SMIC raises wafer prices as AI demand pushes utilization to 93.7%

Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp. (SMIC) raised wafer prices after reporting second-quarter revenue of $3.006 billion, up 20% sequentially and 36.1% year over year, driven by AI-related chip demand that pushed utilization to 93.7%. The Chinese foundry shipped 2.87 million standard 8-inch-equivalent wafers, a 14.4% sequential increase, and guided for third-quarter revenue growth of 2% to 4% with a gross margin of 26% to 28%. Co-chief executive Zhao Haijun said prices were raised after customer negotiations and still lag industry leaders.

SMIC raises wafer prices as AI demand pushes utilization to 93.7% - SMIC reported second-quarter revenue of $3.006 billion, up 20% from the first quarter and 36.1% from a year earlier. 1 https://www1.hkexnews.hk/listedco/listconews/sehk/2026/0813/2026081300353.pdf - Wafer shipments rose 14.4% sequentially to 2.87 million standard 8-inch-equivalent wafers, while utilization reached 93.7%. 1 https://www1.hkexnews.hk/listedco/listconews/sehk/2026/0813/2026081300353.pdf - Management said it had raised prices after customer negotiations and guided for third-quarter revenue growth of 2% to 4% with a 26% to 28% gross margin. 1 https://www1.hkexnews.hk/listedco/listconews/sehk/2026/0813/2026081300353.pdf 2 https://www.investing.com/news/stock-market-news/chinese-chipmaker-smic-increases-prices-on-strong-ai-demand-4859658 - China accounted for 90.2% of SMIC’s second-quarter revenue, underscoring the foundry’s exposure to domestic demand and supply-chain localization. 1 https://www1.hkexnews.hk/listedco/listconews/sehk/2026/0813/2026081300353.pdf Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp. raised prices on some of its most sought-after wafer capacity after a record second quarter, as demand for chips used alongside artificial-intelligence processors pushed the Chinese foundry’s factories close to their practical limit. 1 https://www1.hkexnews.hk/listedco/listconews/sehk/2026/0813/2026081300353.pdf 2 https://www.investing.com/news/stock-market-news/chinese-chipmaker-smic-increases-prices-on-strong-ai-demand-4859658 SMIC reported $3.006 billion in second-quarter revenue on August 13, up 20% from the first quarter and 36.1% from a year earlier. Profit attributable to the company’s owners rose 261.7% year over year to $479.2 million, while gross margin expanded to 25.3% from 20.1% in the first quarter. 1 https://www1.hkexnews.hk/listedco/listconews/sehk/2026/0813/2026081300353.pdf Volume and pricing lifted the quarter SMIC shipped 2.87 million standard 8-inch-equivalent wafers in the quarter, a 14.4% increase from the first quarter and a 20.1% increase from a year earlier. Monthly capacity rose to 1.0965 million standard 8-inch-equivalent wafers from 1.07825 million in the previous quarter, while utilization increased to 93.7% from 93.1%. 1 https://www1.hkexnews.hk/listedco/listconews/sehk/2026/0813/2026081300353.pdf Reuters reported that SMIC’s blended average wafer selling price rose 5.7% sequentially. The increase, combined with higher shipments and a more favorable product mix, helped drive the improvement in revenue and gross margin. 2 https://www.investing.com/news/stock-market-news/chinese-chipmaker-smic-increases-prices-on-strong-ai-demand-4859658 Co-chief executive Zhao Haijun said SMIC raised prices after negotiations with customers in the first quarter and would charge more for wafers processed in the third quarter. He said the company’s prices still lagged those of industry leaders and that SMIC was seeking fairer pricing. 2 https://www.investing.com/news/stock-market-news/chinese-chipmaker-smic-increases-prices-on-strong-ai-demand-4859658 SMIC’s filing does not disclose a single companywide price increase. Its blended average selling price reflects a mix of products, wafer sizes and applications, so the 5.7% figure does not mean every customer faced the same increase. 1 https://www1.hkexnews.hk/listedco/listconews/sehk/2026/0813/2026081300353.pdf 2 https://www.investing.com/news/stock-market-news/chinese-chipmaker-smic-increases-prices-on-strong-ai-demand-4859658 AI demand is spreading beyond leading-edge processors SMIC’s results point to demand for the supporting chips required to build and operate AI servers, rather than evidence that the company has matched the most advanced manufacturing capabilities of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Management said the shipment increase was driven mainly by demand for AI-related peripheral chips and customer pull-ins. 2 https://www.investing.com/news/stock-market-news/chinese-chipmaker-smic-increases-prices-on-strong-ai-demand-4859658 The company is considering additional equipment at existing sites where space remains available and said it would adjust expansion plans as customer requests for capacity exceeded earlier forecasts. Independent reporting identified strong demand for logic, power-management and optical-module components used in AI servers and data centers. 