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Technology Stocks : SILICON STORAGE SSTI Flash Mem -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Jack Hartmann who wrote (997)	10/3/2000 8:49:41 AM
From: Jack Hartmann	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1881

Chip sales climb 53 percent to hit record high By Reuters Special to CNET News.com October 3, 2000, 4:20 a.m. PT Worldwide sales of semiconductors grew 53 percent to hit record levels during the month of August, driven by strong growth in the Asia-Pacific region and booming demand for Internet and communications devices. Sales of semiconductors, the tiny circuits that control devices ranging from computers to mobile phones to car brakes, rose to $18.2 billion from the $11.9 billion of August 1999, the Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA) said today. The SIA said the sales growth was apparent in all major geographical regions of the world, with chips used in wired, wireless and Internet equipment in heaviest demand. The Asia-Pacific region, which includes manufacturing powerhouses such as Taiwan and Korea, grew 60.2 percent from August a year ago. Japan sales grew 53.7 percent. The Americas rose 50.3 percent, and Europe's sales climbed 46.4 percent. Regional growth was up sequentially in each major geographic region, SIA's data showed, with August's sales up $900 million from July's $17.3 billion. The trade group said the August data puts the industry on track to reach market forecasts for growth of more than 30 percent for the full year 2000. The SIA's Global Sales Report is a three-month moving average of sales activity. The report is tabulated by the World Semiconductor Trade Statistics (WSTS) organization, which represents some 70 major chip producers. The three-month moving average is a mathematical smoothing technique that takes out variations resulting from companies' monthly financial calendars. From its beginning in the 1950s, the semiconductor industry has been characterized by a four-year cycle that has been sporadically modified by unexpected economic factors. Strong growth cycles such as the industry is experiencing are somewhat offset by cyclical downturns in subsequent years. Sales of microprocessors, the brains of personal computers, have posted moderate single-digit growth in recent months, according to financial analysts. By contrast, flash memory chips, which give electronics such as mobile phones their "instant on" features, have grown well in excess of 100 percent, highlighting the explosive demand for communications equipment over PC-based devices. Cut and pasted from RFMD thread. Thanks Thui. Jack