What's happening in markets
By Staff -- Purchasing, 2/5/2004 2:00:00 AM
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U.S. chipmaker Intel and Japanese mobile communications giant NTT DoCoMo will develop next-generation semiconductors for mobile phones. The companies will start with third generation (3G) chips for cell phones capable of such multiple tasks as audio and data communications and image processing, then expand into fourth generation (4G) microchips.
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Sales of microprocessors are improving in North America and Europe, but major suppliers remain cautious in the outlook for the early part of 2004. Motley Fool.com analyst Dave Mock says chipmakers are "reserving any significant optimism" for later in the year. Industry insiders are still waiting for a major onset of corporate replacement demand from old computer fleets.
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The focus on homeland security generated $100 billion in sales for corporate security and safety service products in 2003. Consulting firm Richard K. Miller & Associates finds physical security and detection technology products available from 170 companies involved in the homeland security marketplace keyed to such markets as aerospace/aviation, chemical processing, energy generation, and water and surface transportation.
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The market for firewalls will expand 25% over the next two years to nearly $2.5 billion in worldwide sales by 2005. Firewalls are software that keep out unwanted computer intruders, and are a mainstay of computer network security at large and mid-sized businesses. Sales growth will come from expanded installations among smaller companies, says analyst Mark Bouchard at research firm Meta Group.
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Researchers from four big universities and other outfits will use a $7.5 million grant from the National Science Foundation to reevaluate how the Internet works and improve its speed and potential. Darpa, the Pentagon agency that created the Internet in the 1970s, also is sponsoring next-generation research on Internet protocol.
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U.S. sales of abrasive products will reach $5.8 billion in 2004, suggests a Freedonia Group report. Volume gains will be modest, but sales growth will shift toward higher-priced value-added materials in the coated abrasives segment. The researchers also expect some price increases for coated and bonded abrasives, loose abrasive grains, steel wool and steel and iron grit and shot.
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