts say, even as their business scale expands.

The strong showing by computer and communications manufacturers helped the island's exports reach an unprecedented $25bn last month and $67bn for the first quarter.

Shipment value of high-tech products rose 30 to 50 per cent compared to last year, according to data from the Taiwanese Ministry of the Economy.

Quanta Computer saw sales rise to $3.3bn, an increase of more than 30 per cent compared to the $2.5bn it made during the same period last year.

Quanta makes notebook PCs and a variety of other electronics products under contract for foreign vendors such as Dell and Apple.

The company's net profit also increased by a similar factor, rising to approximately $85m. However, despite the increases, the company's net income still fell short of analysts predictions by some 10 per cent.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC), the world's largest maker of built-to-order chips, saw revenues leap 39 per cent to reach $2.4bn.

Although profit margins fell slightly, TSMC beat analysts predictions. The company blamed the margin decrease on exchange rate fluctuations. TSMC executives forecast eight to 10 per cent growth for the global semiconductor business this year.

Other semiconductor makers, most notably memory makers, also reported record sales for the quarter.