| GSA: Chip revenues reached $71.9bn in Q3/07 |
Source:John Walko, EETimes, January 10 2008 |
| http://www.eetimes.eu/uk/205602083 |
Worldwide semiconductor revenues increased by 13 percent in the third quarter of last year
over the same period in 2006, according to the Global Semiconductor Alliance (GSA). The GSA
(San Jose, Calif.) suggests revenues for the quarter reached $71.9 billion, with fabless and IDM
revenue accounting for 20 percent and 80 percent of sales respectively. |
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| Used fab gear to flood market |
| Source:Mark LaPedus, EETimes, January 10 2008 |
| http://www.eetimes.eu/germany/205602553 |
There is more bad news for the IC-equipment industry: a glut of used and cheap gear is
expected to flood the market. Based on analysis of probable fab closures and plants for sale,
the availability of used equipment will grow from $300 million in 2007 to more than $8 billion
in 2009, according to Semiconductor Partners in conjunction with Semico Research Corp.
|
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| Demand for PCs drives semiconductor sales |
| Source:Martin Lynch, vnunet.com, January 11 2008 |
| http://www.vnunet.com |
|
Strong PC demand helped fuel healthy growth in the sector and the semiconductor market
during November 2007, but DRam memory prices continued to free fall. The latest figures from
the Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA) showed that worldwide sales of semiconductors
rose to $23.1bn (£11.7bn) in November, an increase of 2.3 per cent from $22.5bn in November
2006. Sales increased by 0.7 per cent over October 2006. For the year to date, sales topped
$231bn, 2.8 per cent up on the same period in 2006.
|
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| [Auto Expo 2008] Bajaj's 100,000 Rupee Car 'Lite' Resembles Japanese Light Car |
| Source:Tech-On, Kenji Momota, Journalist and Yasuto Toudou, January 11 2008 |
| http://techon.nikkeibp.co.jp |
Bajaj Auto Ltd of India unveiled the details of its "1-lakh car" (1 lakh = 100,000 rupee) called
Lite. The name Hamara was reported on Jan 9, 2008, but it was based on false information
published by an Indian newspaper that mistook the Bajaj catch copy as the model name. The
name Lite implies both lightweight and illumination, the company said. |
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| A Nano leap into the future |
|
Source:CK Prahalad The Times of India, January 13 2008 |
| http://www.ibef.org |
The Nano represents an important inflection point in the global auto industry and in the
evolution and maturation of Indian industry. There is great excitement because Tata Motors has
introduced the global auto industry to a whole new consumer segment.
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| India, China safe from looming U.S. recession |
| Source:Sufia Tippu, EE Times, January 14 2008 |
| http://www.eetasia.com |
|
Economies of developing countries will not be directly affected over the next two years by
either the U.S. subprime mortgage crisis or a U.S. economic recession, according to a new
World Bank report. |
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| Excerpts from PM’s address at the India-China economic, trade and investment summit |
| Source:PIB Press Release, January 14 2008 |
| http://pib.nic.in |
|
India and China are today the fastest growing large economies in the world. We should
remember that China, India and Europe had almost equal shares of world income in the early
18th century. As the 21st century unfolds, both India and China stand poised to regain their
weight in the evolving global economy. |
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| Israeli-Chinese VC fund edges closer to $350 million |
| Source:Amir Ben-Artzi, EETimes, January 14 2008 |
| http://www.eetimes.com |
|
The China Development Bank together and IDB Group (Tel-Aviv, Israel) have invested $50
million in the Infinity I-China Fund. The I-China Fund is set to be managed by Infinity-CSVC
Partners Ltd., a general partner with a joint management team both from Infinity and Suzhou
Ventures Group. |
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| EDA ekes out modest growth as action moves offshore |
| Source:EETimes, January 14 2008 |
| http://www.eetimes.eu |
|
The latest statistics from the EDA Consortium show semiconductor and electronic design are
continuing their gradual shift outside North America, with modest single-digit growth overall
for the sector that supplies chip and system design software. |
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| $2500 automobile set to expand Indian motoring |
