FRANKFURT (dpa-AFX) - Chip industry supplier Aixtron does not initially see any impact on its annual targets from the new problems at AMS Osram following the cancellation of a key LED project at the semiconductor manufacturer. "We have seen the news", but this does not change the outlook for 2024 for the time being, an Aixtron spokeswoman said on Thursday when asked. With a view to the following years, however, a first expert already sees headwinds.

Details - including the medium-term consequences - should be available in the afternoon: Aixtron management's conference call with analysts on the annual figures is scheduled for 3.00 pm.

On Wednesday evening, AMS Osram announced that, according to an initial estimate, it would have to write off 600 to 900 million euros due to an unexpected order cancellation. The medium-term targets were also trimmed. Specifically, this relates to the cancellation of a key project in the MicroLED strategy. As a result, the company is questioning the utilization possibilities of all assets belonging to this strategy.

The new 8-inch LED factory in Kulim, Malaysia, which was seen as a beacon of hope for further growth, is also explicitly affected by this. It was not clear from the announcement whether the plant, which has not yet been fully completed, will now be scrapped completely. The share price of AMS-Osram plummeted by more than 40 percent on Thursday.

Aixtron's share price fell by almost a fifth. The project cancellation at AMS-Osram sends negative signals for the medium-term growth of the equipment supplier Aixtron, explained a trader. The high market expectations for 2025 and the following years are also based on the increasing use of MicroLEDs by consumer electronics suppliers. Now that a large group is refraining from doing so for the time being, the growth expectations for Aixtron appear too optimistic. According to Olivia Honychurch of Jefferies Research, the group is Apple./mis/nas/stk