Capital equipment sales sank 21% last year, says SEMI
A service of Semiconductor Business News, CMP Media Inc.
Story posted 9 a.m. EST/6 a.m., PST, 4/2/99
MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. -- The worldwide semiconductor equipment industry suffered a 21% drop in shipments in 1998, according to figures released here by Semiconductor Equipment and Materials International (SEMI).
The total for 1998 was $21.8 billion, down from the $27.6 billion in sales posted in 1997. These totals are reported in the "SEMI Worldwide SEMS Report," compiled from data submitted by members of SEMI and the Semiconductor Equipment Association of Japan.
Silicon wafer manufacturers had one of their worst years, brought on by an oversupply of 200-mm wafers and a delay in the transition to 300-mm wafers. Shipments for the segment were $122 million in 1998, down 62% from the $325 million posted in 1997.
On the bright side, the semiconductor mask and reticle manufacturing equipment segment increased in 1998 to $701 million, up 12% from$626 million the year before. Increasingly complex chip designs and longer mask production times helped increase the demand for mask-making capacity.
Regionally, the Asian markets bore a larger portion of the industry downturn, reflecting last year's financial crisis. Total semiconductor equipment sales in Korea declined to $1.3 billion, down 51% from $2.6 billion in 1997. Shipments in Japan reached $4.7 billion, down 31% from the $6.8 billion the year before. The rapid growth of the Taiwanese market did carry over somewhat into 1998, with sales reaching $3.3 billion, down 14% from $3.8 billion in 1997.
Other regions, while faring better, still felt the effects of the down market. Sales in Europe declined almost 6% to $2.9 billion, while North American shipments fell to $7.6 billion, 17% below the $9.1 billion in sales posted in 1997.
"The totals for 1998 confirm what we knew and felt all year: 1998 was a tough year for our industry and all of our members," said Stanley T. Myers, president of SEMI. "The upside is that most segments seemed to hit their low point late in the third quarter and have been steadily improving since. If there's a silver lining, it's that the industry ended 1998 on an up note and now appears to be stabilizing and headed towards recovery."
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