| Source:Peter Clarke, EETimes, January 14 2008 |
| http://www.eetimes.eu |
|
The launch by Tata of a car for the Indian market costing just $2500 is likely to have a dramatic
effect on the automotive electronics market — but also on the global climate. |
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| Infineon in cooperation with Volkswagen |
| Source:evertiq, January 14 2008 |
| http://www.evertiq.com |
German based Infineon has announced that Volkswagen has chosen to use a microcontroller
designed by Infineon for use in automotive body and convenience electronics. |
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| Shaking off recession fears, analysts see chip industry growth |
| Source:David Lammers, Semiconductor International, January 14 2008 |
| http://www.semiconductor.net |
|
With fears of an economic recession on many people’s minds, a panel of semiconductor
industry analysts took a surprisingly rosy view of the chip industry’s prospects for this year
during a panel discussion Monday that kicked off the 2008 Industry Strategy Symposium (ISS) in
Half Moon Bay, Calif. |
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| Reality of electronic manufacturing base in India |
| Source:Rajeev Mehtani, EETimes, January 15 2008 |
| http://www.eetindia.co.in |
|
With the demand for electronic goods in India expected to quadruple in the next five years, it
is good to ponder how much of these goods will be manufactured in India itself; thereby
creating employment opportunities within the country. While in the western world, many
markets have reached a state of maturity, India offers immense opportunities for growth, and
here are some interesting statistics: For the next few years cell phone sales will grow at a
breakneck pace of approximately 41 per cent per annum, TVs at 13 per cent and set top boxes
(STBs) at 43 per cent. At the same time, we will also see a lot of investment flowing into India
from multinationals such as Nokia, Samsung and Motorola. From these stats, we can surmise
that things will be great. |
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| New telecom players to ring in US$ 5 billion bonanza |
| Source:The Economic Times, January 15 2008 |
| http://www.ibef.org |
|
Orders worth as much as Rs 20,000 crore await telecom equipment companies, backoffice
service providers and call centres with the government opening the gates for more service
providers to set up mobile phone operations, industry experts said. |
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| ST changes management structure |
| Source:Anne-Francoise Pele, EETimes, January 15 2008 |
| http://www.eetimes.eu |
|
In accordance with evolving dynamics of the semiconductor industry and in anticipation of
executives retirements, STMicroelectronics NV announced it has revamped its management
structure. Appointments are effective immediately. |
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| BMW Sauber and Cadence to collaborate over F1 Technology |
| Source:evertiq, January 15 2008 |
| http://www.evertiq.com |
|
BMW Motorsport Deploys Technology from Cadence to Develop the Next Generation of BMW
Sauber F1 Team Car. |
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| UK manufacturing more difficult in 2008 |
| Source:evertiq, January 15 2008 |
| http://www.evertiq.com |
|
According to EEF, the Manufacturers' Organisation in the UK, next year will be more difficult
for UK manufacturers which have suffered a slowdown in recent years, however companies will
not be hit hard. |
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| HCL launches laptop for Rs 14,000 |
| Source:CIOL, January 15 2008 |
| http://www.ciol.com |
|
HCL today introduced its future computing strategy with two ultra-portable product laptop
lines. The first of the products is the MiLeap X series at Rs 13,990, a 1.4kg ultra portable with a
7" LCD, running Linux with a GUI. The X-series has 2GB flash-based storage instead of a hard
drive, built-in wireless, USB and PC Card socket. It has soft faux-leather cladding to make it
shock-resistant, which allows it to be carried without a laptop case. |
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| Foundry model under stress |
| Source:Mark LaPedus, EETimes, January 15 2008 |
| http://www.eetimes.com |
|
After years of success, the silicon foundry model may be falling apart. Perhaps a better
description is that there are growing cracks in the model. In fact, the semiconductor supply
chain is headed towards a "collision course," as leading-edge foundries are falling behind
