Huawei is reportedly teaming up with foundry house SMIC to develop display driver ICs, a move which may undercut the dominant position that Taiwan's LCD driver IC suppliers have enjoyed in the segment in China, according to industry sources.

FocalTech Systems, specializing in the development of LCD driver ICs and touchscreen controllers, has reported net profits surged 70.2% sequentially to NT$101 million (US$3.43) in the second quarter of 2020. The profit results also compared with losses a year ago, with EPS reaching NT$0.38.

IC Insights has released its list of the world's top-10 semiconductor sales leaders in the first half of 2020. In total, the top-10 semiconductor companies' sales surged by 17% in the first half of 2020 compared to a year ago, more than 3x the total worldwide semiconductor industry increase of 5%.

Taiwan's IC suppliers have seen increasing demand for Wi-Fi 6 chips as device vendors have begun rolling out related devices such as routers supporting 5G networks, according to industry sources.

IC testing houses King Yuan Electronics (KYEC) and Sigurd Microelectronics are both gearing up to satisfy robust demand for MediaTek's chips in the fourth quarter of 2020 following the exit of Huawei/HiSilicon from their ecosystem, according to industry sources.

Taiwan-based IC backend houses including ASE Technology and Powertech Technology (PTI) have seen orders placed by game console and other consumer electronics vendors ramp up since August, with their conventional wirebonding manufacturing capacities already fully loaded, according to industry sources...

Display driver IC specialist Himax Technologies expects to post an around 20% revenue increase sequentially in the third quarter of 2020, with flat growth or a slight decrease in gross margin.

Growth rates across most IC segments are expected to improve in 2020 but only mildly, due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to IC Insights. In 2019, only six IC product categories experienced sales growth.

Display driver IC specialist Novatek Microelectronics expects to post revenues of between NT$20 billion (US$680 million) and NT$20.6 billion in the third quarter of 2020, which will represent a sequential 7.5-10.7% increase and hit a record high for the third consecutive quarter.

MediaTek has announced advances in its collaboration with Intel to bring 5G experiences to next-generation PCs with the successful development and certification of its 5G modem data card.

The coronavirus pandemic is decimating businesses in various sectors, but the outlook for semiconductor foundry houses remains robust, thanks to strong stay-at-home economy. Pureplay foundries, including TSMC, UMC and VIS, have raised 8-inch...

Touch screen IC designer Elan Microelectronics has formed a strategic alliance with LED driver IC developer Macroblock for developing chip solutions for micro LED displays, mini LED backlighting and fine-pitch displays, according to Elan.

Networking IC design specialist Realtek Semiconductor has reported net profits increased 24.3% sequentially and 9.9% on year to a record high of NT$2.03 billion (US$69.1 million) in the second quarter of 2020, with EPS reaching NT$3.97.

Niche IC specialist Novatek Microelectronics is reportedly engaged in the development of AI chips for accelerating edge computing at smartphones and other devices, according to industry sources.

Sony is expected to introduce its PS5 later this year, with Taiwanese backend service providers already starting delivering shipments for the new games consoles. Construction of 5G infrastructure may still be going on in China, but PCB...

The global semiconductor industry posted June sales of US$34.5 billion, up 5.1% on year but down 0.3% sequentially, according to Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA).

Flash device controller IC specialist Phison Electronics has disclosed plans to streamline its operations in China.

Power management IC designer Analog Integrations has seen clear order visibility through the fourth quarter and is likely to swing to profitability for the whole year of 2020, according to industry sources.

Bracing for fresh US trade bans, Huawei is making contingency plans, increasing purchases of third-party mobile application processors for its 5G smartphones, according to Digitimes Research, as it looks to maintain its product competitiveness,...

Taiwan's economic growth for second-quarter 2020 is preliminarily estimated at -0.73%, 1.23pp lower than the 0.50% increase forecast in May 2020, according to the Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS).

ASE Technology Holding expects to generate sequential revenue growth through the fourth quarter of 2019, judging from a substantial pick-up in orders for communications chips.

MediaTek has estimated its third-quarter 2020 revenues will reach NT$82.5-87.9 billion (US$2.75-2.79 billion) for a 22-30% sequential growth, well beyond market expectations, as shipments for all its product lines, particularly Dimensity series 5G SoCs, will rise significantly.

Huawei is increasing the proportion of mobile application processors (APs) from third-party suppliers for its smartphones, reducing use of Kirin chips from its subsidiary HiSilicon Technologies, as a contigency against the US trade ban, according to Digitimes Research.

NAND flash device controller specialist Silicon Motion Technology expects to post revenues of between US$114 million and US$120 million in the third quarter of 2020, down 12-17% sequentially, with gross margin reaching 47.5-49.5% compared with 50% in the prior quarter.

Shipment momentum for servers, datacenter servers, notebooks and tablets has shown signs of deceleration as many countries begin lifting coronavirus-induced lockdowns, according to Taiwan Institute of Economic Research (TIER)