Chip sales drop 30 percent in first quarter

The news is not surprising and it is not very good on the semiconductor front. The Semiconductor Industry Association reported last week that global sales of semiconductors fell nearly 30 percent in the first quarter of 2009 compared to a year earlier, reports eWeek.com. The primary reason is that businesses stopped buying of laptops, enterprise hardware and other products with computer chips. In response, companies making items with semiconductors have slashed their production and supply inventories, says the website.

"There are some bright spots such as ‘smartphones' and ‘netbook' PCs, but there are no clear signs of early firming of demand in other major-end markets such as automotive, corporate information technology and consumer electronics," SIA President George Scalise wrote in a statement.

And there's more bad news: SIA does not see a major turnaround in the semiconductor industry until 2010.

For more on the state of semiconductors:
- see this eWeek.com article

Related Articles:
Sun: Rock 16-core server chip on track for fall release
AMD launches fastest desktop processors ever
Researchers claim breakthrough in nanotechnology
Intel lowers chip prices, launches new chips