Taiwan-based MSI becomes one of the first Taiwanese suppliers to bounce back from the post-pandemic downturn, having revised its annual shipment estimations for notebooks and motherboards upwards recently.
Between 2020-2021, notebook and board suppliers saw a rare period of major price and volume spikes due to the pandemic benefits and the crypto mining trend. However, as the mining trend died down and the pandemic came to an end, the end supply and demand reversed. Asus, MSI, and Gigabyte all began to see a decline in their performances and shipments in the second quarter of 2022.
Compared to Asus's declining profits, even reporting a loss in the fourth quarter of 2022, MSI and Gigabyte have remained relatively stable. Supply chain sources stated that the inventory clearance speed for all of MSI's product lines is faster than expected. At the same time, it has benefitted from steady gaming demand and new product releases.
In the second quarter of 2022, MSI saw its annual post-tax net profits decrease by 40% to around NT$9.962 billion (US$325 million). MSI has previously stated in 2023, the market situation will return to normal, meaning a focus on the gaming market and inventory levels gradually returning to a regular level.
In the first quarter of 2023, due to the high base of 2022, both shipment and revenue saw a 10-20% decrease. Starting in the second quarter, with new graphics cards and notebook products hitting the market, the overall performance is looking to gradually recover each quarter. The annual outlook is cautiously optimistic.
Supply chain sources stated that because inventory clearance is going smoother than expected and new products are boosting purchases, MSI recently upgraded its board and notebook shipment goals. For notebooks, MSI shipped around 2 million units in 2022 and previous estimations for 2023 were only around 2.1-2.2 million units. Recently, that figure has been revised upward to 2.4 million units.
In 2022, motherboard brands and manufacturers shipped around 8.5 million units, a over 30% annual decrease. Previously, it was estimated that 2023 could only break even. The latest revisions have increased the figure to 9.1-9.2 million units.
In 2022, around 4.5 million units of graphics cards were shipped, nearly halved compared to 2021. Previously, it was estimated that the figure can recover to 4.8 million units in 2023. The latest revisions have increased to 5-5.1 million units. Market estimates pointed out that as both price and volume stabilize, MSI's 2023 annual performance can see minor growth.
Article translated by Jack Wu
