Euro growth remains slow
The European market for semiconductors grew 0.4 % in May, following a 0.9% decline in April, as reported by the World Semiconductor Trade Statistics (WSTS) today.
The low digit growth observed in May compared to previous month was mainly driven by optoelectronics -returned to a positive growth after two months of decline- sensors & actuators and analog products. Sales for DRAM grew in May as well, continuing the remarkable growth trend already observed in the previous month.
Looking at application specific chips, analog devices used in communications and automotive and the MOS Microcontroller (MCU) category were reported positive this month compared to the previous month.
Overall, European semiconductor sales in May 2009 amounted to US$ 2,176 billion. This corresponds to a decline of 34.6% compared to the same month last year. On a YTD basis semiconductor sales declined by 34.1% in 2009 versus the same period in the year 2008.
The exchange rate imbalance of the Euro compared to the US dollar weakens its impact on the European sales picture slightly. Measured in Euro, semiconductor sales of 1,640 billion Euros in May 2009 were weaker once again, down 1.6% on the previous month and down 23.2% versus the same month a year ago. On a YTD basis semiconductor sales declined by 23.8% in 2009 versus the same period in the year 2008.
On a worldwide basis, semiconductor sales in May 2009 were US$ 16,489 billion, up 5.4% versus the previous month. This results in a decline of 23.2% versus the same month in 2008 and on a YTD basis it results in a decline of 25.2%.
