Taipei, May 17 (CNA) The semiconductor industry is poised to stage a mild recovery in the second half of 2023 after its worldwide slump eases in the second quarter, according to global semiconductor trade association SEMI.In a research report released Tuesday in partnership with U.S. market information advisory firm TechInsights, SEMI said the ongoing inventory adjustments in the semiconductor sector should moderate in the second quarter and give way to a gradual recovery starting in the third quarter.Industry indicators including IC sales and silicon shipments showed quarter-over-quarter improvements in the second quarter, said SEMI, which represents companies in the electronics manufacturing and design supply chain.Despite the gains, however, bloated inventories in the industry continued to keep a lid on silicon shipments, and fab utilization rates have remained significantly lower than levels recorded in 2022, the trade group said.Semiconductor equipment sales have also continued to decline in line with capital expenditure adjustments by major industry stakeholders."The indicators point to a likely bottoming of the current downturn in the second quarter of 2023 with a slow recovery expected to begin in the year's second half," it said.TechInsights agreed that the semiconductor market remained haunted by uncertainty in 2023, but that a recovery could occur later this year."We expect continuing production cuts and capex reductions, especially in the memory market, will start having a positive impact on market fundamentals in the latter part of the year, resulting in a more balanced market environment," Risto Puhakka, TechInsights' vice president for market analysis, said in the report.The SEMI report echoed the views of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC), the world's largest contract chipmaker.It said at an investor conference in mid-April that it expected its operations to bottom out in the second quarter and be better in the second half of the year than in the first half.Still, due to weaker-than-expected demand, TSMC forecast revenue for 2023 to fall 1 percent-6 percent from a year earlier in U.S. dollar terms, a downgrade from an earlier estimate of "a slight increase" made in January.For the second quarter, TSMC estimated it will generate US$15.2 billion to US$16.0 billion in sales with a median figure of US$15.8 billion, which would be about 6.7 percent lower than a quarter earlier.TSMC left its capital expenditure budget for 2023 unchanged at US$32 billion to US$36 billion after the company took into account its growth and needs from clients over the next few years.(By Chang Chien-chung and Frances Huang)Enditem/ls (ICE TAIPEI)

Fonte notizia: Organi di Stampa - Focus Taiwan News Channel