Chips sales fall for seventh consecutive month

JULY 13--Chip sales fell 7.3% in just one month, according to statistics published by the Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA; San Jose, CA). Worldwide sales of semiconductors were $12.7 billion in May, a 20.1% decrease from $15.9 billion a year ago, and 7.3% below April's level of $13.7 billion. "The sales for May reflect the current inventory overhang that the semiconductor industry has been experiencing since November," said George Scalise, SIA president, in a statement.

Year-on-year sales declined worldwide, with the biggest fall in the Americas market. Chip sales here fell 32.1% compared to May 2000. European and Asia Pacific sales both dropped by 16.6%, with Japanese market sales declining 10.6% from last May.

The SIA continues to believe the chip market will begin a recovery in the third quarter. "We continue to believe that the industry will begin to see the final phases of the inventory correction late in the third quarter, with a broad-based sequential recovery commencing in the fourth quarter,"Scalise said.

May marks the seventh consecutive month of falling chip sales, based on the SIA's three-month moving average.