Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Technology Stocks : Micron Only Forum -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Zeev Hed who wrote (43990)	3/18/1999 9:17:00 AM
From: Carl R.	Respond to of 53903

Yes. I have opinions, too. <VVVVVBG> I write options from time to time, but not all the time. And sometimes I let the stock get called, sometimes I just buy them back, and sometimes I roll them up and out. Carl

To: Zeev Hed who wrote (43990)	3/18/1999 9:52:00 AM
From: DJBEINO	Respond to of 53903

INTERVIEW-Samsung sees brisk chip market till 2001 By Yoo Choon-sik KIHEUNG, South Korea, March 18 (Reuters) - Steady demand supported by slow capacity expansion will underpin the global memory chip market for the next couple of years, the head of the world's largest memory chip maker said on Thursday. The chief executive officer of Samsung Electronics Co also said the improved market situation should return the memory chip price to a ''normal'' pace of decline this year after a sharp 80 percent fall last year. ''I expect a balanced demand-supply or a slight short supply to continue until 2001,'' Lee Yoon-woo, Samsung's chief executive officer and president in charge of semiconductor business, told Reuters in an interview. ''Demand is steadily growing but the capability of suppliers has been considerably reduced due to consolidation among makers,'' Lee said, referring to decisions by several foreign makers to give up or scale down memory chip production. Samsung Electronics, flagship unit of the giant Samsung Group [SAGR.CN], is the world's largest manufacturer of dynamic random access memory (DRAM) chips with a market share of more than 20 percent. The shortage in supply pushed the international DRAM unit price up to around $10 in terms of 64-megabit DRAMs by early this year from $7 to $8 late last year, Lee said. The 64-megabit DRAM price fell more than 80 percent last year, but Lee said the price decline would slow to 20-30 percent this year which he said was normal. ''We say a price drop of about 27 percent per year is normal considering the industry's characteristics and the pace of decline in production costs,'' Lee said. Lee said Samsung had begun installing production equipment on its new fabrication line but denied market allegations that it was massively expanding production capacity. ''We have ordered equipment for the phase-one work on the number nine line and I think the new line will go into partial operation in the second half of this year,'' Lee said. ''This is different from expanding production capacity and I don't think this will become a factor increasing supply on the global market,'' Lee said. Samsung has also been making ''upgrade investments'' in production facilities at its plant in Chonan, about 80 km (50 miles) south of Seoul, Lee said. He said the expansion work would raise by about 30 percent the company's overall production capacity for TFT-LCDs, or flat screens as they are often called. Lee said global demand for TFT-LCD panels would keep growing at least until next year as major suppliers in Japan and South Korea could not spend much on capacity expansion. Samsung had set this year's sales targets at $5.35 billion for semiconductors and $1.05 billion for TFT-LCD panels, up 13 percent and 31 percent respectively from last year, according to spokesman James Chung. Samsung Electronics also makes home appliances, office machines and telecommunications equipment, but semiconductors and TFT-LCDs account for 37 percent of its total sales. Lee said Samsung was preparing to develop about one square kilometre (about 0.4 square mile) of land near the current main factory complex at the town of Kiheung, south of Seoul, into a new factory site. ''We have a long-term plan to build a second Kiheung plant on the new land and that will be similar in space to the current complex,'' Lee said. The Kiheung complex lies on a site which is also one square kilometre. biz.yahoo.com