On May 27, UMC rose 12.1% in pre-market trading, trading at $23.26/share, with trading volume of $62,800. The rally was driven by a convergence of strong Q1 earnings, confirmed wafer price hikes, and capacity expansion signals.

On the news front, UMC reported Q1 net profit surging 108% year-over-year to NT$16.17 billion, significantly beating market expectations, with gross margin reaching 29.2% and capacity utilization climbing to 79%. Mature-node pricing momentum remains robust, with Q1 average selling prices rising 8% YoY and Q2 expected to increase a further 5%-7%, potentially pushing gross margin above 30%.

Additionally, Taiwan Stock Exchange filings revealed UMC acquired approximately NT$1.03 billion worth of mechanical equipment from Tokyo Electron between May 2025 and May 2026 for production purposes, signaling continued fab capacity expansion. The company also announced selective price hikes for H2 with more comprehensive pricing negotiations planned for 2027. These catalysts, combined with the recent launch of a 14nm eHV FinFET platform offering 40% power reduction and 35% chip area savings, collectively sustained buying momentum.

(The above content is based on publicly available market information, generated by a program or algorithm, and is intended solely as a stock movement alert. It does not constitute investment advice or a basis for trading decisions.)