1. It is rumored that TSMC will increase the OEM quotation by 3%-6% next year
According to the Taiwan Electronics Times quoted by the Financial Associated Press, the IC design industry said that although the market conditions are weak and the economy is uncertain in the second half of the year, TSMC still insists on raising the foundry quotation, and the advanced process will increase by another 3% from January 2024- 6%, according to the manufacturing process, order size and close cooperation, the increase of the factories varies. At present, TSMC has successively communicated with many customers such as Apple, MediaTek, AMD, Nvidia, Qualcomm and Broadcom.
2. In the first quarter, the revenue of the enterprise-level SSD industry dropped by nearly 50%
According to the Taiwan Business Times report, the off-season effect and high inflation have led to a decline in the purchasing momentum of North American server ODM and mainland China, and the inventory of suppliers’ enterprise-level SSDs in the first quarter did not fall but rose, and did not effectively improve due to production cuts. Prices were lowered to sell in order to expand shipments, causing enterprise-level SSDs to fall in both volume and price. In the first quarter, revenue fell 47.3% quarter-on-quarter to US$1.998 billion.
Whether Kioxia can complete the merger with Western Digital will affect the future development plan of enterprise-level SSD products. If there is an opportunity for further integration between the two parties, Western Digital will focus more on the development of consumer-grade SSDs, while Kioxia can fully devote itself to enhancing the verification of enterprise customers, which will help expand enterprise-grade SSD shipments and achieve growth.
3. Sales of NAND flash memory declined in the first quarter, and manufacturers cut production and inventory
According to IT House, TrendForce research shows that the global NAND flash memory industry revenue in the first quarter was approximately US$8.63 billion, a quarter-on-quarter decrease of 16.1%, following a double-digit decline after a 25% decline in the fourth quarter of last year.
The demand for servers, laptops and smartphones has not improved, and manufacturers have been forced to cut prices to clear inventory. The average selling price of NAND flash memory in the world fell by 15% in the first quarter, which directly led to the overall weakness in sales.
Since Samsung also joined in production cuts in the second quarter, coupled with the increased purchasing willingness of buyers represented by OEMs, it is expected that the overall shipment of NAND flash memory in the second quarter will increase by 5.2% quarter-on-quarter. The average price continues to decline, so it is expected that the revenue of the NAND flash memory industry will continue to decline in the second quarter, with a quarter-on-quarter decrease of about 7.9%.
4. Foxconn plans to produce iPhones in Karnataka, India by April next year
According to TechWeb citing foreign media reports, on Thursday, the government of Karnataka state in India stated that Foxconn will start producing iPhones in Karnataka state by April 2024. Foxconn had previously said it would invest in Karnataka, planning to invest $700 million to build a new factory in the state.
Earlier, in May this year, Foxconn said in a statement submitted to the London Stock Exchange that it had spent about 3 billion rupees to buy a 300-acre land in Karnataka, which is located in Bengaluru. Suburban Devanahalli, close to Bangalore Airport.
5. MediaTek ranked first in the shipment of mobile phone processors in the first quarter
According to Fast Technology, Counterpoint’s latest report stated that in the first quarter of this year, MediaTek continued to occupy the top spot in the global mobile phone processor market, but its share has declined compared to before, but it still exceeds 30%. Followed by Qualcomm and Apple, the corresponding shares are 28% and 26%, respectively, while Ziguang Zhanrui and Samsung rank fourth and fifth.
For the current mobile phone processor market, MediaTek and Qualcomm are actively clearing inventory, and both said that inventory will return to normal within a few quarters. iOS has outperformed the Android market and is less affected by weak demand, which is also where Apple has an advantage.
6. Renesas completed the acquisition of Panthronics to enhance the competitiveness of the NFC market
Renesas announced on its official website on June 2 the acquisition of Panthronics AG, a fabless semiconductor company focused on high-performance wireless products. Renesas also announced 13 “Winning Portfolio” solution designs that combine Renesas’ products with Panthronics’ unique NFC technology, demonstrating the continued expansion of Renesas’ product lineup, particularly in the connectivity field.
The acquisition gives Renesas its own capabilities to capture the growing NFC market. Leveraging Panthronics’ NFC expertise and experienced engineering talent, Renesas is able to provide customers with a wide range of connectivity solutions in growing fields such as fintech, IoT and automotive.