Semiconductor Industry Forecasts Broad and Sustained Sales Growth for 2014 and Beyond

by Semiconductor Industry Association

Earlier this month, the World Semiconductor Trade Statistics (WSTS) program revised up its full-year 2014 global semiconductor sales growth forecast to 6.5 percent from the 4.1 percent it forecasted six months ago. WSTS also forecasts positive sales growth to continue in 2015 at 3.3 percent ($336.1 billion in total sales) and 2016 at 4.3 percent ($350.5 billion). This news comes on the heels of better-than-expected positive sales growth of 4.8 percent for full-year 2013, outperforming WSTS’s forecast of 4.4 percent growth.

The positive global sales performance in 2013 and WSTS’s upward revision in sales growth for 2014 are both signs that the global economy is in the midst of a sustained recovery. This is welcome news for the global semiconductor industry whose sales performance has become increasingly tied to global GDP growth as semiconductors and the technologies they enable have become pervasive across all aspects of worldwide consumer, industrial, and government applications.

The table below from WSTS provides some product and regional detail on semiconductor sales performance in 2013 and forecast growth in 2014, 2015, and 2016. While 2013 growth relied heavily on product growth from the memory sector and regional growth from the Americas, sales growth in 2014 and beyond is predicted to be more balanced with almost all products and regions experiencing positive growth in 2014,2015 and 2016. This board-based positive growth in upcoming years is indicative of sales growth based on the foundation of strong global economic performance.