Date: 01/08/2011

IC Insights' latest global semiconductor market growth figure is 5%

IC Insights' McClean Report, the worldwide semiconductor industry growth forecast for 2011 has been lowered from 10% to 5% and the 2011 IC market forecast from 10% to 4%. The key reason as per IC Insights is the weak performance of the worldwide economy in the first half of this year.

Electronics Engineering Herald


IC Insights lists some of the unexpected economic "headwinds" the worldwide economy faced in the first half of 2011 are shown in the above Figure. These events caused quarterly worldwide economic growth to slow significantly in the first half of 2011 as compared to 2010 and in turn served to slow worldwide electronics and semiconductor industry market growth, finds IC Insights. While any of these negative events by themselves may not have had a serious impact, combined, they served to noticeably slow the worldwide economy in the first half of this year, says IC Insights.

IC Insights' current forecast assumes that U.S. "debt ceiling" and European debt crisis issues will be resolved and that neither of them will cause a serious negative financial situation for the worldwide economy in the second half of 2011. Although the U.S. debt ceiling and European debt crisis are likely to be addressed without creating a worldwide financial panic or meltdown, both of these situations have caused a great amount of uncertainty throughout the world, affecting both businesses and consumers alike, adds IC Insights.

IC Insights explains although worldwide GDP growth in the second half of 2011 is not forecast to revert back to the levels registered in the first three quarters of 2010, it is expected to show noticeable improvement over the first half of 2011. This improvement is forecast to help drive a moderately better second-half semiconductor market as compared to the first half and a full-year 2011 growth rate of 5%, states IC Insights.