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To: LLCF who wrote (1306)	11/12/1997 11:27:00 AM
From: Teri Skogerboe	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 2946

Some general semi-equip news. 11/11: Trade Group Forecasts Robust Growth In Chip-Equipment Sales LONDON -(Dow Jones)- Rising demand and the increasing complexity of electronic goods will keep semiconductor-equipment sales rising by about 17% a year through the end of the century, a trade group said Tuesday. Semiconductor Equipment and Materials International, or SEMI, forecast that total semiconductor-equipment sales will grow at a compound annual rate of 17% between 1997 and 2000. SEMI expects world-wide semiconductor sales to total $28 billion in 1997, up 7.7% from $26 billion last year. The forecasts are based on a study SEMI conducted last week of 90 companies from Europe, Japan and the U.S. "Higher demand for electronics in the home market and a growing middle-class Asian market" are fueling the growth, said Elizabeth Schumann, a senior market analyst at SEMI. She said that although all chip makers are likely to benefit from better opportunities, automation-equipment makers and those with more advanced technologies are likely to benefit most. Shumann cited U.S.-based PRI Automation Inc. (PRIA), Germany's Jenoptik Infab and Netherlands-based ASM International NV (ASMIF) as potential beneficiaries. Of the total chip-equipment sales, world-wide wafer-processing-equipment sales are forecast to grow at a compound annual growth rate of about 19% between 1997 and 2000; wafer-making-equipment sales at 17.8%; assembly and packaging-equipment sales at 15%; test-equipment sales at 14% and fab-facility and automation-equipment sales at 18.7%. Wafer-processing sales are likely to get a boost from electronic companies that are constantly upgrading technology, Schumann said. Wafer-manufacturing-equipment sales growth are forecast to drop to $299 million in 1997, down 19.8% from $373 million in 1996, but this is because 1996 was an "anomaly year," as silicon-equipment makers built excess capacity that year, she said. Copyright (c) 1997 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. ---