Mid-Year End Market Recovery Plus Continued Autumn Semiconductor Strength
Although the semiconductor chip and capital equipment markets performed well in the first half of 2020, many of the electronic equipment end markets struggled globally. World electronic equipment sales declined almost 10% in 2Q’20 vs. 2Q’19 (Chart...
Semiconductor Industry vs. Global Pandemic
The World Bank just released its updated Global Outlook for 2020 and 2021. The text is long but very worth reading.
Tough and Unpredictable Times Ahead
March and April world data clearly showed the impact of the global manufacturing slowdown driven by COVID-19. The world purchasing manager’s index plunged from 47.3 in March to 39.8 in April (Chart 1). Values below 50 indicate a manufacturing...
Tide Has Turned
The November Global Purchasing Managers Index moved back into expansion territory (Chart 1). Admittedly results varied significantly by country but world global manufacturing activity resumed growth at year end.
Watching (Impatiently) for the Upturn
Business Conditions
Manufacturing growth remains slow globally (Chart 1) although conditions vary by country and region (Chart 2).
A Ride on the Business Cycle
Global Growth Slows in Fourth Quarter
World electronic industry growth moderated (or contracted) in many sectors in late 2018. Compare Chart 1 (3Q’18 vs.3Q’17) to Chart 2 (4Q’18 vs.4Q’17). The length and color of the bars tell the story. The...
Part 2 of 2: The End of the Memory Growth Rally? Where Are We in the Memory Inventory Cycle?
Part 1 of this article discussed the Memory Inventory Cycle Index and compared it with memory device sales and memory fab equipment investments. This article, the second of the two-part series, illustrates how the Memory Inventory Cycle Index starts...
Part 1 of 2: The End of the Memory Growth Rally? Where Are We in the Memory Inventory Cycle?
Micron, one of the top three memory semiconductor companies, reported solid results for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2018 (June to August) to extend a multi-quarter string of strong growth. However, the company’s mediocre guidance for the current...