Weltweiter Halbleiter-Umsatz sinkt um 2,3 Prozent

Verlangsamte Nachfrage in Schlüsselbereichen und Währungsschwankungen versetzen Markt in Aufruhr.

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Der weltweite Umsatz bei Halbleitern betrug 2015 insgesamt 334,8 Milliarden US-Dollar, so das IT Research- und Beratungsunternehmen Gartner. Das entspricht einem Rückgang um 2,3 Prozent im Vergleich zum Vorjahr. Der Gesamtumsatz der 25 größten Halbleiter-Hersteller ist 2015 um 0,5 Prozent gesunken. Der übrige Markt musste dagegen Umsatzeinbußen von 6,9 Prozent hinnehmen. Die Top 25 Hersteller machten 2015 73,5 Prozent des Marktvolumens aus, ein leichter Rückgang im Vergleich zu 2014 (74 Prozent).

»Der globale Halbleiter-Markt wurde 2015 gedämpft durch eine verlangsamte Nachfrage in Schlüsselbereichen gepaart mit starken Währungsschwankungen«, erklärt Andrew Norwood, Research Vice President bei Gartner. »Die verschiedenen Marktkategorien entwickelten sich im Jahr 2015 unterschiedlich, 2014 sind alle Bereiche noch gewachsen.«

Worldwide Semiconductor Revenue Declined 2.3 Per Cent in 2015, According to Final Results by Gartner

Slowing Demand for Key Applications and Currency Fluctuations Cause Turbulence in Semiconductor Market

Worldwide semiconductor revenue totalled $334.8 billion in 2015, a 2.3 per cent decline from 2014, according to final results by Gartner, Inc. The combined revenue of the top 25 semiconductor vendors fell by 0.5 per cent during 2015. This was a better performance than the rest of the market, however, which saw a 6.9 per cent revenue decline. The top 25 vendors accounted for 73.5 per cent of the market, down slightly from 74 per cent in 2014.

»The worldwide semiconductor market declined in 2015 as slowing demand for key applications combined with strong currency fluctuations to subdue the market,« said Andrew Norwood, research vice president at Gartner. »2015 saw a mixed performance by the different device categories, unlike 2014 when all categories posted positive growth. Nonoptical sensors performed best due to increased usage of fingerprint sensors in smartphones, while discretes saw the strongest decline due to a mix of weak demand and currency issues.«

Intel retained the No. 1 market share position for the 24th consecutive year, capturing 15.4 per cent of the worldwide market, despite experiencing a 1.2 per cent revenue decline in 2015 (see Table 1). Infineon Technologies experienced the strongest growth among the top vendors, moving from No. 12 to the No. 9 position in 2015.

Table 1. Top 10 Semiconductor Vendors by Revenue, Worldwide, 2015 (Millions of Dollars)

Source: Gartner (March 2016)

2015 saw record merger and acquisition (M&A) activity between major semiconductor vendors, including several acquisitions and disposals that had a material effect on semiconductor sales. Among the most significant deals was Intel’s acquisition of Lantiq. Driven by Lantiq’s broadband gateway and digital home capabilities, this acquisition helped Intel nearly double its wired ASSP business.

»2015 semiconductor revenue results are skewed by the large amount of M&A activity during the year,« said Mr Norwood. »If we adjust for this M&A activity by adding in revenue for 2015 and 2014 where necessary, then the performance is somewhat different: The top 25 vendors would have experienced a 1.7 per cent revenue decline, and the rest of the market would have declined 3.9 per cent.«

Additional information is provided in the Gartner report »Market Share Analysis: Semiconductor Revenue, Worldwide, 2015.«