“To ensure the safety of personnel, some of the fabs were evacuated as per company procedure. We are currently confirming details of the impact,” according to the company.
Later it said that the evacuated people have started returning to their workplaces.
TSMC shares were down 1.4 percent in early trading, while Apple supplier Foxconn's stock fell more than 2 percent and flat panel maker AU Optronics fell 1.7 percent.
Taiwan's official Central News Agency said the quake was the largest to hit the island since 1999, when a magnitude 7.6 earthquake killed about 2,400 people and was one of Taiwan's worst recorded earthquakes. 50,000 buildings were destroyed or damaged.
Taiwan's Central Meteorological Administration said the earthquake hit Hualien County, the second-highest recorded intensity of “upper 6” on the 1-7 intensity scale.
The Japan Meteorological Agency says that in an upper 6 earthquake, most unreinforced concrete-block walls collapse and become impossible for people to stand or walk without crawling.