Gartner in 2018 global semiconductor market revenue It is projected to reach $451 billion, up 7.5% from the previous year. This figure is nearly double the 4% growth mentioned in the previous forecast.

Gartner Senior Research Analyst Ben Lee stated, “The strong market conditions in the memory sector during the second half of 2016 are expected to continue into this year, which will significantly drive semiconductor market revenue.” He added, “Gartner has raised its 2018 semiconductor market revenue forecast by $23.6 billion from the previous estimate, with the memory market accounting for $19.5 billion of that total.” He added, “Price increases for DRAM and NAND flash memory are brightening the overall outlook for the semiconductor market.”

However, it was predicted that price increases resulting from component shortages and an increased number of required parts due to the memory boom would place a burden on the profits of system manufacturers leading the drive for semiconductor demand in smartphones, PCs, and servers.

Despite the upwardly revised outlook for 2018, it was projected that after a continuous decline of about 4-6% in the first quarter, it would show a recovery over the second and third quarters, and show a slight decline in the fourth quarter.

The semiconductor market in 2018 was projected to grow by 4.6%, including Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs), Application-Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs), optoelectronics, and non-optical sensors.

Another major device sector driving growth in 2018 is Application-Specific Semiconductors (ASSP), with growth prospects driven by the bright outlook for graphics cards for gaming PCs and high-performance computing applications, wired communications, and the overall growth of automotive content.

“The mixed outlooks of semiconductor companies observed in recent years serve as a reminder of the high volatility in the memory market,” said Senior Researcher Ben Lee. “Global semiconductor market revenue grew by 22.2% in 2017, followed by single-digit growth in 2018, and is expected to decline slightly starting in 2019 due to adjustments in the memory market.”