Euro strength distorts semiconductor rankings

IC Insights has released its ranking of worldwide top 10 semiconductor suppliers for the first half of 2003.

IC Insights has released its ranking of worldwide top 10 semiconductor suppliers for the first half of 2003.

With three suppliers from Europe, three from Japan, two from the USA, one from Korea and one from Taiwan, the list is a balanced representation of geographic regions.

However, it is the first time that there are more European companies on the list than US companies.

Intel maintained its number one position among the worldwide top 10 semiconductor suppliers, according to IC Insights.

However, significant movement took place in the remainder of the ranking.

According to statistics recently generated by IC Insights for its new mid-year report, first half 2003 ranking highlights include the following.

Renesas, the recently formed entity comprised of Hitachi and Mitsubishi's semiconductor businesses, claimed the third spot in the top 10 ranking (Hitachi alone would have ranked 10th).

Motorola fell out of the top 10 ranking.

IC Insights believes that Motorola has been on the top-10 supplier list since it built its first semiconductor fab in 1959.

A 22% 1H03/1H02 increase in the value of the Euro significantly boosted the 1H03 results of Infineon and Philips when converted into US dollars.

Total 1H03/1H02 top 10 semiconductor company sales grew 12%.

The worldwide semiconductor market also grew 12% in 1H03, increasing to $74.3 billion from $66.3 billion in 1H02.

Renesas Technology began operations 1st April 2003.

The company was created through the merger of Hitachi's Semiconductor and Integrated Circuit Division and Mitsubishi Electric's System LSI Division.

The result is the formation of one of the world's largest semiconductor suppliers with more than 27,000 employees and expected 2003 revenues of over $8 billion.

Hitachi owns 55% of Renesas and Mitsubishi Electric owns the remaining 45%.

Motorola has been a fixture in the listing of top 10 semiconductor suppliers ever since the ranking was first compiled.

In 1985, Motorola was the third largest semiconductor company in the world (interestingly, Intel was ranked 8th that year).

In 1995, the company held the fifth spot in the top 10 listing.

Motorola's 1H03/1H02 semiconductor sales declined 5%, to $2266 million ($300 million less than 10th ranked TSMC).

In fact, it was the only top-11 semiconductor company to register a 1H03/1H02 sales decline.

The company's 1H03 sales drop coupled with the tremendous strength of the Euro, which boosted Philips' 1H03 semiconductor sales in US dollars to a 5% increase (instead of a 15% decline when stated in Euros), served to push Motorola out the top 10 ranking into the 11th position.

Providing evidence of the growing popularity of using silicon foundries, TSMC stayed in the top 10 ranking, nearly catching Philips in the 9th position.

Assuming a stabilisation of the Euro/US dollar exchange rate in the second half of 2003, IC Insights believes that TSMC will surpass Philips and move into the 9th position when full-year 2003 results are tallied.

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