Silicon wafer suppliers have seen 12-inch wafer demand plummet recently, due mainly to weak demand coming from the memory chip sector, according to industry sources. Prices for 12-inch wafers have come under downward pressure.

Silicon wafer demand started showing signs of a slowdown in the second half of 2018, said the sources, adding that sluggish demand for memory chips and contraction of orders placed by foundry chipmakers have led to excess inventory in the supply chain.

With the memory-chip market continuing to weaken, demand for silicon wafers, particularly 12-inch ones, has been dragged down further, the sources noted. Prices for 12-inch silicon wafers are likely to fall back, the sources said.

Silicon wafer companies particularly those whose depend less on long-term supply contracts are being impacted negatively by near-term headwinds facing the memory and logic foundry sectors. Nevertheless, GlobalWafers, whose orders are mostly based on LTAs, remains financially stable, the sources observed.

GlobalWafers continues to see its 8- and 12-inch wafer manufacturing lines run at full capacity, company chairperson Doris Hsu was quoted as saying in previous reports. Of the total 12- and 8-inch wafer orders obtained by the silicon wafer firm, as high as 80-90% are based on long-term contract agreements, Hsu indicated.

GlobalWafers saw its consolidated sales hit a record high of NT$5.67 billion (US$183.4 million) in March 2019. GlobalWafers expects to post flat sequential growth in second-quarter revenues, and is confident its performance in the second half of the year will outperform that in the first half, according to Hsu.

By: DocMemory
Copyright © 2023 CST, Inc. All Rights Reserved