Computing Powers Semiconductor Market to Reach Record High

The global power semiconductor market grew by over 20% in 2004 to reach a new record revenue total of $11.2 billion, according to IMS Research’s latest annual study. For the first time, the market exceeded the previous peak recorded in 2000 with huge percentage growth in all three major regions: Asia, the Americas and EMEA. Much of the revenue growth was attributed to power discretes products; however, the power module market also saw a 22% increase in global 2004 revenues.

“The consumer and computer/office equipment sectors provided much of the market growth for power discretes, adding nearly $1 billion to the market in 2004,” commented Ash Sharma, a market analyst within IMS Research’s Power & Energy Group. For power modules, one key application—industrial motor drives—provided more than 20% year-on-year revenue growth, while the non-industrial sector (which includes white goods) grew at nearly 45% in 2004, driving the intelligent power module market, particularly in Asia.

IMS Research’s Global Market for Power Semiconductors 2005 Edition was published in August 2005 and reveals that the medium- and long-term outlook for the market is encouraging despite a decline in revenues forecast in 2005, with CAGR of 8.3% forecast for the next six years.