Global semiconductor revenues up 5.2 per cent at $315.4 billion in 2013

NEW DELHI: Global semiconductor revenues have risen by 5.2 per cent to $315.4 billion this year because of increased demand for dynamic memory (DRAM) chips, research firm Gartner said today.

Worldwide semiconductor revenues stood at $299.9 billion last year.

"After a weak start to 2013 due to excess inventory, revenue growth strengthened in the second and third quarters before levelling off in the fourth quarter," Gartner said in a statement.

"Memory, in particular DRAM, led this growth, not due to strong demand, but rather weak supply growth," it added.

The overall market faced a number of demand headwinds with PC production declining 9 per cent and premium smartphone market showing signs of saturation, with growth tilting toward lower-priced, entry-level and midrange smartphone models.

These demand headwinds become very visible when looking at revenue growth outside of memory, where the rest of the semiconductor market could only muster 0.4 per cent growth, Gartner added.

Top 25 semiconductor vendors' combined revenue increased 6.2 per cent, a significantly better performance than the rest of the market, whose revenue growth was 2.9 per cent. This was, in part, due to the concentration of memory vendors, which saw significant growth in the top ranking, it said.