According to the Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA), global semiconductor sales totaled US$46.2 billion in February 2024, up 16.3% from US$39.7 billion a year earlier.
The chip sales in February represent a decrease of 3.1% compared with US$47.6 billion in January, however.
"Although month-to-month sales were down slightly, global semiconductor sales in February remained well ahead of the total from the same month last year, a continuation of the strong year-to-year growth the market has experienced since the middle of last year," said John Neuffer, SIA president and CEO. "Sales in February increased on a year-to-year basis by the largest percentage since May 2022, and market growth is projected to persist during the remainder of the year."
Regionally, February sales increased year-on-year in China (28.8%), the Americas (22.0%), and Asia Pacific/All other (15.4%), but decreased in Europe (-3.4%) and Japan (-8.5%). Month-to-month sales fell in all markets: Asia Pacific/All Other (-1.3%), Europe (-2.3%), Japan (-2.5%), the Americas (-3.9%), and China (-4.3%).
Taiwan chipmakers see no major damage from earthquake
TSMC disclosed that its fab operations have largely recovered following Taiwan's magnitude 7.2 earthquake, the country's largest in the last 25 years, on April 3. The pure-play foundry additionally stated that it will retain its full-year revenue projection of low-to-mid-twenties percentage growth, which it provided at the January investor conference.
Fellow company United Microelectronics (UMC) also made a statement in response to the recent earthquake. The recent 7.2 magnitude earthquake off the coast of Hualien, Taiwan, early on April 3 had no substantial effect on UMC operations. Each employee at UMC facilities is safe. Certain wafers in the production line were affected when the company's Hsinchu and Tainan fabs' automatic safety procedures were activated. There has been no obvious impact on UMC's finances for now, and operations and wafer shipment have proceeded as usual.
According to memory foundry Winbond Electronics, in response to the magnitude 7.2 main earthquake and subsequent aftershocks that struck Taiwan's eastern region on April 3, the company immediately began evacuation operations when the earthquake reached evacuation standards, with no personnel injured. The earthquake caused some machinery at the CTSP Fab and Kaohsiung Fab to activate self-protection measures, but the company's operations and finances were not significantly impacted, Winbond said.
