Thursday, August 6, 2009

Rising semiconductor sales

The Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA) reported that 2Q sales worldwide sales of semiconductors declined by 20% from the $64.7 billion recorded in the same period one year ago.  No surprises there.

More importantly, 2Q sales increased 17% from the prior quarter to $51.7 billion and rose 3.7% in June versus May.

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The SIA said recent gains in sales are one indicator the industry is returning to normal seasonal growth patterns.

Industry analysts have recently become more optimistic in their forecasts for key demand drivers as the consensus forecasts for both PC and cell phone sales have brightened. PCs and cell phones account for nearly 60% of worldwide semiconductor consumption, the SIA said.

Breaking down the numbers, the association said, “Consensus estimates for unit sales of PCs are now in the range of –5% to flat compared to 2008, whereas earlier forecasts were projecting year-on-year unit declines of 9-12%.

In cell phone handsets, analysts now believe the unit decline will be in the range of 7-9% compared to earlier forecasts of a decline of around 15%.

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