Fab tool demand on the decline

Fab tool demand on the decline

SAN FRANCISCO—Global spending on semiconductor wafer fab equipment is set to fall to $31.4 billion in 2012, down 13 percent from 2011, according to market research firm Gartner Inc.

"The outlook for semiconductor equipment markets has deteriorated as the macro economy has weakened," said Bob Johnson, research vice president at Gartner, in a statement.

Johnson said wafer fab equipment started the year off strong as foundries and other logic manufacturers ramped up sub-30-nm production. But demand for new equipment will soften as yields improve, leading to declining shipment volumes for the rest of the year, Johnson said.

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Gartner (Stamford, Conn.) projects that wafer fab equipment spending will further decline about 1 percent in 2013, falling to $31.2 billion. The firm projects that semiconductor equipment spending will return to growth in 2014, when it is projected to grow 15 percent.

Gartner projects that wafer fab manufacturing capacity utilization rate will decline into the low 80 percent range by the end of 2012, before slowly increasing to about 87 percent by the end of 2013. Leading-edge utilization will return to the high 80 percent range by the second half of 2012, and move into the low 90 percent range through 2013, according to Gartner's forecast.



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TAG:Gartner SEMI Equipment Fab Wafer