The Taipei-based researcher attributed the strong outlook for the local semiconductor industry to demand for chips used in notebook computers amid a COVID-19 pandemic-induced stay-at-home economy, as well as emerging applications from 5G and artificial intelligence to automotive electronics. A 300mm silicon wafer is displayed at a GlobalFoundries Inc plant in Dresden, Germany, on Aug. 12. The production value in Taiwan’s semiconductor industry this year is expected to soar 31.8 percent from last year to NT$3.6 trillion (US$129 billion), the Market Intelligence and Consulting Institute said yesterday. “Semiconductor shortages have become a new global norm,” said Cheng Kai-an (鄭凱安), a senior industry analyst at the institute. Over the next three years, the compound annual growth rate of production value in Taiwan’s foundry sector is expected to be 10.5 percent, it said.

Source: Taipei Times October 05, 2021 15:56 UTC