Fabtech - Editor's Blog

It’s all up from here, according to IC Insights

Tue, 02 Jun 2009 11:53:42 GMT

In a rather excited email, Bill McClean at IC Insights has called a bottom to the current semiconductor cycle and without actually using the word, hailed the next up-cycle for an industry desperate for good rather than bad news.

Think quarterly, stupid

Tue, 14 Apr 2009 14:18:27 GMT

Turning all the doom and gloom forecasting on its head and things don’t look that bad, according to IC Insights. In particular, take a look at recovering sales at the largest foundry, TSMC and it's up from hereon in for the rest of year and possibly beyond.

Is this round of fundraising by Hynix and Micron a good thing?

Fri, 10 Apr 2009 18:59:33 GMT

Both Hynix and Micron are seeking to raise capital. Hynix got the green light from its former creditor banks to raise approximately US$519 million, while Micron is hoping to gain US$450 million by offering stock and convertible senior notes. Both companies have burnt through billions in the last few years while spending on new capacity and filling the hole in accounts as losses continued unabated.

Micron says Taiwan Memory Co deal didn’t make sense: Sour grapes or astute business decision?

Fri, 03 Apr 2009 14:16:49 GMT

Not surprisingly Steve Appleton, Micron’s Chairman and CEO had a few words to say during its timely earnings conference call last night over the decision by the Taiwanese Government to partner with Elpida on process technology IP, the yet to be established Taiwan Memory Co DRAM enterprise.

Taiwan Memory Co: madness or monumental?

Wed, 01 Apr 2009 11:58:59 GMT

Words uttered by someone in the Taiwan Government to someone asking a question on the ‘sidelines’ of some event not related to the subject at all has sparked a flurry of stories suggesting that Elpida has been selected to partner with the beleaguered DRAM industry on the island.

KLA-Tencor jobs cuts tell another story

Tue, 31 Mar 2009 10:24:27 GMT

Innovation, node migrations and yield improvement strategies once meant that KLA-Tencor could ride out the worst of an economic or semiconductor specific downturn better than most equipment suppliers, which were more dependent on production expansions to make sales.

Powerchip’s Chairman makes a point

Wed, 25 Mar 2009 12:17:46 GMT

Desperate times mean desperate remarks from DRAM producers, especially those in Taiwan such as Powerchip Semiconductor (PSC). Chairman Frank Huang has been quoted as saying that there is the likelihood of a DRAM shortage in the 3Q09, due to the level of production cuts announced by many manufacturers.

More delisting on NASDAQ looms

Tue, 24 Mar 2009 10:18:27 GMT

When the global stock markets started to dive from September last year, there were approximately eight semiconductor-related companies listed on NASDAQ that I had been tracking that were either just above or below the US$1.0 threshold for listing on the tech exchange. As the share sell-off continued, that number didn’t expand as rapidly as one might have thought.

Is this the roots of recovery showing in IC ASPs?

Thu, 12 Mar 2009 16:52:55 GMT

Bill McClean over at IC Insights is making hints that a recovery could be in the making for the beleaguered semiconductor industry, as the trend in falling IC ASPs seems to be on the cusp of changing course.

Inventory? What inventory?

Mon, 02 Mar 2009 18:57:07 GMT

The semiconductor industry got caught with its trousers down over excessive IC inventories when the dot com boom, bust in 2001. The double and triple ordering that took place fooled the industry into thinking business was booming and new capacity kicked in to meet the ‘demand.’ When the dust settled, the industry took more than a year to get inventory levels down, which delayed the eventual recovery.

Splinter asks: “So, how bad is it?”

Mon, 16 Feb 2009 19:31:52 GMT

There is little doubt that the current downturn is expected to be the worst the semiconductor industry has ever experienced - including that of 2001.

Taiwan’s DRAM manufacturers split in the middle

Wed, 11 Feb 2009 12:16:53 GMT

The continued manoeuvrings of increasingly desperate DRAM manufacturers in Taiwan would seem to be coming to a head, if news reports are to be trusted. The saga has played out for over a month and now (hopefully) will come to a close by the end of February.

The US$10 billion bucket

Thu, 29 Jan 2009 17:49:07 GMT

Front-end semiconductor equipment sales are expected to plummet in 2009 to around US$10 billion. Taking Intel Corp. and Samsung Electronics out of the mix leaves barely a couple of US$ billion for the rest of the equipment suppliers to fight for.

Hynix hits bottom

Mon, 12 Jan 2009 14:32:07 GMT

Hynix’s CEO Kim Jong-kap has claimed that the bottom of the current crisis in the memory industry ‘may’ have been in the fourth quarter of 2008. His rationale was that the drastic cut in capital spending across the industry, including that of Hynix, mean that 2010 should see a recovery.

Can Aviza do a Tegal?

Thu, 08 Jan 2009 19:14:06 GMT

With the seemingly endless downward revenue guidance adjustments being made by large and small companies within the semiconductor industry, news that Aviza Technology also gave an update to its next quarterly results shouldn’t have surprised anyone. Expecting the obvious, the pleasant surprise was that Aviza said that it expects to exceed guidance.

Varian Semiconductor bitten by fab cannibalism

Mon, 05 Jan 2009 18:43:32 GMT

Ion implant market leader Varian Semiconductor Equipment Associates would seem to be the first semiconductor equipment supplier ‘officially’ bitten by the return of cannibalism in fabs.

Top 5 blogs for 2008

Sun, 28 Dec 2008 15:00:04 GMT

For several years now blogs written about AMD have proved to be very popular. 2008 was no exception as AMD struggled and finally offloaded its manufacturing arm. AMD’s asset-something or nothing plan turned out to be a saga and only concluding near the end of the year.

Updated: Xmas fab competition: this is bizarre

Mon, 22 Dec 2008 18:56:30 GMT

Forget how bad the semiconductor industry is at the moment and look at the chart below from Gartner. It shows that the market research firm is only expecting (2) new 300mm fabs will start production in 2009, based on current projections.

Myth of managed semiconductor inventory exposed by iSuppli

Wed, 17 Dec 2008 18:27:32 GMT

Market research firm iSuppli Corp. has issued its first ‘Red Alert’ on semiconductor supply chain inventory. Revised figures for 4Q08 indicate a massive increase in semiconductor stockpiles that are building rapidly. iSuppli believes excess semiconductor inventories could reach US$10.2 billion in value, up from US$5.3 billion at the end of the third quarter. Using iSuppli’s previous 3Q08 projection of US$3.8 billion excess, a 268% rise would have been recorded.

Micron to ProMOS rescue et al?

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 12:53:22 GMT

Steve Appleton, Micron Technology, Chairman and CEO has previously made it clear that given the worsening crisis in the semiconductor memory market, he would be happy to play a key role in the desperately required sector consolidation, specifically in the DRAM industry. According to Reuters, Micron’s President, Mark Durcan will hold talks with Taiwan officials regarding ProMOS Technologies, Taiwan's third largest DRAM maker.