The major Japanese chipmakers say they plan to cut holidays short and boost production this summer: Hitachi Ltd and Fujitsu Ltd plan to keep 24-hour chip fabrication lines working throughout the summer holiday season, with shift workers taking time off in turns, according to spokesmen for the two firms; NEC Corp said We plan to cut factory holidays by two or three days due to strong demand – Japanese factories usually close for about a week in mid-August at the time of a rural Buddhist festival; panic buying for fear of shortages has exacerbated already strong demand for 4M-bit memory chips from the US and firms have also been encouraged by sudden sharp rises in chip prices.
