The AI wave is propelling the semiconductor industry towards new growth momentum. Besides companies directly supplying and manufacturing AI PCs and AI servers, IC distributors are now recognizing the strong demand for High-Performance Computing (HPC).
IC distributor Zenitron indicates that AI has contributed significantly to the recovery of the industry and is currently a clear growth driver. Therefore, the company maintains a cautiously optimistic outlook for the second half of 2024. To view it on a quarterly basis, the third quarter of 2024 is expected to be slightly better than the second quarter, with the fourth quarter being the highlight of the year
Zenitron notes that while there are still many urgent and short-term orders in the market, the inventories have returned to normal levels. They hope the supply chain can return to regular orders as in previous years to facilitate stock preparation.
AI technology, in combination with IoT and automotive applications, continues to drive demand for related semiconductor components. Despite AI contributing to growth, Zenitron admits that the company also has a significant presence in industrial control and automotive fields, requiring close monitoring of market developments in these areas.
As for regional markets, Zenitron's revenue in China takes up to 60% of the total revenue. Regarding the Chinese market, Zenitron states that it has recovered compared to 2023 but still shows a slow recovery. The company will prudently approach future operations in this market.
For Zenitron's product lines, application fields are distributed as follows: consumer electronics 20-25%, PC/Notebook around 20%, automotive 10%, and other fields such as power, communication, and industrial control each accounting for approximately 5-10%.
Regarding industry application trends, Zenitron continues to focus on seven major product application areas, including handheld devices, PC products, power management, consumer electronics, communication and networking, industrial power, and automotive electronics.
In response to the industry's demand for AI and high-performance computing, future development will expand to data centers and AI applications, automotive electronics, industrial control, 5G/6G transmission, optical communication, Wi-Fi 6/7, and green and renewable energy.
Under the circumstances that communication applications still dominate semiconductor market revenue, 5G chips will drive communication technology development. Automotive applications will also bring high demand and growth for 5G chips, including innovative applications like connected car communication systems, autonomous driving, and smart cockpits, all relying on 5G chips for realization.
The second wave of 5G Advanced technology innovation is expected to bring more business opportunities and lay the foundation for 6G development. Countries are forming alliances to lead the standardization of 6G communication technology. Zenitron hopes that applications like AI, 5G, and HPC will drive annual growth.
As for recent expansion efforts in the semiconductor distribution industry through mergers and acquisitions, Zenitron states that they will not rule out any good cooperation opportunities in the future.
Article translated by Heidi Yin-Hsuan Tai
