March chip sales rebound slightly from February

SAN JOSE, USA: Worldwide sales of semiconductors were $14.7 billion in March, a gain of 3.3 percent from the prior month when sales were $14.2 billion, the Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA) reported.

Sales for the first quarter of 2009 amounted to $44 billion, a 29.9 percent decline from the first quarter of 2008 when sales were $62.8 billion. Sales declined by 15.7 percent from the fourth quarter of 2008 when sales were $52.2 billion.

Sales in all geographic regions except Japan showed month-to-month gains. Sales in Japan were sharply lower, reflecting a drop in the country’s economic output. All geographic regions reported lower first-quarter sales compared to the same period of 2008.

"The modest sequential rebound in worldwide sales in March suggests that demand has stabilized somewhat, albeit at substantially lower levels than last year," said SIA President George Scalise. "While all major product sectors showed month-on-month growth, there continues to be limited visibility in end markets. There are some bright spots such as 'smartphones' and 'netbook' PCs, but there are no clear signs of early firming of demand in other major end markets such as automotive, corporate information technology, and consumer electronics."

"The global chip industry continues to reflect the influence of the worldwide economic slowdown," Scalise continued. "We expect economic stimulus measures in the US, combined with other countries will begin to impact sales as we enter 2010," Scalise concluded.

Source: Semiconductor Industry Association