Strong demand for PCBs and IC substrates is sending suppliers increasing capacity, which in turn is extending order visibility at equipment suppliers to second-half 2022. And shortage of ABF substrates for notebook processors are expected to widen. Rising foundry costs amid tight supply are expected erode IC designers' profits, as their customers are now relutant to accept further price increases.
Tyntek will invest NT$600 million (US$21.5 million) to expand production capacity for Si-based sensor chips by 30% in 2022, with the revenue proportion for Si-based sensors expected to rise from 55% currently to over 60% in 2022, according to company president Will Chou.
Taiwan-based equipment suppliers engaged in the PCB and IC substrate sectors have seen order visibility extended to the second half of next year, thanks to their clients increasing capital investments in capacity expansions, according to industry sources.
In the notebook processor supply chain, ABF substrates will be among certain components that will see shortage widen in 2022, which may tighten supply of notebook processors affecting notebook shipments as a result, according to industry sources.
According to the Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI), the global semiconductor manufacturing revenue including wafer foundry and IC package and testing industries, grew 13.6% from US$501 billion in 2019 to US$570 billion in 2020, with Taiwan's corresponding revenues growing from US$86 billion to US$109 billion. With contribution of 20% for the global semiconductor industry, Taiwan is the world's second-largest semiconductor powerhouse next to the US, surpassing South Korea and Japan and leaving China far behind.
GaN Systems has announced a strategic partnership with Universal Scientific Industrial (USI), a subsidiary of ASE Technology, to co-develop GaN power modules for the electric vehicle market.
Quartz component supplier Siward Crystal Technology expects the overall industry supply to remain tight in the first half of 2022, as suppliers' capacity expansion pace fails to catch up with demand, according to company chairman YT Tseng.
Leadframe supplier Chang Wah Technology (CWTC) remains optimistic about demand from the IC backend sector in 2022, despite market concerns about recent corrections in OSATs' capacity utilization rates.
The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) issued a report in September titled "How an Information Technology Agreement 3.0 would bolster global economic growth and opportunity," which is likely to ignite a new round of policy deliberation and debate among emerging countries that have not participated in the previous round of ITA. DIGITIMES tapped on the insight of Stephen Ezell, VP of Global Innovation Policy at ITIF, to discuss why it is essential now to start related policy considerations, as the demand for semiconductor capacity, the repositioning of global supply chains, and the call to deal with climate change and fulfill the UN Sustainable Development Goals require an ITA-3 in place sooner rather than later.
New-generation server processor platforms will be stimulating demand for high-frequency and high-speed CCLs in the first and second quarters of 2022, according to copper foil supplier Co-tech Development.
Taiwan-based Episil Precision, dedicated to the production of epitaxial Si, SiC and GaN wafers, has seen its revenues grow quarter by quarter since the third quarter of 2020, with automotive applications contributing the highest ratio, at 30%, to its revenues, according to company chairman CH Hsu.
Eyeing robust demand for high-speed and high-frequency device applications, CCL makers in Taiwan and China are set to step up equipment and facility purchases for capacity expansions, according to industry sources.
Niching Industrial with its in-house developed low-temperature sintering Ag paste materials has cut into China's third-generation semiconductor industry supply chain, according to the Taiwan-based company specializing in the distribution of IC packaging materials
Eternal Materials, which specializes in resin materials and dry-film photoresists, continues to enjoy strong shipments for high-frequency and high-speed substrates, while seeing orders for consumer electronics applications slow down.
Shortages of certain chips and components are disrupting Zhen Ding Technology's PCB shipments to its major client in the US, and the company expects uneven inventories across different chip types to persist through the end of 2022.
Electric vehicles are penetrating the Indian market very slowly, due to a lack of supporting charging infrastructure. According to DIGITIMES' correspondent in India, local EV charging startups are seeking ways to improve the infrastructure. The global handset market has underperformed so far this year, and it remains uncertain how the year will end up despite the availability of Apple's iPhone 13 series. In the semiconductor sector, Taiwan's output value is expected to exceed NT$4 trillion in 2021.
The output value of Taiwan's semiconductor industry is forecast to exceed NT$4 trillion (US$144 billion) in 2021, after topping NT$3 trillion in 2020, according to Nicky Lu, chairman of Taiwan's fabless chipmaker Etron Technology.
China has been aggressively developing its domestic third-generation semiconductor supply chain with government subsidies, which Taiwan-based makers regard as unfair competition challenging their development for third-generation semiconductors.
Semiconductor suppliers Intel, Qualcomm, and Nvidia were present at this year's International Automobile Exposition (IAA) in Munich, Germany, marking the merging of semiconductor and automobile.
PCB maker HannStar Board is making efforts to increase the proportion of total shipment volume for HDI (high density interconnect) and multi-layer boards, according to company president Tao Cheng-kuo.
Taiwan's epi-wafer supplier Intelligent Epitaxy Technology (IntelliEPI) has started taking orders for its high-performance GaN-based HEMT products, which are expected to serve as another growth driver for the company in 2022.
Taiwan-based Nan Ya PCB is optimistic that its 2022 revenues will register another double-digit growth on new ABF and BT production capacities gradually coming online.
Pure-play foundry houses have been keen on expanding fab capacity, but the notebook industry continues to see serious chip shortage. Some industry sources are blaming Texas Instrument for its insuffcient supply. Networking device makers expect chip and component shortages will persist in 2022. But in the passive components sector, makers have seen demand slow demand.
Passive component makers have seen customers slow down their pace of orders recently, but expect orders to pick up along with the easing of IC shortages next year, according to industry sources.
