Half of the major IC product segments defined by the World Semiconductor Trade Statistics (WSTS) will see a growth in 2011, according to a new IC Insight forecast.
According to the forecast, 14 of the 28 major IC product categories will experience growth in 2011, with 13 segments expected to grow at least by 4% and 7 categories to achieve double digit growth.
The number of categories exhibiting positive growth will be down in 2011 compared to 2010, while six of the growth segments are from the analog segment, led by Automotive Application-Specific Analog devices.
The Automotive Application-Specific Analog segment is expected to achieve 32% growth, highest among all product segments in 2011, while Automotive-Special Purpose Logic is expected to grow 13%.
This growth is expected to be driven by growth in systems and features such as GPS/navigation, Bluetooth, and sensors for low tire pressure warning, anti-roll, collision avoidance/adaptive cruise control, and park assist.
The forecast said that NAND flash memory will grow in 2011, driven by smartphones, tablet PCs and solid-state drives (SSDs) for portable PCs.
However, 12 IC product segments will see negative growth in 2011, with SRAM and ROM devices shipment to register big declines by -31% and -33%, respectively.
The IC Insight forecast said the DRAM market will fall 13% due to a 17% drop in the DRAM average selling price, compared to the 75% growth the DRAM market achieved in 2010.