Moore's Law and find themselves stretched too thin, according to analysts. |
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| Israeli tech-based firms raised $1.76 billion in 2007 |
| Source:Amir Ben-Artzi, EETimes, January 15 2008 |
| http://www.eetimes.com |
|
In 2007, 462 Israeli high-tech companies raised $1.76 billion from local and foreign venture
investors, 8.5 percent above the $1.62 billion raised in 2006 and 31.5 percent above the 2005
level, according to the quarterly survey conducted by the IVC Research Center with the
cooperation of the Israel Venture Association (IVA). |
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| Chip makers must shift from fabs to systems |
| Source:Rick Merritt, EETimes, January 15 2008 |
| http://www.eetimes.com |
|
Semiconductor companies need to shift their focus from building fabs to building systems, and
they must engage with customers at deep technical levels if they are to survive the current
wave of consolidation. That's the view of Wolfgang Ziebart, chief executive of Infineon
Technologies. |
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| Gartner gives grim chip outlook |
| Source:Rick Merritt, EE Times, January 16 2008 |
| http://www.eetasia.com |
|
The semiconductor industry has hit the single-digit era. Even worse than finding a few more
grays hairs of maturity as business slows, chipmakers face some old structural problems that
may be catching up with them. The semiconductor market will grow less than 5 percent over
the 2006 to 2011 period, according to a forecast by Gartner Inc. What's more troubling is the
news that the traditional difficulties of the memory-chip sector are likely to flare up into a
major crisis during the period. |
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| European VC investments fall in 2007 |
| Source:John Walko, EETimes, January 16 2008 |
| http://www.eetimes.eu/design/205800367 |
|
Venture capital investment into European companies during the fourth quarter of 2007 was
Euros 1.21 billion, down from Euros 1.36 billion last quarter and Euros 1.52 billion for the
corresponding quarter last year, representing a 6.6 percent decline for the year, according to
research group Library House (Cambridge, England). |
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| Asia to dominate Mobile WiMAX market |
| Source:CIOL, January 16 2008 |
| http://www.ciol.com |
|
Juniper Research forecasts that Asia will account for over 50 percent of Mobile WiMAX 802.16e
subscribers by 2013, exceeding 40 million mobile subscribers. |
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| ISMI Introduces Guidelines to Protect IP in Semiconductor Industry |
| Source:Centredaily.com, January 16, 2008 |
| http://www.eenewsfeed.com |
|
Looking to balance the necessity of R&D collaboration with the need for competitive
advantage, the International SEMATECH Manufacturing Initiative (ISMI) has published the
semiconductor industry's first guidelines for protecting intellectual property (IP) within process
equipment. |
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| Intel CTO outlines 2008 strategy |
| Source:K.C. Krishnadas, EETimes, January 16 2008 |
| http://www.eetimes.com |
|
Intel Corp researchers have identified five focus areas for 2008, including "platform-on-a-chip"
development. Intel's corporate technology group, which includes about 1,000 researchers in 15
locations worldwide, including here, has outlined five areas it will focus on this year: terascale
computing, platform-on-a- chip, trusted services, a mobile computing initiative called "carry
small, live large" and "ultimate connectivity". |
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| Manufacturing biz undergoes global rebalancing |
| Source:EETimes, January 17 2008 |
| http://www.eetindia.co.in |
|
In the early 2000s, manufacturing capacity abruptly shifted from the high-cost regions of North
America and Western Europe to the low-cost nation of mainland China. However, in the second
half of the decade, iSuppli Corp. is tracking a new series of evolutionary and strategic steps for
electronics contract manufacturers that focuses on other factors beyond labour cost when it
comes to selecting a location for production. |
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| Intel India ups contribution to global products |
| Source:Business Standard, January 17 2008 |
| http://www.ibef.org |
|
The Intel India Research Centre (IIRC) -- part of the global chip maker's Corporate Technology
Group (CTG) labs -- has increased its level of contribution towards evolution of global products.
