Semiconductor Wafer Demand Expected to Grow 3.1% in 2020, Says Semico Research

There is a significant amount of economic uncertainty due to the COVID‑19 pandemic; however, Semico’s outlook for semiconductor sales includes several areas of growth which have positively impacted the updated forecast. A new report from Semico Research, Semico Wafer Demand Q4 2020 Highlights (MA112-20), forecasts wafer demand to grow by 3.1% this year over 2019. That is slower than the CAGR of 5.6% over the past 10 years; however, 2021 is projected to exceed 8.8% growth and begin a slightly higher growth trend for the next five years.
 
"There are positive residual effects from COVID-19. Semiconductors used in sensing and monitoring medical situations are expected to remain in high demand through 2021 and new wearable products are already being introduced," says Joanne Itow, Manager Manufacturing Research for Semico. "Tablet sales remained strong through Q3 2020. Semico believes the demands of work-at-home, video meetings, telemedicine, home school and consumer streaming reinforce the need to rollout of 5G. 5G will be a driver of new electronic applications. This is encouraging telecommunications companies to continue rolling out 5G this year."
 
Additional key findings include:

• Total wafer demand in 2020 is expected to reach 109.5 million 300mm wafer equivalents.
• Electric vehicle sales are on track to increase in 2020, and semiconductor content per car continues to rise.
• DRAM wafer demand is forecast to grow 4.9% in 2020 over 2019.
• MCU units will remain flat at just 0.8% growth this year.

Semico Research's report, Semico Wafer Demand Q4 2020 Highlights (MA112-20), includes an Excel spreadsheet which provides wafer demand by 18 product categories and 14 technology nodes over a 15-year time frame from 2010 to 2025. There is also a summary write-up which provides insight into the recent trends for key semiconductor product categories.