Korea’s Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Energy has forecast the global semiconductor industry will post double-digit growth each year from 1999 to 2002. The semiconductor industry will enjoy a continued boom for the next few years as demand for communications devices and internet use are expected to surge, a ministry statement said. It forecasts the global chip market will be worth $145bn this year, 15.6% up from last year, $172.3bn next year, $199.1bn in 2001 and $223.5bn in 2002.
The ministry said the current recovery is a much broader one than past recoveries because of the increase in use of chips in many consumer products, including digital cameras, audio players, and mobile phones.
Demand for DRAM (dynamic random access memory) chips, one of Korea’s core exports, is forecast by the ministry to grow nearly 39% to $19.4bn in 1999 from $14bn last year and for growth to average nearly 25% over the coming four years.
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