Hmmmm....
Global Chip Market Seen Down in '01
May 28 7:34am ET
TOKYO (Reuters) - The global semiconductor market will likely shrink 13.5 percent in 2001 to $176.79 billion because of sluggish demand for PCs and cellphones, the World Semiconductor Trade Statistics (WSTS) group said on Monday.
The forecast is a sharp downturn from a 36.8 percent jump the previous year to a record $204.39 billion and would mark the biggest decline in a decade.
WSTS, which represents about 70 chipmakers worldwide, last October predicted 20 percent growth in the chip market for 2001, but a sudden slowdown in demand for information-technology products late last year has taken its toll.
The industry group said demand for personal computers and mobile handsets could pick up in the second half of this year. It forecast 5.3 percent quarter-on-quarter growth for the July-September period and 7.3 percent growth in October-December.
"But demand for semiconductors that are used in the infrastructure of the Internet, which was a growth driver last year, may remain sluggish in 2001," said Osamu Yamashiro, head of WSTS Japan.
The DRAM -- dynamic random-access memory -- segment of the semiconductor market is also expected to remain depressed, diminishing 36 percent to $18.5 billion this year.
The industry group said the global chip market would likely return to growth in 2002, expanding 13.9 percent to $201.4 billion.
In Japan, the WSTS forecast the semiconductor market would dwindle 7.2 percent to $43.38 billion in 2001.
Yamashiro said the Japanese market would likely remain relatively buoyant, however, because of strong demand for notebook computers and mobile handsets.
He added digital home appliances could boost Japanese chip demand. |
