2007 to be Big for Chip Equipment Firms

The forecast indicates that, following a very strong year 23 percent in 2006, the equipment market will grow one percent to $40.9 billion in 2007. Survey respondents see about seven percent growth in 2008, and about four percent growth the following year to reach $45.5 billion in 2009. "Semiconductor equipment suppliers saw strong sales surpassing $40 billion last year and expect to reach similar sales levels this year, driven by continued investment in 300 mm technology and growing investment in 45 nm tools," said Stanley T. Myers, president and CEO of SEMI. The SEMI Mid-Year Consensus Forecast indicates that the wafer processing equipment segment will experience the most significant level of growth this year at an estimated four percent to $29.8 billion. Survey respondents anticipate that the market for assembly and packaging equipment will remain flat at $2.5 billion in 2007. The market for equipment to test semiconductors is expected to decline about eight percent to $5.9 billion this year. The market in Taiwan for new equipment leads the growth trend in 2007, with a projected market increase of greater than 20 percent, followed by China (about 15 percent growth), Korea (one percent growth). Japan is expected to remain flat, while North America and Europe expect declines of about nine percent, and the rest of world expects a decline of about 14 percent. The SEMI Mid-Year Consensus Forecast is based on interviews conducted between late May and June 2007 with companies representing a majority of the total sales volume for the global semiconductor equipment industry. The following survey results are given in terms of market size in billions of U.S. dollars and percentage growth over the prior year: