There’s no question this has been a difficult year for the semiconductor industry. The most recent news from the the Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA) provides slight hope for optimism. The SIA said Tuesday that global semiconductor sales reached $36.6 billion in October 2019, up 2.9% from $35.6 billion in September, but down 13.1% from the October 2018 total of $42.1 billion.
Not surprisingly, a newly released industry forecast from the World Semiconductor Trade Statistics (WSTS) organization projects annual global sales will decrease 12.8% in 2019, followed by increases of 5.9% in 2020 and 6.3% in 2021.
"While the global semiconductor market has slumped somewhat in 2019 compared to the record sales posted in 2018, the recent trend is more positive, with month-to-month sales increasing in October for the fourth consecutive month," said John Neuffer, president and CEO, Semiconductor Industry Association, in a statement. "Global sales are projected to decrease by double digits in 2019, then rebound with moderate growth expected in 2020 and 2021."
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Regionally, October 2019 sales increased sequentially across all major regional markets: the Americas (8.6%), China (2.9%), Japan (1.0%), Europe (0.5%), and Asia Pacific/All Other (0.4 %). However, sales across all regions were down from October 2018: Europe (-7.3%), Asia Pacific/All Other (-7.4%), Japan (-9.3%), China (-10.2%), and the Americas (-27.1%).
The WSTS Autumn 2019 global semiconductor sales forecast projects the industry's global sales to total $409.0 billion in 2019, down 12.8 % from the 2018 sales total of $468.8 billion. WSTS projects year-to-year decreases across all regional markets for 2019: Europe (-6.9%), Asia Pacific (-8.8 %), Japan (-11.1%), and the Americas (-26.7%). But in 2020 and 2021, global sales are expected to increase by 5.9% and 6.3%, respectively.
The table below summarizes global semiconductor sales trends.
|
October 2019 |
|||
|
Billions |
|||
|
Month-to-Month Sales |
|||
|
Market |
Last Month |
Current Month |
% Change |
|
Americas |
6.61 |
7.18 |
8.6% |
|
Europe |
3.35 |
3.37 |
0.5% |
|
Japan |
3.06 |
3.09 |
1.0% |
|
China |
12.66 |
13.03 |
2.9% |
|
Asia Pacific/All Other |
9.88 |
9.92 |
0.4% |
|
Total |
35.57 |
36.59 |
2.9% |
|
Year-to-Year Sales |
|||
|
Market |
Last Year |
Current Month |
% Change |
|
Americas |
9.85 |
7.18 |
-27.1% |
|
Europe |
3.64 |
3.37 |
-7.3% |
|
Japan |
3.41 |
3.09 |
-9.3% |
|
China |
14.51 |
13.03 |
-10.2% |
|
Asia Pacific/All Other |
10.71 |
9.92 |
-7.4% |
|
Total |
42.11 |
36.59 |
-13.1% |
|
Three-Month-Moving Average Sales |
|||
|
Market |
May/Jun/Jul |
Aug/Sept/Oct |
% Change |
|
Americas |
6.07 |
7.18 |
18.4% |
|
Europe |
3.27 |
3.37 |
3.0% |
|
Japan |
2.99 |
3.09 |
3.4% |
|
China |
11.88 |
13.03 |
9.7% |
|
Asia Pacific/All Other |
9.27 |
9.92 |
6.9% |
|
Total |
33.48 |
36.59 |
9.3% |