The worldwide semiconductor market is set to grow 7% in 2014 following 5% growth last year, according to industry researcher IC Insights, which released its McClean Report 2014 in January. Although the outlook calls for steady improvement across the market, IC Insights leaders note that such growth is still considered slow in an industry accustomed to double-digit gains.
“This year looks pretty good—not great, but better than last year,” IC Insights president Bill McClean said during a presentation of the report’s findings in Boston in late January. “Really good growth in this industry is double-digit. Anything else is just okay.”
A sluggish worldwide economy is largely to blame. McClean pointed to ongoing problems in the Eurozone in particular as keeping market conditions less than stellar. Positive economic indicators in the United States—including the Purchasing Manager’s Index (PMI), which slowed in January but remained above the 50-point threshold indicating growth—combined with growth in emerging markets will help keep conditions moving in the right direction, however.
“If the world economy cooperates, it should be a good year,” McClean said.
