Intel has upped its revenue forecast for the third quarter due to rising demand for PCs.
The company expects revenue to be $15.6 billion for the quarter, with potential deviation of plus or minus $300 million, compared to a previous range of $14.9 million plus or minus $500 million.
Intel attributed the change in revenue to replenishment of supply chain inventory, as well as signs of improving demand for PCs.
Intel also withdrew other expectations for the quarter, with Q3 R&D and MG&A spending expected to be $5.2 billion, up from the prior expectation of $5.1 billion.
The company also expects the mid-point of the Q3 gross margin range, up 2 points compared to the prior Q3 GAAP outlook of 60 percent. Again this is driven by higher PC unit volume.
The increases will also push up Intel’s tax rate for Q3 from 21 percent to 22 percent.
Intel expects that third-quarter equity investments and interest and other income will see a net loss of approximately $125 million, which is a greater loss than the prior expectation of a net loss of around $75 million.
Guidance will be updated on 18 October in the company’s earnings report.
Intel recently announced its new generation of chips, the 7th Generation Core Processors, designed to handle the demands of the ‘Immersive Internet’ such as high-quality video and virtual reality.
The initial announcement covers Intel Core m3 processors and Intel Core i3, i5 and i7 processors.
The processor family, built on Skylake microarchitecture, is designed to be able to process video formats such as 4K and 360-degree video, to enable applications such as powerful photo and video editing, multiple video streams, 360- degree videos, and high-resolution video chat.
Intel expects over 100 devices powered by the new processor family to be available starting from September.
