GlobalWafers Co (環球晶圓), the world’s third-largest silicon wafer supplier, expects artificial intelligence (AI) technology and other emerging technologies to stimulate semiconductor demand and its revenue growth this year.
The Hsinchu-based company’s revenue last year inched up 0.52 percent to NT$70.65 billion (US$2.27 billion), setting an all-time high and bucking the semiconductor industry’s downward trend.
The company’s operations in Japan outperformd other regions, with revenue growing about 10 percent year-on-year to ￥55 billion (US$377.46 million), it said.
Photo: Grace Hung, Taipei Times
Overall, the company’s growth was buoyed by long-term supply agreements (LTA) signed with its customers, GlobalWafers chairperson Doris Hsu (徐秀蘭) said at a media gathering in Hsinchu on Wednesday.
GlobalWafers has discussed with customers to push out some wafer deliveries or to make other flexible arrangements, with the aim to help customers cope with current inventories, Hsu said.
The average LTA prices this year are to go up from last year, as some of the company’s wafer capacity will be produced at newly built factories with higher production costs, she said.
Given economic and political uncertainties, “2024 is the most complicated year” in Hsu’s career over the past two decades, she said, adding that customers are conservative about the business outlook and hesitate to order new wafers.
Most customers expect to have a better recovery in the second half of this year, as they face low seasons in the first half, Hsu said.
GlobalWafers is positive about its prospects this year on the back of the semiconductor industry’s revival, Hsu said.
Analysts have estimated an annual expansion of between 13 percent and 20 percent in revenue for the semiconductor industry this year, fueled by rising demand for AI and new telecom technologies beyond 5G, she said.
“I think AI is making a big difference to the world and to the semiconductor industry particularly,” Hsu said
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