Chip machinery maker ASML is still on target to make record profits this year, with first quarter net profit rising sharply, the company said on Wednesday.

This is despite the effect of the Japanese earthquake and tsunami, and the nuclear leak, the company said.
Net sales doubled to €1.4bn year on year while net sales rose three-fold to €395m.
‘A strong first quarter confirms our confidence that 2011 is expected to be another record year for ASML,’ CEO Eric Meurice said in a statement.
Although semiconductor manufacturers are showing caution in assessing the economic impact of the earthquake, the need for chips is ‘sufficiently large for 2011’,he said. ‘Schedule changes do not impact significantly our revenues expectation for the year, to hit a record level clearly above €5bn.