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The Semiconductor Market: 2015 Performance, 2016 Forecast, and the Data to Make Sense of It

Recently, the Semiconductor Industry Association announced final global semiconductor industry sales figures for 2015 as well as provided details on the forecasted road ahead for the market.  Here are the details.

The global semiconductor industry posted sales totaling $335.2 billion in 2015, a slight decrease of 0.2 percent compared to the 2014 total, which was the industry’s highest-ever sales total.  Fourth quarter sales of $82.9 billion were 5.2 percent lower than the total of $87.4 billion from the fourth quarter of 2014.  Several semiconductor product segments stood out in 2015. Logic was the largest semiconductor category by sales with $90.8 billion in 2015, or 27 percent of the total semiconductor market. Memory ($77.2 billion) and micro-ICs ($61.3 billion) – a category that includes microprocessors – rounded out the top three segments in terms of total sales. Optoelectronics was the fastest growing segment, increasing 11.3 percent in 2015. Other product segments that posted increased sales in 2015 include sensors and actuators, which reached $8.8 billion in sales for a 3.7 percent annual increase, NAND flash memory ($28.8 billion/2.2 percent increase), and analog ($45.2 billion/1.9 percent increase).

Regionally, annual sales increased 7.7 percent in China, leading all regional markets. All other regional markets – the Americas (-0.8 percent), Europe (-8.5 percent), Japan (-10.7 percent), and Asia Pacific/All Other (-0.2 percent) – saw decreased sales compared to 2014.

Beyond 2015, the global semiconductor market is expected to grow at a modest pace. 0.3 percent growth globally is forecast for 2016 ($341.0 billion in total sales) and 3.1 percent growth for 2017 ($351.6 billion). WSTS tabulates its semi-annual industry forecast by convening an extensive group of global semiconductor companies that provide accurate and timely indicators of semiconductor trends.  In terms of major product segment forecasts, sensors (3.6 percent), micro-ICs (3.6 percent), logic (3.5 percent), and optoelectronics (3.2 percent) are forecast to be growth leaders in 2016, while memory (-7.9 percent), and discrete semiconductors (-2.7 percent) are forecast to be negative year-over-year.  In addition, in 2016 all major regions – the Americas (1.3 percent), Japan (0.6 percent), and Asia Pacific/All Other (0.2 percent) – are forecast for positive growth except for Europe (-1.6 percent).

If getting a more granular view of these market statistics is of interest, the Semiconductor Industry Association can help.  The data it reports is the singular source for monthly semiconductor industry sales shipment data by value, units, and average selling price. It is a vital tool for equipment and materials suppliers looking to understand and track the semiconductor market. To learn more about the data including current specials and offers, please contact Falan Yinug at [email protected].

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Global Update
SEMI
www.semi.org
March 22, 2016