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The majority of the top 20 Asia Pacific (APAC) tech companies bested the conditions created by the COVID-19 pandemic, with revenue up by over 5 per cent on average.
This is according to analyst firm GlobalData, which claimed that out of the top 20 companies in the APAC technology sector, 12 reported year-on-year growth.
Behind that growth, GlobalData claimed, were investments in digital transformation, data centres and internet of things (IoT) deployment, which the firm labelled as “instrumental”.
Topping the list for growth was the China-based tech giant Tencent, with year-on-year revenue growth of 27.9 per cent to US$69.9 billion. In second and third places were the Taiwan-headquartered Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) and WPG, with revenue growing by 25.2 per cent to US$45.5 billion, and 21.3 per cent to US$20.7 billion, respectively.
Keshav Kumar Jha, business fundamentals analyst at GlobalData, claimed that Tencent’s growth came from a “significant” increase in online advertisement revenue, “impressive” growth in commercial payment and wealth management services, as well as increased demand from video games.
For TSMC, its growth stemmed from demand for high-performance computing platforms to take on accelerated digital transformation initiatives and for 5G smartphone and internet of things (IoT) platforms, the analyst claimed.
In fact, TSMC’s demand was indicative of future trends for tech spending, according to Jha.
“Spending by enterprises across industries on digitalisation is likely to increase. The shipment of 5G smartphones could also increase with the faster roll-out of 5G networks and the semiconductor industry may emerge as the net winner in the years to come,” he said.
Meanwhile, WPG’s growth came from an increase in optical components, analog IC and mixed signal components sales — particularly with comparators, digital/analog converters, LED panels and sensors.
The only top 20 company to record a double-digit revenue decline was Panasonic, with revenue dropping by 10.6 per cent over year, down to US$63.2 billion. According to the firm, this was due to its struggling TV and automotive solutions business, which was then compounded by the COVID-19 pandemic.
