ASML tones down fears of chip slump

For the time being, increased macroeconomic uncertainty isn’t impacting ASML’s business. The Veldhoven-based equipment maker reports a record order intake of 8.9 billion dollars in Q3, taking the order book to an unprecedented 38 billion dollars at the end of the quarter. “I think the secular trends are very much intact,” said CFO Roger Dassen in a video interview published on ASML’s website.

Slowing consumer demand, an energy crisis and rising inflation are stoking fears of a recession. Some chipmakers have responded by lowering their capital expenditures. TSMC, for example, cut this year’s capex by 10 percent, though the foundry’s investments are still well above levels in previous years. Operating in a collapsed memory market, Micron slashed spending by 30 percent year-on-year.