SMIC First-Half 2026 Net Profit Up 94.2% on Strong AI Chip Demand

Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation (SMIC) released its interim report for the first half of 2026 on August 27. During the period, the company recorded operating revenue of RMB 38.635 billion, up 19.4% year on year. Wafer foundry revenue amounted to RMB 35.858 billion, an increase of 18.1% from the same period last year. Net profit attributable to shareholders of the listed company reached RMB 4.467 billion, up 94.2% year on year, with basic earnings per share of RMB 0.56. EBITDA totaled RMB 24.511 billion, up 40.7% year on year. On a quarterly basis, net profit for the second quarter was RMB 3.106 billion, compared with RMB 1.361 billion in the first quarter, representing a sequential increase of 128% in the second quarter net profit. The growth was primarily attributed to higher wafer sales volume, increased average selling prices, and changes in product mix. Wafer shipments (in equivalent 8-inch standard logic) rose 14.9% to 5.379 million units from 4.682 million units in the same period of 2025. The average selling price (foundry revenue divided by total wafer shipments) was RMB 6,667 during the period, versus RMB 6,482 in the same period of 2025. The company noted that demand for AI-supporting chips remained strong in the first half of 2026, with overseas orders returning and localized manufacturing continuing to strengthen, resulting in a healthy order backlog. SMIC implemented new pricing in the third quarter, and the benefits of price increases are expected to be more fully reflected in that quarter, contributing to gross margin growth. Supporting chips for data center boards and computing power boards, including logic circuits, BCD, and optical module transceivers, are in a state of supply shortage. The company stated it will continue to strengthen supply chain resilience management, adopt multi-channel procurement, and make every effort to mitigate impacts. It will also closely track customer demand, flexibly allocate resources, and accelerate product response times to ensure high-quality delivery in a complex environment. SMIC will also flexibly deploy existing capacity and rapidly validate new capacity to help alleviate industry supply chain tightness.