Nanya Technology Corp (Äρ†¿Æ¼¼), the nation¡¯s biggest DRAM chipmaker, yesterday said profit last quarter more than tripled from the first quarter, buoyed by higher prices and shipments.

During the quarter ending June 30, net income rose to NT$1.68 billion (US$56.1 million) from NT$526 million in the previous quarter, making it the second consecutive quarterly profit for the company.

Nanya lost NT$6.6 billion in the second quarter of last year. Prior to this year, the company was three years in the red because of an industry glut.

The growth momentum is expected to extend into this quarter because of higher prices.

¡°We believe prices will continue to rise modestly as customer demand looks steady,¡± company spokesman Lee Pei-ing (ÀîÅàÓ¢) told a media briefing.

The average selling price surged 19.4 percent last quarter from the first quarter, Nanya said.

¡°Overall, demand still exceeds supply,¡± Lee said.

Demand from sales of new mobile phones, tablets and set-top boxes should help offset lukewarm demand for PCs in the current quarter, he added.

Unlike the downtrend experienced by first-tier smartphone makers such as Apple and Samsung Electronics, Nanya¡¯s handset customers, most of which are based in China, saw robust demand for their low and medium-end phones.

¡°We hope the third quarter will be flat, or a better period than the second quarter,¡± Lee said.

Revenue from DRAM chips used in non-PC products such as digital TVs, servers and mobile devices accounted for 55 percent of Nanya¡¯s total revenue of NT$13.84 billion last quarter. The chipmaker aims to grow the share to 70 percent by the end of this year.

Shipments are expected to shrink 15 percent sequentially this quarter as Nanya receives fewer chips from Inotera Memories Inc (ÈA†¿Æ¼¼), a joint venture with US memory chipmaker Micron Technology Inc, based on new supply agreements signed early this year, Lee said.

Shipments jumped 23.5 percent during the April-June period from a quarter ago, Nanya said.

Inotera reported NT$3.47 billion in net income for last quarter, snapping 13 quarters of losses after its average selling price soared 34 percent sequentially. Shipments rose 10 percent last quarter from a quarter earlier.

Gross margin improved to 28 percent last quarter, from minus-3 percent in the first quarter. Inotera lost NT$613 million in the first quarter.

Inotera chairman Charles Kau (¸ß†¢È«) said this quarter would be a much better period than last quarter, citing an improved product portfolio and stabilizing prices.

Revenue from its non-PC segment made up half of the chipmaker¡¯s total sales of NT$12.74 billion last quarter and this ratio is expected to rise to 65 percent at the end of the year, including 25 percent from mobile devices, he said.

Inotera plans to increase capital spending to NT$8 billion, from its previous goal of NT$4.5 billion, as it prepares to upgrade to 20-nanometer (nm) technology.

The chipmaker hopes to start a pilot run on 20nm technology by the end of the year and commence mass production in the fourth quarter of next year.

By: DocMemory
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