'09 April Semiconductor Sales Up 6.4%

June 1, 2009

Worldwide sales of semiconductors rose to $15.6 billion in April, an increase of 6.4 percent from March when sales were $14.7 billion. April sales were 25 percent lower than April 2008 when sales were $20.9 billion. All sales numbers represent a three-month moving average of global semiconductor sales.

“The better-than-expected 6.4 percent sequential increase in April sales was driven by moderate improvements in a number of end-demand drivers and inventory replenishment,” said SIA President George Scalise. “The PC market – a major consumer of semiconductors – has been stronger than predicted earlier in the year. Consensus forecasts currently project that PC unit sales in 2009 will decline by about 6 percent compared to earlier forecasts of a decline in the range of 12 percent. Analysts are also more optimistic about cell phone unit sales, which are now projected to decline by around 7 percent compared to earlier forecasts of 15 percent. PCs and cell phones account for nearly 60 percent of all semiconductor consumption,” Scalise stated.

SIA noted that the worldwide automotive market, which accounts for about 7 percent of total semiconductor sales, remains weak. Corporate information technology spending has also lagged normal patterns as companies have lengthened replacement cycles. The consumer electronics sector presents a mixed picture: analysts project increased unit sales of digital televisions and hand-held game players and lower unit sales of most other consumer electronics products.

“Visibility remains limited,” Scalise continued. “Two consecutive months of sequential sales growth may be an indication of a return to more normal seasonal sales patterns in some market sectors, albeit at lower sales levels than last year,” Scalise concluded.