Silicon Wafer Shipments Fall for 4th Consecutive Quarter

Marking the fourth consecutive quarterly decline, worldwide silicon wafer area shipments totaled 2,932 million square inches in the third quarter of 2019, down 1.7% from the 2,983 million square inches shipped in the second quarter of the year and 9.9% lower than shipments during the same period in 2018, according to the SEMI Silicon Manufacturers Group (SMG) in its quarterly analysis of the silicon wafer industry.

“Global silicon wafer shipments continue to ship at lower volumes relative to last year’s record levels,” said Neil Weaver, chairman of SEMI SMG and VP of product development and applications Engineering at Shin Etsu Handotai America. “Ongoing geopolitical tensions and the overall economic slowdown have negatively impacted silicon demand for the year.”