- Worldwide semiconductor revenue grew to $464 billion in 2020, an increase of 10.8 per centcompared to 2019
- The market for semiconductors in Computing systems, such as PCs and servers, outpaced the overall semiconductor market, growing 17.3 per cent year over year to $160 billion in 2020
IDC forecasts the semiconductor market will reach $522 billion in 2021, a 12.5 per cent year-over-year growth rate. IDC anticipates continued robust growth in consumer, computing, 5G, and automotive semiconductors. It said that despite the impact of COVID-19 on the global economy, the semiconductor market performed strongly in 2020, as per IDC. Demand by industry was uneven throughout the year due to global lockdowns, remote work and education, and shifts in consumer buying behavior. Worldwide semiconductor revenue grew to $464 billion in 2020, an increase of 10.8 per centcompared to 2019, according to the Semiconductor Applications Forecaster (SAF) from International Data Corporation (IDC).
It added, “Supply constraints will continue through 2021. While shortages initially occurred in automotive semiconductors, the impact is being felt across the board in semiconductors manufactured at older technology nodes. Much like a traffic jam and the ripple effect, a disruption on the semiconductor supply chain operating close to capacity will impact across the supply chain. The industry will continue to struggle to rebalance across different industry segments, while investment in capacity now will improve the industry’s resiliency in a few years.
“Looking forward to 2021, IDC sees continued strong growth in semiconductor sales worldwide as adoption of cloud technologies and demand for data and services remain unchanged. Global fiscal and monetary policy remain accommodative and will provide a tailwind for continued capital investments in long term infrastructure. The market for semiconductors in Computing systems, such as PCs and servers, outpaced the overall semiconductor market, growing 17.3 per cent year over year to $160 billion in 2020..
Shane Rau, research vice president, Computing Semiconductors said that the PC processors market looks strong through the first half and likely the whole year.” IDC forecasts Computing systems revenues will grow 7.7 per cent to $173 billion in 2021.
Phil Solis, research director for Connectivity and Smartphone Semiconductors said, “Growth in Mobile Phone semiconductors was resilient in 2020. “Mobile phone shipments fell by more than ten percent in 2020, but mobile phone semiconductor revenues grew by 9.1% due to a shift to higher priced 5G semiconductors, more memory per phone, sensors, and RF support for more spectrum bands.”
2021 will be an especially important year for semiconductor vendors as 5G phones capture 34 per cent of all mobile phone shipments while semiconductors for 5G phones will capture nearly two thirds of the revenue in the segment. IDC forecasts mobile phone semiconductor revenues will grow by 23.3 per cent in 2021 to $147 billion.
Consumer semiconductor market segment rebounded in 2020
The Consumer semiconductor market segment rebounded in 2020. Robust sales of game consoles, tablets, wireless headphones and earbuds, smart watches, and OTT streaming media devices fueled segment growth by 7.7 per cent year over year to $60 billion.
Rudy Torrijos, research manager, Consumer Semiconductors said, “Apple, AMD, and Intel showed exceptional growth as consumers upgraded their digital spaces at home. New gaming consoles from Microsoft and Sony, continued strong sales of wearables from Apple, and the rise in smart home networks managed by Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant will accelerate growth in 2021 to 8.9 per cent year over year.”
Nina Turner, research manager, Automotive Semiconductors added, ‘Automotive sales recovered in the second half of 2020, but the supply constraints for the automotive semiconductor market for some products will last through 2021 as fires and fab shutdowns further impacted the automotive semiconductor market and it takes time for chips to move through the automotive ecosystem, specifically in the U.S. and Europe. For 2021, IDC forecasts that automotive semiconductor revenue will grow 13.6 per cent.
