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Politics : Formerly About Applied Materials -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Proud_Infidel who wrote (48487)	6/27/2001 3:59:33 PM
From: Proud_Infidel	Respond to of 70976

NOR Flash Memory Production Faces Negative Growth in Q2 June 27, 2001 (TOKYO) -- According to a survey conducted by Nikkei Market Access, world production of NOR-type flash memory, including DINOR-type memory, in the second quarter of 2001 will decline by 2.0 percent to 456 million units compared with the previous quarter. It's the first time for the strong-growing NOR flash memory is facing flat growth. This is due to the over inventory of NOR flash memory in response to the worldwide slump in the mobile phone market. Electronic devices makers other than those making mobile phones also have been adjusting their production, resulting in demand for NOR flash memories to falter. Still, memory makers are shifting to the 0.18-micron process. Once in the first half of 2000, a serious shortage of NOR flash memories occurred, and all the mobile phone manufacturers insisted that NOR flash memory manufacturers increase production. And the memory manufacturers' investment plans complying with the mobile makers' requests are still ongoing. In addition to launching new manufacturing lines, there are many projects to introduce better process rules. Many memory manufacturers are likely to shift to the 0.18-micron process from 0.25-micron, which has been the manufacturers' main process. As the finer process is introduced, it will lower the production cost per memory, and increase manufacturing capacity at the same time. Even with the situation of overproduction, they seem to be continuing these activities. The memory manufacturers are aggressively trying to reduce manufacturing costs prior to any other conditions, and raise their market share. Even considering the NOR memories for mobile phones will increase soon, the situation of over-supply will continue for the time being. The survey of this time was studied with the prediction of mobile phone market recovery to be in the second half of 2001, and expected that the NOR memory production adjustment would last for a short time only during the second quarter of 2001. But, if the mobile phone market recovery is delayed to later than the prediction, production adjustments of NOR flash memories should be longer than predicted. Production of NOR-type flash memory and cellular phone Data for 2001Q2-Q4 are estimated *Data from Nikkei Market Access Related story:NOR Flash Memory Demand for Cellular Phones to Grow 185 Pct. (Tamao Kikuchi, Nikkei Market Access)