The Tech week that was.. Aug 14~18

Welcome to the latest edition of my weekly newsletter bringing you all the key semiconductor and technology news from around the world in one easy read.?

This week, Intel abandons its US$5.4billion acquisition of Tower, plus lots of market analysis that points to optimism in the market and the start of recovery. Read on for more details.

Intel has terminated it’s planned US$5.4billion acquisition of Tower Semiconductor, after it’s merger agreement expired without regulatory approval from China.?The acquisition of foundry Tower Semiconductor was first announced in February last year.?Under the terms of the acquisition, Intel will pay a US$353 million termination fee.?The termination of the deal is a potential blow to Intels plan to boost it’s contract manufacturing foundry business.

Samsung has sold part of it’s stake in lithography maker ASML to raise cash for it’s capacity expansion plans. According to it’s semi annual report, Samsung Electronics sold around 3.5million shares in Q2 raising around US$2.2billion in capital.?Samsung also raised a further US$90million from selling 2.4million shares in car maker BYD.

According to reports from SCMP and Chinese media, the chairman of China’s top semiconductor equipment manufacturer Advanced Micro-Fabrication Equipment (AMEC) believes the Chinese semiconductor manufacturing is 5 generations behind, up from 2 generations before the US restrictions.?Since 2019, the US has implemented 15 rounds of semiconductor restrictions, all aimed at curbing the advancement of China’s semiconductor industry, with the turning point being the Oct 2022 restrictions.

In market research news..

?Worldwide sales of semiconductors totaled US$124.5 billion in Q2 2023, an increase of 4.7% over Q1 but around -17% down compared to Q2 sales last year, according to the latest data from WSTS.?This is the first sequential quarterly increase in 18months. For the month of June, sales were $41.5 billion, an increase of 1.7% compared to the previous month. Although sales are well down on last years levels, this is the 4th consecutive month on month increase, possibility indicating we are starting to see the beginnings of the recovery, and causing optimism in the market.

For further analysis on this WSTS sales report see this report by SC-IQ.?Of the major semiconductor companies that sell to end users, 13 out of 15 of the largest companies showed revenue gains in Q2 2023 and the average revenue gain was 8%.?Only Qualcomm and Infineon reported declining revenues in Q2.?For Q3 most companies are guiding for continued revenue growth. ??Looking at all the analyst forecasts for 2023, they indicate a -10~-12% decline in sales in 2023, before a recovery in 2024 of around 11%.

?TECHCET is forecasting that silicon wafer shipments will decline -7% in 2023, before recovering in 2024 and growing 8%.?Both 300mm epitaxial and SOI wafers are epected to show growth, with 300mm shipments expected to grow with a CAGR of 6% through to 2027

China’s output of semiconductor IC’s reached 29.2billion units in July, up 4%, the 4th consecutive month of positive growth.?However the growth rate declined comparted to previous months as the domestic chip market struggles with weak consumer demand and high inventories.

?Counterpoint Research is predicting that global smartphone shipments in 2023 are on track to be the lowest in the last 10 years.?They are forecasting that global smartphone shipments will be down -6% to 1.15billion units in 2023.?One of the factors driving this decline is regional macro risks, especially in Asia, China and USA, extending smartphone replacement rates to record levels.?With the global trend for premium and ultra premium phones, Apple is well placed to gain more market share and even become the top supplier in 2023.

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Stay safe and healthy... bye

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