Electronics Industry Update

Staff -- Semiconductor International, 7/1/1998

• Semiconductor Equipment Monitor

The dollar value of total worldwide semiconductor sales increased 15.8% between February and March. The market continues to deteriorate as the result of bulging inventory and capacity and plunging average prices. Sales grew by 31.4% be-tween February and March of 1997, almost twice the growth rate recorded this year. Despite solid end-market demand, the semiconductor device and equipment industries have been negatively impacted by the crisis in the Asia/Pacific region. The total dollar value of semiconductors sold worldwide during March was 12.2% lower than during March 1997. Cumulative first-quarter sales were 5% lower than in the first quarter of 1997. Unit sales volume increased by 10% between February and March; last year, sales volume rose 17% over the same two months. The 1998 gain represents the lowest over-the-year increase in monthly sales volume recorded in the past year. Although price and overcapacity problems may be at the root of the problems, there is also evidence that end-market demand has softened. The average selling price of all semiconductors was 20.3% lower in March than in March 1997. Problems now seem to be equally shared between the long-suffering memory product market and microprocessors.