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Technology Stocks : Applied Materials No-Politics Thread (AMAT) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Proud_Infidel who wrote (16894)	12/19/2005 11:40:59 AM
From: etchmeister	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 25522

The orders are up because chip makers are seeing demand for flash memory chips That kind of news is now "baked in" I suppose and the ones waiting for lower prices missed out; there is also announcement about Megafab Toshiba/SNDK (please see SNDK board) From: Pam 12/19/2005 7:22:35 AM Read Replies (1) of 30587 UPDATE 1-Samsung Elec to spend $774mln on memory chip lines Monday 19 December 2005, 3:39am EST Printer Friendly \| Email Article \| Reprints \| RSS (Adds closing share price, background) SEOUL, Dec 19 (Reuters) - Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. (005930.KS: Quote, Profile, Research), the world's top memory chip maker, said on Monday it will spend 786.8 billion won ($774.4 million) to upgrade and expand lines for dynamic random access memory and flash chips. Samsung, the most valuable technology company outside the United States, is aggressively stepping up investment in an attempt to maintain an edge over rivals, such as Micron Technology Inc. (MU.N: Quote, Profile, Research) and Japan's Toshiba Corp. (6502.T: Quote, Profile, Research), in the price-volatile and highly competitive market. The latest spending plan comes nearly a month after Samsung announced a 636.9 billion won investment in new memory lines to boost production of both major computer chips. It also wants to capitalise on an expected recovery in chip prices. "It (the spending) is to meet growing demand for flash chips and strengthen cost competitiveness," the South Korean firm said in a filing to the Korea Exchange. Global microchip equipment sales will likely rise 9.1 percent in 2006, followed by two years of double-digit growth as chip makers invest aggressively in advanced production plants, California-based industry group, Semiconductor Equipment and Materials International said early this month. Samsung aims to boost its chip sales by more than three-fold to $61 billion by 2012 from $17 billion last year. A top Samsung executive said early in November that prices of its core memory chips were set to stabilise in the second half of 2006 and lower NAND flash chip prices would boost demand. Flash chips are used in hot-selling mobile phones, digital cameras and portable music players. Samsung shares, which set a record high early in December amid growing optimism about the earnings prospects for the global semiconductor sector, closed up 1 percent at 608,000 won, in line with a 1.39 percent gain in the wider market. ($1=1016.0 Won)