Global semiconductor fab equipment spending is forecast to recover this year, growing 3 percent from a year earlier to US$57.8 billion (US$1.93 billion), SEMI said yesterday.
Last year, fab equipment spending slumped 7 percent to US$56 billion, it said.
Spending is forecast to plummet 18 percent year-on-year in the first half due to the COVID-19 outbreak, before rebounding in the second half and hitting a new record next year, the trade group said.
“The COVID-19 outbreak has eroded fab equipment spending in China in 2020, prompting downward revisions to the World Fab Forecast report published in November 2019,” SEMI said in a statement.
Despite continuing headwinds from the virus, Chinese equipment spending should grow about 5 percent to more than US$12 billion this year, the organization said.
Next year, spending from China would surge 22 percent annually to US$15 billion, driven by investments by Samsung Electronics Co, SK Hynix Inc, Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp (中芯) and Yangtze Memory Technologies (長江存儲), it forecast.
Taiwan is expected to be the biggest spender this year, estimated at US$14 billion, mainly due to investments by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) and Micron Technology Inc.
However, Taiwan would see its ranking slide to third place next year, with fab equipment spending forecast to drop 5 percent to US$13 billion, it said.
South Korea should see growth of 31 percent to US$13 billion this year, making it the second-largest fab equipment spender, SEMI said.
Samsung and SK Hynix would be the biggest contributors to the expansion, SEMI said.
South Korea is expected to surpass Taiwan and become the top spender next year, with fab equipment spending climbing 26 percent year-on-year, it said.
Southeast Asia, mainly Singapore, is expected to register a robust growth of 33 percent year-on-year to US$2.2 billion this year, it said.
The region is expected to grow 26 percent next year, SEMI said.
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