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

To: Gottfried who wrote (51566)	9/6/2001 11:57:36 AM
From: Proud_Infidel	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 70976

DRAM recovery could spark general chip turnaround By Crista Souza EBN (09/05/01 19:52 p.m. EST) SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- The elusive recovery sought by electronics and semiconductor firms could be just a few months away, sparked by the DRAM market, according to analysts at Semico Research Corp. Returning consumer confidence and bargains in the PC market will spark a resurgence in demand for computers, helping to clear out excess DRAM inventory in the latter half of the year, said Semico analyst Sherry Garber. As a result, the DRAM market will rebound to 21% growth, or $14.9 billion in 2002, the Phoenix-based market research firm predicted today. "Recovery can't happen until the inventory channel is cleared, but we believe the seasonal PC market demand will be what really makes that start to happen," Garber said. Even though there aren't any compelling new features to drive sales, falling prices have brought last year's $2,500 models into the sub-$1,000 range. That low-end segment will grow faster than any other PC category over the next four years, according to Semico. Garber added, however, that the low end segment doesn't use as much memory, so even as DRAM shipments increase, revenue will decline. Second-half unit shipments are projected to increase 11% over the first half of 2001, while revenue is expectedto drop 30% over the same period, before rebounding next year. The economic and end-market demand slowdown has taken a heavy toll on the DRAM market in 2001, sending worldwide revenue tumbling 58% to a forecast of $12.3 billion for the year. Following the beginnings of recovery in the second half of the year, Semico predicts that next-generation products coming out in 2002 will continue to pull the electronics industry out of its slump. "We're confident the recovery we're seeing is not just seasonality, because as OEMs and component suppliers work down inventory, we're seeing demand for new products," said Semico president Jim Feldhan.