Semiconductor revenue to fall 11.4%: Gartner

Global semiconductor sales is expected to decline by 11 per cent this year to touch $226 billion, according to research firm Gartner.

This is, however, an improvement over the previous estimate of a 17 per cent drop.

Revenue is projected to drop this year to $226 billion, an 11.4 per cent decline from last year's $255 billion, Gartner said in a statement.

In 2010, the revenue is expected to bounce back by 13 per cent from this year's level, hitting the $255 billion level as in 2008, it added.

Gartner said improvement in PC unit growth projections from double-digit declines at the start of the year to the current low-single-digit positive outlook have helped the sentiment to improve.

Besides PCs, cell phones have also been a boon for semiconductor sales, it added.

"The revenue forecast for the commodity memory market has improved because of the stronger demand outlook, which means that pricing has strengthened more than previously forecast," Gartner research vice-president Bryan Lewis said.

He, however, added that recent channel checks in Taiwan indicate that PC orders were declining earlier than the seasonal norm and that 2010 may get off to a slow start.