Key Metrics and Supply Alert
Staff -- Purchasing, 4/18/2002
- Spot market DRAM tags will be on a roller coast ride for the rest of the year. DRAMS in x8 and x16 organizations fell 4% in late March, according to market intelligence provider iSuppli. Spot prices for 128 MB SDRAMS in x8 organizations decreased 16% and tags for 128 Mb double data rate (DDR parts in x8 organizations dropped 10%. DRAM tags had increased in first quarter 2002 and are expected to rally again as demand picks up.
- Semiconductor industry is off to a slow start in 2002. Worldwide sales totaled $10.01 billion in February, essentially unchanged from January. The bright spot was DRAM revenue, which increased 24% over the previous month due largely to higher prices.
- Book-to-bill ratio for connectors is rising. The ratio was 1.06 iFebruary compared to 1.05 in January and had been below 1.00 for all of 2001. A ratio of 1.06 means that for every $100 of connectors shipped, manufacturers received $106 worth of new orders. However, on a year-over-year basis, connector sales in February were down 26.3% compared to February 2001.
- Expect greater availability of multichip packages (MCP) for memory chips. Memory IC makers such as Samsung and NEC see growing demand for MCP especially from manufacturers of portable electronic equipment such as cell phones and personal digital assistants (PDAs) because board space is at a premium in such equipment. MCP combines several memory chips— DRAM, SRAM and flash—in a single stacked package.
- Electronics giants, Hitachi and Mitsubishi Electric, will merge the bulk of their semiconductor operations early next year. The companies plan to combine their operations in system chips, which are used as microcontrollers for a wide variety of products from cars to consumer electronics. The combined venture's revenues are estimated at $5.39 billion, making it the world's third-largest chipmaker, after Intel and Toshiba.
- Need to do some quick benchmarking of leading electronics OEMs? Check out Purchasing Magazine's latest publication: Electronics Supply Strategies. The book is a compilation of stories on how some of the leading electronics companies—IBM, Motorola, Lucent, Siemens and others—source electronics. Cost: $31.00. Call 617-630-3799.
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