The Semiconductor Industry Association trumpeted that worldwide sales of semiconductors reached $26.28bn for January, an increase of 8.8% from January 2013 when sales were $24.15bn, marking the industry’s highest-ever January sales total and the largest year-to-year increase in nearly three years.
Sequentially global sales from January 2014 fell 1.4% from the December 2013 total of $26.65bn, reflecting normal seasonal trends. Regionally, European sales grew 11.3% year on year and Asia/Pacific sales grew 8.3%. These numbers were eclipsed by sales in the Americas which increased by 17.3% compared to last January.
“The global semiconductor industry has built on its record revenues from 2013 with an impressive start to 2014, led largely by continued strength in the Americas market,” said Brian Toohey, president and CEO, Semiconductor Industry Association. “Sales in January were up across most regions and nearly all product categories compared to last January, which bodes well for continued growth during the rest of 2014.”
Sales were flat in Europe compared to the previous month, but decreased slightly in Asia Pacific (-0.6%), Japan (-2.3%), and the Americas (-3.5%).