3 https://www.scmp.com/tech/big-tech/article/3363996/smic-weighs-more-capacity-ai-related-chip-demand-exceeds-forecasts SMIC’s application mix also shows where the broader growth came from. Industrial and automotive products accounted for 16.5% of wafer revenue in the second quarter, up from 14% in the first quarter and 10.6% a year earlier. Consumer electronics remained the largest category at 44.2%, although its share declined from 46.2% in the previous quarter. 1 https://www1.hkexnews.hk/listedco/listconews/sehk/2026/0813/2026081300353.pdf A market shaped by China’s supply-chain restrictions China generated 90.2% of SMIC’s second-quarter revenue, compared with 84.1% a year earlier. America’s share fell to 8.2% from 12.9%, while Eurasia accounted for 1.6%. 1 That concentration gives SMIC a large domestic customer base as Chinese chip designers and equipment makers seek alternatives to restricted foreign suppliers, but it also leaves the company exposed to China’s electronics cycle and policy priorities. The United States added SMIC and several subsidiaries to its Entity List in December 2020, imposing licensing requirements on exports, reexports and in-country transfers of items subject to the Export Administration Regulations. Washington has since expanded controls on semiconductor-manufacturing equipment, advanced computing chips, high-bandwidth memory and related software. 4 https://www.bis.gov/press-release/commerce-strengthens-export-controls-restrict-chinas-capability-produce-advanced-semiconductors-military Those restrictions limit SMIC’s access to some foreign tools and technologies used in advanced-node production and may increase the value of domestic foundry capacity to Chinese customers. The earnings figures support the existence of that demand; they do not establish that sanctions alone caused the revenue increase. SMIC attributed its outlook to AI-related spillover demand, stronger overseas orders and continued localization of supply chains. 2 https://www.investing.com/news/stock-market-news/chinese-chipmaker-smic-increases-prices-on-strong-ai-demand-4859658 3 https://www.scmp.com/tech/big-tech/article/3363996/smic-weighs-more-capacity-ai-related-chip-demand-exceeds-forecasts Capacity investment will remain expensive SMIC guided for third-quarter revenue to increase 2% to 4% sequentially and gross margin to reach 26% to 28%. The company said it would reallocate existing capacity and accelerate qualification of newly added capacity to help ease supply constraints. 1 https://www1.hkexnews.hk/listedco/listconews/sehk/2026/0813/2026081300353.pdf Capital expenditure reached $1.836 billion in the second quarter, up from $1.563 billion in the first quarter. Depreciation and amortization rose 5.2% sequentially to $924.8 million. The figures show that stronger pricing and utilization are arriving alongside substantial investment and rising fixed costs. 1 https://www1.hkexnews.hk/listedco/listconews/sehk/2026/0813/2026081300353.pdf SMIC’s Hong Kong-listed shares closed at HK$70.80 on August 14, up 4.81% from the previous session, according to historical market data. They closed at HK$72.50 on August 21, after a volatile week that included a reported 5.1% decline on August 19. 5 The market response reflects enthusiasm over earnings and pricing power, while the operating data point to a continuing capacity constraint: customer demand is running ahead of the company’s earlier production plans. 2 https://www.investing.com/news/stock-market-news/chinese-chipmaker-smic-increases-prices-on-strong-ai-demand-4859658 3 https://www.scmp.com/tech/big-tech/article/3363996/smic-weighs-more-capacity-ai-related-chip-demand-exceeds-forecasts Further sources 1 SMIC, unaudited results for the three months ended June 30, 2026, filed with th… ↗ https://www1.hkexnews.hk/listedco/listconews/sehk/2026/0813/2026081300353.pdf 2 Reuters, “Chinese chipmaker SMIC increases prices on strong AI demand,” August … ↗ https://www.investing.com/news/stock-market-news/chinese-chipmaker-smic-increases-prices-on-strong-ai-demand-4859658 3 South China Morning Post, “SMIC weighs more capacity as AI-related chip demand … ↗ https://www.scmp.com/tech/big-tech/article/3363996/smic-weighs-more-capacity-ai-related-chip-demand-exceeds-forecasts 4 U.S. Bureau of Industry and Security, export-control rules and public informati… ↗ https://www.bis.gov/press-release/commerce-strengthens-export-controls-restrict-chinas-capability-produce-advanced-semiconductors-military 5 ET Net and Investing.com market data for SMIC shares through August 21, 2026. ↗ https://content.etnet.com.hk/content/cpyrevamp/eng/stock quote.php?code=00981 The stories that matter, in one email. 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