KPMG: Semiconductor Industry Rebound Expected

By Rob Starr, Content Manager, Big4.com

Semiconductor industry executives are planning for an industry rebound in 2013, most likely weighted to the second half of the year. Looking beyond the recovery, the US has moved ahead of China as the most important market for revenue, according to this year’s global semiconductor industry survey from KPMG International.

The broadening set of significant semiconductor applications could be responsible for the shift in the importance of geographic markets, placing the US ahead of China. For the third year in a row, fewer industry executives believe China will be the most important market for their company’s semiconductor revenue growth 3 years from today while the US market’s importance has increased. The US and Chinese markets are followed in importance by Europe, Korea, and Taiwan, which only 2 years ago was ranked second, slightly ahead of the US.

In the expanding semiconductor applications market, consumer applications have supplanted wireless on top of the list of the most important semiconductor revenue drivers over the next fiscal year, with computing still among the top three.  In addition, more executives than in the prior three surveys ranked industrial, medical, automotive applications and power management as important revenue drivers.