SEMICON China 2019 will open March 20 for a three-day run at Shanghai New International Expo Center, with global semiconductor industrial chains to showcase their latest technologies, designs, materials, equipment and solutions.

Pure-play foundry Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) has started seeing chip orders for Android devices ramp up recently, with its fabless clients including HiSilicon, MediaTek and Qualcomm stepping up their pace of orders, according to industry sources.

The Taiwan semiconductor industry is gearing up to tap huge business opportunities arising from AI and IoT applications, such as machine learning, cloud to edge computing and big data, and the next-generation connected cars and vehicles, according to Nicky Lu, chairman for fabless chipmaker Etron Technology...

Memory backend specialist Orient Semiconductor Electronics (OSE) is installing more surface-mount technology (SMT) lines for an additional 10-15% increase in production capacity, according to industry sources.

The number of 300mm wafer fabrication facilities in operation continues to increase. With nine new 300mm wafer fabs scheduled to open in 2019, the worldwide number of operational 300mm wafer fabs is expected to climb to 121 in 2019 and grow to a total of 138 fabs by the end of 2023, according to IC...

Largan Precision is striving for orders for in-panel optical fingerprint-recognition lens modules and 3D sensing lenses from the non-Apple camp as a move to diversify its customer base, according to market observers.

Intel is reportedly to begin working on engineering projects that will enable mass-production of 5G modem chips with its collaborative partners in the second quarter of 2019, according to sources from Taiwan's IC backend service providers.

Qualcomm, Universal Scientific Industrial (Shanghai) and Asustek Computer have announced jointly the commercial launch of new Asustek smartphones that utilize Qualcomm's cellular system-in-package (SiP) technology in Brazil.

Global fab equipment spending is expected to decline 14% to US$53 billion in 2019, but stage a strong recovery of 27% to set a new record in 2020, according to SEMI.

The silicon wafer market will likely become oversupplied later in the first quarter of 2019, and the situation may worsen in the following quarter, according to a report by Taiwan's Central News Agency.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) is likely to report an annual decrease in net profits this year, due to an even more saturated smartphone market and a slowdown in the datacenter market growth, crypto crash and unfavorable macroeconomic conditions, coupled with the impact of defective...

Backend firm Taiwan IC Packaging (TICP) has disclosed plans to reduce paid-in capital by 57.7% to amend losses and strengthen its financial structure.

King Yuan Electronics (KYEC), Kingpak Technology and GEM Services are expected to see their sales growth exceed the seasonal average in the first half of 2019, outperforming their other Taiwan-based peers, according to industry sources.

The declining market for semiconductors used in mobile handsets and enterprise servers led to a realignment in the company market-share ranking for semiconductor manufacturers. While Samsung led semiconductor sales for the past five quarters, Intel outpaced Samsung in the fourth quarter of 2018, according...

Gudeng Precision Industrial is scheduled to kick off volume production of extreme ultraviolet (EUV) pods for TSMC's EUV-based 7nm node manufacturing at the end of March, which will boost significantly the chipmaking equipment supplier's revenues during the month, according to industry sources.

Taiwan recorded exports of US$20.39 billion for February 2019, dropping 25.3% sequentially and 8.8% on year, while the month's imports totaled US$15.47 billion, slipping 41.7% sequentially and 19.7% on year, according to the Ministry of Finance (MOF).

United Microelectronics (UMC) saw its February revenues fall to the lowest monthly levels in three years, while revenues at Vanguard International Semiconductor (VIS) slid to a 12-month low.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) saw its consolidated revenues decline 22% sequentially and hit a 22-month low of NT$60.89 billion (US$1.97 billion) in February 2019.

Government-run Hsinchu Science Park (HSP), Southern Taiwan Science Park (STSP) and Central Taiwan Science Park (CTSP) generated record revenues of NT$2.596 trillion (US$84.29 billion) in 2018, growing 5.47% on year, according to the Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST).

High-performance RF components and power devices made of third-generation compound semiconductor materials with wide band-gap, such as GaN and SiC, are expected to be increasingly demanded for extensive applications in the 5G era, prompting international IDMs such as Infineon, STM, TI and AOS to aggressively...

Vanguard International Semiconductor (VIS) has seen demand for power semiconductors ramp up from mainly Infineon, which will be a driver of the foundry's revenue growth this year, according to industry sources.

Worldwide sales of semiconductors reached US$35.5 billion in January 2019, down 7.2% sequentially and 5.7% on year, according to the Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA).

Taiwan's leading compound semiconductor foundry Win Semiconductors has reportedly tapped into the satellite communications supply chains of US aerospace firms by providing mmWave solutions, according to industry sources.

Topco Technologies, which distributes mainly silicone materials, expects to post another revenue and profit growth in 2019, citing brisk demand for mainly non-consumer electronics applications such as sports products, medical and automotive applications.

Automated optical inspection (AOI) equipment specialist Machvision saw its consolidated revenues for February 2019 increase 14.2% on year and 2.9% sequentially to NT$212 million (US$6.87 million), bucking traditional seasonal trends.