FEBRUARY 4--Global semiconductor sales reached $12.5 billion in December 2002, bringing total revenue for the year to $140.7 billion, a 1.3% increase from the 2001 level of $138.9 billion, according to the Semiconductor Industry Association (San Jose, CA;www.sia-online.org). During the year's final quarter, revenue rose 1.9% sequentially to $37.6 billion from $36.9 billion, following increases of 5.6%, 5.8% ,and 8.2% in the first three quarters of 2002, and was up 23% over the corresponding quarter of 2001.
"The recovery that began in the final quarter of 2001 continued throughout 2002, producing 1.3% growth in this turnaround year," stated SIA president George Scalise. "This is remarkable performance, in the face of lackluster demand in the information technology market. We expect further improvement across broad product sectors, positioning the industry for 19.8% growth in 2003, increasing revenues to $169.3 billion."
PCs continue to be the single largest end market for semiconductors, accounting for 30% of total chip consumption. There is some evidence that the corporate buyer is returning to the market. During the December quarter due to increased PC demand, Microprocessors and DRAMs were up 10.1% and 7.6%, respectively.
Asia-Pacific continues to be the world's fastest growing market, recording a 29% increase in chip sales for the year, pushing it past the Americas as the world's largest market, with a 36% share. For the year 2002, chip sales declined 13% in the Americas, 8% in Japan, and 8% in Europe from 2001 levels, as electronic-equipment production continues an unprecedented migration to facilities in the Asia-Pacific region.
