(News Bulletin 247) – The essential foundry in the semiconductor sector exceeded this symbolic threshold this Monday afternoon.

Taiwanese semiconductor giant TSMC briefly crossed the symbolic threshold of one trillion dollars in market capitalization on Monday, a new sign of investor enthusiasm for the artificial intelligence (AI) revolution.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company – as it is known – became the eighth listed company to reach the milestone. Six of the first seven members of the group are American technology companies, with oil company Saudi Aramco being the only exception.

Apple became the first company to surpass $1 trillion in August 2018. It is now the world’s largest market capitalization, at $3.462 trillion.

A strong increase since the beginning of the year

After reaching the fateful single point shortly after Wall Street opened, TSMC immediately retreated. At around 5:05 p.m., the group’s valuation was $980 billion.

The stock has risen more than 80% since the start of the year, in line with the flagships of the semiconductor sector.

All the major American players in the industry, from Nvidia to AMD, subcontract part of their production to TSMC, which has become the world’s largest producer of semiconductors.

TSMC debuted on the Taiwan Stock Exchange in 1994. It then listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 1997, through American Depository Receipts (ADRs).

These securities allow American investors to place their money in a company whose principal listing place is not in New York.

In concrete terms, financial institutions buy shares in the company, which then allows them to issue and sell ADRs, which are backed by these securities.

(With AFP)