Third-quarter silicon wafer shipments increase quarter-over-quarter

Milpitas, CA. Worldwide silicon wafer area shipments increased during the third quarter 2017 when compared to second quarter 2017 area shipments, according to the SEMI Silicon Manufacturers Group (SMG) in its quarterly analysis of the silicon wafer industry.

Total silicon wafer area shipments were 2,997 million square inches during the most recent quarter, a 0.7% increase from the record 2,978 million square inches shipped during the previous quarter. New quarterly total area shipments are 9.8% higher than third-quarter 2016 shipments and continue to ship at their highest recorded quarterly level.

“Global silicon wafer shipment volumes surpassed record levels for the sixth quarter in a row, resulting in a new historical high,” said Chungwei (C.W.) Lee, chairman of SEMI SMG and VP, corporate development, and chief auditor of GlobalWafers. “While silicon demand is strong, silicon pricing remains well below pre-downturn levels.”

Silicon* Area Shipment Trends

Source: SEMI (www.semi.org), November 2017

*Semiconductor applications only

All data cited in this release is inclusive of polished silicon wafers, including virgin test wafers and epitaxial silicon wafers, as well as nonpolished silicon wafers shipped by the wafer manufacturers to the end-users.

The Silicon Manufacturers Group acts as an independent special interest group within the SEMI structure and is open to SEMI members involved in manufacturing polycrystalline silicon, monocrystalline silicon, or silicon wafers (as cut, polished, epi, etc.). The purpose of the group is to facilitate collective efforts on issues related to the silicon industry including the development of market information and statistics about the silicon industry and the semiconductor market.

See also “Wafer shipments forecast to increase in 2017, 2018, and 2019.”