What's going on?

US chipmaker Broadcom reported impressive quarterly results late last week.

What does this mean?

Chipmakers all over are facing dwindling demand as inflation-stricken shoppers cut back on nice-to-haves like PCs and gaming devices. But not Broadcom: the US chipmaker hasn�t been as plagued by the pains of everyday consumers, since its chips are more commonly used in data centers, routers, and WiFi modems ��all things companies are still investing in to optimize hybrid working. Broadcom�s chips also kit iPhones out with short-range connectivity, and demand�s stayed steady as Apple�s typically higher-income customers haven�t felt as pinched.

Broadcom not only reported better-than-expected revenue and profit last quarter, but went on to give a better-than-expected revenue outlook for this quarter too. After all, the chipmaker�s boasting a mounting backlog of guaranteed orders worth $31 billion, and investors gleefully sent its shares up after the news.

Why should I care?

The bigger picture: So far, so good.
Rival Nvidia said last week that new restrictions around exporting its chips to China could hurt sales even more, prompting a 12% fall in its stock. And while Broadcam said it�s yet to � and doesn�t expect to � hear from the US government that its chips will be affected, any potential shift could jeopardize the roughly 30% of its chip revenue that comes from China. So it�s a good thing Broadcom�s, ahem, broadening its horizons: its acquisition of VMWare means it can delve into things like cloud technology and become less reliant on chips.

Zooming out: An Apple a day�
Broadcom will be loving that Apple contract: data out on Friday showed Apple�s overtaken Android devices and now makes up over half of all US smartphones � the iPhone�s highest share since its 2007 launch. More Americans have been switching to Apple in the last four years, and analysts reckon that trend could echo around the world soon. More good news for Broadcom, then.