The company is developing next-generation microprocessors for diverse mobile computing
devices, which are energy efficient, scalable and high performing, at the IIRC located in
Bangalore. |
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| Intel CTO presses software developers to keep pace |
| Source:K.C. Krishnadas, EETimes, January 17 2008 |
| http://www.eetimes.com |
|
Software development and delivery have failed to keep pace with advances in computer
hardware, according to Intel Corp.'s CTO. Speaking here on Thursday (Jan. 17), Justin Rattner
said software delivery has reached an inflection point and developers of packaged applications
are becoming an endangered species. He said Intel believes current software delivery methods
are being replaced by global Internet connectivity. Hence, the delivery of software services
now depends more on secure transmission over global networks. |
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| Gartner, IDC see strong '07 for PC shipments |
| Source:John Walko, EETimes, January 17 2008 |
| http://www.eetimes.com |
|
Worldwide PC shipments increased by 13.4 percent last year to reach 271.2 million units
according to preliminary results by Gartner, Inc. The industry ended the year with fourth
quarter PC shipments of 75.9 million units, a 13.1 percent increase from the 67.1 million units
shipped in the fourth quarter of 2006. |
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| iSuppli trims its chip forecast for 2008 |
| Source:EETimes, January 18 2008 |
| http://www.eetindia.co.in |
|
Citing global economic woes, iSuppli Corp. has reduced its forecast for global semiconductor
revenue growth in 2008, but still foresees a positive year for the market—particularly in the
second half. iSuppli now predicts global semiconductor revenue will rise to Rs.1,150,400.28
crore ($291.4 billion) in 2008, up 7.5 per cent from an estimated Rs.1,069,469.59 crore ($270.9
billion) in 2007. This represents a 1.8-percentage-point reduction from iSuppli's previous
prediction in September of a 9.3 per cent increase for the year. |
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| Indian economy to grow by 8.5 per cent in 2008-09 |
| Source:DailyIndia.com, January 17 2008 |
| http://www.dailyindia.com |
|
Dr. C. Rangarajan, Chairman of the Economic Advisory Council (EAC), on Thursday said that the
economic growth of the country in 2007-08 is likely to be 8.90 per cent with Agriculture
growing at 3.6 per cent, Industry 9.7 per cent and Services 10.3 per cent. |
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| Excerpts: Economic Advisory Council to PM releases ‘Review of the economy 2007-08’ |
| Source:PIB Press Release, January 17 2008 |
| http://pib.nic.in/release |
- Economic growth in 2007-08 likely to be 8.9%
- Agriculture to grow at 3.6%
- Industry to grow at 9.7%
- Services to grow at 10.3%
- Change in economic environment since July 2007
- Global environment much less benign
- Agricultural outlook better, industry slightly worse
- Manufacturing growth estimated at 9.8%
- Capital inflows of $103 billion much higher than $58 billion projected
- Rupee appreciation hurting some sectors but not affecting aggregate exports in $ terms
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| Nano makes it to Time's most important cars of all time |
| Source:The Hindu Business Line, January 18 2008 |
| http://www.ibef.org |
|
One week after its unveiling, the world's media is still agog with news and views about the Tata
Nano. Many termed it a cute, ultra-cheap car that will revolutionise personal transportation in
India and Asia and many others are calling it a glorified go-kart that will be unreliable and
unsafe. |
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| For Japan, business is where India is |
| Source:The Financial Express, January 18 2008 |
| http://www.ibef.org |
|
India has turned out to be the most promising country for Japanese overseas business.
According to a survey conducted by Japan Bank for International Co-operation, this year, India
overtook China for the first time in the long-term overseas business category. |
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| Is the US going into a recession? |
| Source:Jamal Mecklai, January 18, 2008 |
| http://www.businessstandard.com |
|
A survey of 52 economists conducted by the Blue Chip Economic Indicator showed an average
forecast of 2.2 per cent for US economic growth in 2008. A survey by Bloomberg News
conducted this month had 60 per cent of the economists surveyed thinking the US would avoid
a recession, with a median growth expectation of 1.5 per cent for the first six months of 2008. |
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