Taipei, May 16 -- The subsidiary of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) in Kumamoto, Japan, turned a profit in the first quarter of this year, marking the first time the first fab of the unit become profitable since mass production started at the end of 2024, according to a report by Focus Taiwan.

According to contract chipmaker TSMC's financial statement released on Friday, Japan Advanced Semiconductor Manufacturing Inc (JASM), a joint venture running the fab in Kumamoto, posted NT$951 million (USD 30.19 million) in profit in the January-March period, compared with a loss of NT$1.39 billion (USD 44.13 million) in the previous quarter, and a loss of NT$3.25 billion (USD 103.17 million) in the first quarter of 2025.

Market analy...