InvestIdeas

0.5% higher quarter-on-quarter.

However, global sales for the month of June 2022 were US$50.8 billion, a decrease of 1.9% compared to the previous month (m-o-m).

The main drag will be the end-demand weakness in consumer electronics that could gradually feed through to semiconductors.

“Given the capacity expansions in the recent upcycle and inventory stockpiling to avoid another round of Covid-related disruptions, downside risks are abound.

“Our ratings leave headroom for cycle changes in cyclical sectors such as semiconductors. However, the coming cash crunch could be larger than usual.

The consumer technology demand weakness among televisions, computers and smartphones appear widespread.

Weaker-than-expected consumer demand in China could also cause a meaningful downshift in demand for large technology categories such as iPhones or automotive.

Slowdown in enterprise spending, including reduced data centre investments.

Our latest forecasts put semiconductor growth at 8% for the year, and IT spending growth at 4.3%.

Chips (Creating Helpful Initiatives to Produce Semiconductors for America) Act, the new law is aimed at drawing investment and production of semiconductors back to US shores.

S&P Global Ratings pointed out this week that the global semiconductor cycle is heading for a downturn due to an ease in demand for consumer electronics.

The situation was exacerbated by fab closures in the US and Taiwan due to droughts, the interruption of chip manufacturing operations in Germany due to power outages and the implementation of lockdowns and movement control orders in some countries including Malaysia.

Demand from automotive, computation and data storage, and wireless.

Chipmakers are bracing for a particularly severe shift in coming months, when a record-setting sales surge is threatening to give way to the worst decline in a decade or more.

Nvidia Corp is reporting more than 40% annual declines in their core businesses, while Micron Technology Inc warns that demand is evaporating fast in many areas.

US$52bil (RM232bil) Chips and Science Act to subsidise domestic production.

Desktop processor shipments dropped to their lowest level in nearly three decades.

Plants with a price tag of up to US$20bil need to be run flat-out 24 hours a day to bring a return in the few years before they become obsolete.

Just three, Samsung Electronics Co, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co and Intel, account for the majority of production.

The size of the global semiconductor market is expected to increase 13.9% in 2022, and continue to grow by 4.6% in 2023.

Logic expected to grow 24.1%, Analog with a 21.9% growth and Sensors with a 16.6% growth.

It said optoelectronics remain the weakest category in the forecast, and its growth is expected to be roughly flat (+0.2%) year-on-year.